KL Saigal
| Kundanlal Saigal | |
|---|---|
Kundanlal Saigal
|
|
| Background information | |
| Born |
11 April 1904 Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, British India |
| Died | 18 January 1947 (aged 42) Jalandhar, Punjab, British India |
| Genres | Playback singing |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, actor |
| Instruments | Vocalist, Harmonium |
| Years active | 1932–1947 |
Kundanlal Saigal, often abbreviated as K. L. Saigal (11 April 1904 – 18 January 1947), was an Indian singer and actor who is considered the first superstar of the Hindi film industry, which was centred in Kolkata during Saigal's time, but is currently centred in Mumbai.
Saigal was born in Jammu, where his father Amarchand Saigal was a tehsildar at the court of the Raja of Jammu and Kashmir. His mother Kesarbai Saigal was a deeply religious Hindu lady who was very fond of music. She used to take her young son to religious functions where bhajan, kirtan and shabad were sung in traditional styles based on classical Indian music. Saigal was the fourth-born child of five and his formal schooling was brief and uneventful. As a child he occasionally played Sita in the Ramlila of Jammu.
Saigal dropped out of school and started earning money by working as a railway timekeeper. Later, he worked as a typewriter salesman for the Remington Typewriter Company, which allowed him to tour several parts of India. His travels brought him to Lahore, where he befriended Mehrchand Jain (who later went on to start the Assam Soap Factory in Shillong) at the Anarkali Bazaar. Mehrchand and Kundan remained friends when they both moved to Calcutta and had many a mehfil-e-mushaira. In those days Saigal was a budding singer and Mehrchand encouraged him to pursue his talent. Saigal often remarked that he was what he was because of Mehrchand's encouragement and early support. He also briefly worked as a hotel manager. Meanwhile, his passion for singing continued and became more intense with the passage of time.
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