Kishore Kumar

Kishore Kumar (August 4, 1929 - October 13, 1987), born as Abhas Ganguly, was a Bengali Indian film playback singer (Hindi, Bangla, Marathi, Assamese, Gujarati, Kannada, Bhojpuri, Oriya) and actor. He also worked as producer, composer and lyricist but is chiefly remembered as one of the three leading male playback singers in Bollywood (the other two being Mohammed Rafi and Mukesh). He sang extensively with the songbirds of Bollywood - Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle.

Childhood

Kishore Kumar was born in a Bengali family as Abhas Ganguly, in the small town of Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh. His father Kunjalal Ganguly was a lawyer by profession and was from a middle-class family, whereas his mother Gouri Devi hailed from a wealthy family. Kishore was the youngest of children born to his parents.

Related Topics:
Bengali - Khandwa - Madhya Pradesh

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Ashok Kumar was the eldest son, followed by Sati Devi, the only daughter in the family. Next was Anoop Kumar, and five years younger to Anoop was Kishore.

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When Kishore was still a child, his elder brother Ashok Kumar became a star actor in Bollywood. The effect of filmdom was evident on Kishore the kid. He was a great fan of K. L. Saigal and used to imitate his singing style. Often his parents would ask him to ape his brother's Ashok Kumar's song Main ban ka panchhi and reward him for doing that. Anoop Kumar, Kishore's elder and Ashok's younger brother also forayed in Bollywood after Ashok became a star.

Related Topics:
Ashok Kumar - K. L. Saigal

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