Shankar Mahadevan Birthday Special: 7 super hit songs of the music maestro

Shankar Mahadevan turned 52 years old today (March 3). He was born on 3 March 1967 in Chembur, Mumbai in a Tamil Iyer family. Shankar Mahadevan is currently one of the most popular music composers in India, but did you know that he started his career as Software Engineer and currently has four National Awards? On the occasion of his 52nd Birthday today, we will talk about Shankar Mahadevan’s best songs that prove his versatility.

Mahadevan was awarded first National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer in 2000 for  ‘Yenna Solla Pogirai’ (Kandukondain Kandukondain). In 2007, he won it for ‘Maa’ (Taare Zameen Par) and in 2012, he won it for ‘Bolo Na’ (Chittagong). He also has one National Film Award for Best Music Direction for ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’.

Here is a list of the best songs of Shankar Mahadevan

Shankar has also crooned many devotional songs and his live performances have spiritual energy that’s is difficult to describe in words.

1. ‘Kajra Re’ – ‘Bunty Aur Babli’ (2005)

One of the most loved songs of Shankar Mahadevan is ‘Kajra Re’, which was filmed for 2005 film ‘Bunty Aur Babli’, which starred Rani Mukherjee, Abhishek Bachchan and Amitabh Bachchan.  The song ‘Kajra Re’ is composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, written by Gulzar and sung by the playback singers Alisha Chinoy, Shankar Mahadevan and Javed Ali.

2.  ‘Breathless’ title track (1998 album)

‘Breathless,’ is a song which made Mahadevan famous, and was released in 1998. The lyrics of the song was written by Javed Akhtar. The title track ‘Breathless’ is not only a song, but also depicts a love story crooned all at one go. Talking about the song, Mahadevan had once said that he did breathe and it was technology that made it possible for the track to sound ‘breathless’.

3. ‘Maa’ – ‘Taare Zameen Par’ (2007)

The title of the song ‘Maa’ is enough to get everyone emotional and Mahadevan put his heart and soul to make it great. The lyrics of the song was written by Prasson Joshi. It is one of the greatest songs that Hindi cinema has ever witnessed.

4. ‘Tere Naina’ – ‘Chandni Chowk to China’ (2009)

The song ‘Tere Naina’ was shot for 2009 film ‘Chandni Chowk to China’, which starred Akshay Kumar and Deepika Padukone. The song was crooned by Shreya Ghoshal and Shankar Mahadevan. The lyrics of the song was written by Rajat Arora. It’s music was composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.

5. ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ – ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ (2001)

Indian comedy film ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ featuring Aamir Khan,  Akshaye Khanna, Saif Ali Khan, Preity Zinta, Sonali Kulkarni and Dimple Kapadia was released in 2001. It won a National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi cinema. The music of the title song was composed by Shankar-Eshaan-Loy and sung by Shankar Mahadevan and Clinton Cerejo.

6. ‘Jeene Ke Ishaare’ – ‘Phir Milenge’ (2004)

‘Phir Milenge’ is an Indian drama which featured Abhishek Bachchan and Shilpa Shetty in lead roles. It failed badly at the box office. However, the track of the film ‘Jeene Ke Ishaare’ turned out to be the chartbuster of the year. The lyrics of the song was written by Prasoon Joshi and its music was composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. The song was sung by Shankar Mahadevan.

7. ‘Pretty Woman’ – ‘Kal Ho Na Ho’ (2003)

‘Kal Ho Na Ho’ is an Indian romantic drama featuring Shah Rukh Khan, Jaya Bachchan, Saif Ali Khan and Preity Zinta. It was released in 2003. The song was sung by Shankar Mahadevan and Ravi Khote.  According to reports, Dharma Productions had obtained the rights to use the words ‘pretty woman’ from the classic track ‘Pretty Woman’ by Roy Orbison.

Also Read: 10 most beautiful Bollywood songs written by Javed Akhtar