Legendary playback singer S. Janaki was cremated with full state honours on July 12 at a farmhouse in Kaniyanahundi, nearly 25 km from Mysuru. Her granddaughter Apsara performed the final rites according to family traditions, while thousands of fans and dignitaries paid their tributes.
The versatile singer died at a private hospital in Mysuru due to age-related ailments on July 10. She was 88. Her husband, V. Rama Prasad, and her only son, Murali Krishna, had passed away earlier. She was living with her granddaughter, Apsara, in Mysuru.
#WATCH | Mysuru, Karnataka | Full state honours accorded to veteran playback singer S Janaki during her last rites in Mysuru.
Fans mourn and pay their last respects to the mortal remains of legendary playback singer S Janaki, affectionately referred to as Janaki amma and… pic.twitter.com/PL8HfvKR6i
— ANI (@ANI) July 12, 2026
Janaki developed breathing issues on the night of July 10 and was hospitalised. Born in undivided Andhra Pradesh in 1938 to Ramamurthy and Sathyavathi, she moved to Chennai in the mid-1950s and joined AVM Studios as a contract singer. Janaki did not have any formal music training, but she was under the tutelage of Nadaswaram doyen Paidisamy.
In 1958, she won a prize in an All India Radio contest as a singer. In 1957, her breakthrough came with the Tamil film Vidhiyin Vilaiyattu. She then got opportunities to sing in films. D. Chalapathi Rao gave her a chance, and on the second day, Janaki sang a song with Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao.
In the first year after getting her chance, she sang 100 songs in six languages. Her song Singara Velane Deva, composed by S. M. Subbaiah Naidu and featuring Nadaswaram maestro Karukurichi Arunachalam, is still a superhit song that people hum and croon. After that, there was no looking back for Janaki. She had the skill to blend classical finesse with cinematic expression. Music composers M. S. Viswanathan and Ilaiyaraaja utilised her musical talents.
Veteran playback singer S. Janaki passes away at 88.
Fondly known as the "Nightingale of South India," the legendary singer passed away at Apollo Hospital in Mysuru following age-related health complications. She had been admitted to the hospital yesterday after her health… pic.twitter.com/HpiBlekmor
— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) July 11, 2026
Janaki sang songs in 17 languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi, Sinhala, Bengali, Sanskrit, Odia, Gujarati, English, Konkani, Tulu, Saurashtra, German and Punjabi. Singing 48,000 songs in her entire career is a record. Her greatest strength was her ability to perform a song rather than merely sing it. She laughed, cried, whispered, teased and giggled. Sometimes, she mimicked voices whenever the situation arose. She changed from a female voice to a male voice with ease during recordings.
Janaki bagged several National Film Awards and numerous Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, becoming the only female playback singer to receive honours under all three of Tamil cinema’s veteran music composers, M. S. Viswanathan, Ilaiyaraaja and A. R. Rahman.
During her career spanning 60 years, she had the distinction of singing for mothers and daughters: Sandhya and her daughter Jayalalithaa, Lakshmi and her daughter Aishwarya, and Devika and her daughter Kanaka. From the graceful elegance of K. R. Vijaya and Devika in the 1960s to the feisty performances of later-day actors like Radha, Sridevi, Revathi, Bhanupriya and Roja in the 1980s, she gave each of them a distinctive musical identity. She had the ability to soften her tone for innocence and use playful inflections for youthful romance. She followed rustic diction for women from rural backgrounds and deepened her voice for mature, emotionally complex women.
Actress Sridevi benefited greatly from her singing, from her days as a child artiste to her years as a grown-up woman. Janaki’s success was mainly due to her attention to detail, studying the scenario of the film, its requirements and the actress’s on-screen image. To suit these, she modified her pronunciation, breath, laughter and emphasis on individual words. It was this trait that helped her win the hearts of film fans. Janaki never allowed her personality to dominate a performance.
In recording studios, she would not display any theatrical expressions, animation or hand gestures, but would stand before her microphone, hold the lyric sheets and close her eyes, waiting for the cue from the composer. This skill helped her sing emotional songs with ease. She was a favourite singer of music directors. She sang songs for generations, from the expressive heroines of the 1960s to later-year heroines. Her voice would match the voices of female lead actors. Her voice recordings still remain a masterclass in minimalism when compared with modern stage production and digital enhancements.
She retired from her active singing career in 2011. In 2013, Janaki reportedly declined the Padma Bhushan, expressing the view that her contributions deserved greater recognition. Tamil Nadu CM Vijay and other political leaders and cine personalities condoled her death.
Thousands of fans and several cine celebrities, including music director Hamsalekha, singers Sujatha Mohan, Chithra, Vijay Prakash and Rajesh Krishnan, and actors Srinath, Vinod Raj and others, came to pay their last respects to the iconic singer from 8.45 am to 3.15 pm. Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce President Jayamala, actress Bharathi Vishnuvardhan and noted singer Latha Hamsalekha participated in the funeral.
Her mortal remains were draped in a white cotton saree with a thin golden border, with bunches of pink and yellow roses and Tirupati Tirumala prasadam tucked into her saree. She held her favourite idol of Bhagwan Krishna in her right hand. Her body was cremated as per Telugu Brahmin customs at the farm of her caretakers, Naveen and Pavan, at Kaniyanahundi in H. D. Kote Taluk of Mysuru district.
Her granddaughter Apsara performed the last rites and lit the pyre at 5.48 pm. Her daughter-in-law, Uma Murali Krishna, and Apsara’s husband, Ganesh, joined the rituals. The State Government and Mysuru district administration accorded full state honours.
