S Janaki death: Lesser-known facts about Nightingale of South India
Updated On:12 July, 2026 01:57 PM IST | Aakruti Bagla
Legendary singer and four-time National Award winner S Janaki, who has rendered over a whopping 48,000 songs in several Indian languages, passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest. She was 88. As a tribute to her legacy, she was laid to rest with full state honours, As celebs mourn her demise, let’s have a look at some lesser-known facts about legendary singer
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S Janaki (Pics/PTI, Twitter)
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Janaki aka Sistla Janaki was born on April 23, 1938, in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. Her father, Sistla Sreeramamurthy, was an Ayurvedic doctor and teacher
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Widely hailed as the “Nightingale of South India” and often described as a “singing cuckoo,” she built a career that is almost impossible to match in scale and versatility
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She stepped into the film industry at the age of 19. She started her career as a singer by singing a song in the Tamil film Vidhiyan Vilayattu in 1957
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She was married to V. Ramprasad, who stood by her throughout her illustrious career. Following his death in 1997, Janaki made the personal choice to wear only plain white sarees
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The talented singer has sung more than 48,000 songs in 25 languages including Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Odia, Tamil, Hindi, and several other Indian languages
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Apart from Indian languages, she also recorded songs in English, Japanese, German, and Sinhalese, showcasing her remarkable linguistic versatility
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Janaki refused to accept the Padma Bhushan in 2013, stating that the honour had come too late in recognition of her contributions to music
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S Janaki’s partnership with late singer SP Balasubrahmanyam, Dr. Rajkumar, and Ilaiyaraaja was cherished by fans
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<img src="https://comicvibe.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/HM9KqTVaIAA7o83.jpg" alt="In 2016, Janakiamma announced her retirement from singing songs in films, shows, and other events. But after continuous requests from film fraternities, Janaki reversed her retirement decision.”>
In 2016, Janakiamma announced her retirement from singing songs in films, shows, and other events. But after continuous requests from film fraternities, Janaki reversed her retirement decision
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Talking about her recognitions, Janaki won 4 National Film Awards and 33 different State Film Awards. She also received an honorary doctorate from the University of Mysore
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May her soul rest in peace!
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