Anuradha Paudwal Wiki, Age, Husband, Family, Biography & More

Anuradha Paudwal is an Indian playback singer, who is known for her soft and euphonious melodies that tune with the heartbeats. She created her own peak in the Romantic genre and later strengthened the roots of her voice in the spiritual genre of music.

Wiki/Biography

Anuradha Paudwal was born as Alka Nadakarni on 27 October 1954 (age 69 years; as of 2023) in Karwar, Bombay State (now Karnataka), India. She pursued her graduation from St. Xavier’s College situated in Mumbai. She claims never to have taken any training of music; her mother sent her to a local music school where she learned valuable lessons of singing. She also received training in various places but failed in the process. She took Lata Mangeshkar as her mentor and started practicing for hours, following Lata Ji’s notes. Her zodiac/Sun Sign is Scorpion.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 5”

Eye Color: Dark Brown

Hair Color: Black

Family, Caste & Husband

She was born to a Konkani Family in Uttara Kannada of Karnataka, India but was raised in Mumbai. She came from a family where singing was looked upon as a taboo. Her father was totally against her singing. However, her mother supported her talent and sent her to a local music school to learn singing. She got married to Late Arun Paudwal, who was a music composer.

They had a son named Aditya Paudwal who died at the age of 35 on 12 September 2020.

and a daughter named Kavita Paudwal, who is also a singer.

She had one more daughter who died a month later of her birth.

Career

S. D. Burman offered her a song in 1973 Hindi film, ‘Abhiman,’ which was a Shiv Shloka.

 

In the same year, she made her first film debut with ‘Yashoda.’ In 1974, she released a record of Marathi songs “Bhav Geetan” that became very popular. She got her first breakthrough the movie Kalicharan (1976).

 

Her first solo was in the film Aap Beati. She also sang for various composers like Rajesh Roshan, Jai-Dev, Kalyanji-Anandji and others. She is known in Bollywood for her songs in the movies Hero (1983), Meri Jung (1985), Batwara (1989), Nagina (1986), and Ram Lakhan (1989). After reaching the peak of her career in Bollywood, she declared that she would only sing for T-Series. She then started her career as a devotional singer; earning much of her fame and popularity. She did return to sing for Bollywood again, but her comeback only received few audiences. She continued to sing devotional songs and released several Music Album, which has become her forte. She has also sung in other languages that include Kannada, Marwari, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Punjabi and many more.

Controversies

• She once challenged the legendary playback singer Lata Mangeshkar and claimed to have recorded the maximum number of songs in a single day. She even challenged the monopoly of Mangeshkar Sisters in the film industry.

• She dubbed the songs of Alka Yagnik and further went on to dub a song of Lata Mangeshkar, claiming that her voice suited more on the actress of the film.

• In January 2020, a 45-year-old woman named Karmala Modex from Kerala claimed that she was the daughter of Anuradha Paudwal. She told to media persons that the singer had abandoned her to her foster parents Ponnachan and Agnes; soon after her birth in 1974. Karmala also told that she had filed a petition before the district family court in Thiruvananthapuram to establish the fact that she was the legal daughter of Paudwal. ^[1]Mumbai Mirror

Awards and Honors

• Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar in the year 2018 by Maharashtra Government

• Cultural Ambassador Of Devotional Music in the year 2018 by UNO

• Padma Shri in the year 2017 by the Government of India
  

  Anuradha Paudwal Receiving Padma Shri

• D Litt. Award in the year 2016

• Mohammed Rafi Award in the year 2013 by the Maharashtra Government

• Mother Teresa Award in the year 2011

• Lata Mangeshkar Award in the year 2010 by the Madhya Pradesh Government

• Mahakaal Award in the year 2004 by the Madhya Pradesh Government

National Awards

• Best Playback Singer (Female) for the Marathi song “He Ek Reshami” in the year 1989

Filmfare Awards

• Best Female Playback Singer for the song “Mere Man Bajo Mridang” from the movie “Utsav”in the year 1986

• Best Female Playback Singer for the song “Nazar Ke Saamne” from the movie “Nazar Ke Saamne” in the year 1991

• Best Female Playback Singer for the song “Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin” from the movie “Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin” in the year 1992

• Best Female Playback Singer for the song “Dhak Dhak Karne Laga” from the movie “Beta” in the year 1993

Favourite Things

• Singers: Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar

Facts

• She says that her inclination towards music started when she heard a song by Lata Mangeshkar.

• Her career with the T-Series gave her the nickname “T-Series Queen.”

• According to Anuradha Paudwal, in her childhood, she would often have a dream of Lata Mangeshkar singing live.

• She once told that she originally had a husky voice.

• She once suffered from such a severe Pneumonia attack that she had almost lost her voice completely. Being bed-ridden for more than a month, she found solace in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar.

• In the hospital bed, she would listen to the “Bhagvat Geeta” in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar that one of her uncles had gifted her. After her recovery, her voice had completely changed. Later, she worked on toning her voice.

• She considered Lata Ji as her Guru (Mentor) crediting her all for her success. She said that she was trained by many mentors, but Lata Ji was her inspiration. “It’s like an Institution,” she says.

• She participated in many of her school and college functions and won several awards. The very first that she won was for Lata Ji’s Meera Bhajans.

• She even got rejected at one such school festivals where she was remarked as, “Voice Unfit For Sugam Sangeet.”

• She fell in love with Arun Paudwal when she was a teen. Her father did not approve of their marriage initially because of Arun’s connection with the music industry, as show business was considered as a taboo.

• At the age of 17, she got married to Arun Paudwal, who was ten years elder to her.

• Arun Paudwal always encouraged her to sing. He was her close mentor and a critic.

• She says that it was difficult for her to get into industry even through connections. She was told that there was no room for Bhakti Songs in the market. This led her to create her first Marathi devotional album.

• Once, Arun got her one of the Lataji’s recordings. She listened to it very carefully and thereafter, sang the songs from the same recording at “Yuva Vani,” a very popular Gujarati programme, heard by many. Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Hridyanath Mangeshkar, and several top composers began a search to find the person behind the voice. It took them a while to find out that it was Alka Nadakarni (maiden name of Anuradha Paudwal). At last, it was S.D Burman to give Anuradha, her first break.

• When Abhiman was released, almost 25 to 30 of her family members went to Plaza Theatre just to see Anuradha’s name in the credits.

• She won her first major film award for the song “Mera Man Baje Mridang…” However, she’d been hoping the award for the song “Tu Mera Jaanu Hai” from the movie Hero.

• “Tu Mera Jaanoo Hai” of the movie Hero was initially assigned to Lata Mangeshkar. However, when Anuradha went into the studio to dub the song, the composers liked it so much that they kept her version of the track in the film.

• Anuradha Paudwal was the signatory singer in most of the Subhash Ghai’s films. The Gayatri Mantra sang by her is the part of Mukta Art Emblem even now.

• She has even sung a song with the legendary singer Kishore Kumar “Gumsum Si Khoi Khoi” of the movie Badaltey Rishte (1978).

• In the 1990s, she became the voice of Madhuri Dixit. The song “Bahut Pyaar Karte Hai Tumko Sanam” battled to be in the charts for a long time.

• She had a great bonding with T-series mogul Gulshan Kumar. When he was shot dead in August 1997, her attitude towards success changed. She says,
  

  Today when I have a hit, it feels nice, but That’s it. “

  

  Anuradha Paudwal with Gulshan Kumar in the studio

• After her husband’s death, Anuradha’s son, Aaditya, also entered the world of music and became one of the youngest music composers in the Indian Film Industry. Her daughter, Kavita, is also a playback singer.

• She runs a foundation “Suryoday” in the memory of her deceased husband Arun.

• Along with Gulshan Kumar, she played a crucial role in getting many unknown playback singers to the fore including Udit Narayan, Sonu Nigam, Kumar Sanu, and Abhijeet.

• When she started her journey as a singer, people predicted that she would replace Lata Mangeshkar. Even veteran composer O. P. Nayyar had commented that Lata was finished and Anuradha had finished her. But she cleared this all by saying that she never aspired for the moon, she is satisfied with what her audience and music industry has given her. She always felt that it was better to retire from the pinnacle, “wrna log darwaza dikha dete hai (otherwise you are shown the doors)”

• She has a deep faith in Baba Mahakaal (Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain), and she often pays a visit to the temple.

• She has a desire to record poetry and wishes to record the works of Shankaracharya.