Mumbai, Nov 7 : Veteran playback singer and actress Sulakshana Pandit passed away on Thursday evening at the age of 71 after a prolonged illness, her family confirmed. A prominent voice of the 1970s and 1980s, Sulakshana was part of one of Bollywood’s most respected musical families the sister of music composer duo Jatin-Lalit and actress Vijayta Pandit.
Sulakshana’s voice defined an era of melody and emotion in Hindi cinema. Her memorable songs include “Bekrar Dil Tu Gaye Ja”, “Somwar Ko Hum Mile Mangalwar Ko Nain” with Kishore Kumar, and “Pardesiya Tere Desh Mein” with Mohammed Rafi. She also delivered several evergreen duets with Rafi, such as “Sona Re Tujhe Kaise Miloon”, “Yeh Pyara Lage Tera Chehra”, and “Yeh Pyar Kiya Hai.”
Her duet “Saat Samundar Paar” with Lata Mangeshkar remains a classic, while her song “Tu Hi Sagar Tu Hi Kinara” from Sankalp (1976) won her the Filmfare Award.
Beyond her singing career, Sulakshana also made a mark as an actress. She debuted opposite Sanjeev Kumar in Uljhan (1975) a pairing that became iconic. In a poignant coincidence, she passed away on November 6, the same date marking the 40th death anniversary of Sanjeev Kumar.
Sulakshana starred in several notable films, including Hera Pheri (1976), Apnapan (1977), Khandaan (1979), Chehre Pe Chehra (1981), Dharam Kanta (1982), and Do Waqt Ki Roti (1988). She also appeared in the Bengali film Bandie (1978) opposite Uttam Kumar.
Throughout her career, she worked alongside top stars such as Jeetendra, Rajesh Khanna, Shashi Kapoor, Vinod Khanna, and Shatrughan Sinha.
Music, however, remained her first love. Beginning as a child singer with “Saat Samundar Paar Se” in Taqdeer (1967), Sulakshana lent her melodious voice to songs in multiple languages including Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Oriya, and Gujarati.
Her final appearance as a singer came with the tender alaap in “Saagar Kinare Bhi Do Dil” from Khamoshi: The Musical (1996), composed by her brothers Jatin-Lalit a fitting farewell to a voice that once defined Hindi cinema’s golden era.