Kedarnath Bhattacharya (born 20 October 1957), professionally known as Kumar Sanu, is an Indian playback singer primarily known for his performances in Hindi film songs and Bollywood soundtracks.[6] He won five consecutive Filmfare Awards for Best Male Playback Singer from 1991 to 1995. He also holds a Guinness World Record for recording the most songs in a single day, with 28 tracks recorded in 1993.[7] In addition to Hindi, Kumar Sanu has sung in a wide range of languages, including Bengali (his mother tongue), Marathi, Nepali, Assamese, Bhojpuri, Gujarati, Manipuri, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Punjabi, Odia, Chhattisgarhi, Urdu, Pali, and English.[8]
In 2009, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India. Several of his tracks are included in the BBC's "Top 40 Bollywood Soundtracks of all time".[9]
Kumar Sanu's first marriage was to Rita Bhattacharya in the 1980's.[11] The couple had three children: Jiko, Jassi, and Jaan Kumar Sanu.[12] They divorced in 1994. During their marriage, Kumar Sanu had entered a six-year relationship with actress Kunika Sadanand.[13][14] After divorcing, Kunika Sadanand, Kumar Sanu married Saloni Bhattacharya. They have two daughters: Shannon K, a singer[15] and Annabelle Kumar Sanu, a songwriter and author.[16][17]
Kumar Sanu began his playback singing career under the name Sanu Bhattacharya in 1983. Yeh Desh (1984) film soundtrack was marked his debuted of singer. In 1985, he got Bangladeshi film Tin Konya, directed by Shibli Sadique. Sanu had his first major Bollywood song "Jashn Hai Mohabbat Ka" was featured in Hero Hiralal (1988).
In 1989 September 23, Jagjit Singh introduced Kumar Sanu to Kalyanji in Vimal Bunglow, Mumbai On their suggestion, he changed his name from "Kedarnath Bhattacharya" to "Kumar Sanu" because his voice and singing style were much influenced by Kishore Kumar. Sanu then relocated to Mumbai, where Kalyanji-Anandji gave him a chance to sing in the film Jaadugar (1989).
Kumar Sanu has released several albums of Kishore Kumar's songs including Kishore Ki Yaadein, a collection early in his career. This was followed by the Yaadein series where he sang many of the songs of Kishore Kumar along with singers Abhijeet and Vinod Rathod.[18][19]
Kumar Sanu is a trustee and Brand Ambassador of Bishwa Bandhan,[22]
Kumar Sanu opened a primary school, Kumar Sanu Vidya Niketan,[23] for underprivileged children in Karol Bagh, Delhi. The students are given uniforms and books free of cost.[24]
In 2022, Kumar Sanu collaborated with music director Vaibhav Saxena and two emerging singers for "Mohabbat Mein Tere Sanam" which was released and distributed worldwide by new-age Record Label Music Records.[25]
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