Dinanath Mangeshkar
Encyclopedia
Dinanath Mangeshkar (December 29, 1900 - April 24, 1942) was a well-known Marathi
theatre actor, a renowned Natya Sangeet
musician and an exceptional Hindustani classical
vocalist.
He was also popularly and reverentially addressed as Master Deenanath Mangeshkar. He is also the father of well-known singers Lata Mangeshkar
, Asha Bhosle
, and Usha Mangeshkar
as well as composers Hridayanath Mangeshkar
and Meena Mangeshkar.
on 24 December l900.
His father's name was Ganesh Bhatt Abhisheki,who was a Brahmin and served as priest at
the famous Mangueshi Temple
,and his mother was Yesubai.Yesubai Rane,his mother belonged to Devadasi
,community of Goa,(now known as Gomantak Maratha Samaj
).She occasionally sang at the temple festivals and had an erring genius for music.Dinanath's father surname was Hardikar whose family bathed(see:Abhisheka
) the Linga of lord Shiva at Mangueshi temple,thus they were known as Abhishekis.Dinanath adopted the surmes Mangeshkar which means from the village of Mangeshi in Konkani
.
, of the Kirana Gharana
. He joined the Kirloskar Sangeet Mandali and the Kirloskar Natak Mandali at the age of 11. Later, he left Kirloskar Mandali, and formed Balwant Mandali with his friends Chintamanrao Kolhatkar and Krishnarao Kolhapure. This new group had Gadkari's blessing, but shortly after the group was formed, Gadkari died in January 1919.
Dinanath's good looks and melodious voice won him popularity on the Marathi theatre. So much so that the then giant of the Marathi
stage, Bal Gandharva
publicly declared that he would welcome the entry of Deenanath in his organization "by throwing a carpet of rupee coins under his feet".
During the period of 1935, he produced 3 films, one of them being Krishnarjun Yuddha. It was made in both Hindi and Marathi, and a song from it, sung by and filmed on Dinanath. Dinanath also studied Indian classical music
music under Ramkrishna Vaze. He also studied astrology
.
Partly out of his interest in astrology and numerology, he believed that dramas with 5 letters, with anuswar on the third letter, were lucky for him. Examples : Ranadundubhi (रणदुंदुभी), Rajsanyas (राजसंन्यास), Deshkantak (देशकंटक).
He was the first musician to openly defy the British Empire
by performing and singing songs penned by Veer Savarkar in the presence of the British Viceroy, in Simla
.
(between Dhule
and Jalgaon(Khandesh), Maharastra. Dinanath and Narmada were married in 1922. Dinanath changed his wife's name to 'Shrimati'. She was 19 at the time and Dinanath was 21.
They had a daughter named Latika, who died in her infancy. Dinanath's wife died shortly after.
The marriage of Dinanath and Shevanti was solemnised at a quiet ceremony within the house in 1927. Shevanti's mother chose not to attend.
Dinanath and his second wife had five children: Lata
, Meena, Asha
, Usha
, and Hridaynath
.
Their first child was named Hridaya. But Dinanath called her Lata in memory of his deceased daughter. The name stuck and it is by that name that his legendary eldest daughter, Lata Mangeshkar
, is known today.
Shrimati was also called "Mai" at home.
of Lord Shiva) located at Mangeshi, Ponda
, Goa
.
His family has erected a hospital and research center in his name in Pune.
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
theatre actor, a renowned Natya Sangeet
Natya Sangeet
Natya Sangeet is a form of Indian classical and semi-classical music. The name literally means Dramatic Music and the musical dramas are then called as Sangeet Natak. It is also one of the two popular forms of vocal arts in Maharashtra and surrounding states...
musician and an exceptional Hindustani classical
Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music is the Hindustani or North Indian style of Indian classical music found throughout the northern Indian subcontinent. The style is sometimes called North Indian Classical Music or Shāstriya Sangeet...
vocalist.
He was also popularly and reverentially addressed as Master Deenanath Mangeshkar. He is also the father of well-known singers Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar is a singer from India. She is one of the best-known and most respected playback singers in India. Mangeshkar's career started in 1942 and has spanned over six and a half decades. She has recorded songs for over a thousand Hindi films and has sung songs in over thirty-six regional...
, Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and most highly-regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a wider repertoire. Bhosle's career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over a thousand Bollywood movies...
, and Usha Mangeshkar
Usha Mangeshkar
Usha Mangeshkar is an Indian singer who has recorded many Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati songs soundtracks.She is daughter of Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar & Shevanti . She is the younger sister of singers, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle and elder to her music-director brother Hridaynath Mangeshkar...
as well as composers Hridayanath Mangeshkar
Hridayanath Mangeshkar
Hridaynath Mangeshkar is a composer/singer from India known for his eclectic compositions and a well-respected body of work. He is the younger brother of Indian music icons Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle...
and Meena Mangeshkar.
Background
Dinanath Mangeshkar Dinanath Mangeshkar, popularly known as Dina, was born at Mangeshi, GoaGoa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
on 24 December l900.
His father's name was Ganesh Bhatt Abhisheki,who was a Brahmin and served as priest at
the famous Mangueshi Temple
Mangueshi Temple
Shri Mangueshi temple is located at Mangeshim in Priol, Ponda taluk, 1 kilometer from Mardol close to Nagueshi, 22 km from Panaji the capital of Goa and 26 km from Margao....
,and his mother was Yesubai.Yesubai Rane,his mother belonged to Devadasi
Devadasi
In Hinduism, the devadasi tradition is a religious tradition in which girls are "married" and dedicated to a deity or to a temple and includes performance aspects such as those that take place in the temple as well as in the courtly and mujuvani [telegu] or home context. Dance and music were...
,community of Goa,(now known as Gomantak Maratha Samaj
Gomantak Maratha Samaj
Gomantak Maratha Samaj is a Konkani speaking community found in Indian state of Goa.They are known as Naik Maratha Samaj and Nutan Maratha Samaj Karwar in Karnataka and Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra respectively.-Origin:...
).She occasionally sang at the temple festivals and had an erring genius for music.Dinanath's father surname was Hardikar whose family bathed(see:Abhisheka
Abhisheka
Abhisheka is a Sanskrit term comparable to puja, yagya and arati that denotes: a devotional activity; an enacted prayer, rite of passage and/or religious rite or ritual...
) the Linga of lord Shiva at Mangueshi temple,thus they were known as Abhishekis.Dinanath adopted the surmes Mangeshkar which means from the village of Mangeshi in Konkani
Konkani language
KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...
.
Career
Dinanath Mangeshkar started taking singing and music lessons from Shri Baba Mashelkar at the age of five. He was also to become a disciple at Gwalior school. In his youth, he traveled to Bikaner and took formal training in classical music from Pt. Sukhdev Prasad, father of Pt. Mani PrasadMani Prasad
Pandit Mani Prasad is an Indian vocalist in the Hindustani classical tradition. A member of the Kirana Gharana , he is renowned for his purity in the khayal form of singing, as well as for his popular renditions of devotional music...
, of the Kirana Gharana
Kirana Gharana
Kirana Gharana is one of the most prolific Hindustani khyal gharanas.-History:The name of this school of music derives from Kirana or Kairana, a town and tehsil of Muzzafarnagar District in Uttar Pradesh...
. He joined the Kirloskar Sangeet Mandali and the Kirloskar Natak Mandali at the age of 11. Later, he left Kirloskar Mandali, and formed Balwant Mandali with his friends Chintamanrao Kolhatkar and Krishnarao Kolhapure. This new group had Gadkari's blessing, but shortly after the group was formed, Gadkari died in January 1919.
Dinanath's good looks and melodious voice won him popularity on the Marathi theatre. So much so that the then giant of the Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
stage, Bal Gandharva
Bal Gandharva
Narayan Shripad Rajhans , better known as Bal Gandharva was one of the greatest Marathi singers and stage actors. He was famous for his roles of female characters in Marathi plays, since women were not allowed to act on stage during his time....
publicly declared that he would welcome the entry of Deenanath in his organization "by throwing a carpet of rupee coins under his feet".
During the period of 1935, he produced 3 films, one of them being Krishnarjun Yuddha. It was made in both Hindi and Marathi, and a song from it, sung by and filmed on Dinanath. Dinanath also studied Indian classical music
Indian classical music
The origins of Indian classical music can be found in the Vedas, which are the oldest scriptures in the Hindu tradition. Indian classical music has also been significantly influenced by, or syncretised with, Indian folk music and Persian music. The Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music...
music under Ramkrishna Vaze. He also studied astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
.
Partly out of his interest in astrology and numerology, he believed that dramas with 5 letters, with anuswar on the third letter, were lucky for him. Examples : Ranadundubhi (रणदुंदुभी), Rajsanyas (राजसंन्यास), Deshkantak (देशकंटक).
He was the first musician to openly defy the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
by performing and singing songs penned by Veer Savarkar in the presence of the British Viceroy, in Simla
Shimla
Shimla , formerly known as Simla, is the capital city of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of the British Raj in India. A popular tourist destination, Shimla is often referred to as the "Queen of Hills," a term coined by the British...
.
First Marriage
Dinanath's first wife was Narmada (later renamed "Shrimati" by her in-laws). She was the daughter of Seth Haridas Ramdas Lad - a prosperous businessman of the town of ThalnerThalner
Thalner , the first capital of the Faruqi kings, stands on the Tapi river, in Shirpur tehsil about 46.67 km. north-east of Dhule in the Maharashtra state of India. It was fortified by a strong fort which played a very significant role in the history of Khandesh. Situated on the banks of the...
(between Dhule
Dhule
Dhule is a city and a Municipal Corporation in Dhule district in northwestern part of Maharashtra state, India. It is one of the very few well-planned cities of India before Indian Independence.-Geography:Dhule is located at...
and Jalgaon(Khandesh), Maharastra. Dinanath and Narmada were married in 1922. Dinanath changed his wife's name to 'Shrimati'. She was 19 at the time and Dinanath was 21.
They had a daughter named Latika, who died in her infancy. Dinanath's wife died shortly after.
Second Marriage
Dinanath's second wife was his first wife's sister. Her name was Shevanti. Some sources claim that Dinanath named his second wife 'Shrimati' as well. Some have her name as 'Shuddhamati'.The marriage of Dinanath and Shevanti was solemnised at a quiet ceremony within the house in 1927. Shevanti's mother chose not to attend.
Dinanath and his second wife had five children: Lata
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar is a singer from India. She is one of the best-known and most respected playback singers in India. Mangeshkar's career started in 1942 and has spanned over six and a half decades. She has recorded songs for over a thousand Hindi films and has sung songs in over thirty-six regional...
, Meena, Asha
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and most highly-regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a wider repertoire. Bhosle's career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over a thousand Bollywood movies...
, Usha
Usha Mangeshkar
Usha Mangeshkar is an Indian singer who has recorded many Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati songs soundtracks.She is daughter of Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar & Shevanti . She is the younger sister of singers, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle and elder to her music-director brother Hridaynath Mangeshkar...
, and Hridaynath
Hridayanath Mangeshkar
Hridaynath Mangeshkar is a composer/singer from India known for his eclectic compositions and a well-respected body of work. He is the younger brother of Indian music icons Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle...
.
Their first child was named Hridaya. But Dinanath called her Lata in memory of his deceased daughter. The name stuck and it is by that name that his legendary eldest daughter, Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar is a singer from India. She is one of the best-known and most respected playback singers in India. Mangeshkar's career started in 1942 and has spanned over six and a half decades. She has recorded songs for over a thousand Hindi films and has sung songs in over thirty-six regional...
, is known today.
Shrimati was also called "Mai" at home.
The Surname
Dinanath was determined to take his first step in his professional life with a distinctive surname. So, he chose the last name Mangeshkar. The surname was derived from name of his family deity - Shri Mangesh (an AvatarAvatar
In Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation"....
of Lord Shiva) located at Mangeshi, Ponda
Ponda taluk
Ponda taluk is a comunidade of Goa, India. Ponda taluk is part of North-Goa district. Ponda taluk is almost in middle of Goa state. Ponda taluk hosts many educational institutes and industries . The Belagavi - Panaji Highway passes through this taluka.-External links:**...
, Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
.
Death
Dinanath took to alcohol during the days of financial hardship in 1930s. After being ill for a few weeks, he died in Pune in April 1942. He was 41.His family has erected a hospital and research center in his name in Pune.
Theatrical Productions
Some of his theatrical productions, in which he sang, composed and starred too, are- Manapaman (मानापमान) (written by K.P. Khadilkar)
- Ranadundubhi (रणदुंदुभी) (written by Veer Vamanrao Joshi)
- Punyaprabhaav (पुण्यप्रभाव)
- Sanyasta Khadga (संन्यस्त खड्ग) (written by Veer Savarkar)
- Rajsanyaas (राजसंन्यास) (written by Ram Ganesh GadkariRam Ganesh GadkariRam Ganesh Gadkari was a Marathi poet, playwright, and humorist from Maharashtra, India.Ram Ganesh Gadkari was one of the writers in new age transformation in Marathi Literature. He wrote poetry under the pen name Govindagraj and humorous articles under the pen name Balakram...
) - Deshkantak (देशकंटक)
- Ram Rajya Viyog (रामराज्य वियोग).