Jagjit Singh

Jagjit Singh was an Indian composer, singer and musician. He composed and sang in numerous languages and is credited for the revival and popularity of ghazal, an Indian classical art form, by choosing poetry that was relevant to the masses and composing them in a way that laid more emphasis on the meaning of words and melody evoked by them. In terms of Indian classical music, his style of composing and gayaki (singing) is considered as Bol-pradhan, one that lays emphasis on words. He highlighted this in his music for films such as Prem Geet (1981), Arth (1982), and Saath Saath (1982), and TV serials Mirza Ghalib (1988) and Kahkashan (1991). Singh is considered to be the most successful ghazal singer and composer of all time in terms of critical acclaim and commercial success. With a career spanning five decades and many albums, the range and breadth of his work has been regarded as genre-defining.

8 February 1941

Born on the same birth date (8 February 1941): Nick Nolte • Tom Rush

Born on the same birth day (8 February): Afonso IV of Portugal • Bill Finger • Birgitte Reimer • Henry Walter Bates • Joshua Kimmich • Jules Verne • Karine Chemla • Mary McCormack

Born in the same month (February 1941): Brian Holland • Dave Berry (musician) • David Gross • David Puttnam • Dominguinhos • Donna Shalala • Henson Cargill • Jiří Raška • Joanie Sommers • Julia McKenzie • Kermit Gosnell • Kim Jong Il • Lim Kit Siang • Michael Apted • Naomi Uemura • Paddy Ashdown • Paul Tsongas • Ron Rangi • Russell Cooper • Sheila Kuehl • Sigmar Polke • Stephen Albert • Sérgio Mendes • Terry Biddlecombe