Lata Mangeshkar And Mohammad Rafi Became Involved In A Guinness World Record Dispute Over The Title For Singing The Most Number Of Songs

Lata Mangeshkar, the legendary vocalist who passed away on February 6 at the age of 92 due to multi-organ failure, has left the country in mourning. She was hospitalised to Mumbai's Breach Candy Hospital in early January following testing positive for COVID. Her final rites were conducted with full state honours in Mumbai's Shivaji Park, in front of a crowd of dignitaries from all walks of life. Two days of national mourning will be observed in honour of the veteran vocalist, with the national flag flying at half-mast for two days. Mangeshkar was a well-known artist not merely in India but throughout the world.

She began her career at the juvenile age of 13 and went on to record thousands of songs in nearly every Indian language over the course of seven decades. Late Mangeshkar was named the most recorded artist in history by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1974, with an expected 25,000 songs. According to the organisation, she performed over 25,000 solo, duet, and chorus-backed works in 20 Indian languages between 1948 and 1974.

During that period, Mohammad Rafi, a music legend, disputed Mangeshkar's entrance, alleging that he had performed more songs than she had. Rafi was involved in a legal battle with Lata Mangeshkar over her induction into the Guinness Book of World Records. He disputed her allegation, claiming that he had performed over 28,000 songs, far more than Mangeshkar. The organisation remained using Mangeshkar's name, making a specific mention of Rafi's claim.

Mangeshkar was named the most recorded artist by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1991, with an estimated 30,000 songs. According to the organisation, she recorded 30,000 solo, duet, and chorus-backed songs in 20 Indian languages between 1948 and 1987. In 2019, Lata Mangeshkar recorded her final song, Saugandh Mujhe Is Mitti Ki, with Mayuresh Pai, which was billed as a homage to the Indian Army.

Meanwhile, the organisation afterwards erased the record without giving any reason. Asha Bhonsle, Lata Mangeshkar's younger sister, now holds the Guinness World Record for the most studio recordings singles.