Shankar Mahadevan

A multiple National Film Award winning music composer and singer whose versatility and control on his craft make him unmatchable

About

A name that needs no introduction, Shankar Mahadevan catapulted to fame with his unique song ‘Breathless', sung seemingly without a pause; a song unlike anything heard before.

The singer-composer is the part of famous composer trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. Shankar Mahadevan has sung hundreds of songs in different languages in his career spanning many decades.

He started learning Hindustani Classical & Carnatic music as a young child, & began playing the Veena at the age of five. Before choosing a full fledged career in music, Shankar worked as a software programmer in Oracle.

Some of his most notable contributions to Bollywood include music direction for ‘Kal Ho Na Ho’, ‘Bunty Aur Babli’, ‘2 States’, ‘Dil Chahta Hai’, ‘Rock On!!’ and as a playback singer for ‘Taare Zameen Par’ and numerous other songs & albums.

Some of his film songs have become legendary & iconic including ‘Urvashi Take It Easy’ from ’Humse Hai Muqabla’ in 1995, ‘I Love You’ from ‘Auzaar’ & ‘Kay Sera Sera’ from ‘Pukar’.

Shankar Mahadevan was a music director for School Chale Hum on Doordarshan, judge & mentor on reality TV shows: ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge’ on Zee TV & ‘Music Ka Maha Muqqabla’ on Star Plus.

He won the National Film Award as ‘Best Male Playback Singer’ for ‘Yenna Solla Pogirai’, ‘Maa’, & ‘Bolo Na’ & as ‘Best Music Direction’ for ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’.

He received his first award as a playback singer for a Tamil movie, collaborating with A. R. Rahman & won a National Film Award for ‘Kandukondain Kandukondain’. Apart from Hindi, he has sung in Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi & other regional languages.

He is one of the most renowned composers & singers in the Bollywood & South Indian film industry, who was honored with the ‘Padma Shri Award’ by President Ram Nath Kovind in 2021.

In 2012 he was invited by UNESCO & the US State Department to perform at the UN General Assembly hall for the finale of the International Jazz Festival.

He is also a recipient of the Kerala State Film Award for the song ‘Kalyaana Kacheri’ from Mohanlal's starrer ‘Madampi’.

In 2024, Shankar Mahadevan, achieved a significant milestone as part of the fusion band Shakti. Alongside late tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, Shankar contributed to Shakti's triumphant return with the album 'This Moment', which was released in June 2023. The album marked the group's first studio album in over 45 years, and received widespread acclaim from critics and audiences, culminating in the prestigious Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album.

Shankar Mahadevan is a man of many avatars, he is known for his ability to dabble with varied genres due to his strong classical foundation.