Anantapur: Veteran film singer Bala Saraswati Rao, 85, recalled that Lata Mangeshkar’s professional envy had forced Hindi music director Naushad to keep her (Ms Rao) away from the Hindi film industry as a playback singer. Ms Rao, who has sung more than 2,000 songs in various languages with a record of singing a solo number at the age of six, was felicitated by Ananthakala Vahini as part of the Mohammad Rafi Musical Night held here at the Arts College grounds on Sunday. Speaking to the media at Tyagaraja Ganasabha where she was felicitated, the veteran singer observed professional envy was never witnessed in Telugu film industry in her earlier days. “Noted music director Saluri Rajeswar Rao, Gantasala, Ramesh Naidu and many others never acted out of professional envy. We were like one family,” she said, adding that the situation was different now. The veteran singer had sung for an album one year ago under music direction of Madhavapeddi Suresh.
