P. Kalinga Rao

Pandeshwara Kalinga Rao (1914 – 21 September 1981) was an Indian Bhavageete and Sugama Sangeetha singer and composer in the Kannada language.

Biography Kalinga Rao was married to Meenakshamma (d. 2015). They had four children together: Prema, Vasanth, Sharath and Santosh. Rao was a primary school drop-out. But his knowledge of six languages was near scholarly.

Pioneer of light music He popularised the Kannada Bhavageete, a form of music that derives lyrics from popular poetry and devotional works.

Rao is widely regarded as the pioneer of the Kannada sugama sangeeta genre. He was active for three decades from 1950 and thankfully almost all of his tunes were recorded either by the gramophone companies or All India Radio. Kalinga Rao began his musical life in the era of the 78 rpm gramophone record, and the three-minute discs took his music to audiences all over Karnataka. He was also a rage on radio, and started a musical counter culture that could take on expensively produced film songs.

Poets Kuvempu, Bendre, and K S Narasimha Swamy were writing inspired lyrics that would soon turn into classics, and Kalinga Rao was instrumental in composing tunes for them. He also sang Purandaradasa and folk songs, emerging as a complete practitioner of Kannada music. Kalinga Rao used the medium of music more as a promoter of poems of great Kannada poets such as Kuvempu, D. R. Bendre and Gopalakrishna Adiga than as a performer unlike professional musicians. It was not the music, but the words of these poets which sought importance in his compositions.

A Kannada monograph P Kalinga Rao, edited by B S Keshava Rao and Jayashri Aravind and published by the Kannada and Culture department, brings to light many interesting events from his life, including one where a government official demands certificates of his music qualifications for the grant of an artist pension. Kalinga Rao angrily rejects the pension, but chief minister Devaraj Urs steps in to help him in his needy days.

Popular songs

List of some of his popular songs. Songs Lyrics Singers Music Genre Thoogiro Chinnava Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Lullaby Yaakaluve Ele Ranga Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Lullaby Adu Betta Idu Betta Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Indian folk music Baarayya Beladingale Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Indian folk music Attillada Manege Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Indian folk music Moodal Kunigal Kere Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Indian folk music Betta Bittiliyuttha Traditional P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Indian folk music Yaaru Hithavaru Ninage Purandara Dasa P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Devotional Maadu Sikkadalla Purandara Dasa P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Devotional Nageyu Barutide Purandara Dasa P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Devotional Helkolok Ondooru G. P. Rajarathnam P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Kannada poetry Holiya Hunnime RC Bhoosanuramath P Kalinga Rao BV Srinivas Kannada poetry Brammaninge G. P. Rajarathnam P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Kannada poetry Baagilolu Kaimugidu Kuvempu P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Kannada poetry Anantadim Kuvempu P Kalinga Rao BV Srinivas Kannada poetry Mugila Maarige Ragarathiya D. R. Bendre P Kalinga Rao BV Srinivas Kannada poetry Aluva kadaloLu Telibarutalide Gopalkrishna Adiga P Kalinga Rao BV Srinivas Kannada poetry Anthintha Hennu Neenalla K. S. Narasimhaswamy P Kalinga Rao G. K. Venkatesh Kannada poetry Yerisi Haarisi Kannadada B. M. Srikantaiah P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Patriotic Ilidu Baa Taayi Da Ra Bendre P Kalinga Rao BV Srinivas Patriotic Udayavaagali Namma Huilgol Narayana Rao P Kalinga Rao, Mohanakumari & Party P Kalinga Rao Patriotic

Music Direction for Movies Year Film Language Director Banner Notes 1947 Krishnaleela Kannada C. V. Raju 1948 Bhakta Ramadas Kannada Kemparaj Urs 1949 Kalaavida Kannada Krishnan Suryanarayan Sohanlal Viswakalasthan Ltd 1950 Sasidharan Malayalam T. Janaki Ram 1953 Muyarchi Tamil Joseph Pallippad C. C. Productions with S. G. K. Pillai 1959 Abba Aa Hudugi Kannada H. L. N. Simha Sri Jamuna Productions 1966 Mahaashilpi Kannada S. V. Doraiswamy

Playback for Movies Year Film Language Song Music director Co-singer1950 Chechi Malayalam Aasha Thakarukayo G. K. Venkatesh Kaviyoor C. K. Revamma Oru Vichaaram Mohana Kumari Chirakaala Manobhaavam Mohana Kumari Chudu Chintha Than Mohana Kumari 1959 Abba Aa Hudugi Kannada Ba Chinna Mohana Nodenna P. Kalinga Rao Mohana Kumari & Sohana Kumari 1959 Manaiviye Manithanin Manickam Tamil Ennai Ariyamale Enadhullam S. Hanumantha Rao K. Jamuna Rani 1961 Kittur Chennamma Kannada Thayi Deviyanu Kaane T. G. Lingappa 1964 Thumbida Koda Kannada Anthintha Hennu G. K. Venkatesh

Death Kalinga Rao died on 21 September 1981.