Goa, July 11 -- Veteran playback singer S Janaki, fondly known as the "Nightingale of South India," passed away at the age of 88, leaving behind an extraordinary legacy that transformed Indian cinema. During her illustrious career spanning six decades, she sang thousands of songs in multiple Indian languages and earned widespread acclaim for her versatility.

Born on April 23, 1938, in Pallapatla village of present-day Andhra Pradesh, Janaki was the daughter of Ayurvedic doctor and teacher Sistla Sreeramamurthy. She spent much of her childhood in Sircilla and gave her first stage performance at the age of nine. Though she learnt the basics of music from Nadaswaram exponent Paidiswamy, she never underwent formal classical music training. ...