Why Sonu Nigam is the Best Indian Singer of 20th Century

3 min readJun 23, 2018

Sonu Nigam is a name that has been well renowned in Indian music for years. The singer’s fame is versed across India from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, and has also crossed the borders, having a fan-following in many countries of the globe.

The multi-lingual artist has recorded songs of several genres in many languages including Hindi, Bengali, Assamese, English, Kannada, Bhojpuri, Nepali, Marathi, Punjabi, Odia, Telugu and Tamil. The master of melody is known to have the best vocal range in the Hindi music industry.

Aptly nicknamed “Modern Rafi” after his inspiration, Sonu has won 50+ music awards in his career so far, and a nomination in the Academy Awards.

Sonu Nigam: In the Making

Born in a family of musicians, Sonu Nigam performed live for the first time at the age of 4 alongside his father, Agam Kumar Nigam. By the age of 18, Sonu started his Bollywood career. He was professionally trained under the helm of the Hindi classical singer, Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan.

Sonu Nigam: The Modern Rafi

Sonu released albums of songs by the legendary singer Mohammed Rafi including Kal Aaj Aur Kal which featured 100 songs by Rafi in a six-cd collection. The artist then released Rafi Resurrected, a two-cd collection of Rafi’s songs, the music of which was given by Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. Nigam has also performed Mohammed Rafi songs at a Maestros Concert in collaboration with Laxmikant-Pyarelal and Kakas Entertainment.

Sonu Nigam: Music Career

Sonu Nigam’s career started with a bang with the release of the patriotic superhit film Border. Sonu was the voice behind the iconic song Sandese Aate Hain which was wonderfully received by the audience as well as the critics. Soon after, Sonu landed another chartbuster Yeh Dil Deewana from the movie Pardes which made him the romantic voice of Bollywood.

Sonu released a solo album Deewana (1999), which became one of the most successful ones under T-Series. The album, soon after its release won millions of hearts, and songs like Ab Mujhe Raat Din and Deewana Tera were among the biggest chartbusters of the time. The next year, Sonu released yet another romantic album Jaan which created a similar hype to his previous one and helped establish him as one of the best romantic singers in the industry.

Before anyone knew, Sonu became an established singer in the Indian music industry, releasing a gamut of songs and albums that were being heard all over India. With his soulful voice, Sonu marked his place in the people’s heart and has been one of the very few singers to still keep the place. The reason is that his voice always takes us back to SRK riding his convertible to the song Yeh Dil Deewana or Hrithik humming Abhi Mujh Mein Kahin. Sonu’s voice has that mesmerizing effect that separates him from others. He is one of very few singers who can sing songs of any genre with perfection.

Take a look below to the top 50 songs by Sonu Nigam.

Sonu Nigam: Top 50 Songs

The above list is a proof that Sonu can sing songs of any mood with ease, and knows perfectly-well how to weave magic with melodies. Which is your favorite song of Sonu Nigam? Let us know in the comments below!

Why Sonu Nigam is the Best Indian Singer of 20th Century

Written by Musical Lee