Biography

Geetashree Sandhya Mukhopadhyay (4 October 1931 – 15 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and musician, specializing in Bengali music. She received Banga Bibhushan, the highest civilian honor of the Indian state of West Bengal in 2011.) She also won the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer for her songs in the films Jay Jayanti and Nishi Padma in the year 1970. Mukherjee was born in Dhakuria, Calcutta, on 4 October 1931 to Narendranath Mukherjee, a railway official, and Hemprova Devi. She was the youngest of six children. Her grandfather was a police officer, and the family had lived in Dhakuria since 1911. She was married to noted lyrist Shyamal Gupta until he died in 2010. She has a daughter named Soumi Sengupta. Sandhya started her music training under the direction of Pandit Santosh Kumar Basu, Professor A T Kannan, and Professor Chinmoy Lahiri. However, her guru was Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, followed by his son Ustad Munavvar Ali Khan, under whom she mastered Indian classical music.