Pannalal Bhattacharya Biography 
Pannalal Bhattacharya was a popular singer from Bengal. He developed a specialized style in Shyama Sangeet which is still followed by singers. He was the younger brother of the legendary singer and lyricist Dhananjay Bhattacharya. He was not able to achieve the equal stardom of Dhananjay and he later committed suicide at the age of only 36. Later Dhananjay look after his younger brother’s family. There is less data available about the whereabouts, childhood and birth details of Pannalal. He was eight years younger to Pannalal. So he was born around 1930.
It’s believed that most he spent most of his time at Bally, Barendrapara and Howrah. He started singing in 1947 at the age of 17. He started singing aside another singer Sanat Sinha. It was his elder brother Dhananjay who took them to the function. Pannalal was not selected for HMV due to voice immaturity in the initial ages. But later a friend of Sanat Sinha named Bishwanath Kumar gave him the first break to sing a song in Shyama Sangeet - "Aamar sadh na mitilo aasha na purilo”. The song was a major hit and still loved by music lovers. Though earlier he had recorded a few renditions in Shyama Sangeet, it was this particular song "Aamar sadh na mitilo” which made him popular.
He was well settled with his married life and children till he committed suicide in 1966, at the age of 36. Pannalal is credited to developing a distinct style of devotional singing. He sang numerous songs praising Goddess Kali, still loved by many. He was bad tempered during his last years due to his unsuccessful career and had a feeling that Goddess Kali blessed her elder brother only.
Published: N/A
Updated: April 09, 2016
