Krishnakumar Kunnath: Google doodle honors successful Indian playback singer ‘KK’

This Doodle honors the popular Indian playback singer Krishnakumar Kunnath, better known by his stage name KK, who is renowned for his versatility. His recordings of songs in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Bengali, Assamese, and Gujarati are among the many languages for which he is well-known.

As a feature in the film Maachis, KK made his playback vocal debut on the song Chhod Aaye Hum on this day in 1996.

On August 23, 1968, Kunnath was born in Delhi, India. Before focusing entirely on music, he briefly worked in marketing while attending Delhi University’s Kirori Mal College. He began performing commercial jingles in 1994 after sending a demo tape to well-known Indian musicians. The song Tadap Tadap from the 1999 Hindi movie Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam marked KK’s debut as a playback vocalist.

In the same year, he released his debut album, Pal. Every single was an enormous hit and catapulted him into the spotlight. With 3,500 jingles in 11 languages, KK achieved even greater popularity in the ensuing years. Many encouraged him to play for a number of Indian film films after recognizing his flexibility and captivating voice. He sang more than 200 songs in Telugu, Bengali, Kannada, and Malayalam, and more than 500 songs in Hindi, over his three-decade career.

In addition to numerous other distinctions and recognitions, KK’s work earned him two Star Screen Awards and six nominations for Filmfare Awards. He is regarded as one of the most gifted and intelligent playback singers in Indian history. To honor the late musician’s memory and influence, a statue was erected in Kolkata, the location of his final performance.