He made Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar overnight stars, yet his wife was found begging at Mumbai station. Who was Khemchand Prakash?

Javed Akhtar, a respected voice in the Indian film industry, has consistently supported the cause of fair compensation for those behind the creation of music — including lyricists, composers, and singers. His passionate advocacy for the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2010 stemmed not only from a sense of justice but also from heartbreaking real-life stories that illustrate the absence of protective systems for creators. One such story is that of legendary composer Khemchand Prakash, whose family endured neglect and hardship after his untimely death.

Prakash’s name is etched in the golden era of Hindi cinema as a musical genius who shaped the careers of icons like Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar, Naushad, and Manna Dey. In an era when fresh talent struggled to find recognition, it was Prakash who gave Lata her big break in the film Ziddi in 1948. However, it was their second collaboration — the hauntingly beautiful “Aayega Aane Wala” from Mahal — that catapulted her into national fame. Unfortunately, Prakash did not live to see the success of the film or the song, as he passed away in 1950 at the young age of 42 due to liver cirrhosis.

His death not only marked the end of a brilliant musical journey but also pushed his family into financial turmoil. His wife, Sridevi, and daughter, Chandrakala, reportedly received little to no support from the industry. Their financial situation worsened over time, and in a painful revelation later shared by Javed Akhtar in the Rajya Sabha, it was found that Prakash’s wife was reduced to begging at a Mumbai railway station, decades after her husband had composed timeless melodies. The industry’s failure to support the families of its pioneers exposed the systemic gaps in how creators were compensated.

Akhtar’s speech during the parliamentary session served as both a tribute and a call to action. He emphasized how creators like Prakash were denied their rightful earnings because royalties were either poorly enforced or entirely absent. He argued that if Prakash’s family had received ongoing income from the music he composed, their lives would have been very different. One of his compositions alone, “Aayega Aane Wala,” could have earned his family lakhs in royalties, with reports suggesting a potential amount of ₹50 lakh.

Khemchand Prakash was born in 1907 into a family deeply rooted in classical performance traditions. His father, Goverdhan Das, was a skilled Dhrupad singer and Kathak performer in the royal court of Madho Singh II. Though Prakash began his musical career early, his initial contributions to the 1935 version of Devdas were uncredited. His formal debut came in 1939 with Meri Aankhein. Over the next decade, he delivered a series of hits, including in films like Tansen, Ziddi, and Mahal. His compositions graced the voices of KL Saigal, Shamshad Begum, Noorjehan, and Kamini Kaushal, setting a high bar for Bollywood music.

One of Prakash’s greatest contributions to the industry was not just his music but his talent-spotting abilities. He discovered Kishore Kumar and brought him to public attention with the song “Marne Ki Duaaen Kyun Maangu.” Lata Mangeshkar herself recalled in a 2020 interview that her first meeting with Kishore took place en route to Prakash’s studio, highlighting how the composer was the connecting thread in some of Indian cinema’s most celebrated artistic unions.

Today, the story of Khemchand Prakash stands as both a tribute to a musical visionary and a stark reminder of how creators can be forgotten if laws fail to protect their contributions. His life and legacy underscore the urgency of reform in recognizing and rewarding artistic labor — not just for the sake of artists, but for the dignity of their families as well.