It is legendary singer Mohammed Rafi’s 94th birth anniversary today. Born on 24 December 1924, the performer became the icon for many aspiring as well as established singers in Bollywood. Rafi set up the benchmark for the contemporary singers a notch higher as he excelled in multiple genres including classical, peppy Bollywood songs, sad songs, bhajans and ghazals as well. His first song in the Hindi cinema industry was "Aji dil ho kaabu mein to dildar ki aisi taisi...," from the film Gaon Ki Gori (1945). Then on, he was unstoppable. Fanney Khan Song Badan Pe Sitare: Anil Kapoor's Tribute to the Late Mohammed Rafi is a Delight to Watch - Video Alert.

You will be stunned to know that Rafi has 4,516 Hindi songs, 112 other regional songs and approximately 328 personal songs on his name. And with regional, they mean, Assamese, Konkani, Bhojpuri, English, Persian, Dutch, Spanish, Telugu, Maithili, Urdu, Gujarati, Punjabi, Marathi, Bengali to name a few. His songs like Yeh Duniya Yeh Mehfil, Suhani Raat Dhal Chuki, Kya Hua Tera Vaada and more are still in the playlists of all the music lovers. However, his song Baharon Phool Barsao remains the most popular Hindi song in BBC Asia Network poll as voted.

Check out these beautiful renditions given by Rafi to his fans!

Speaking of his accolades, the legend has won 6 Filmfare Awards and one National Film Award. Also, he received a silver medal from the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. he also received Padmashri Award in 1967. His contribution to the music industry is beyond these accolades and the world of Hindi cinema is going to be grateful to him forever!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 24, 2018 11:28 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).