Mohammed Aziz (born on July 2, 1954 in Calcutta, India), also known as Munna, is an Indian playback singer. Inspired by the songs of Mohammed Rafi, he began singing as an early age, later becoming Rafi's devotee. Making his debut in Odia film Manini (1979), Aziz moved to Mumbai in 1984. Making a living as a restaurant singer, he appeared in Hindi film Amber (1984) before being approached by music director Anu Malik, who invited him to perform “Mard Taangewala” in 1985 film Mard, which became an instant hit, followed by “Bappi Lahiri” from Geraftaar (1985) with popular playback singer Asha Bhosle. Attracting the patronage of many other well-known music directors, including prominent composer Laxmikant Pyarelal, singing over 250 of his pieces over the course of his career, Aziz recorded numerous duets with popular female singers including Anuradha Paudwal, Sadhana Sargam and Kavita Krishnamurthy, who he performed over 90 songs with. As a multilingual performer with the ability to sing notes that were rarely able to be sung by others, Aziz appeared in a wide range of Indian language films, becoming the most sought-after playback singer in the industry; honoured with numerous accolades including the BFJ Award, The Mother Teresa International Award and The Aashirwaad Award, as well as honoured by former President of India Giani Zail Singh for his contribution to the music industry. Aziz died on November 27, 2018 after a cardiac arrest at the age of 64.
