Arijit Singh

This low-key, laidback Bollywood playback superstar combines classical Indian training with modern romantic emoting. Born in 1987 in West Bengal, Arijit Singh studied classical singing, tabla, and the Rabindra Sangeet song repertoire from a trio of musical gurus; with classical music on the wane in the early 2000s, all three gurus encouraged him to pursue a career in pop. Appearances in two music-oriented reality series provided both exposure and the funds for his own Mumbai studio, and his commercial work there earned him an apprenticeship with classically trained composer Pritam. After making his Bollywood debut with the plaintive "Phir Mohabbat (Again Love)” from Mithoon’s 2001 Murder 2, Singh again teamed up with the director for the hopelessly lovelorn "Tum Hi Ho (You Are the One)” from Aashiqui 2. That 2013 performance nabbed Singh several awards and nominations, including his first Filmfare award for best male playback singer—with dozens of awards and more than 200 nominations to follow. Since a successful Bollywood playback singer is nothing if not versatile, Singh sings not just in Hindi and Bengali but also in Telugu and other regional languages. He's more than a romantic crooner, too, and has extended himself stylistically with the club beats of "Raat Bhar (All Night Long),” the electronica of "Blame the Night,” the Sufi-influenced qawwali of "Mast Magan (Crazy Heart)” and a poignant cover of the '50s ghazal "Gulon Mein Rang Bhare (Fill the Flowers With Colour).” Singh's string of husky-voiced hits extended to the strings-and-tabla title track of 2019's Kalank, which earned him his sixth Filmfare award, cementing Singh’s status as the most acclaimed playback singer of the decade.