September 25 marked the first death anniversary of legendary singer SP Balasubrahmanyam.

Back in the 1980s and 90s, the crooner was synonymous with the music of Maestro Ilaiyaraaja, and actor Kamal Haasan.

The duo recently paid their respective tributes to the late singer in conjunction with his memorial day, reported India Glitz.

Ilaiyaraaja gave an emotional speech at a special event marking the anniversary, organised by the Cine Musician's Union.

"SPB's love for me is incomparable. We had always praised each other at every stage we stood. I am so fond of him.

"He respected and liked me since I was playing harmonium in orchestra. He gave me a special place in his heart," the Isaignani recalled.

According to Ilaiyaraaja, SP Balasubrahmanyam wanted to meet him when the latter was hospitalised with COVID-19 last year, and that was a sign of their friendship.

"Balu and I will be there in every song you listen. It won't change at any time. People are listening to songs in our hard work. It has been a year since SPB left us but it actually feels like a minute. Time and tide wait for no one," Ilaiyaaraja concluded his speech, before paying a floral tribute to the singer's portrait.

Ulaganayagan Kamal Haasan, meanwhile, took to Twitter to pay his tribute.

Sharing several throwback photos with SPB, Kamal said that the singer will live forever amongst everyone in the form of his voice.

"A person who is intimately involved in something will become that itself. My brother dedicated his life to singing. That's why he has turned into a voice. He had left his physical body, but will stay with us forever," he wrote in Tamil.
SPB passed away on September 25 last year, due to complications arising from a COVID-19 infection the month before. He was 74.

In his career spanning decades, the singer had recorded over 40,000 songs in various languages, and some say that he even holds a Guiness World Record for that. On the day of his memorial day, the hashtags #SPBalasubrahmanyam and #SPB trended on social media.


Source: India Glitz, Twitter
Photo source: Sound Cloud, Twitter