An audio recording of the hit Hindi song 'Mere Angne Mein' is being widely shared on social media, claiming that it was first recorded in 1883 by one Miss Sheela.
The claim says that the song was recorded 100 years before it was included in Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Laawaris, which released in 1981.
An archive of this post can be seen here.
(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)
The Quint received a query for this claim's verification on its WhatsApp tipline.
(Archives of more claims on social media can be seen here and here.)
Is it true?: Nope!
The gramophone was patented by one Emile Berliner in the United States in 1887, four years after the claim says that the song was recorded.
Moreover, the first time an Indian voice was recorded that of a girl called Sashimukhi, in West Bengal's Kolkata in 1902.
How did we find out?: First, we looked for information about the gramophone's invention.
We looked for the gramophone's (or phonograph's) details on Google's patents website.
This led us to the device's patent document, which mentioned that it was filed in 1887.
The United States' patent document mentioned that the patent was filed in 1887.
(Source: Google Patents/Altered by The Quint)
The first recording in India: While looking for details about sound recordings in India, we came across a 2015 Indian Express article which carried some details.
It mentioned that the first time an Indian voice was recorded was in November 1902, when a girl called Sashimukhi sang a Bengali song in Kolkata.
The article attributed this information to Michael Kinnear's book titled, 'The Gramophone Company’s First Indian Recordings, 1899-1908.'
We accessed a copy of this book on Google Books. Its third chapter, 'The First Recording Tour 1902' mentioned that "Miss Soshi Mukhi" was the first voice to be recorded.
The book said that the first voice to be recorded was of "Miss Soshi Mukhi" in 1902.
(Source: Google Books/Altered by The Quint)
The same information was shared in another article by LiveMint, which said that Sashimukhi – not Gauhar Jaan – was the first Indian whose voice was recorded.
What about 'Mere Angne Mein'?: We came across a blog post which mentioned that the song 'Mere Angne Mein' was actually a folk song from Uttar Pradesh.
It added that before Lawaaris (1981), the song had previously been included in a 1975 film called Maze Le Lo. We also found a YouTube video which was shared with the same title.
The Quint could not independently verify this claim.
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