Lata Mangeshkar
Controversy

In 1974, Guinness World Records listed Lata Mangeshkar as the most recorded artist in history, stating that she had reportedly recorded "more than 25,000 solo, duet and chorus backed songs in 20 Indian languages" between 1948 and 1974. Her record was contested by Mohammed Rafi, who was claimed to have sung around 28,000 songs. After Rafi's death, in its 1984 edition, the Guinness Book of World Records stated her name for the "Most Recordings", but also stated Rafi's claim. The later editions of Guinness Book stated that she had sung no fewer than 30,000 songs between 1948 and 1987.

The entry was discontinued by Guinness editions in 1991 without explanation, while several sources continued to claim that she recorded thousands of songs, with estimates ranging up to figures as large as 50,000. However, even the earliest Guinness claim of 25,000 songs (between 1948 and 1974) was disputed and claimed to have been exaggerated by several others, stating that the number of songs sung by her in Hindi films to 1991 was found to be 5025. Mangeshkar stated that she did not keep a record of the number of songs she recorded, and that she did not know from where Guinness Book editors got their information. In 2011, the entry was revived by Guinness crediting the record to her sister Asha Bhosle as the most recorded artist in music history, "for recording up to 11,000 solo, duet and chorus-backed songs and in over 20 Indian languages since 1947". Since 2016, current record in this category belongs to P. Susheela, for recording at least 17,695 songs in 6 languages, not counting some lost early recordings.
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