Thiruvananthapuram: Veteran singer KJ Yesudas, who turned 82 on Monday, would be unable to offer prayers at the famed Kollur Mookambika temple in Karnataka for the second consecutive year.

The acclaimed singer has been in Dallas since the Covid epidemic broke out, and thus has been unable to participate in his musical homage at the temple, which he has done for nearly four decades. His family sings 'bhajans' at the temple every year on his birthday.

The temple is considered a very revered place among performers in music and art. However, His good old friend K Ramachandran  has arrived at the temple and offered prayers for the famed singer's health. Meanwhile, to commemorate his 82nd birthday, 82 singers will gather at the temple and perform 82 songs in his honour.

Yesudas has recorded over 80,000 songs in 14 languages, including Arabic, Latin, and Russian, during the course of his six-decade career in music. Yesudas has earned a total of eight national honours and 25 state awards over the years. Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Vibhushan have all been bestowed upon the vocalist.

Protests erupted across Tamil Nadu in response to vandalism of Periyar statue

KPCC accuses Pinaryi Vijayan of earning commission, on SilverLine project

As Pinaray goes to US for treatment, BJP questions 'unfriendly' attitude of state-run hospitals