Apart from being top film stars, what’s common to Kamal Haasan and Salman Khan? The unlikely answer is S P Balasubrahmanyam. The singer with the effortlessly soaring voice first commanded Bollywood attention in Kamal Haasan’s Ek Duuje Ke Liye and later became synonymous with the early Salman Khan (Maine Pyar Kiya, Hum Aapke Hain Koun).

After Yesudas, SP was the second male singer from the South to attain major success in Bombay. He sang one solo and four duets in Ek Duuje Ke Liye (1981), each a chartbuster. ‘Tere mere beech mein’ (with Lata) finished no. 5 in Binaca Geetmala’s annual countdown show.

Over the next few years, he became a regular, especially in Southern productions. Jeetendra’s Ek Hi Bhool further showcased his range. His gift for infusing pathos (‘Bekhudi ka bada sahara hai’) and his sense of fun (‘Hey Raju, Hey Daddy’) endeared him to music lovers. The singer went through a trough before making a comeback with Maine Pyar Kiya (1989). In fact, his Bombay career can be divided into two phases — pre and post -- ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’. The Salman Khan super-hit, with the feather-friendly ‘Kabutar ja ja ja’ track, kickstarted his second innings which turned out to be more bountiful than the first. His voice became identified with Salman Khan’s in the 90s like Kishore Kumar with Rajesh Khanna in the 70s.

In 1991, ‘Dekha hai pehli baar’ (with Alka Yagnik, music: Nadeem-Shravan, film: Saajan) became Binaca Geetmala’s no. 1 song of the year. The astounding success of Hum Aapke Hain Koun (1994) further solidified his status. For almost a decade, SPB recorded regularly in Bombay.

After a hiatus of 15 years, he made a comeback to Hindi cinema in 2013 by singing the Chennai Express title track, ‘Nikal Na Jaaye Chennai Express’.