Lata recorded songs in over thirty-six Indian languages and a few foreign languages, though primarily in Marathi, Hindi, and Bengali. At one point, she
appeared in the Guinness World Records which listed her as the most recorded artist in history.
Lata's father Deenanath adopted the surname Mangeshkar in order to identify his family with his native town of Mangeshi, Goa. She moved to Mumbai in 1945.
Her song Aye Maalik Tere Bande Hum which was the original composition of Vasant Desai and used in the film Do Aankhen Barah Haath, was adapted by a Pakistani school as the school anthem.
In 1963, against the backdrop of the Sino-Indian War, she sang the patriotic song "Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo" in the presence of Jawaharlal Nehru. The song, composed by C. Ramchandra and written by Kavi Pradeep, is said to have brought the Prime Minister to tears
Lata Mangeshkar has produced four films. She launched her own production house for Hindi movies which produced the Gulzar-directed movie Lekin. Lata Mangeshkar composed music for the first time in 1955 for the Marathi movie Ram Ram Pavhana. Later in the 1960s, she composed music for Marathi movies under the pseudonym of Anand Ghan.
She established the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune. It is managed by the Lata Mangeshkar Medical Foundation (founded by the Mangeshkar family in October 1989).
In 1999, she was nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha. She did not take a salary, allowance or a house in Delhi for being a Member of Parliament.