Chennai, Jun 29 (UNI) Soolamangalam Jayalakshmi, eldest of the Soolamangalam Sisters known for their devotional songs, passed away due to age related ailments. Jayalakshmi and her younger sister Rajalakshmi were popularly known as Soolamangalam sisters, They were Carnatic music sister-pair vocalists and musicians known for their devotional songs in Tamil. The divine voice that rendered Kandasashti Kavasam and Skanda Guru Kavasam, which was played in almost all temples and households everyday, has fallen silent with the death of acclaimed vocalist Soolamangalam Jayalakshmi. She was 80. Family sources said she died due to age related illness at her residence in Thoraipakkam last night. As per her last wish, her body was donated to a private hospital for medical research. Rajalakshmi had pre-deceased her a few years ago. The duo were recipients of the State government's Kalaimamani award. Born at Soolamangalam village (that earned them the sobriquet Soolamangalam) near Ayyampettai in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, the two sisters were the first to sign Carnatic music as a duo, starting a trend leading to the famous Bombay Sisters, Ranjani-Gayatri, and others. Their devotional and spiritual songs were more popular compared to those of others, especially Kandashashti Kavasam, which created a record in sale at the global-level among devotional song audiotapes. Among the two of them, Jayalakshmi had rendered only a few songs in films and most of it would be duets with Rajalakshmi, whereas Rajalakshmi got more chances as a playback singer. UNI GV CS 1554