Singing legend Asha Bhosle dies at 92

Asha Bhosle, who not only survived in the shadow of her sister’s greatness but stepped out of it with a genre-defying voice to create her own universe in Hindi playback singing, died on Sunday. She was 92.

Asha, one half of the Mangeshkar sisters whose versatility was unmatched even by her sister, was admitted to Breach Candy Hospital on Saturday evening due to chest infection and exhaustion, her granddaughter Zanai Bhosle said.

Asha, who got married to Ganpatrao Bhosle in 1949 when she was 16 and later in life married collaborator and composer R D Burman, is survived by her son Anand and her grandchildren.

“She passed way due to multi organ failure a few minutes ago,” Dr Pratit Samdani told PTI.

Asha, who got listeners jiving to “Aaja, Aaja” just as skilfully as she got them mourn lost love in “Chain Se Ham Ko Kabhi”, and her sister Lata ruled the Hindi playback singing world for seven decades with virtually every movie song recorded in Bollywood for female leads using their voices.

Asha herself sang for more than eight decades, recording an incredible 12,000 songs. Her first song was in 1943 at the age of 10 for the Marathi film “Majha Bal”. She continued to sing until the late 2010s and beyond, making her the longest performing singers in global music history.

Unlike Lata, her voice remained steady and its timbre fresh, even when she was singing at the age of 80.

Lata died in February 2022 also at the age of 92.

While Lata was the go-to choice for music director Madan Mohan, the master of melody and ghazals, Asha was equally accomplished in that genre, and is still remembered for her ghazals in “Umrao Jaan”. She won a National Film award for the movie.

But she also established her own identity, partnering first with O P Nayyar for his rhythmic, peppy songs and later with R D Burman for songs inspired by cabarets, romance, lament and every other emotive tonality.

Still, there was never any hint of rivalry between the two sisters who occupied almost an equally high seat in the pantheon of India’s singing gods.

Among Asha’s most popular songs are “Abhi Na Jao Chhod Kar”, “In Ankhon Ki Masti”, “Dil Cheez Kya Hai”, “Piya Tu Ab to Aaja’, Duniya Mein Logon Ko’, and Zaara Se Jhoom Loon Main’, among others.

She was the voice for many leading ladies, from Meena Kumari, Madhubala, Zeenat Aman to Kajol, Urmila Matondkar and also South actors like Padmini and Vyjayanthimala.

In 2023, she performed at a special concert, ASHA@90: Live in concert’, in Dubai to celebrate her 90th birthday.

Born on September 8, 1935 in Sangli (Maharashtra), she was initiated into music by her father Dinanath Mangeshkar just like her sister was. Music was perhaps in her destiny. Of the four sisters, Lata, Usha and Asha were playback singers while Meena is a music composer. As is their brother Hridaynath Mangeshkar.

The much awarded Asha, who was also was also a successful entrepreneur and ran the popular restaurant Asha in Dubai and the UK, won multiple awards, including the Dadasaheb Phalke, Padma Vibhushan, National Awards and other music honours.