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[Sharmila-Sweet]

Unforgettable Asha


Asha Bhosle’s returns to puja songs with her Bengali album Mone Rekho

By Sonashree Basu
Posted On Tuesday, August 25, 2009 at 07:33:27 PM


Asha launches her new album

The golden voice of Asha Bhosle, that has rendered timeless classics, is set to rekindle the essence of Bengali pujor gaan after 15 years. The new album of Bengali modern songs Mone Rekho was released in the presence of the eternal songstress herself at The Park.

The gracious lady arrived wearing a subtle white and pink sari. In the midst of the razzmatazz, the singer tried to pacify the paparazzi in her broken Bengali by saying, “Amar kotha na shunle amii kintu ebar ragbo”. As she unveiled the album, she asked if she was looking good on the cover. “Yeh bees saal purani tasveer hai,” said the singer, revealing her sense of humour.

As to why it took her so long to come up with a Bengali album, the diva replied, “Pujas are special for Bengalis. Pancham and I did a lot of puja songs during the 70s and 80s but after his death, I lost interest in singing those songs. I heard many compositions but perhaps that chemistry between Pancham and me that created that magic was amiss. Nevertheless, I met this talented man Babul Bose and asked him to create something exclusive. I had also promised to sing for Mahua Lahiri who had started Asha Audio Company with my name 25 years ago. I thought I owed an album to her and thus the album.”


The diva with Usha and Babul

The album is a melange of eight tracks representing diverse moods. Lyricist Shaymal Sengupta who had assisted RD Burman has penned down the lyrics of the songs. The songs range from classical to semi classical like Hoyto aebhabei, Jete parini to kaache while Shey je amar kaalo is a folk song fused with contemporary music. There is a haat or market song Haat bosheche shukrobare and a devotional song O Ganga Ma. Churir chunn chunn is soothing track with a retro touch while Baje guruguru is a peppy number.

Lastly, there is a nostalgic song Din gulo bhola galo na, the video of which was shown to the audience reminiscing the presence of Pancham in Ashas’ life. “I was stunned when she told me she wanted to do Bengali songs. It’s a dream come true for me,” said composer Babul.
On audience request, Asha sang two lines of the famous song Jabo ki jabo na that received a generous round of applause.

Present at the launch were veteran singers Babul Supriyo, Usha Uthup, and Raghab Chatterjee. Usha Utthup pointed out, “Ashaji is an icon and evolving year after year. The jodi of Pancham Da and Asha Di is evergreen.”

“The album’s name is Mone Rekho but there’s no need to remember someone who is unforgettable. We Bengalis should be honoured to receive such a puja gift,” said Babul Supriyo.

From Sarat Chandra to the beauty of Sundarban Asha has a great fondness for Kolkata. She also seemed to have a weakness for Parshe Macher Jhol, Islish Maach Bhaja, Notun Gurrer Shondesh.

“I think Kolkatans are cultured and intellectuals like the Maharastrians,” reflected Asha.
About today’s music and films, she opined, “The simplicity and innocence is absent in today’s films. I don’t see any logic behind names like Kaminey.”

“I feel sad that people download music from Internet. So how will the new singers and audio companies survive? Therefore, I request people to stop piracy,” insisted Asha.

Voted as number 37 on the World Music List, the diva plans to do a Rabindra Sangeet album soon. Asha, who will complete 75 years on September 8, however, remained mum about working with sibling Lata Mangeshkar.

Photos: Goutam Karmakar

http://www.kolkatamirror.com/index.aspx?pa...60467961§xslt=

[Sharmila-Sweet]

Asha Bhosle revisits her childhood in Kolhapur
Shailendra Paranjpe & Mohsin Mulla / DNAMonday, February 15, 2010 0:22 IST


Legendary singer Asha Bhosle recently visited her Kolhapur home where she had spent a few years of her childhood, 60 years ago.

Bhosle, who was in Kolhapur last Tuesday for a Balchitravani documentary shooting, visited the two-storey modest building where the Mangeshkars stayed on rent in the 1940s for 3-4 years before moving to Mumbai.

Only two families occupied the building — the Karekar family on
the ground floor and the Mangeshkars on the first floor. For 78-year-old Suryakant Karekar, the meeting revived childhood memories. He had met her in Mumbai five years ago.

“She recognised me and remembered my nickname —Baban. It was refreshing to hear Ashatai calling me Baban. She had not forgotten my nickname after so many years,” said Karekar, who is a jeweller.

Bhosle remembered how she would fetch water and rocked on the wooden horse with Baban. “Ashatai remembered the time she spent in our house,” Karekar said.

During her visit to Kolhapur, she had planned to visit the Karekar family and faintly remembered that the house was somewhere near the erstwhile Hans theatre.

Pune-based hotelier Sachin Mudshingikar helped her locate the theatre, which is now the Ganesh multipurpose hall. Mudshingikar got the location from its owner Ravi Navare.

“I had met Ashatai in Mumbai more than five years ago. She had participated in a programme at Gadhinglaj town to help collect funds for a welfare organisation run by my sister Keshar, who passed away last year,” Karekar said.

Asha’s 10-minute visit to her childhood home brought back many memories. “She recounted how they enjoyed my mother’s cooking and her scoldings,” Karekar said.

He recalled that as children, Asha and he had etched their names on tin sheets used as a partition in the house. Those names were there till the sheets got damaged recently, he said.


http://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/repo...olhapur_1347910