Asha Bhosle speaks about her didi for the first time after the demise

At a public veiling of a picture of Lataji at the Pandit Dinanath auditorium in Mumbai this week, Asha Bhosle who was present at the venue became emotional.

Remembering her Didi, Asha Bhosle said, “Whenever I used to go anywhere I used to take blessings from Didi. She used to tell me not to touch her feet, that her blessings are always with me , whether I seek it or not. ‘Mai, Baba and I are always close to you,’ Didi would say. Now after her departure, whose blessings should I take, whom should I tell my troubles?”

Recalling their childhood struggles Asha Bhosle said, “When we were very young, then Baba left, after Mai's departure, Lata didi took care of us all as a father, and today after her departure we all became orphans. I didn't think that all this would happen so soon, that she could live for some more years.”

Lataji would always scoff at the stories of the rivalry between the two sisters.

She once said to me, “Let me make it very clear that we share a very good relationship. There is no stress. Whenever Asha has a show she seeks my blessings first. I’ve heard her lyric book has my picture in it. My relationship with none of my siblings is troubled. I fulfil the function of the eldest with all my siblings.I am fortunate to have such siblings.”

Elaborating further on all the gossip surrounding the siblings’ rivalry, Lataji has said, “People say all kinds of things about our relationship. There’s no fight between us. At a tender age, Asha left home and got married. And she made a big name for herself. I’m very proud of her. I rate Asha very highly as an artiste and a singer. She didn’t become famous for nothing. She can sing every kind of song. Thank God she didn’t adopt my style of singing. If she had we’d have become competition for one another. She went on her own path. Yeh man-na padega ki woh bahut badi gayika hai. We’re sisters and have always been that. Whenever we meet we meet with affection. The fights were because of her husband who was against me. Maybe he felt Asha didn’t get work because of Lata. He stopped her from coming to our house and he stopped us, sisters, from meeting. But then Asha and I started singing some duets together and would meet with warmth.”