A story of Lata ji: Lata ji said that she would never promote any brand , but she did

They first met Lata Mangeshkar somewhere in late 2001 when she was approaching the 40th anniversary of her first concert held in Hyderabad in 1962 , they visited her Prabhu Kunj residence on Pedder Road Mumbai and tried to persuade her to perform with them instead of others .

The commercial negotiations were already taken forward by their team and they were told that we were ahead with their proposal, Lata ji wanted to raise funds for the Deenanath Mangeshkar Memorial Hospital and Research Center in Pune. All proceeds from the concert went towards the hospital , which was built in a record time of 18 months and inaugurated in November 2001.

Lata ji did not want to discuss any financial matters becuase all these matters were left to her nephew Adinath Mangeshkar who ran a music company called Musicry. It was just a courtesy visit to show their eagerness to support a cause so close to their heart.

Their CEO said" To be honest , despite meeting and talking with celebrities everyday as the CEO of a large broadcasting network , I was a little nervous about meeting the famous singer, After all she was an unmatched legend and I could not believe my luck that I would meet her face to face in her own house".

He added, "The simplicity of Mangeshkar's house was the first thing that impressed me. We were taken to the living room and was soon joined by Adinath, Soon after Lata ji also came No ego, No stardom, Just a bright smile and a warm welcoming namaste, After getting introduced to Lata ji she came straight on the agenda of the meeting, ' I lost my father at the age of 12. It was my mother's wish that I should build a hospital in her memory ', she said simply. I told him that we are fully supporting the concert as a fund-raiser and that we have to start it only with her blessings, she looked at Adinath And he nodded his head in confirmation, she smiled and the deal was done, the panic I felt calmed me almost immediately."

As soon as the tea was served , Lata ji told me about her earlier concert in Hyderabad 40 years ago, she told me with great pride and satisfaction , ' I remember when we went to perform there in 1962 it rained heavily Still, not a single person left the venue, ' I used the conversation to tell Lata ji that my mother , almost her age was a fan and could sing some of her songs very well, to this she replied lovingly, “You invite her to the concert as my personal guest I will meet her over a cup of tea."

'I have a question to ask you, I told her as soon as it was over. ' Why don't you ever endorse brands ? , In response, Lata ji said, "It will make me very commercial", then I asked her, 'Is there anything wrong with this ? ' To this, Lata ji said, 'Just the heart does not agree.'

The Lata Mangeshkar Live in Concert - Meri Awaaz Hi Pehchaan Hai - held on March 9, 2002, was a huge success. Usha Mangeshkar , Udit Narayan and Roop Kumar Rathod sang with Lata ji. Chandrababu Naidu , Subhash Chandra and I handed over a check of Rs 1 crore to Legend, the holder of the Guinness Book of World Records for the most songs sung . During this time the concert was attended by more than 50,000 fans . Even at the age of 72, Lata ji's voice was as young as ever.

I took my parents to Hyderabad for the concert, But in the hustle and bustle of the program, a tea session between Lata ji and my mother could not be organized. My mother was overjoyed to hear Lata Mangeshkar sing up close, Three days after coming back to Mumbai , I got a call from Adinath. Lata ji had not forgotten her promise, she was inviting my mother to Prabhu Kunj. My mother was honored and thrilled when Lataji herself served him a cup of tea at her home and spent more than an hour with my parents wife and daughter. Lata ji had kept her promise.

However , in 2013, Lata ji broke a lifelong resolution: not to endorse any brand. She eventually appeared in an advertisement for Glycodin, a cough syrup, in September of the same year . Shot by Govind Nihalani, the series also starred Bhimsen Joshi and Bismillah Khan. why ? ' I can tolerate anything but a sore throat! ' Such simplicity, He cocnluded.