KUCH JAANI, KUCH ANJAANI BAATIEN LATAJI KI AMAR KAHANI KI .... BY ALI PETER JOHN

It was one more of our award ceremonies. My company asked the editor of my paper if we could get Lata Mangeshkar to sing at the awards night. She said it was just not possible. I went to ”Lataji” and told her about the idea - Ali Peter John

She said she had never sung at an awards function and had stopped accepting any award more than thirty years ago.

I still kept waiting for her final answer and she said she would sing provided the management gave her a cheque of rupees five lakhs which she would use for the building of her hospital in Pune in the name of her father Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar.

My management was only too glad to agree to her condition. She sang at the awards night. I went to her and asked her whether she wanted the amount in cash or by cheque.

She took me by surprise when she asked me, ”kaunsa cheque, kaisa cheque?” I had to remind her about the condition on which she had agreed to sing for our show. She floored me completely and moved me to tears when she said, ”woh toh maine aapke kehne par kiya tha, mujhe nahin chahiye koi paisa ya cheque.

Unko jaake kaho ki maine jo bhi kiya woh Ali ke liye kiya, mujhe unke paise nahin chahiye.” I don’t know what can be a better honour for me.

She invited me to most of her important functions, but she insisted that I should be present at the inauguration of her hospital in Pune. She told the late Mohan Wagh to make all the arrangements to bring me to Pune and bring me back.

Being with Mohan Wagh was itself a great pleasure because he was a multi-talented man, he was the best photographer I have known and the producer of the biggest Marathi plays.

He was not interested in politics and did not talk politics even to his son-in-law Raj Thackeray who visited him almost every evening.

”Lataji” was so fond of him that she never called him Mohan Wagh but always referred to him as ”Mohan Mangeshkar” which was her way of letting people know how much she liked Mohan and his work…

She was nominated to the Rajya Sabha on the recommendation of Sharad Pawar or that is what is believed. She accepted, but regretted the six years she spent as a MP because like she said, ”wahaan meri aawaz kaun sunnewala tha? Wahaan par neta log itna shor machaate hai ki kisko kya sunai deta hai kuch samajh mein hi nahi aata.

Unn chhe saalon mein main maanti hoon ki main kuch nahin kar saki, main maafi maangti hoo, lekin main yeh bhi maanti hoo ki log meri haalat ko samjhenge, wahaan jaana mere jaise aur Yousuf Khan, mere bade bhai (Dilip Kumar) aur Husain Sahab jaise logo ka koi kaam nahi hai, na ho sakta hai.”.

”Lataji” is a great admirer of the game of cricket. She has watched some of the greatest matches all over the world where cricket is played and personally knows some of the outstanding players.

I had the unique opportunity of sitting with her and watching a one day match being played between India and if I remember right, Sri Lanka.

The interest with which she watched every batsman bat, every bowler bowl and every fielder field was something I just kept watching more than watching the match. Her commentary about the two teams and every ball bowled and every shot hit was better than any commentary I had heard.

She still loves cricket as much as she loves music, but feels very sad about the declining standards of the game and how everything about cricket has been turned into money making racket.

I had finished writing my book about my first and only love in life, Molly, called ALI (VE) ONLY FOR YOU. I wanted someone to release it. I one day thought of talking to ”Lataji” and mentioned my book and said I was looking for someone to release it.

I was taken aback when she said, ”main karti hoon na, mere building ke neeche hall hai, wahan pe function rakho, main beemar bhi hoongi toh zaroor aaoungi, kabhi karna hai boliye?” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, but I just said, ”Lataji, August 18 ko meri maa ka janamdin hai, uss din karne ka meri khwaish hai”.

She immediately said, ”toh karo na, meri taraf se poora haa hai”. I was in the seventh heaven. The function happened. Manoj Kumar was another important guest, but the function lost its charm and dignity for me because the organizer was more interested in getting publicity for himself and had invited people like the well-known lawyer Ram Jethmalani who he wanted to impress.

I told ”Lataji” about how I was being taken for a ride. She spoke a few lines and those lines of ”Lataji” talking about me will stay with me till the last breath of my life.

She is a very big fan of Amitabh Bachchan. A major award called the ”Hridayesh Award” named after her younger brother, Pandit Hridaynath Mangeshkar was to be presented to her.

Her brother placed three names before her and asked her to select one name to present her with the award. The names were the former President of India Dr. Abdul Kalam, Sachin Tendulkar and Amitabh Bachchan.

She did not take a second to say ”if there is the name of Amitabh Bachchan, how can I think of anyone else?” The duty of making Amitabh agree and manage his very busy schedule was fortunately given to me.

I kept pursuing Amitabh for over a month and kept in constant touch with his ever so efficient secretary, Rosy Singh till we together made it possible for Amitabh Bachchan to honour the Nightingale of India. The speech Amitabh made in her honour was like a major piece of literature.

”Lataji” was overwhelmed and called Amitabh ”Hindi bhaasha ke shahenshah”, September 28 was ”Lataji’s” 85th birthday and it was celebrated at the Shanmukhananda Hall in Mumbai with tickets being sold by the organizers.

I don’t understand why the Nightingale’s birthday had to be celebrated by selling tickets at rates which some of her best fans and admirers couldn’t afford. Why should the priceless ”Ratna” of Bharat be honoured as if she was an object for sale?

”Lataji” is a very weak and fragile woman in white now. She hardly has the energy to move out of her room. She has drastically cut down on singing for films.

The only recording she has done in recent times is for a collection of sufi songs tuned by Baijnath Mangeshkar, the young son of her only brother, Pandit Hridaynath Mangeshkar.

One of her wishes she wants to fulfill somehow is to sing the poems of some great Hindi poets starting with Dr. Harivanshrai Bachchan, the father of her favourite actor, Amitabh Bachchan.

Her family is showing a lot of concern for her health and was talking about her 85th birthday celebrations as maybe her last appearance in public. It is very painful to hear about the condition she is in now.

Must a Nightingale and a jewel of India be treated by God for whom she has sung some of the best bhajans and songs treat her in such a shoddy manner? Think about it, Oh God, and give her a better life at the end of one of the most beautiful lives which has added glory to You, Oh God, and to millions of lives who have been made beautiful by the voice which will be the voice of all time to come, a voice that can never be replaced by any other greater voice to come any time in the near or distant future.