TURNAROUN

D MANAGEMENT
 BOOK REVIEW

Name: - MEHUL SONI

Roll No: - 551
Class: - TY.BBI
Name of the book: - ASHA BHOSLE: A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY

Author of the book: RAJU BJHARATAN

Publisher: - Hay House
About the author:-

Raju Bharatan born in 1934 is a journalist and writer on Indian cricket and Bollywood music. He
worked for a weekly features magazine, The Illustrated Weekly of India, and an Indian films
weekly newspaper, Screen.

Raju bharatan is widely recognized as the word on Hindustani film music India as the only one
who was physically there on the scene through the decades when music sittings and song
recording took place. He has written on the theme through 55 years, attracting notice as the
music critic of film fare; and as a helmer at the century-old the illustrated weekly of India in The
Times Group.

He has contributed authoritative articles on cine music to the Sunday times, Hindustan times,
rediff.com, and to a number of other publications.

Bharatan has written a number of books on cricket and Hindi film music personalities, with
whom he had a close association during his career.

Asha Bhosle: A Musical Biography (Publisher: Hay House; Latest edition (5 August
2016)

Naushadnama: The Life & Music Of Naushad (Publisher: Hay House India (2014)

A Journey Down Melody Lane (Publisher: Hay House (1 September 2010)

Lata Mangeshkar: A Biography (Publisher: UBS Publishers Distributors (2 January

1995) Indian Cricket - The Vital Phase ( Published by Bell Books, 1977)
About the book:-
The definitive saga, at once riveting and revelatory studded with rare nuggets of information
and fascinating anecdotes that sparklingly brings out the life and times of an internationally
acclaimed incredibly versatile singer Asha Bhosle a Guinness world record holder plus
recipient of the Padma Vibhushan and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award has held one and all
spellbound for six decades now. Her voice, both fluid and flexible, has infused neo life into a
variety of genres from the melancholy melody to the rollicking rocknroll; from the soulful
creation to the vibrant disco; from the romantic rhapsody to the rambunctious folk song; from the
dainty ghazal to the boisterous qawwali; and from the pathosfilled rendition to the naughty
naughty seductive number.
Book Review:-

I wont call it a biography....this book is more of a critical analysis of her

career...Sometimes unable to understand whether the writer is praising her or
bashing her...the author has been quite critical and ruthless in his analysis of the
singer's opportunist attitude vis-a-vis much bigger stalwarts like Mohd. Rafi and (O
P Nayyar etc)....Overall, an interesting read.

Quite a detailed biography with lots of nuggets of information. I just think that the author
sometimes rambles, which a good edit would take care of but otherwise it is a good read that
provides a good insight into the music business in Bollywood.

Raju Bharatan, one of Hindi cinemas greatest singers, in his musical biography pays tribute to
Asha, and draws attention to those facets of her career that tend to get overlooked. The fact that
Asha owes it to OP Nayyar for honing her voice and helping her develop it. Or the fact that not
just OP Nayyar and RD Burman, the two composers most closely associated with Asha, but
others tooRavi, SD Burman, even elder sister and arch-rival Lata Mangeshkars so-called
brother, Madan Mohanare responsible for having given Asha some of her most memorable
songs.

Bharatan does not create, in this book, a strictly chronological timeline of Ashas life and career.
Instead, Asha BhosleA Musical Biography is a somewhat haphazard reconstruction of her life.
The details are there, and given Bharatans long association with the Hindi film industry,
probably in more detail than is commonly known. Ashas early elopement and marriage to
Bhosle, his helping her in singing (which may well have ground to a halt without his active
support); her long affair with OP Nayyar, followed by their falling out and her subsequent
marriage to RD Burman.
In times when nostalgia is increasingly becoming redundant, there is something infectious about
Asha Bhosle that makes us return to her songs and her struggle over and over again. Now even
as we celebrate her birthday next week, noted musicologist Raju Bharatan has come up with a
musical biography (Hay House) of Bhosle, which puts her sterling career in perspective. As
always, Raju Bharatan ensures that the biography doesnt devolve into a hagiography.

He has analysed Ashas growth over the decades as she emerged from the shadows of her sister
and the tag of a just a sensuous voice. Though his favourite is Lata Mangeshkar, Bharatan, who
is the last among the breed of music crtics who were there on the scene when the songs were
composed in what is called the Golden Age of Hindi film music, says he has been fair in his
analysis. I wrote the biography of Lata Mangeshkar in 1995. I felt sufficient time should lapse
for me to write about Asha. I believe over the years she has grown in stature. Though my
favourite has always been Lata, I found there was a whole generation that tuned with Asha. So it
will be only proper for me to examine her entire career where she literally struggled her way up.
This generation might find it little difficult to believe that she ranked 4th among female playback
singers in early 50s. When Lata came Shamshad Begum was on top followed by Geeta Roy. By
1954-55, Lata displaced both and Asha had to find her way between the three stools.

But if you talk of number of songs, Bharatan says, Asha sang the most. Even more than Rafi.
Perhaps, she needed to, says Bharatan referring to her struggle on the personal front.