For the first time since her daughter’s death, Asha Bhosle opens up to TOI about the tragedy Just a week since singer Asha Bhosle’s 56-year-old daughter Varsha Bhosle ended her life, and a pall of gloom shrouds Prabhu Kunj, the Mangeshkars’ residence at Peddar road. Sources close to the family say the tragedy has smothered Asha’s spirit. She continues to be in a state of disbelief. Both sisters Asha and Lata Mangeshkar are in deep shock and have stopped all public appearances.
Despite the magnitude of her loss, Ashaji did speak to TOI when contacted: “I was in Singapore when it happened. They wanted to keep me in the dark about it. But my son Anand thought it was better if I knew. When I was told, I just fell to the ground. I wanted to return by the first available flight. Didi (Lata) has taken this very badly. She just can’t stop crying. I wish she hadn’t been told about it. Didi is mostly in her room, so she needn’t have known. But when it happened, the place was swarming with activity. So it couldn’t have been avoided.”
An insider revealed: “Ashatai is no longer the same. Varsha has taken away her spirit. The good thing is that the two sisters Lataji and Ashaji have bonded in grief. This tragedy has brought them closer than ever before.” This goes far beyond bereavement for the loss of a daughter of the family. Said the insider: “For the first time in the history of the Mangeshkar family, an ignominy of this magnitude has affected their collective lives brutally. The illustrious family has never known the slightest slur. It is an extremely distressing situation for the entire clan and one that they are not able to come to terms with.”
