In a candid revelation that had fans buzzing, legendary actor Dev Anand once opened up about his love for the Nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar. In an interview with Rediff’s Subhash K. Jha, the evergreen star admitted that Lata was not just a close colleague but also the love of his life! He even said she was “gorgeous” and flat-out refused to refer to her as a sister, a label she was often given to her in the industry.
“Who would want to call this enchanting woman his sister! She is the gorgeous Lata, the love of my life,’ Dev Anand had once said about Lata Mangeshkar.
Dev Anand also said that she was the only person in the film industry for whom he would stop shooting, because she was ‘irreplaceable’. The others, one could do without, not Lata. Lata is Lata. She is irreplaceable. The others, we can do without. Not Lata. She is known to cancel recording at the last minute. That’s because she is a perfectionist. She always says, “When I record, it’s just a few people listening. But when the song goes out, it is millions listening. I cannot afford to be less than the best version of myself.” I would happily wait for her,’ he had said.
Lata Mangeshkar was also very fond of about Dev Anand. Speaking of him, she had once said, “It’s not just the songs that we did together, memorable as they were for us and for the listeners. It was the man that Devsaab was. So handsome in looks and in his deeds. I worked with him for decades. Never heard him raise his voice at anyone, let alone get abusive just because work was not happening properly.”
She had also recalled how Dev Anand had intervened during the recording of an iconic song that went on for long. “The only time I remember him being there for a recording was for Hothon Pe Aisi Baat in Jewel Thief. And there too, Devsaab sat outside, not in the recording room. It was a long, tough song. Pancham (R D Burman) was also there. Burmandada (composer SD Burman) kept losing his cool over the recording. Devsaab finally intervened. “Ab rehne bhi do Dada, singer thak gaya hoga,” Lata Mangeshkar had recalled Dev Anand saying.
Lata Mangeshkar and Dev Anand created some of the most memorable songs in Bollywood history. Their collaboration is especially noted for the romantic duets they performed together, often composed by legendary music directors like S.D. Burman and Shankar-Jaikishen. Some iconic songs from their collaboration include “Dheere Dheere Chal,” featured in Love Marriage (1959), and “Abhi Na Jao Chhod Kar” from Hum Dono (1961).
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