Lata Mangeshkar’s official Bengali biography released to celebrate her 88th birthday

Lata Mangeshkar- kichu katha kichu gan, the first official biography of the great singer in Bengali was released on Wednesday to celebrate her 88th birthday.

Penned by Pallab Mitra who took her interview at her residence Prabhu Kunja, Oberoi Grand (room number 401) and a studio in Mumbai, the book has been published by Parul Prakashani. 

The book has been dedicated to Salil Chowdhury who had introduced Mitra to Lataji as his nephew. Lataji did not allow any photographer or tape recorder. They were taken and she later corrected them by putting her signature.

It may be mentioned that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will go to her house in Mumbai on October 20 to confer Bangabibhusan award.

Born in Indore on September 28, 1929 she recorded her first basic disc at the age of 13. Her first Bengali song Akash Pradip Jale was composed by Satinath Mukherjee and was released before the Pujas in 1954.

It immediately brought her fame and made her very close to Bengali heart. Lataji was close to Hemanta Mukherjee and with him her first duet a Rabindrasangeet was released. She came in contact with Salil Chowdhury and sang some famous songs like “Satbhai champa jagore, jagore”, “Na jeo na rajani ekhono banki” and “jare jare ure pakhi” to name a few.

She also sang “Runner” the famous song sung by Hemanta Mukherjee. In one of the interviews Lataji had said she often misses the company of three great musicians namely Hemanta dada, Salilda and Mukesh bhaiya.”

Mitra said Lataji had told her that as she did not know Bengali, she took the notation and then the words in Hindi and asked someone to sing the song in Bengali which she followed carefully.

Her duet with Manna De in Bengali feature film Sankhyabela “Ke prothom kache esechi” starring Uttam Kumar and Madhabi Mukherjee is still popular.

Her immortal song “Ekbar biday de ma ghure ashi” in film Balak Subhaschandra sung in the background of Midnapore court room when the judge was announcing the death sentence to Kshudiram Bose had become a song heard and sung in every Bengali household.

“I got a rare opportunity to meet her and take her interview.  The book is based purely on facts and there are no stories,” said Mitra.