February 17, 2017
It was an emotional and heart-warming moment when veteran
actress Rekha bowed down to touch Asha Bhosle's feet as the legendary singer was
feted with the Yash Chopra Memorial Award here.
Both the divas -- dressed
in gold saris -- lit up the stage with their elegance and poise at the event,
organised by T. Subbarami Reddy in association with Anu Ranjan and Shashi
Ranjan, here on Friday night.
The award includes Rs 10 lakh along with a
'SwarnKangan' and a trophy.
Asha said: "Yashji was like my younger
brother. It is unfortunate that he isn't here anymore. I had a long association
of close to 50 years with him, even before he was married. Once I complemented
him on his choice of songs and melodies and told him that his ear for music has
greatly improved with time.
"That's when Yashji told me, 'I will tell you
the secret of that if you won't share it with anyone - actually my wife Pam
(Pamela Chopra) decides the songs in the movies'. So I told him no wonder his
taste in music has got better. It is an emotional moment for me to receive this
honour in his name and I feel a tinge of sadness that he is not here to share it
with me."
Rekha, the chief guest along with Maharashtra Governor
Vidyasagar Rao, felicitated 84-year-old Asha as the fifth recipient of the
award.
The actress said: "I am here because of two people I love very
much -- and those are Yashji and Asha tai... What should I talk about Asha tai?
It's like showing light to the Sun. She is an integral part of me, that's what I
believe, but I didn't know that when I was a child.
"When I came into the
industry and when she started singing for me, that's when I realized this is
what it meant to be part of somebody so beautifully... I don't have any words to
express my love and gratitude towards her."
Asha has sung many songs for
Rekha in her films.
Sharing their cinematic association, Rekha said, "I
want to thank Asha tai for pouring the soul into my performances and for being
the voice of whatever I have done in the films because without Asha tai and her
feelings, I would have never been able to dance like that, to be able to sing
like that and to be able to bring that look in my eyes.
"I remember, Asha
tai once met me in Raj Kapoor's party and literally instructed me to perform
better in songs of 'Umrao Jaan' as she sung all my songs in that film. So when I
was shooting for 'Dil cheez kya hai' or 'In aankhon ki masti', that time I was
only remembering instructions of Asha tai. So whatever you have seen of me in
that film is all because of her".
On the life lessons she has taken from
Asha, Rekha said: "As a person, I learned one thing from Asha tai that
irrespective of tough and good times, sail through the phase with a smiling
face. I wish she lives till the time this mankind is existing."
The event
also saw Parineeti Chopra, Padmini Kolhapure, Poonam Dhillon, Alka Yagnik,
Jackie Shroff and Jaya Prada in attendance.