Ramya Sarma: “I admire Asha Bhosle’s resilience and chutzpah”
The author of Asha Bhosle; A Life in Music about speaking to a range of people to arrive at a full portrait of the legend
You’ve been associated with ‘Bollywood’ for a long time without an actual association with it – what’s that been like?
I’ve been part of creating websites on Bollywood and its associations. It’s been a lot of fun. Incomprehensible at times, annoying at times, and hilarious very often. It’s a world I would normally never step into wearing any mask I might think of, but it’s a very colourful, whimsical, crazy yet terribly intense and demanding world which can be daunting if you don’t set good sense, logic and schedules aside and leap in, without thinking too hard or too straight. Running websites is not about knowing that world, but about knowing the audience that wants to know that world. And ‘people’ is a far more interesting realm, one that makes me want to know more. I’ve never been glamour or star struck, so the desire to meet stars or even watch films has never been strong. I have always been curious about the people who make up that starry world – like the determination, hard work and charisma that has carried Asha Bhosle, Shahrukh Khan and others of their quality to the places they now hold. As far as interviewing filmi types, doing film reviews, watching shoots, et al, it’s not for anyone who is a little OCD about time and place!
Now you’ve written a book about someone you never met and yet you have managed to create a vivid, lifelike impression of her within a few pages, which keeps growing through right till the end. How did you do it?
My editor-publisher Bidisha Ganguly and I have worked really hard to make this book something special. I aimed for the unexpected, which is what makes me want to read a book. It’s really very simple: when you know nothing or close to nothing about something, your perspective is unbiased. You dive in and explore, learn, question, without preconceived notions or preconditions. It’s like eating those filled chocolates...what they’re filled with, you never know until you bite in. And AB is a PERSONALITY, someone who has done fabulous things. What I admire is her resilience and that chutzpah to keep going, and going higher. If I conveyed that, great! But a lot of people don’t see that she’s not just a star, she’s a human being with very human reactions and behavioural quirks. In glorifying her, that aspect rarely comes through. And while she’s earned the right to that glory, there’s so much more to her. Talking to people who are not obviously connected to filmbiz brought out that part of her.
Why Asha Bhosle?
It kind of landed in my lap, honestly. I agreed to do it because it was a challenge. On the way, I found that she’s the kind of woman I’d like knowing, someone who has talent, intelligence, sass, strength and, yes, frailties that have only given her power. I think that is an embodiment of Shakti, power, a realm that rules. I like the concept of feminine power, of Shakti!
What was your most memorable experience in the process of writing this book?
Well, there were some very fun and some very memorable stories. Like learning about AB eating crisps with Shujaat Khan in London; like her sitting and snacking in the car in Delhi with Parveen Khan; like her delight at being recognised at the airport for a non-filmi work; like her first meeting with Boy George, and admiring how he did his eyebrows. But my favourite moment, apart from the friends I made was the email I got from Boy George. I opened it as soon as I woke up at 5.30 am and squeaked! Why was that so special for me? It’s a little silly, but when I was a teenager and trying to figure out how to be a girlie girl without overdoing it, I got an album of Boy George and Culture Club; BG was on the cover, with glorious eyes made up beautifully. And that is still my ideal when I do my face!
And what was challenging about writing this?
There were two aspects that were not just challenging, but plain hard on me, playing tricks with my self-worth and my mind. One was the delay that the project went through at every stage, almost every page, with the first publisher. That was frustrating, hurtful, annoying, all those negative emotions that have been, frankly, scarring. The second was to pin down the few film types that I did get to speak to me. One of them made up for it in style, for which I am forever grateful and a fan – Sonu Nigam, who changed his mind about meeting me often, even when I was right outside his house. But he made up for it by doing the whole interview and singing fabulously on WhatsApp voice messaging! The others... that would make one of those really funny personal memories books that so many people are writing. I’ve mentioned some of them in the book’s intro.
What did you learn?
That life may throw you stinkers and more will come out of left field, but you will eventually do what you set out to do if you really want to do it. I guess it’s like Asha Bhosle herself, hard work, grit and determination gets you to the end line.
Please share a few stories that didn’t make it to the book.
There are many; like the time my sandals broke right outside Lesle Lewis’ studio and I trudged through the building barefoot. Seeing my woeful state, he made me put my feet up on his squishy sofa, talked to me for ages and then sang songs from his new album. Then, he offered me a pair of oversized rubber chappals to get me back to my car! Then there was Sumit Dutt, who was in a meeting but came out for “ten minutes” and then sat with me for over an hour telling me stories about Ashaji singing under a large yellow umbrella in a waterfall! People surprised me with their generosity, kindness and plain niceness.
Asha Bhosle is writing her autobiography. What do you expect that to have which your book doesn’t have?
Obviously, a great deal, since it’s her own life that she will write about. But the book has been announced many times and shelved many times. In fact, when I was with Poonam Dhillon, she called Ashaji to ask if she may speak with me. The lady agreed, telling her she could say what she wanted since her own book was almost done and would be out soon. A couple of months later, she announced that she had decided that her life was her life and she saw no reason for other people to know about it, so her book would not be published. If it ever is, I’d line up to buy it!
Finally, what do you expect from the release of this book?
Obviously good sales, since that would make my publisher happy! And, of course, for readers to learn something new about Asha Bhosle, something that they had never seen or heard of before. Because that’s what we were looking to do!
Saaz Aggarwal is the author of Sindh — Stories from a Vanished Homeland.
