Sonu Nigam's unforgettable birthday gift!

Beethoven, Barbra and beyond

Sonu Nigam received an unforgettable birthday gift — Lata Mangeshkar's longest live interview

I Piyush Roy

As the nightingale stepped out of her nest in a rare public appearance, the flashbulbs went crazy and Sonu Nigam beamed. It's not every day, after all, that Lata Mangeshkar lets herself be interviewed live. "Lataji agreeing to do the interview is a birthday gift that will be one of my most cherished memories when I look back on my life many years from now," said Nigam. And on Friday morning, he was rewarded with one of Lata Mangeshkar's longest radio interviews – over two-and-a-half hours.

The senior singer was pleased too. "Sonu had questions that went beyond the predictable stuff interviewers keep asking me these days," she said when she came out of the talkathon. The interviewer had done his homework well – "We've been working on the questions and the selection of songs for the last two days, with hardly a wink of sleep," he revealed.

Did it show? Well, Nigam was not his usual dapper self but the bearded unkempt look went surprisingly well with his embroidered white chikan kurta. In fact, white seemed to be the theme that morning, quite in tuning with the sartorial preference of its legendary guest. When Nigam escorted Mangeshkar from her Prabhukunj resi dence on Peddar Road to the Radio City studio, he did so in a vintage Aston Martin, flanked by riders in white. The venue was draped in swathes of white and saffron, and even the event coordinators were all dressed in white.

Inside the studio, Mangeshkar was enthusiasm unlimited behind the microphone. Now joking, now laughing, now fiddling, now curious, greeting the constant parade of photographers with cool confidence, she enlivened the chat on her life and music with jokes and some candid takes.

She talked about her famous fight with Raj Kapoor over the issue of royalty for singers, how she learnt Urdu to contest Dilip Kumar's observation that Maharashtrian singers wouldn't be able to do justice to ghazals. However, Lata also shared some less-known information like her failed attempt at playing the guitar and her penchant for Beethoven's symphonies, the songs of Nat King Cole, Barbra Streisand and Farida Khanum.

Some of her regrets: not being able to see the whole of India, the restrictions on her movements be cause of threats to her life, and not being able to meet famed singer Kundan Lal Saigal. "I came to Mumbai in 1945 and he passed away in 1947," she recalled.It was nostalgia unlimited, and those who caught it on radio were treated to a rare privilege.

https://epaper.hindustantimes.com/

Kewl thanks! That pic of Sonu reminds me of Jhonny Depp from Pirates of the Carribean 😆

TALK

On a song

Express Features Service

Mumbai, July 28: There was palpable excitement in the Radio City studio, as Lata Mangeshkar's familiar voice drifted over the loudspeakers and personal stereo sets. A truly momentous occasion for the station, as it was the first to host an extended two-and-a-half-hour tete-a-tete with Mangeshkar. Her only other radio appearance being with the renowned Ameen Sayani. Star RJ Sonu Nigam mapped her career chart from its inception to her insurmountable success. In the midst of the conversation, Nigam deftly acquired personal facts about the artiste's childhood, for instance, the fact that she had not had a haircut since the age of four—the secret behind those long tresses. The focus of the interview, however, was the hardships she faced starting as an artiste in the film industry and the hit songs that resulted despite those travails.

Dressed in her trademark white sari with gold motifs and her hair braided in two long plaits, the song bird captured the attention of the staff members, as she attempted to sing along with some of her popular songs. Adding to the melodious event were her ghungroo-studded anklets, and the host's enthusiasm as she mentioned that she made this appearance solely on his request, as a birthday present to the star. Nigam even aired his first song that he sang with Lata Mangeshkar on April 1, 1999, Khaamoshiya gungunane lagi.

Overwhelmed attendees, like last year's Indian Idol finalist Amit Sana, accompanied by his entire family, waited eagerly to greet her at the completion of the interview. At the end of the interview, Mangeshkar mentioned that on this day, she missed her late co-artistes Kishore Kumar, R D Burman and Mohammed Rafi.

https://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=194703

Wow!!!! thanks for the article Sonya. I guess this was one of those rare interviews which u would like to

preserve 😃 ...I wish somebody had recorded the interview and post it here or on sonuji's thread 😃

entertainment

Lata Mangeshkar does a radio interview with Sonu Nigam
Mumbai | July 28, 2006 8:20:58 PM IST

It was a treat for the radio listeners in Mumbai. They got to hear melody queen Lata Mangeshkar exchange views with popular playback singer Sonu Nigam on the FM channel Radio City today.

The interview lasted for nearly two-and-a-half hours, and was virtually a battle of wits spanning two generations.

Lata said she enjoyed bantering with Nigam and praised the latter for his interviewing skills.

"It was really good. The questions were really interesting. We shared jokes in between the interview as well. The questions asked in the interview were really different from the routine questions asked in an ordinary interview. Usually, we scare the interviewers away by telling them not to ask some particularuestion. But it was totally different with Sonu. He knows what to ask and what not to," said Lata.

Sonu described his interaction with Lata as an early birthday gift. His birthday, he said falls on July 30. Sonu admitted that he and the team of Radio City had hardly enjoyed forty winks for the last two days as they were preparing for the interview.

"We have not slept for the last two days. I slept for one-one and a half hours yesterday, but the rest of the people have not slept for two days. We did not want Didi (Lata Mangeshkar) to feel that we are posing the same old questions," said Sonu.

"When asked whether she had enjoyed any other interview like this, Lata recalled her radio interview with compere Amin Sayani, which she said was good as well. (ANI)

Thanks sonya.
I will read it later.

Sonya tum bhi kamaal karti ho..SNFC may be post karti yaar..Mujhpe kyu chodte ho..Koi baat nahi ab maine post karli 😛

thanks sonya
that was some really nice stuff to know

Originally posted by: bruno4

Wow!!!! thanks for the article Sonya. I guess this was one of those rare interviews which u would like to

preserve 😃 ...I wish somebody had recorded the interview and post it here or on sonuji's thread 😃

Well it will cum online on Radiocity soon..Hum bhi intzaaar kar rahe hai Koeli😛😛😛

so was the whole 2.5 hour interview recorded?