Dada Saheb Phalke Award For Ashaji


This is one award over which there will be no dispute. Asha Bhosle was honoured with the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for th year 2000 for her contribution to cinema. In the world of Indian films, there is no greater prize. And there is no argument over Asha Bhosle’s greatness.

“I am very happy. It is a great honour for me,” said Asha when she heard about the award. But the news would also have been music to the ears of the vast legion of her fans around the world.

The award carries a cash price of Rs 200,000, a shawl and a swarna kamal [golden lotus]. The award was instituted in 1969 to commemorate the outstanding contribution to the Indian film industry of the late Dadasaheb Phalke, the country's first filmmaker. President K R Narayanan will give away the prestigious award at Rashtrapati Bhavan later this year.

Born on September 8, 1933, Asha Bhosle was initiated into music by her father, the renowned Marathi stage actor-singer Dinanath Mangeshkar. Having sung her first song for a Marathi film in 1943, she celebrated her 58th year in the entertainment industry this year.

Bhosle has the distinction of having sung nearly 12,000 songs in practically every major Indian language. The versatility of her voice and talent have been acknowledged through a host of awards conferred on her, including the National Award twice, the prestigious Filmfare Award eight times, the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001, several state governments awards, the MTV award and the Channel [V] award five times. She is also the first Indian singer to have been nominated for a Grammy Award.

Asha Bhosle hasn’t just survived through the ages. She has thrived. From working with Shankar-Jaikishan for Raj Kapoor’s magnum opus Mera Naam Joker to singing playback for Karisma Kapoor in Dil To Pagal Hai she has done it all.

Of course, her fans would say, there’s lots more to come.

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Ashaji on her recieving the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award

I consider Filmfare Awards as the most prestigious because they're based on the public's choice--and for me their love and appreciation is foremost. I have also seen this award take birth and grow in popularity both here and abroad. I've been honoured with seven playback awards. I was awarded a special trophy a few years ago, at the insistence of the public, for the Rangeela song years after I had stepped out of the competition. This Lifetime Achievement Award has come to me at a time when I still have the enthusiasm and energy to do a lot many things in music ranging from Indian classical to Indipop. Filmfare and The Times of India group have given me just the right impetus, that encouragement to go on.

Courtesy : Filmfare

Asha Bhosle - A Night of Bollywood Exttravaganza

Friday 25 October 2002 8:00 pm - Tickets available

Tickets: £15.00, £25.00, £30.00, £55.00, £65.00, £70.00

The star of Bollywood playback singing returns to the UK for one special show to help raise funds for older people in India.

With a glittering career spanning over 50 years in the Bollywood music and film industry, Asha Bhosle's name is legendary and she is adored by billions across continents, cultures and generations. No Bollywood film is complete without Asha's expressive voice with her immense versatility and breadth of talent. Respected by the classical and popular music worlds alike she has constantly developed her style to embrace the times, while maintaining a unique and strong artistic integrity.

Asha's exclusive one-night London show for Help the Aged will feature supporting vocalist Sudesh Bhosle plus a full company of musicians and dancers directly from Bombay.

Help the Aged secures and upholds the rights of older people everywhere. Funds raised through the Asha Bhosle concert will fund vital Mobile Medical Units which bring medical relief to older people in India who otherwise have difficulty accessing the aid they need.






Blair sings Asha's tune

VIRAL BHAYANI
TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2002 08:33:50 PM ]

She won a Grammy nomination in 1997 for her album Legacy, won The Freddie Mercury Award for Outstanding Achievement in Arts and also The Nightingale of Asia Award from the Indo-Pak Association in the UK. Now, Asha Bhosle’s set to receive yet another major international recognition at the hands of Tony Blair.

Says Asha’s son Anand, “We’ve received official intimation that mom will receive the BBC Lifetime Achievement Award this November and UK Prime Minister Tony Blair himself will be presenting her this honour in Birmingham.”

November will see yet another recognition for Asha as The Birmingham Film Festival pays her a special tribute. Also on the cards is a charity show at Royal Albert Hall. “I’m excited to get this huge recognition. It will also bring back a lot of old memories as it was in 1978 that I performed at the Royal Albert,” says Asha.



Asha Bhosle turns Mistress of Spice


After captivating millions with her mesmerising voice, Indian diva Asha Bhosle will soon have people eating out her of hands. 'Asha's', an Indian restaurant being launched in Dubai in December would have that special Asha's touch to each and every recipe dished out.

"The restaurant, to be set up at a huge shopping mall 'Wafi City', would have an Indian feel with the decor, the menu being typically Indian," Asha's family sources said.
The menu, which has been carefully prepared by the septuagenarian queen, would comprise some of Asha's favourite home-made recipes as well as her secret dishes, perfected over the years in the heat and grime of the kitchen.

"The stress would be on the menu," the sources said. There would be no music videos or music oriented paraphernalia as popularly expected.

Asha's foray into the hotel industry is nothing but a logical and natural extension of her sheer passion for cooking. Known as an excellent cook in the film circle, "Cooking happens to be her second passion after singing," informs her relative.

The melody queen's love for cooking has many a time had her giving in to the request of many a filmstars, including the Kapoor family who dote on her 'paya curry' and 'dal'. Shashi Kapoor's all time favourite is Asha's 'goan fish curry', he reveals.

The diva has always been flooded with request to send either kadai ghosht, biryani or some of her time tested recipies and she rarely has turned down a request, the relative said.

“Hence, when the idea of floating a restaurant was suggested by the Wafi Group, she could hardly resist the idea,” he adds. “However, Asha will not be involved in day-to-day running of the restaurant, her priority will be the kitchen and the decor.”

The singing sensation has been personally training the chefs for the last six months. “She has demonstrated the recipes and has been ensuring that they practice it to perfection. The recipes include those picked up from her travels and those passed down to her,” he adds.

The idea of launching a restaurant in Dubai was based solely on her popularity in the Gulf country. “Currenty there is a large Indian population in Gulf and she is perhaps the only Indian star to have her imprints in planet Hollywood in Dubai,” adds Anand, Asha's relative.

“Moreover, she has also come to be a popular name among Europeans with her association in music with the likes of Boy George and films like Bombay Dreams... And of course the Dubai locals love her and have expressed their admiration during concerts abroad, he says.

On the name “Asha's”, he says the first suggestion was a “brimful of Asha” and then “A faceful of Asha”, but “I thought they were a strict no-no, we finally settled for just Asha's”.

While “Asha's” would be the only Indian restaurant in the huge shopping mall, there are plans to extend the franchise to India soon, he added.