Soni Razdan has spoken candidly about the bond she shared with the late legendary singer Asha Bhosle, expressing regret that they didn’t get more time together to grow closer. She shared these thoughts recently while talking about Bhosle’s final playback song, ‘Ae Meri Zindagi, Tu Chhipi Hai Kahan’, from ‘Om Ka Hari’. Raghubir Yadav, Ayesha Kapur and Anshuman Jha were also part of the conversation. The song, Bhosle’s last playback recording, was released on September 8 to mark her 93rd birth anniversary, having been recorded when she was 90, with the accompanying music video capturing moments from that session.

Soni Razdan on how the bond with Asha Bhosle formed

Reflecting on her bond with Bhosle, Soni recalled how an unexpected closeness developed between them in the final years of the singer’s life. Speaking to News18, she said, “In the last few years that she was alive, I don’t know what happened. There was this strange kind of connection that suddenly cropped up between us. I met her somewhere and she spoke to me. There is a song I had danced to many years ago in a Kalpana Lajmi film, which she had sung. At that time, we didn’t have such a connection. It was just out of the blue that we suddenly connected, and I don’t know how it happened or why it happened”.

Soni Razdan on why they never met again

Soni feels their bond may have deepened after Bhosle watched the footage of the song from Om Ka Hari, though the two never crossed paths again as their schedules kept them apart. “Maybe it was after you recorded this song, I’m not sure, because it was pretty… it was pretty… She saw the footage. It’s possible. Maybe, I don’t know. She somehow wanted to meet me more and all, and then it didn’t happen. She got busy, I got busy, and then we were trying through a common friend. So I can’t say I have an anecdote, but there was a connection, and I am so sad that it didn’t develop further,” Soni added.She went on to share what struck her the most about Bhosle, her deep-rooted passion for her craft and her determination to never let age hold her back. “I think she was keeping her art alive for herself, as well as for her fans. She never got stuck in a rut. She kept practising, she kept singing, she kept doing things. And I think that is what I admire most about her as a performer, as an artist, and therefore as a person, because it shows what kind of personality she had. She was someone who wouldn’t stop. She just wanted to keep her art alive and keep herself alive through her art. And I think that is one of the most remarkable things about her,” she said.

Soni Razdan on Asha Bhosle’s active later years

Soni also pointed out how Bhosle stayed active well into her late 80s, going on to record the ‘Om Ka Hari’ song at the age of 90. “She was wandering around at the ripe old age of 87 and things like that. She recorded this song at 90. So she never stayed at home and said, ‘Okay, now I’m old, shut the door.’ She didn’t do all that. She kept herself going. That is what I love about her,” Soni said.

About ‘Om Ka Hari’

Directed by Harish Vyas, ‘Om Ka Hari’ features Raghubir Yadav, Soni Razdan, Anshuman Jha and Ayesha Kapur, and is slated for release on September 18.

Asha Bhosle’s passing

Asha Bhosle, meanwhile, passed away on April 12 at the age of 92 in Mumbai, with her last rites performed the next day at Shivaji Park crematorium.