There is little about Asha Bhosle the singer that you don’t already know. But let me tell you about another Asha Bhosle. In 2003, I featured her on the cover of an international food and wine magazine. She had just opened a fine dining Indian restaurant in Dubai’s Wafi City named, simply and elegantly, ‘Asha’s’. Amid a cosmopolitan spread of cuisines, Thai and Chinese kitchens, Mediterranean tables, jazz bars, French lounges, hers stood apart: deeply personal, unmistakably Indian.
She invited me home for lunch. At the door, a fisherwoman sat patiently, shelling and deveining prawns. Inside, Asha was in the kitchen, cooking, and singing softly to her grandchildren. There was help, of course, a Bengali cook who assisted her. But the rhythms of the kitchen were entirely her own. She went to the markets herself, choosing fish, vegetables, spices, condiments. Vendors were used to seeing her haggle with the ease of a seasoned homemaker. Meat and poultry were delivered, but the marinades, the curry pastes, those she prepared by hand.
Lunch was a spread that travelled the country: Lucknowi kebabs, Peshawari biryani (from a recipe by Raj Kapoor), Goan prawn curry, Kerala chicken fry. She preferred her meals with meat or fish, always. “When my children were small,” she told me, “I learned to cook non-vegetarian food at home so that they would not go out to eat it. Cooking was always my passion. My mother and grandmother taught me. And I always wanted to open a restaurant.” That dream found its moment in Dubai. During a concert visit, she mentioned it in an interview. The royal family, devoted admirers of her music, extended the invitation.
And so was born ‘Asha’s’ – a restaurant built not just on recipes, but on memory. A menu of 96 signature dishes, each one something she could cook herself. Today, it is an award-winning chain across the UAE, the Gulf, and the UK. But perhaps her most discerning audience sat closer to home. “Burman Saab,” as she fondly called her husband, was a legendary foodie who loved to entertain. “He would call to say he was bringing a few people over for dinner,” she laughed. “And forty would arrive! He was so proud of my cooking.”
On one such evening, after a meal that lingered long into the night, Randhir Kapoor is said to have told her, half in jest and wholly in admiration, “Asha ji, aap gaana chhod dijiye… aur khana banaaiye!” And perhaps that is how I remember her best. Not on stage, not in a studio, but in her kitchen. Stirring a pot. Feeding her guests. And singing, as though the song and the meal were one.
# Photo: Asha Bhosle with Chef Sachin Tilak at Asha’s, from a promotional shoot by Gautam Rajyadhaksha.
About Mark Manuel
The above thoughts/content has been proudly copied from the wall of Sir Mark Manuel. Being interviewing almost every role model of this country and going stronger each day. Mark Manuel is a respected Mumbai editor, writer, and columnist.
With over three decades of journalism in leading publications. This includes the Free Press Journal, Times, Dainik Bhaskar, Mid-Day, and Afternoon. He is famous for his brilliant pen interviews. He himself is a TEDx speaker.
Further
His interviews have featured in several leading media houses. They include the Hindustan Times, Huffington Post, BBC, and Network 18. Almost every famous person has been interviewed by him in the country from Mother Teresa to Muhammad Ali. His first book is just out. It’s titled Moryaa Re! It is a crime thriller that is perhaps the country’s first police procedural. He began his career covering crime. And in a tribute to his experience and knowledge of this beat.
Several distinguished officers of the Mumbai Police and its Crime Branch collaborated with him to make this book possible. Amitabh Bachchan wrote the forward in a statement of friendship for Mark Manuel and admiration for his work.
About Story of Souls
Leave your comments on how you like this story. If you love it, share it to bring that change we wish to see in the world.
You can also share your inspiring story with us at submitstories.storyofsouls@gmail.com. Story of Souls is an initiative where we invite people to bring their stories to us. We want people to “write to heal.” The idea of Storyofsouls is appreciated by ALL INDIA RADIO. An Online Platform where you can share your real-life stories. The impact of our stories has reached the UN and Harvard University. For some real-life stories, web series are also planned. You can also visit our YouTube channel. You can follow us on Facebook LinkedIn Instagram.
Storyofsouls is glad to inform you that we are now a Google News-verified platform.
We are proud to inform you all that storyofsouls.com is the official TEDx MotiJheel Kanpur Partner for their upcoming event.
