There's a reason we've chosen August as Sisters' Month. And it's not because we don't like brothers. What we don't like is the narrative that a brother should promise to protect and that a sister needs protection, that a family is incomplete without a boy child, and that brother-less families are somehow rudderless, without a guiding light to navigate them through difficult times.
So all through this month of Raksha Bandhan, we will share Stories of Sisterhood; of ordinary, and extraordinary, sisters who love each other and have made the other better in subtle ways. Share your stories, poems, pictures and suggestions with us at editors@mybigredbag.com
We want our stories to have a simple narrative - relationships easily resolved, and feelings that are either best described as abiding love or bitter enmity. But in the case of the Mangeshkar sisters, the truth is probably a little more complicated. They've squabbled, been bitter rivals, supported each other and been each other's best friend through an entire six decades lived in the limelight. And that's what makes their sisterhood so unique.
Lata Mangeshkar is the oldest of four sisters and one brother - Meena, Asha, Usha and Hriday Mangeshkar. But it is her relationship with sister Asha Bhosle that has inspired the most reams of newsprint, as well as a middling film. Surely, people have conjectured, two talented and headstrong women couldn't possibly also be friends?
Here's what the sisters themselves have to say about this.
Lata on Asha
In an exhaustive interview Lata Mangeshkar said;
Maybe it is just us, but there is definitely a hesitance there - especially in the way she is quick to point out that Asha Bhosle is a "different" style of singer.
It is a well known fact that Lata Mangeshkar had differences with Asha Bhosle's first husband Ganpatrao Bhosle.
She has also admitted that in many ways it was RD Burman who eventually affected a reconciliation between the two of them.
But differences remain.
Asha on Lata
In an interview with Rajeev Masand in 2012, Asha Bhosle called out Lata Mangeskhar for her lack of support during the difficult phase when she had come back home after a failed marriage and was trying to establish herself as a singer. While neither sister has ever openly addressed the rumours, it has been conjectured that that during the late 1960s and 70s, music composers were firmly divided in the Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle camp, with very few working with both the sisters.
Although Asha Bhosle is also on record as saying on Lata's 83rd birthday
So, professional respect and warmth, a few shared recriminations, and plenty of history? Sounds like any other sisterly relationship we know of. And that's what makes it so special.
The Mangeskhar sisters were independent career women long before that became a norm. They've lived their lives stubbornly on their own terms and carved a niche purely by the dint of their effort and talent. While they may not have got along all the time, they are possibly the only two who really understand each other's unstinting ambition and grit too. More than anything else, they have so many years of shared experiences and feelings that surely they have reached a mindful peace now.
And that is why nothing in Bollywood compares to the sheer artistry of the rare occasion they sing together.
We will be publishing our Stories of Sisterhood all through the month on HP Blogs and our website. Follow us on Facebook & Instagram for more sisterly inspiration, and join us in celebrating a relationship of equals this Raksha Bandhan - one where brothers and sisters (or sisters and sisters), both tie a Rakhi around the other's wrist, both promise to respect and watch out for the other, and both reminisce over the years of laughter and shared memories they've lived through.
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So all through this month of Raksha Bandhan, we will share Stories of Sisterhood; of ordinary, and extraordinary, sisters who love each other and have made the other better in subtle ways. Share your stories, poems, pictures and suggestions with us at editors@mybigredbag.com
We want our stories to have a simple narrative - relationships easily resolved, and feelings that are either best described as abiding love or bitter enmity. But in the case of the Mangeshkar sisters, the truth is probably a little more complicated. They've squabbled, been bitter rivals, supported each other and been each other's best friend through an entire six decades lived in the limelight. And that's what makes their sisterhood so unique.
Lata Mangeshkar is the oldest of four sisters and one brother - Meena, Asha, Usha and Hriday Mangeshkar. But it is her relationship with sister Asha Bhosle that has inspired the most reams of newsprint, as well as a middling film. Surely, people have conjectured, two talented and headstrong women couldn't possibly also be friends?
Here's what the sisters themselves have to say about this.
Lata on Asha
In an exhaustive interview Lata Mangeshkar said;
There's no fight between us. Until recently we lived in adjoining flats and there's a connecting door between our homes. We're constantly in and out of one another's homes.
I'm very proud of Asha. She can sing every kind of song. Thank God she didn't adopt my style of singing. If she had we'd have become competition for one another. She went on her own path. Yeh maanna padega ki woh bahut badi gayika hai.
Maybe it is just us, but there is definitely a hesitance there - especially in the way she is quick to point out that Asha Bhosle is a "different" style of singer.
It is a well known fact that Lata Mangeshkar had differences with Asha Bhosle's first husband Ganpatrao Bhosle.
"Once Asha was married, her husband did not want her to have anything to do with us," says Lata Mangeshkar in Lata Mangeshkar... In Her Own Voice, a book by Nasreen Munni Kabir. "She wasn't allowed to see us or write to us. This was the situation for years. Ganpatrao Bhosle used to take Asha to various music directors and make her audition for them. He believed that she would earn him lots of money and wanted to control her. Asha suffered a lot during those years."
She has also admitted that in many ways it was RD Burman who eventually affected a reconciliation between the two of them.
But differences remain.
Asha on Lata
In an interview with Rajeev Masand in 2012, Asha Bhosle called out Lata Mangeskhar for her lack of support during the difficult phase when she had come back home after a failed marriage and was trying to establish herself as a singer. While neither sister has ever openly addressed the rumours, it has been conjectured that that during the late 1960s and 70s, music composers were firmly divided in the Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle camp, with very few working with both the sisters.
Although Asha Bhosle is also on record as saying on Lata's 83rd birthday
A singer that can equal Lata didi has not been born yet.
So, professional respect and warmth, a few shared recriminations, and plenty of history? Sounds like any other sisterly relationship we know of. And that's what makes it so special.
The Mangeskhar sisters were independent career women long before that became a norm. They've lived their lives stubbornly on their own terms and carved a niche purely by the dint of their effort and talent. While they may not have got along all the time, they are possibly the only two who really understand each other's unstinting ambition and grit too. More than anything else, they have so many years of shared experiences and feelings that surely they have reached a mindful peace now.
And that is why nothing in Bollywood compares to the sheer artistry of the rare occasion they sing together.
We will be publishing our Stories of Sisterhood all through the month on HP Blogs and our website. Follow us on Facebook & Instagram for more sisterly inspiration, and join us in celebrating a relationship of equals this Raksha Bandhan - one where brothers and sisters (or sisters and sisters), both tie a Rakhi around the other's wrist, both promise to respect and watch out for the other, and both reminisce over the years of laughter and shared memories they've lived through.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Like Us On Facebook | Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Follow Us On Twitter | Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Contact HuffPost India