Asha Bhosle dismisses modern music and singing reality shows: ‘Acting hoti rehti hai’

Asha Bhosle has said that she doesn't listen to modern music, and that singing reality shows often rely too heavily on ‘acting’ more than music.

Singer Asha Bhosle doesn't have anything nice to say about singing reality shows and contemporary music. The iconic singer turned 88 on Wednesday, and has a career spanning over seven decades.

Asha Bhosle appeared on Indian Idol 12 where she also talked about one of her most famous songs.

In an interview, she said that singing reality shows rely more on dramatics than music. She also said that she doesn't listen to modern songs, and prefers evergreen numbers.

She told a leading daily, “I have been to such shows. People must realise that singing is not about short clothes or being dramatic. Gaana gaane se zyada acting hoti rehti hai (There's more acting than singing on these shows)!”

Asked about contemporary music, Asha Bhosle said that she doesn't listen to it, and instead prefers the music of 'Mehdi Hasan, Pandit Jasraj, Bhimchand Joshi and their ilk'. She added, “Yes, even I have to ask the youth around me that who's singing. Technology may have increased, but the soul is absent. I remember, we did so much improvisation on what we were told to do- and ended up only enhancing the numbers. We worked very hard. We always thought that the song that I'm singing should not be my last song.”

A debate has been raging about singing reality shows this year. Several former contestants and judges have accused TV channels of relying too heavily on sad life stories of contestants, which distracts from their singing talent.

Kishore Kumar's son Amit Kumar, who appeared on Indian Idol for a special tribute episode for his father, later told the media that he was asked to praise the contestants regardless of whether he enjoyed their performance or not.