When Lata Mangeshkar talked about ‘ajeeb sa khalipan’ that people's deaths leave behind: 'All my friends are gone'

Lata Mangeshkar often talked profoundly about the changing times and relationships that she witnessed in her long career.

India's most legendary star and decorated artiste, Lata Mangeshkar breathed her last on Sunday. The singer was admitted to Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai and died of post-covid complications.

Lata Mangeshkar worked for almost eight decades in the music and film industry.

Lata started working at a very young age and witnessed the world of music and film evolve over the years. In an old interview with Hindustan Times, she spoke about losing her friends along the way and the ‘emptiness’ it left behind.

“Jab log chale jaate hain toh ek ajeeb sa khaalipan mehsoos hota hai (when people pass away, there’s a strange sense of emptiness). I had a very close friend in Canada; she also passed away recently. All my friends are gone, and so are the golden days. I’m still not being able to come to terms with Yashji’s (Chopra) death,” she had said.

Lata, who sang for Yash Chopra in countless movies, was deeply impacted by his death. “He used to call me ‘didi’ and that still rings in my ears. Everyone is slowly going away, but they’ll always be in my heart. I’ll miss them, their music and their associations. Music directors like Madan (Mohan) bhaiyya lived across my house. Evenings were so full of fun. I miss Hemant (Kumar) dada and S D Burman who called me ‘beti’. I had a great rapport with R D, who addressed me as behen (sister),” she had said.

Lata's death is mourned by millions of her fans in India and across the world. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed heartbreak over her death. "I am anguished beyond words. The kind and caring Lata Didi has left us. She leaves a void in our nation that cannot be filled," he wrote on Twitter.