Asha Bhosle (née Mangeshkar; 8 September 1933 – 12 April 2026) was an Indian playback singer and actress who predominantly worked in Indian cinema. Known for her versatility, she was described in the media as one of the greatest and most influential singers in Hindi cinema. In a career spanning over eight decades, she recorded songs for films and albums in various Indian languages and won several accolades including two National Film Awards, four BFJA Awards, eighteen Maharashtra State Film Awards, nine Filmfare Awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award and a record seven Filmfare Awards for Best Female Playback Singer, in addition to two Grammy nominations. In 2000, she was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India's highest award in the field of cinema. In 2008, she was honoured by the Government of India with the Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian honour of the country. The Guinness Book of World Records acknowledged her in 2011 as the most recorded artist in music history.
Bhosle was the younger sister of playback singer Lata Mangeshkar and belonged to the prominent Mangeshkar family. Renowned for her soprano voice range and often credited with her versatility, her work included film music, pop, ghazals, bhajans, traditional Indian classical music, folk songs, qawwalis, and Rabindra Sangeet. Apart from Hindi, she sang in over 20 Indian and foreign languages. In 2013, she made her debut as an actress in the film Mai, and received critical acclaim for her performance. In 2006, she stated that she had recorded over 12,000 songs in her career, a figure repeated by several other sources.
Asha Mangeshkar was born in the small hamlet of Goar in Sangli, then in the salute princely state of Sangli (now in Maharashtra), into the musical family of Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar, who was Marathi and Konkani, and his Gujarati wife, Shevanti. Deenanath was an actor and classical singer on the Marathi musical stage. When Bhosle was nine years old, her father died. The family moved from Pune to Kolhapur and then to Mumbai. She and her elder sister Lata Mangeshkar began singing and acting in films to support their family. She sang her first film song, '"Chala Chala Nav Bala", for the Marathi film Majha Bal (1943). The music for the film was composed by Datta Davjekar. She made her Hindi film debut when she sang the song "Saawan Aaya" for Hansraj Behl's Chunariya (1948), though another film, Andhon Ki Duniya, was released before Chunariya in the same year; in both films she sang three songs each. Her first solo Hindi film song was for the movie Raat Ki Rani (1949). She made her Assamese film debut song when she sang the song "Pokhiraj Ghora" for the movie Sikimik Bijuli along with Kishore Kumar and Dr. Bhupen Hazarika in 1969.
Bhosle described herself as "an accident singer" who had learned by keenly listening to her father Deenanath Mangeshkar, his disciples, and her elder sister Lata Mangeshkar sing. She maintained daily riyaaz (practice) regardless of her age, stating that music was "equivalent to breathing" for her. Bhosle cited Elvis Presley and Bill Haley to have influenced her to embrace the western music style.
Her sisters, Lata and Usha Mangeshkar, have been playback singers. Her elder sister Meena Mangeshkar and younger brother Hridaynath Mangeshkar are music directors.
From the late 1940s to early 1950s, prominent playback singers like Geeta Dutt, Shamshad Begum and Lata Mangeshkar dominated singing for female leads and big films. In the 1950s, Bhosle sang more songs than most playback singers in Hindi films. Most of these were in low budget films. Her earliest songs included compositions by A. R. Qureshi, Sajjad Hussain, S. Mohinder, Sardar Malik and Ghulam Mohammed. Singing in Sangdil (1952), composed by Sajjad Hussain, she got reasonable recognition. In the same year, she had the lead in the film Chham Chhama Chham, under O. P. Nayyar, she sang 10 out of 11 songs in that film. Consequently, film director Bimal Roy gave her a chance to sing in Parineeta (1953). Raj Kapoor signed her to sing all songs in Boot Polish (1954), which gained her popularity.
O. P. Nayyar gave Bhosle a number of songs from 1952 to 1956, and she achieved success with B. R. Chopra's soundtrack of Naya Daur (1957). Her duets with Rafi like "Maang Ke Saath Tumhara", "Saathi Haath Badhana" and "Uden Jab Jab Zulfein Teri", penned by Sahir Ludhianvi, earned her recognition. It was the first time she sang all the songs for a film's leading actress. B. R. Chopra then approached her for several of his later productions, including Dhool Ka Phool, Gumrah (1963), Waqt (1965), Hamraaz (1967), Aadmi Aur Insaan (1969), Dhund (1973) and many more. O. P. Nayyar's future collaboration with Bhosle also resulted in success. Gradually, she established her status and received the patronage of such composers as Sachin Dev Burman and Ravi. Bhosle and O. P. Nayyar had a professional and personal parting of ways in the 1970s. In 1966, Bhosle's performances in the duets from one of music director R.D. Burman's soundtracks, for the movie Teesri Manzil, won popular acclaim. Reportedly, when she first heard the dance number "Aaja Aaja", she felt she would not be able to sing this westernised tune. While Burman offered to change the music, she refused, taking it as a challenge. She completed the song after ten days of rehearsals, and "Aaja Aaja", along with such other songs as "O Haseena Zulfonwali" and "O Mere Sona Re" (all three duets with Rafi), became successful. Shammi Kapoor, the film's leading actor, was once quoted as saying, "If I did not have Mohammad Rafi to sing for me, I would have got Asha Bhosle to do the job". Bhosle's collaboration with Burman resulted in numerous hits and a marriage. During the 1960s and 1970s, she was the voice of Hindi film actress and dancer Helen, on whom "O Haseena Zulfon Wali" was picturised. It is said that Helen would attend her recording sessions so that she could understand the song better and plan dance steps accordingly. Some of their other popular numbers include "Piya Tu Ab To Aaja" (Caravan) and "Yeh Mera Dil" (Don), among others.
In 1981, Bhosle attempted a different genre by singing several ghazals for the Rekha-starrer Umrao Jaan, including "Dil Cheez Kya Hai", "In Aankhon Ki Masti Ke", "Yeh Kya Jagah Hai Doston" and "Justju Jiski Thi". The film's music director, Khayyam, had lowered her pitch by half a note. Bhosle herself expressed surprise that she could sing so differently. The ghazals won her the first National Film Award of her career. A few years later, she won another National Award for the song "Mera Kuchh Saamaan" from Ijaazat (1987).
In 1995, 62-year-old Bhosle sang for actress Urmila Matondkar in the movie Rangeela. The soundtrack featured songs like "Tanha Tanha" and "Rangeela Re" sung by her, and composed by music director A. R. Rahman, who would go on to record several songs with her. During the 2000s, several of Bhosle's numbers became chartbusters, including "Radha Kaise Na Jale" from Lagaan (2001), "Kambakht Ishq" from Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya (2001), "Yeh Lamha" from Filhaal (2002) and "Lucky Lips" from Lucky (2005). In October 2004, The Very Best of Asha Bhosle, The Queen of Bollywood, a compilation album of songs recorded by Bhosle for albums and Hindi language films that were released between 1966 and 2003, was released. and did for 1995 Pakistani film Sangram .
In 2012 she judged Sur Kshetra.
In 2013, Bhosle debuted in the film Mai in the title role, at the age of 79. Bhosle played the role of a 65-year-old mother who suffers from Alzheimer's disease and is abandoned by her children. She received positive reviews for her acting as well from critics.
In May 2020, Bhosle launched her YouTube channel, "Asha Bhosle Official".
In an interview with The Indian Express in 2023, Bhosle stated: "The most difficult part of my musical journey was to consciously create my own identity. Today, I am pleased that my form of music is known as the Asha Bhosle style." In the same 2023 interview, Bhosle said her connection with music had grown stronger with age: "I no longer just sing a tune, I feel the notes surging through my veins. It's almost like I see the music."