Modi Archive recalls the legendary singer’s heartfelt conversations with PM Modi
New Delhi, April 13 : As the passing away of legendary singer Asha Bhosle sent the entire movie industry into mourning, she left behind a void that will be impossible to fill.
As the family and friends gather for her last rites, Modi Archive, a popular social media handle on X, revisited the life of iconic singer and recalled her heartfelt conversations with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the years.
She was impressed with the developmental works done under Modi government and also once said that India became more prosperous over the past 10 years.
The post recounts an unexpected first interaction, years ago that set the tone for their relationship. “Namaskar. This is Asha Bhosle. Mara Vhala, Kem chho?” Narendra Modi laughed heartily. He was delighted and genuinely caught off guard by the call,” the Modi Archive revealed in its post.
“She called him first. She didn’t need to. Asha Bhosle’s voice shaped the soundtrack of independent India. She recorded over 12,000 songs in eight decades. Yet she dialled a Chief Minister she had never met, telling him her mother was Gujarati. Gujarat’s progress, she said, was her ‘farz,’ her duty. After she hung up, their mutual friend offered a quiet verdict, ‘Asha Ben, our Modi Bhai is a very good man.’ That first encounter left her impressed. There was more to come,” the post added.
Their first face-to-face meeting took place in 2013 at the inauguration of the Dinanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune.
“They met face to face in 2013 at the inauguration of the Dinanath Mangeshkar Super Speciality Hospital in Pune. The hospital was built in memory of her father, who had died partly because he couldn’t get proper medical care. Before taking his seat on stage, Narendra Modi turned to her and asked simply, ‘Didi, kaisi hain aap?’ He was a Chief Minister, surrounded by all the formalities of government. Yet the first thing he called her was sister. That day, he told her something she never forgot: the Mangeshkar sisters could have honoured their father with music, and no one would have blamed them. Instead, they chose to honour him by helping others heal,” the Modi Archive shared.
The bond grew stronger with time.
“She sang him a Gujarati song, which pleased him immensely. As he left, he folded his hands and said, ‘Didi, I am leaving. Will see you later.’ From that day on, she thought of him as her younger brother. Her ten-year-old grandson was in Pune that day too. Not knowing that you shouldn’t make bold predictions in front of Chief Ministers, he looked at Modi and said confidently, ‘Landslide victory.’
PM Modi heard him and smiled. ‘Bhagwaan bachchon ke munh se bolta hai,’ God speaks through the mouths of children. Life went on after that meeting, and ten years passed. At another event, her granddaughter ended up sitting near the Prime Minister. She expected him to be polite but distant. She asked, ‘Do you remember me?’ He answered right away, ‘Once I meet someone, I never forget them.’ Then he asked about her brother. Where was he? How was he,” the post added.
“Asha Bhosle said her granddaughter was amazed. The Prime Minister, who leads 1.4 billion people, remembered a ten-year-old boy he had met only once, in passing, ten years earlier. It may seem like a small story, but if you think about it, it’s actually a big one,” the Modi Archive added.
The post also recalled a deeply emotional phase in the singer’s life.
“In October 2015, Asha Bhosle lost her son Hemant. He died suddenly from cancer, far away in Scotland. She wrote to the Prime Minister to apologise. She could not attend his event in Delhi. ‘My sincere apologies,’ she wrote. He replied with only kindness. ‘Dear Asha Bhosle Tai, I am pained by the unfortunate demise of your son. My thoughts are with you during this hour of grief,’” it stated.
Her connection with national service extended beyond personal interactions.
“In 2016, Asha Bhosle travelled to Bomdila in Arunachal Pradesh — the site of one of India’s most painful military chapters, the 1962 battlefield. She went as part of a government initiative launched by Prime Minister Modi to bridge the distance between civilians and soldiers stationed in the country’s most remote and demanding postings. She tied rakhis to the jawans there, one by one. She came home, she said, deeply touched,” the post noted, referring to the legacy of the Sino-Indian War.
Another notable moment came in April 2022, when PM Modi accepted a rare honour.
“Then, in April 2022, Prime Minister Modi received the first Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar Award at Shanmukhanand Hall in Mumbai. He, who almost never accepts felicitation, made an exception. He said so plainly: ‘I generally keep myself away from such ceremonies. But when an award is named after an elder sister like Lata Mangeshkar, it becomes an obligation, because of the affection and right of the Mangeshkar family over me,’” the Modi Archive shared.
“He dedicated it to every Indian. During a function on October 5, 2024, Asha Bhosle praised PM Modi for conferring Classical Status on the Marathi language. While addressing the speech in her mother tongue, she got visibly emotional,” it added.
The admiration continued in later years.
“In 2025, on his 75th birthday, Asha Bhosle recorded a video message. ‘It is difficult for us to take care of one household. PM Modi ji is taking care of such a large country. He gets up at 4 a.m. and does yoga. I like his discipline. I have never heard anything bad from his mouth about anyone,’” the post said.
“I feel he is a very kind-hearted person. Even when others make harsh remarks, he just smiles. He nods. He says, ‘Yes, say as much as you want.’ That is a very big thing. Asha Bhosle was born in 1933 and saw many leaders come and go from a perspective few Indians ever experience,” it further noted.
Asha Bhosle was born in 1933 and saw many leaders come and go from a perspective few Indians ever experience.
“I have seen all our Prime Ministers,” she said. “Today, at 90, I have reached the conclusion: in these last 10 years, India is prosperous,” she apparently said, while speaking to newsmen.
Asha Bhosle passed away on April 12, 2026, at Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai. She was 92.
"With her passing away, an era came to a close, which had long narrated the emotions of a nation, now rests in silence, leaving behind a legacy that will echo for generations to come," the Modi Archive added.