Legendary playback singer Asha Bhosle recorded over 11,000 songs in her illustrious career spanning over 8 decades. Apart from her glorious contribution to the Indian music industry, Asha Tai also lent her sugar-laced voice to ad jingles, bringing emotion, melody and mass appeal, turning jingles into songs that people remembered and hummed.
Back in 1964, Asha Tai revolutionised Indian advertising jingles with the jingle Phool Ke Samman Hai, composed by Ravi and written by Jan Nisar Akhtar, for the Hindustan Lever brand, Himalaya Bouquet toilet soap and talcum powder.
Years later in 2002, the playback queen once again reshaped the ad industry with Rasila Rozana Utsav, a three minute-plus jingle for Rasna.
Asha Tai's voice in ads shifted the focus from informational to emotional storytelling, paving the path for professional playback singers in advertising.
Artists such as Sunidhi Chauhan and Alisha Chinai carried the legacy forward.
Asha Bhosle was admitted to the Breach Candy Hospital, Mumbai, for a chest infection and extreme exhaustion on the evening of April 11, and passed away due to multiple organ failure a day later.
