To Pandit Narendra Sharma who wrote some of Lataji’s most memorable songs including ‘Jyoti kalash chalke’ and ‘Satyam shivum sunderam’, goes the credit for giving India’s most popular radio channel Vividh Bharati its shape and direction. Apparently, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru personally asked the poet-lyricist to oversee Vividh Bharati.
Pandit Narendra Sharma also gives actor Yusuf Khan a more Hindu name. Dilip Kumar.
Lataji regarded Pandit Narendra Sharma as a father-figure and would often drop in unannounced at his place during recordings for a quick lunch with his family.
When Lataji spoke of her family bonding with Pandit Narendra Sharma, her voice grew emotional. “I used to call him ‘Papa’. The first time I met Papa (Pandit Narendra Sharma), it was at Master Vinayak’s residence. He was accompanied by the eminent litterateur Amritlal Nagar. He asked me to sing for for him. During those days, I didn’t need a second invitation to sing. I’d burst into a song whenever I was asked.”
Lataji was awed by Pandit Narendra Sharma’s erudition. “He was a learned man. I’d spend hours listening to him. In 1968, when I recorded the Bhagavad Gita, Papa came home to congratulate me. I was anxious about my Sanskrit pronunciation. Papa assured me I had done a good job.”
There was no one else whose home Lataji would visit so informally. “Papa stayed in Khar. I’d visit his home any time. My ties with him and his family were very strong. His three daughters were my age. I’d carry extra clothes to his home and stay overnight. His daughters and I would do dhamaal all night.”
Speaking on Pandit Narendra Sharma’s family life, Lataji said, “His wife, though Gujarati, adopted the Uttar Pradesh culture after marriage because Papa was from UP. I just started calling him Papa. I never heard him say a bad word about anyone.”
Lataji also spoke of Panditji’s closeness to another legendary poet. “I met Harivansh Rai Bachchan Saab at Papa’s place. They called each other ‘Bandhu’. I don’t think I was so close to anyone outside the family. I discussed all my problems with Papa. He called me daughter but always addressed me as ‘Lataji’. I objected to that. But he persisted. My Maai (mother) would scold me for staying overnight outside our home. But I was staying at my Papa’s house. When he died of a heart attack, I was heartbroken. No one could take his place.”
