Sep 2015. Dallas. Asha Bhosle’s last US tour. It was promoted that way, carrying so much emotion. We were all there, witnessing the end of an era.

Every song she sang hit hard. But this one hit differently: Asha ji singing one of her elder sister Lata Mangeshkar’s song, Lag Ja Gale. In that moment, it felt like memory, love, loss, and history had all gathered into one voice.

Both Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle were revered in our family. In the words of my Mama, Lata Mangeshkar’s voice felt like that of a mother to him.

April 1998. Agra. I had just taken my ICSE exam and was chilling at Naniji’s place in Pipal Mandi. Mudit Mama was tasked by Nanaji with making Raj Kachori. It was a failed attempt, and Nanaji did not hold back. Somehow, as was always the case, the discussion drifted to music. Nanaji was in such awe of Lata Mangeshkar that he would recount Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan’s line, "Kambakht besuri hi nahin hoti," in his typical style, putting all the emphasis on kambakht and then almost whispering the rest.

Maybe that is why hearing Asha ji that night in Dallas felt so much bigger than a concert. It felt like those old days in Agra had returned for a moment. Through her voice, I could hear not just a great singer, but an entire world of memory, family, and India.

I still cannot fathom that two idols, two legends, the two sisters, are no longer with us.

"Abhi na jao chhodkar…"