Dharmendra remembers his long chats with late Lata Mangeshkar; reveals why he couldn’t make it to her funeral

Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, who was fondly referred to as Swar Kokila, breathed her last on 6th February due to multi-organ failure. She was admitted to the hospital a month ago after she was diagnosed with COVID-19 as well as pneumonia. Her last rites were performed at Shivaji Park ground where many big personalities like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah Rukh Khan and Sachin Tendulkar arrived to pay their last respects to the Nightingale of India. Veteran superstar Dharmendra also wanted to bid farewell to Lata didi, but was unable to do so.

In a recent interview with ETimes, Dharam paaji revealed that he got ready three times to attend Lata ji’s funeral, but each time he pulled himself back. He explained, “I didn't want to see her leaving us. I was feeling very uncomfortable and uneasy after hearing the news of Lata Mangeshkar's demise yesterday.” Remembering the singer fondly, Dharmendra shared that she used to send him gifts occasionally and often forwarded motivating messages to him, reminding him to stay strong.

Lata Mangeshkar funeral: India's Nightingale laid to rest, PM Modi , Uddhav Thackeray , Shah Rukh Khan pay last respects 

The veteran star shared, “I remember I had once written a slightly gloomy post on Twitter and she immediately called up to ask if I was doing fine and spoke to me for 30 minutes to cheer me up. Often, we would chat for 25-30 minutes even until recently. She adored me.” Lauding her memory, he revealed that she even remembered what he wore when they first met-- a beige coloured shirt.

Lata Mangeshkar left a huge void in our lives when she bid the world a final adieu. But we are grateful that she gave us so many memories to remember her by.