There is a lot more to Sudesh Bhosle than just being the voice of Big B
Noyon Jyoti Parasara (BOMBAY TIMES; January 29, 2016)
We hear RD Burman asked you to get your passport along the first time he met you...
(Laughs) I used to do a lot of shows with a group called Melody Makers. In one of our shows, we had Ashaji (Bhonsle) in the audience. When we met in her studio, she said she liked the way I sung dada's (SD Burman) song and asked me to record it. She took that to RD Burman. Panchamda thought I sounded exactly like his father. I got a call from his office and they asked me to come and meet him, along with my passport. When I reached there, I was told that Panchamda wanted me to accompany him to Hong Kong for a concert, where he wanted me to sing dada's songs! At that concert, Panchamda promised me that the first number he would record after reaching India would be with me. That's how I got my first break in Zalzala.
You are known as Amitabh Bachchan's voice. When did you realise you sound like him?
I was in Higher Secondary when I watched Muqaddar Ka Sikandar. Next day, I randomly used a dialogue of Amitabh Bachchan from the film on a girl. She did not hear it, but my friends did and thought I sounded exactly like Mr Bachchan. One of them came home with a tape recorder and started asking me questions in Dev Anand's voice and asked me to reply in Amitabh Bachchan's. From then on, I imitated Mr Bachchan whenever I got a chance. At that point, he was the biggest star and I was the first person to imitate him, while others were imitating stars like Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar.
Who did you mimic first?
KL Saigal. Then I imitated Kishore Kumar and SD Burman. The first actor I imitated was Om Prakash, and then Ashok Kumar.
What are the boons and curse of being able to sound like a particular actor?
The boon is people love you. Like how a joker is the centre of attraction in a circus, in a concert, the mimicry artiste steals the show. And because I could sing and act in different voices, I did my own shows. But the curse is that I lost my identity. People don't know what Sudesh Bhosle sounds like. I have sung for Jackie Shroff, Mithunda, Anil Kapoor and Govinda, but only the ones that I rendered for Amitabh Bachchan were big hits.
You started as an artist, making posters for films along with your father.
My dad, NR Bhosle, was a famous painter and he had done the posters of films like Mughal-e-Azam and Dosti. I joined him in 1974 when I was just 14. I would say my best work, also my first, were the posters I made for Rajesh Khanna's Prem Nagar.
What do you think is the future of mimicry in the country?
Mimicry artistes never got the respect they deserved. But because of Johnny Lever, they are being respected today. And I think he is the number one in India and will always be. If any one can make you laugh for three hours, it is only Johnny Lever.
(Laughs) I used to do a lot of shows with a group called Melody Makers. In one of our shows, we had Ashaji (Bhonsle) in the audience. When we met in her studio, she said she liked the way I sung dada's (SD Burman) song and asked me to record it. She took that to RD Burman. Panchamda thought I sounded exactly like his father. I got a call from his office and they asked me to come and meet him, along with my passport. When I reached there, I was told that Panchamda wanted me to accompany him to Hong Kong for a concert, where he wanted me to sing dada's songs! At that concert, Panchamda promised me that the first number he would record after reaching India would be with me. That's how I got my first break in Zalzala.
You are known as Amitabh Bachchan's voice. When did you realise you sound like him?
I was in Higher Secondary when I watched Muqaddar Ka Sikandar. Next day, I randomly used a dialogue of Amitabh Bachchan from the film on a girl. She did not hear it, but my friends did and thought I sounded exactly like Mr Bachchan. One of them came home with a tape recorder and started asking me questions in Dev Anand's voice and asked me to reply in Amitabh Bachchan's. From then on, I imitated Mr Bachchan whenever I got a chance. At that point, he was the biggest star and I was the first person to imitate him, while others were imitating stars like Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar.
Who did you mimic first?
KL Saigal. Then I imitated Kishore Kumar and SD Burman. The first actor I imitated was Om Prakash, and then Ashok Kumar.
What are the boons and curse of being able to sound like a particular actor?
The boon is people love you. Like how a joker is the centre of attraction in a circus, in a concert, the mimicry artiste steals the show. And because I could sing and act in different voices, I did my own shows. But the curse is that I lost my identity. People don't know what Sudesh Bhosle sounds like. I have sung for Jackie Shroff, Mithunda, Anil Kapoor and Govinda, but only the ones that I rendered for Amitabh Bachchan were big hits.
You started as an artist, making posters for films along with your father.
My dad, NR Bhosle, was a famous painter and he had done the posters of films like Mughal-e-Azam and Dosti. I joined him in 1974 when I was just 14. I would say my best work, also my first, were the posters I made for Rajesh Khanna's Prem Nagar.
What do you think is the future of mimicry in the country?
Mimicry artistes never got the respect they deserved. But because of Johnny Lever, they are being respected today. And I think he is the number one in India and will always be. If any one can make you laugh for three hours, it is only Johnny Lever.