Sudesh Bhosale on overcoming industry bias: Maine groupism dekha hai FilmyMeet

Sudesh Bhosale, known for his versatile voice and mimicry skills, has given life to many iconic voices in the industry—from Anil Kapoor and Sanjeev Kumar to the legendary Amitabh Bachchan. Despite being often pigeonholed as a mimicry artist, Bhosale sees himself as much more. He was recently honoured with the Maharashtra State Film Award for his contributions to singing, and he expresses his gratitude for the recognition. “I didn’t expect it and was surprised when I got a call,” he shares.

Also read: Asha Bhosle cried when she heard Sudesh Bhosle sing SD Burman’s song

Ask him if he feels he has received his due in the Hindi music industry, he candidly discusses his experiences with industry malpractices, revealing, “Maine actually groupism dekha hain. Competition hua, rivalry hui, but bhagwaan ne itne sources diye kaam ke. If I didn’t get playback opportunities, I got live shows. Once I was very disturbed and frustrated ‘yeh kya ho raha hain, meri awaaz mein koi mujhse gawata hi nahi hai.’“

During this period of frustration, Bhonsle shares that music composer Anand ji, of the Kalyan-Anand duo, advised him to embrace his unique ability to mimic voices.

The 64-year-old says, “I began to really enjoy dubbing for others. During filming, if actors forgot their lines and struggled during the dubbing process, they’d say ‘Sudesh ko bolo’.”

He reflects on how some people underestimated him due to his mimicry background. “When Kishore Kumar da, Lata Mangeshkar ji, Asha Bhosle ji would take me for their live shows, many started saying ‘mimicry artist se gawaane lage.’ Main agar mimicry artist hoon toh voh teenon mujhe kyun le gaye, itne bade log hain?” he asks.

“Lata ji had once said in Canada ‘When I have Sudesh Bhosale, I don’t need any other male singer.’ Asha ji said ‘I am comfortable with Sudhesh.’ “If I was only a comedian, then why would such legends consider me?” he ends.