Greatest Honour Possible Is To Be Honoured By Lataji, says Javed Akhtar

Last week Javed Akhtar received  the Hridaynath Mangeshkar award from the doyen of  Indian film music Lata Mangeshkar at a function attended by the who’s who of the entertainment world.

Javed Saab, an ardent Lata Mangeshkar fan, still can’t get over the honour. “I can’t think of any honour higher than this. The contribution  of the Mangeshkar family to Indian cinema is illimitable.And Lataji’s  contribution is beyond description. There are some very rare artistes  like Shakespeare and Beethoven  about whom praise is  redundant and irrelevant.Latajibelongs  to that category  of  artistes.Nobody says, ‘Beethoven made  good music,’  or ‘Lataji  sings well.’

Javed Saab who was  out  of  the country flew back just to receive  the award and then flew out again after the function. “I  came only to receive the award. And I am so glad. I got another chance  to spend time with Lataji. She is so full of life, warm and  humour. She has  laughter for every situation and  occasion. She is oblivious to her incredible  achievements.Just being with her is  the most inspiring  experience.”