Legendary playback singer Lata Mangeshkar, who was also regarded as the 'Queen of Melodies' and 'Voice of the Millennium' among other tags, passed away on February 6, 2022, leaving behind a gaping void in the Indian music industry. The Bharat Ratna awardee was one of the most influential personalities in the country, so much so that, she even wielded the power to once stall the construction of a key flyover in Mumbai.
It was over two decades ago when the then-Maharashtra government had proposed a mega flyover project from Peddar Road to Haji Ali junction, and it passed from near her residence Prabhu Kunj, located in south Mumbai. As the flyover plan was conceived in 2000, several locals came together to oppose it and among them was Lata Mangeshkar, accompanied by her sister Asha Bhosle.
While the 4.1 km flyover was proposed with the aim of easing the traffic congestion between south Mumbai and north Mumbai, Lata had stated that the noise from the vehicles on the flyover would disturb her riyaaz.
She did not just stop there, but went on to meet the then Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Vilasrao Deshmukh, and voiced her concerns to him.
Later, Lata, with Asha next to her, addressed a press conference, in which she hit the final nail in the coffin. She threatened to leave Mumbai altogether and move to Pune or Kolhapur, if the flyover was ever constructed in front of her residence.
The agitation led by the locals too got immense boost from Lata's support and strong statement, and the Peddar Road flyover project was thereby stalled by the time being. And two decades later today, the flyover still exists only on papers.
As an alternative, the government then proposed the Coastal Road project, a part of which will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 9.
As the Peddar Road flyover project was stalled, Lata was showered with love and gratitude from the locals, who were of the opinion that the singer's controversial stand played a major role in having their demands met.
Lata breathed her last in 2022 at the age of 92. She was undergoing treatment for pneumonia at the Breach Candy hospital in south Mumbai for almost a month, but she eventually succumbed after multiple organ failure.
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