Veteran Sound Recordist DO Bhansali Passes Away at 95
DO Bhansali seen here with celebrated Music Director,
the Late RD Burman
Durlabhdas Odhavjibhai Bhansali, popularly known as DO Bhansali and lovingly known as Bhansali Baba among the Indian music fraternity, passed away on Monday at his hometown in Jamnagar. The veteran sound recordist was 95.
DO Bhansali worked and served the Indian music industry for almost 50 years starting from the 1940s. "While working as a sound recordist at the Famous Recording Studio in Tardeo, Mumbai, as assistant to the revered sound engineer Minoo Katrak ji, he recorded heartwarming and soulful songs such as Gaya Ja Geet Milan Ke from the 1948 movie Mela, Ishwar Satya Hai from the 1978 hit Satyam Shivam Sundaram right up to his last recording Sun Saiba Sun which was for the RK banner Ram Teri Ganga Maili."
In 2017, DO Bhansali was honoured with the IRAA (Indian Recording Arts Academy Awards) Lifetime Achievement Award for LIFETIME CONTRIBUTION TO AUDIO ENGINEERING.
Over a span of his 50 glorious years DO Bhansali had worked with the likes of O P Nayyar, Shankar Jaikishan, Madan Mohan, Kalyanji Anandji and Laxmikant Pyarelal. In his years as a sound recordist he earned glowing and rave tributes and public accolades from the veterans of the music industry such as Asha Bhosale, Ravendra Jain, Lata Mangeshkar, Bhupendra, Suresh Wadhkar, Anuradha Paudwal, Sonu Nigam and Pramod Chandorkor.
Bhansali recorded almost 13,000 songs in his vast career spanning four decades. Some of his works include, Gaaye Ja geet Milan ke (Mela), Aye Mere Pyare Watan (Kabuliwala), Pyar Kiya toh Darna kya (Mughal-E-Azam), Khwab ho tum ya (Teen Deviyan), Aa ab laut chalein (Jis Desh Mein Ganga Bheti Hai), Yeh mera prem patra padkar (Sangam), Bindiya Chamkegi (Do Raaste), Tere Mere Milan Ki yeh Raina (Abhimaan) to name a few.
On his passing Lata Mangeshkar expressed her grief, “I am saddened to hear about the demise of our industry's famous sound recordist Bhansaliji. Besides being a very good sound recordist, he was a very nice person too," she tweeted.