MUMBAI: You can't take "L or P" alone and the Padma Bhushan should be given to Pyarelal of course but also to her late father, Laxmikant's daughter said on Tuesday after the family wrote to the Union ministries of Home and Information and Broadcasting on the matter.
Pyarelal, one half of the iconic composer duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal that gave music for over 700 films, was announced as a recipient of the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honour, on the eve of Republic Day.
"We were very happy that Pyarelal uncle was finally awarded. We felt when it came to the Padma Bhushan honour, they couldn't divide LP and give it to Pyarelal uncle just because fortunately Pyarelal uncle is there and my dad has unfortunately passed away," Rajeshwari Laxmikant told PTI.
In her letters, Laxmikant's wife Jaya Kudalkar appealed to the government to include her late husband in the honour along with his co-collaborator.
The letter to the I&B ministry was sent three days ago and the one to the Home ministry on Tuesday.
Rajeshwari said the family wrote the letter because LP, as the music duo was fondly known, worked as a team on every tune.
"Pyare uncle definitely deserves it and so does my dad because the work, the contribution, is all the same," Rajeshwari said.
Laxmikant Kudalkar and Pyarelal Sharma made their debut as composers with 1963 film "Parasmani" and struck gold with the success of "Dosti" a year later.
They went on to script musical history spanning more than 35 years, giving songs for classic albums such as "Do Raaste", "Daag", "Haathi Mere Sathi", "Bobby", "Amar Akbar Anthony" and "Karz". The partnership ended in 1998 with Laxmikant's death when he was just 60.
Rajeshwari said the award should have included both their names as they had been a team since they were children.
She said Laxmikant was just 11 and Pyarelal nine when they met.
"They even shared the same blood group. They must have had some divine blessings with them. The fact that two musically inclined people came together at such a young age and they created history. So when the government is giving such a big honour, it should have been to both."
Rajeshwari said they could go public with their grievance because of the confidence that the government will take a decision and include Laxmikant's name.
"I'm sure they must have overlooked it or something or I don't know what exactly happened on their front. I'm sure they will look into the material and justify the whole thing," she said.
Asked whether the family felt let down, Rajeshwari said while there was no disappointment, they felt "there was an incompleteness in the award".
"We, being his family, were sentimental as we have seen the hard work, the struggle, the challenges that both of them faced. LP has been a name to both of them, it was never Laxmikant Kudalkar or Pyarelal Sharma, nor have they composed individually, you can't take L or P alone," she added.
LP's last collaboration was "Deewana Mastana".
After Laxmikant's death, Pyarelal distanced himself from active composing duties and sporadically worked as a music arranger for songs such as Vishal-Shekhar's "Dhoom Taana" from 2007's "Om Shanti Om".
