Lata Mangeshkar spent most of her life keeping her personal relationships away from the public eye. But one name remained closely associated with her for decades: Raj Singh Dungarpur, the Rajasthan royal, first-class cricketer and former BCCI president. The two shared a close bond that began in the late 1950s and continued for years. Neither ever publicly described the relationship in detail. Dungarpur, however, spoke about it in a rare interview with Mid-Day, while Mangeshkar gave an equally guarded response when asked about the man often described in the media as her romantic partner. Their story has since been repeatedly described as a love story that never ended in marriage. But the most reliable accounts are quieter: the two came from different backgrounds, were deeply attached to their families and remained close despite never marrying.
How Lata Mangeshkar met Raj Singh Dungarpur
Dungarpur himself recalled meeting Mangeshkar in 1959, when he had come to Bombay to study law. He told Mid-Day that he had told Dilip Sardesai’s first cousin, Sopan Sardesai, that he could not live without playing cricket. Sardesai directed him to a Walkeshwar house where Lata’s brother and his friends played tennis-ball cricket. “I said I’m not bothered by who plays, but I have to be there,” Dungarpur recalled. At the time, Mangeshkar was recording extensively and Dungarpur said he was not particularly interested in meeting her. He would play cricket and return to his sister’s house in Napean Sea Road. That changed when he was invited upstairs.“But her family must have discussed that I had come, so she said, ‘We must offer him a cup of tea.’ I was invited to come up,” he recalled in the interview to Mid-Day. He described her as “utterly charming” and remembered that she came to see him off and gave him her car. She later invited him and his brother for dinner. “That’s how I started to know her. I went for a couple of her recordings and so on,” he said.
From friendship to a bond that lasted decades
Raj played first-class cricket for Rajasthan and Central Zone between 1955 and 1971.
Dungarpur became a regular presence in Mangeshkar’s life. Their association was also noted in contemporary accounts. Dungarpur was Mangeshkar’s “only enduring companion” and accompanied her on foreign tours and helped with dates and professional dealings, as reported by India Today. The report also said both were uncomfortable with their companionship being discussed publicly. Later reports described their relationship as romantic, but Mangeshkar herself rarely addressed those reports. In a later interview with Hindustan Times, she was asked about the role of love in her life and who the “lucky man” was. Her answer remained deliberately private. “There are some things only for the heart to know. Let me keep it that way,” she said.
Why did Lata Mangeshkar and Raj Singh Dungarpur never marry?
This is where much of the story has been surrounded by speculation. Later reports have claimed that Dungarpur’s royal family objected to the relationship and that Mangeshkar’s family preferred a Marathi match for her. Dungarpur himself gave a more measured explanation. Asked about their relationship in the Mid-Day interview, he said: “This is a very personal matter. But we came from different backgrounds. The ’60s were very different.” He added that both were perhaps very attached to their respective families. “It was one of those things that just didn’t happen,” he said. But he was clear that the absence of marriage had not ended their bond. “But that has neither enhanced the relationship, nor has it reduced. She is the treasure house of my admiration and affection and I continue to be in touch with her,” Dungarpur said.
Lata had another explanation for never marrying
Mangeshkar also spoke about marriage at different points in her life, although she did not publicly confirm or deny the details of her relationship with Dungarpur. In a 1999 interview, she was asked why she had never married. “I never got time to think about it,” she said, explaining that she had started working at 13 and had taken responsibility for supporting her family after her father’s death. She said marriage simply did not occur to her. Asked whether she felt lonely or regretted remaining single, she replied: “No. I never feel lonely and I don’t regret it. I am happy the way I am.”In another Hindustan Times interview published years later, she again said the thought of being unmarried or becoming a mother had never really crossed her mind because she was surrounded by her close-knit family. She also said she believed that birth, marriage and death were destined.
Their bond continued despite never marrying
Dungarpur was not known only because of his association with Mangeshkar. Born in 1935, he was the youngest son of Maharawal Lakshman Singhji, the ruler of Dungarpur. He played first-class cricket for Rajasthan and Central Zone between 1955 and 1971. Dungarpur remained unmarried. He died in Mumbai in September 2009, aged 73. The BCCI’s annual report records his death on September 12, 2009. Mangeshkar continued to live and work in the world of music for more than a decade after his death. She died in February 2022 at the age of 92. For a relationship that attracted decades of speculation, that remains the clearest account from one of the two people who lived it. And Mangeshkar’s own words remain equally telling: “There are some things only for the heart to know. Let me keep it that way.”