Meet RD Burman's First Wife, Rita Patel, Inside Their Marriage And Painful Divorce After 5 Years

R. D. Burman was born on June 27, 1939, marking today, June 27, 2026, as his 87th birth anniversary. While the composer passed away too soon, he lives on in his musical works. However, while he shone bright in the music industry, his personal life was filled with heartbreak, beginning with his first marriage.

R. D. Burman was married to Rita Patel long before he married Asha Bhosle, and it was his divorce from the former that deeply influenced his art. He was a musical maestro filled with brilliant melodies and emotional highs and lows. The sadness and loneliness heard in many of his songs also came from his own incomplete love story. So, as the world remembers him on his birth anniversary, let's take a look at his first marriage.

Who was R. D. Burman's first wife, Rita Patel?

While everyone is well-versed about R. D. Burman's marriage to Asha Bhosle, not many know about his first marriage to Rita Patel, who started out as his die-hard fan. Their bond allegedly started as admiration. However, it soon turned into love and then marriage. While little is known about her, reports say she entered Burman's life as an obsessed fan and later became a major part of his personal story.

R. D. Burman and Rita Patel's short-lived marital life

According to reports, Rita Patel was from Darjeeling and a big fan of R. D. Burman's music. It is said that she even once made a bet with her friends that she would manage to get a film date with him. They eventually met in the pleasant weather of Darjeeling, when Burman was still a young and rising composer. The composer was mesmerised by Rita's beauty and her passion for his music; their friendship slowly turned into love, and the two got married in 1966.

What caused R. D. Burman and Rita Patel's divorce?

R. D. Burman was around 27 years old when he married Rita. Their wedding reception was attended by some of the biggest names, like S.D. Burman, Mohammed Rafi, Mukesh and Mehmood. However, their marital bliss soon began to fade. After a few years, the differences in their personalities started to show. While Burman lived and breathed music, Rita wanted a more settled life and wanted to start a family. The couple divorced in 1971, after about five years of marriage.

This phase was extremely painful for Burman and deeply affected him, both personally and musically. After the divorce, Rita Patel moved away from the limelight. According to reports, she did not remarry and chose to live a private, low-profile life, away from the spotlight.

R. D. Burman found love again with Asha Bhosle

After his separation from Rita Patel, R. D. Burman found solace with singer, Asha Bhosle. The two slowly grew close as they both went through tough times in their personal journeys. While Burman was recovering from his divorce from Rita, Asha had also gone through a painful divorce and was raising her three children on her own. For the unversed, Burman and Asha first met professionally in 1956 while working on songs, and later famously collaborated on films like Teesri Manzil.

R. D. Burman and Asha Bhosle tied the knot in 1980. However, their lives were anything but a rollercoaster. After over a decade together, Burman passed away on January 4, 1994, at the age of 54. From the 1960s to the early 1990s, he composed music for around 331 films, leaving behind a treasure of unforgettable songs. 

What are your thoughts on R. D. Burman's first marriage to Rita Patel?

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