SHAKEEL BADAYUNI – COUNTDOWN TO HIS BIRTH ANNIVERSARY 03 AUG 2016 – PART II

I have so far given you only one song per movie except for Baiju Bawra, for which I gave you three: O duniya ke rakhwaale, Man tadpat Hari darshan ko aaj, and Tu Ganga ki mauj main Jamina ka dhaara.

I am tempted to give you another song of Shabab too.

This is another favourite and very nostalgic. Mohammad Rafi has sung for Bharat Bhushan.

Please enjoy: Aaye na baalam waada kar ke…..

aaye na baalam vaadaa kar ke
aaye na baalam vaadaa kar ke
thak gaye nainaa dhiiraj dhar ke
aaye na baalam …

chhup gayaa chandaa luT gayii jyoti
taare ban gaye jhuuThe motii
pa.D gaye phiike ra.ng najar ke
aaye na baalam …

aao ki tum bin aa.Nkho.n me.n dam hai
raat hai lambii jiivan kam hai
dekh luu.N tum ko mai.n jii bhar ke
aaye na baalam …

Day #8 of 31
Song #23

Day #8 of 31
Song #24

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #8

As you are aware, I started these posts a week ago to bring home the point that whilst we genuinely love everything that Shakeel wrote, many other contemporary poets and lyricists were also good and popular.

It is, therefore, worth recalling their lyrics too in addition to Shakeel’s. It was the era of good lyrics.

So far, we have taken up in the last seven days:

1. Shailendra with his Kuchh aur zamaana kehta hai.
2. Rajinder Krishan with his Mujhase mat poochh mere ishq mein.
3. Kaifi Azmi with his Jaane kyaa dhoondati rehati hain ye aankhen mujh mein.
4. Sahir Ludhianvi with Aurat ne janam diya mardon ko.
5. Majrooh Sultanpuri with Teri aankhon ke siwa duniya mein rakha kyaa hai.
6. Jaan Nisar Akhtar with his Mujhape ilzaam-e-bewafai hai.
7. Hasrat Jaipuri with his Aansu bhari hain ye jeevan ki raahen.

Tonight we take up our eighth lyricst, Qamar Jalalabadi‘s creation.

Qamar Jalalabadi was born as Om Prakash Bhandari in 1919 in the town of Jalalabad near Amritsar in Punjab. He started writing poetry at the age of seven. He was given the pen-name of Qamar which means moon. Since, it was routine those days for writers to name themselves after the towns they hailed from, he became known as Qamar Jalalabadi. After schooling from Amritsar, he became a journalist for Lahore based newspapers like Daily Milap, Daily Pratap, and Nirala.

In early 1940s, he came to Poona to write lyrics for songs in Hindi movies. His first film was Zamindar in 1942 and his first song, just like Shakeel’s for Dard, became famous. The song: “Duniya mein gareebon ko aaraam nahin milata” was sung by Shamshad Begum.

Subsequently, Jalalabadi relocated to Bombay, and worked there as a lyricist for nearly four decades.

All old timers know him for the song “Khush hai zamaana aaj pehli tareek hai” which was aired from Radio Ceylon for several years on the first of every month.

Matching lyrics to Shakeel?

Well, as I know there are several. But, in case of all lyricists, I have tried to give their early songs first.

This is from the 1955 movie Adl-e-Jahangir (Justice of Jahangir). This historical film was the debut directorial attempt by the famous director GP Sippy.

“The story involved a quasi historical episode from Emperor Jehangir’s reign where his sense of justice is brought into question when his wife, the Empress Noor Jehan is implicated by Rami, a washer woman, in the killing of her husband (aacidentally by an arrow when Noor Jahan goes hunting).”

The movie starred Pradeep Kumar and Meena Kumari and this song became quite famous. It was sung by both Talat Mehmood and Lata.

The composer was Husnlal-Bhagatram.

Please enjoy: Ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N….

ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N
naa to mil ke gaye naa hii chho.Daa nishaa.N
ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N

naa vo lay aaj rahii naa vo mahamil rahaa
paas ma.nzil pe aake luTaa kaaravaa.N ho luTaa kaaravaa.n
ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N

ye sitaare nahii.n Gam ke aa.NsU hai.n ye
ro rahaa hai mere haal par aasamaa.n haal par aasamaa.n
ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N

tumase milake hii mastii me.n khoye the ham
aa.Nkhe.n khulii.n to uja.Daa huaa thaa jahaa.N ab mai.n jaauu.N kahaa.N
ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N
hai zamii.n ke daaye nahii.n teraa nishaa.N
ai merii zi.ndagii tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N
tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N, tujhe Dhuu.NDhU.n kahaa.N…

Day #9 of 31
Song #25

Day #9 of 31
Song #26

Day #9 of 31
Song #27

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #9

As you are aware, I started these posts eight days ago to bring home the point that whilst we genuinely love everything that Shakeel wrote, many other contemporary poets and lyricists were also good and popular.

It is, therefore, worth recalling their lyrics too in addition to Shakeel’s. It was the era of good lyrics.

So far, we have taken up in the last eight days:

1. Shailendra with his Kuchh aur zamaana kehta hai.
2. Rajinder Krishan with his Mujhase mat poochh mere ishq mein.
3. Kaifi Azmi with his Jaane kyaa dhoondati rehati hain ye aankhen mujh mein.
4. Sahir Ludhianvi with Aurat ne janam diya mardon ko.
5. Majrooh Sultanpuri with Teri aankhon ke siwa duniya mein rakha kyaa hai.
6. Jaan Nisar Akhtar with his Mujhape ilzaam-e-bewafai hai.
7. Hasrat Jaipuri with his Aansu bhari hain ye jeevan ki raahen.
8. Qamar Jalalabadi with his Ai meri zindagi tujhe dhoondun kahan.

Tonight we take up our ninth lyricst, Raja Mehdi Ali Khan‘s creation.

I already have, on my blog, a post dedicated to him titled: ‘The Magic of the Lyrics of Raja Mehdi Ali Khan’. He is my second most favourite lyricist after Shakeel Badayuni.

Having been born in 1928 in Jehlum in undivided India, when the partition of India took place, Raja Mehdi Ali Khan and wife Tahira refused to go to Pakistan despite communal riots. His patriotism came to fore in 1948 itself when he wrote the famous number: Watan ki raah mein watan ke naujwaan shahid hon for the movie Shaheed starring Dilip Kumar.

Raja Mehdi Ali Khan paired with the Music Director Madan Mohan to produce some of Lata Mangeshkar’s best numbers. She has acknowledged so.

Raja appears to have done everything at a relatively young age. It is as if he knew that he is going to die young at the age of 37 only on 29 Jul 1966.

When Shakeel gave his first film song in 1947 Dard: Afsana likh rahi hoon, Shakeel was 31 years old. Raja Mehdi Ali Khan was just 18 when he gave his, in his first movie Do Bhai. And what a song it was, sung by Geeta Dutt.

Indeed, Raja Mehdi Ali Khan together with Rajinder Krishan emerged the lyricist of choice for heroines. Some of his best songs are:

1. Aap ki nazaron ne samajha pyaar ke kaabil mujhe.
2. Agar mujhase mohabbat hai mujhe sab apne gham de do.
3. Sapano mein agar mere tum aao to so jaayun.
4. Naaina barse rimjhim rimjhim.
5. Lag jaao gale ke phir ye hasin raat ho na ho.
6. Naino mein badra chhaye.

It is not as if he didn’t write for heroes. Taste some of his best there too:

1. Main nigahen tere chehre se hatayun kaise.
2. Tum bin jeevan kaise beeta poochho mere dil se.
3. Aap youn hi agar hamase milate rahe.

The movie Do Bhai starred Ulhas, Noor Jehan, Kamini Kaushal, Dipak Mukherjee, Ramayan Tiwari, Rajan Haksar and Paro in lead roles. The song was composed by SD Burman and was an instant hit together with Yaad karoge, also sung by Geeta Dutt.

Please enjoy: Mera sundar sapna beet gaya….

meraa sundar sapana biit gayaa
mai.n prem me.n sab kuchh haar gayii
bedad.r zamaanaa jiit gayaa
meraa sundar sapanaa biit gayaa

kyo.n kaalii badariyaa chaayii hai
kyo.n kalii kalii mus_kaayii hai
merii prem kahaanii khatm hu_ii
meraa jiivan kaa sa.ngiit gayaa
meraa sundar sapanaa biit gayaa

o cho.D ke jaane vaale aa
dil to.D ke jaane vaale aa
aa.Nkhe.n asuvan me.n Duub gayii.n
ha.Nsane kaa zamaanaa biit gayaa
meraa sundar sapanaa biit gayaa

har raat merii divaalii thii
mai.n piyaa kii hone vaalii thii
is jiivan ko ab aag lage, aag lage
is jiivan ko ab aag lage
mujhe cho.Dake jiivan miit gayaa
meraa sundar sapanaa biit gayaa

Day #10 of 31
Song #28

Day #10 of 31
Song #29

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #10

As you are aware, I started these posts eight days ago to bring home the point that whilst we genuinely love everything that Shakeel wrote, many other contemporary poets and lyricists were also good and popular.

It is, therefore, worth recalling their lyrics too in addition to Shakeel’s. It was the era of good lyrics.

Tonight we take up the tenth lyricist Indeevar‘s creation. He was born in 1924 as Shyamalal Babu Rai in Dhamna Village of Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh. He moved to Bombay at the end of 1940s to pursue a professional career as a lyricist.

In a career spanning nearly half a century he wrote 1633 songs for over 300 films.

As a contemporary of Shakeel, I have been giving you songs of 50s and 60s, so far.

As far as Indeevar is concerned, I give you a gem from his first movie, the 1951 movie Malhaar.

Here is from The Hindu newspaper dated 29 Mar 2012 in a piece titled ‘Blast From The Past: Malhar (1951):

“Starring Shammi, Arjun, Moti Sagar, Kanhaiyalal

On watching “Malhar”, more than six decades after it was released, one cannot but admire the fundamental laws that govern good cinema, which have stood the test of time, proving that they are inviolate and sacrosanct. Despite the considerable time that has elapsed, “Malhar”, directed by Harish, shows no signs of staleness, at least in certain vital areas. The first of two films to be produced by ace singer, Mukesh (the other being “Anuraag” in 1956) under the banner of Darling Films, it had a young and largely inexperienced cast and crew, for many of whom it was their debut vehicle.

The film is a showpiece of technical brilliance, especially the editing by S. Prabhakar, which is taut and precise, and never allows the narrative to slacken or waver, even in the second half, which, on certain occasions tends to meander. Equally deft is the cinematography by M. Rajaram, considering the equipment available to him.

However, piece-de-resistance of the film is its music score, composed by Roshan, grandfather of Hrithik Roshan, who had made his debut just a year earlier, in 1950. For the current generation of viewers, who, through incessant harping might be deluded into believing that film dynasties do not extend beyond the Bachchans and the Kapoors, this will be a revelation. As will be the trivia that Mukesh was the grandfather of the talented Neil Nitin Mukesh. Or Moti Sagar, who essays an important role, is the father of singer Preeti Sagar.

Each song, led by the remarkable “Bade Armaanon Se Rakha Hai Sanam Teri Qasam, Pyaar Ki Duniya Mein Yeh Pehla Qadam” is a gem. Roshan was undoubtedly helped by the lyricists, debutant Indeevar and Kaif-Irfani- who penned sheer poetry, including “Dil Tujhe diya tha Rakhne ko, Tune Dil ko Jala ke Rakh Kiya” and “Tara Toote Duniya Dekhe”. Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh, needless to mention, made them immortal in their voice.”

Please enjoy Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh sing the debut song of Indeevar in the Hindi movies, a song composed by Roshan: Bade armaano se rakha hai balam teri kasam….

ba.De armaano.n se rakhaa hai balam terii kasam
o balam terii kasam
pyaar kii duniyaa me.n ye pahalaa kadam
ho, pahalaa kadam
judaa na kar sake.nge hamako zamaane ke sitam
ho, zamaane ke sitam
pyaar kii duniyaa me.n ye pahalaa kadam
ho, pahalaa kadam

le uThaa pyaar bhii a.nga.Daaii hai, dil bhii jahaa.N
ajii, aise me.n li_e jaate ho tum bolo kahaa.N
duur duniyaa kii nigaaho.n se kahii.n jaae.nge ham
pyaar kii duniyaa me.n ye pahalaa kadam
ho, pahalaa kadam …

terii do aa.Nkho.n me.n dikahte hai.n mujhe dono.n jahaa.N
inhii me.n kho gayaa dil meraa kaho Dhuu.NDhuu.N kahaa.N
chaa.Nd ghaTataa ho ghaTe apanii mohabbat na ho kam
pyaar kii duniyaa me.n ye pahalaa kadam
ho, pahalaa kadam …

merii naiyaa ko kinaare kaa i.ntazaar nahii.n
teraa aa.Nchal ho to patavaar bhii darakaar nahii.n
tere hote hue kyo.n ho mujhe tuufaan kaa Gam
pyaar kii duniyaa me.n ye pahalaa kadam
ho, pahalaa kadam …

Day #11 of 31
Song #31

Day #11 of 31
Song #32

And now for the reason why so long there had been no Shakeel – Naushad movies. Indeed after the 1955 Udan Khatola, for the next four movies, for two years, Shakeel penned songs for Ghulam Muhammad movies.

The reason was that 1957 iconic Mehboob Khan movie Mother India was in the making. Mehboob Khan had already made the 1952 movie Aan with them and 1954 movie Amar.

Volumes have been written about this movie that nearly won for Mehboob Khan an Oscar for the Best Foreign Film at Academy Awards, whereat it lost to Federico Fellini’s Nights of Cabiria by a single vote.

The title Mother India was inspired by American author Katherine Mayo’s 1927 controversila book of the same name, in which she attacked Indian society, religion and culture.

Nargis, only 26 years old at that time, was chosen by Mehboob Khan to portray Radha, who, in the absence of her husband, struggles to raise her sons and survive against a cunning money-lender amidst many troubles. Despite her hardship, she sets a goddess-like moral example of an ideal Indian woman. Thus the movie was meant to counter Katherine Mayo’s diparaging image of Indian woman in her book.

How right Mehboob Khan was in his choice was proved by Nargis not just being awarded the Filmfare Best Actress award for her role but also she became the first Indian to receive the Best Actress award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

Now for the curious fact about the 12 songs of the movie by the pair of Shakeel and Naushad. As I said, both together had worked for Mehboob Khan in two movies whereas Naushad alone ahd worked with Mehboob Khan in eight movie.

Initially the songs were not well recieved! However, later critics rated the music and songs amongst the 100 greatest Bollywood (how I hate that title) soundtracks ever.

Mother India is the earliest example of a Hindi film containing Western classical music and Hollywood-style orchestra.

Here is the list of its dozen songs:

1. “Chundariya Katati Jaye” Manna Dey 3:15
2. “Nagari Nagari Dware Dware” Lata Mangeshkar 7:29
3. “Duniya Mein Hum Aaye Hain” Lata Mangeshkar, Meena Mangeshkar, Usha Mangeshkar 3:36
4. “O Gaadiwale” Shamshad Begum, Mohammed Rafi 2:59
5. “Matwala Jiya Dole Piya” Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi 3:34
6. “Dukh Bhare Din Beete Re” Shamshad Begum, Mohammed Rafi, Manna Dey, Asha Bhosle 3:09
7. “Holi Aayi Re Kanhai” Shamshad Begum 2:51
8. “Pi Ke Ghar Aaj Pyari Dulhaniya Chali” Shamshad Begum 3:19
9. “Ghunghat Nahin Kholoongi Saiyan” Lata Mangeshkar 3:10
10. “O Mere Lal Aaja” Lata Mangeshkar 3:11
11. “O Janewalo Jao Na” Lata Mangeshkar 2:33
12. “Na Main Bhagwan Hoon” Mohammed Rafi 3:24

Lets take up the iconic Duniya mein ham aaye hain to jeena hi padhega for two reasons: The foremost is that the song is the theme of the movie, the determined image of the Indian woman to fight against adversity and emerge stronger (my own mother has done this after the premature death in an accident of my father in 1984!). The second is that Shakeel’s lyrics bring out the theme of the movie remarkably well. Hats off to him.

The song has been sung by Lata Mangeshkar, Usha Mangeshkar and Meena Mangeshkar.

Please enjoy: Duniya mein ham aaye hain to jeena hi padhega….

duniyaa me.n ham aaye hai.n to jiinaa hii pa.Degaa
jiivan hai agar zahar to piinaa hii pa.Degaa
duniyaa …

gir gir ke musIbat me.n sambhalate hI rahe.nge
jal jAe.n magar Ag pe chalate hI rage.nge
Gam jisane diye hai.n bahI Gam dUr karegA
duniyaa …

aurat hai vahI aurat jise duniyaa kI sharm hai
sa.nsAr me.n bas lAj hI nArI kA dharm hai
zindA hai jo izzat se vahI izzat se maregA
duniyaa …

mAlik hai tere sAth na Dar Gam se tU ye dil
mehanat kare insAn to kyA kAm hai mushkil
jaisA jo karegA yahA.N vaisA hI bharegA
duniyaa …

Day #11 of 31
Song #33

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #11

Tonight we take up the eleventh lyricist DN Madhok‘s creation.DN Madhok, as most of you would be aware, is from the trio called ‘first generarion of lyricists’ that also included Kavi Pradeep and Kidar Sharma.

He was born on 22 Oct 1902 in Gujranwala (now in Pakistan), nearly 14 years before Shakeel Badayuni. He arrived in Bombay in 1931 and in the very next year wrote lyrics for the songs of Radhey Shyam. He wrote – hold your breath – 29 songs for that film. He also helped in composing songs for the film but wasn’t given credit for it.

He was a very versatile personality. In the second year, after Radhey Shyam, he directed three movies, all with English names: Lure of Gold, Flame of Love and Three Warriors.

He continued directing movies, writing screen-plays, dialogues and lyrics; like Gulzar did many decades after him. He wrote lyrics for such movies as Nadi Kinare (1939), Musafir (1940), Pagal (1940), Ummeed (1941), Bansari (1943), Nurse (1943), Bela (1947), Bhakt Surdas (1942), and Tansen (1943).

Now here is something that would interest Shakeel Badayuni fans: Whilst Naushad Ali is credited with bringing Shakeel into the movies, DN Madhok was credited with bringing Naushad into the movies! Whilst Shakeel’s first lyrics were in Naushad’s film, the 1947 movie Dard, Nashad’s first song in the movies was on the lyrics of DN Madhok!

The name of the 1940 movie was Prem Nagar that starred Prof Ramanand and Husna Banu (they sang for themselves). Here are the songs that Naushad composed in his first movie on the lyrics of DN Madhok:

1. Main Kali Baag Ki Tu Bhora Kaala
Husna Banu Naushad D N Madhok Husna Banu
2. Man Ke Taar Hila Jaa More Man Ke Taar
Prof. Ramanand Naushad D N Madhok Prof. Ramanand
3. Mat Bolo Bahaar Ki Batiyaan
Bimla Kumari, Prof. Ramanand Naushad D N Madhok
Bimla Kumari, Prof. Ramanand
4. Tum Bin Chain Na Aaye Sajni
Prof. Ramanand Naushad D N Madhok Prof. Ramanand
5. Ambua Pe Baitha Panchhi Kya Boli Bole
Prof. Ramanand, Husna Banu Naushad D N Madhok Prof. Ramanand, Husna Banu

Lets listen to the second song, if not for anything, but for the fact that Shakeel’s Mother India song: Nagri nagri dwaare dwaare had lyrics similar to it.

Please enjoy: Man ka taar hila jaa more man ka taar hila jaa….

man ke taar hila ja mere man ke taar hila ja
man ke ek taare par bande pritam pritam gaa le
man ke ek taare par bande pritam pritam gaa le
man ke taar baja kar murakh man ke taar baja kar murakh
jivan ka sukh pa le jivan ka sukh pa le
dag mag dole o more sajan dag mag dole o more sajan
naiya paar laga ja naiya paar laga ja
man ke taar hila ja mere man ke taar hila ja

nagri nagri dware dware jhum raha hai pritam pyare
koun nagriya ho more sajan koun nagriya ho more sajan
man ke taar hila ja mere man ke taar hila ja
man ke taar hila ja mere man ke taar hila ja

Day #12 of 31
Song #34

Day #12 of 31
Song #35

Lets now turn to the 1958 movie Sohni Mahiwal, the second movie (after the 1946 movie by the same name) on the legendary lovers by those names. The movie starred Bharat Bhushan and Nimmi in the title roles.

This was Shakeel’s 14th movie with his mentor Naushad Ali (out of a total of 24 till then). The film had a total of 11 songs and two tunes as follows:

1 Mahiwal’s Call-Music Mohammed Rafi 0:49
2 Title Music Mahendra Kapoor 2:46
3 Panghat Pe Najariya Lad Gayi Lata Mangeshkar 3:43
4 Teri Mehfil Tera Jalva Mohammed Rafi 3:46
5 Tumhare Sang Main Bhi Chaloongi Lata Mangeshkar 3:36
6 Aanewale Ko Aana Hoga Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar 4:18
7 Duniya Hai Isika Naam Mohammed Rafi 3:47
8 Ae Mere Malik Mere Parwardigar Lata Mangeshkar 2:31
9 Mera Bichhda Yaar Mila De Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar 3:52
10 Id Ka Din Tere Bina Hai Pheeka Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi 4:07
11 Aaj Galiyon Mein Teri Aaya Hai Mohammed Rafi 3:46
12 Milti Hai Bheekh Maula Lata Mangeshkar 4:02
13 Chand Chhupa Aur Tare Doobe Mahendra Kapoor 7:34

The song that became iconic in the movie wasn’t sung by Mohammad rafi or Lata Mangeshkar. It was sung by Rafi’s protege Mahendra Kapoor and is still regarded as amongst the best he sang. This is the song about the tragic end of Sohni. She used to cross the river on a pitcher to meet her lover Mahiwal. One day her jealous and cunning sister-in-law followed Sohni and found the secret hiding place where Sohni kept the pitcher. She replaced the pitcher with a kuchcha (unbaked) pitcher. Instead of floating in the water for long, gradually the pitcher dissolved in the water and Sohni drowned. This song recalls that tragic end.

Please enjoy: Chand chhupa aur taare doobe….

chaa.Nd chhupaa aur taare Duube raat Gazab kii aaii
husn chalaa hai ishq se milane zulm kii badalii chhaaii

TuuT pa.Dii hai aa.Ndhii Gam kii, aaj pavan hai paagal
kaa.Np rahii hai dharatii saarii, chiikh rahe hai.n baadal
duniyaa ke tuufaan hazaaro.n, husn kii ik tanahaaii

maut kii naagan aaj kha.Dii hai raah me.n phan phailaaye
ja.Ngal-ja.Ngal naach rahe hai.n shaitaano.n ke saae
aaj Kudaa khaamosh hai jaise bhuul gayaa ho Kudaaii

ghor a.Ndheraa mushkil raahe.n, kadam-kadam pe dhokhe
aaj mohabbat ruk na sakegii, chaahe Kudaa bhii roke
raah-e-vafaa me.n piichhe haTanaa, pyaar kii hai rusvaaii

paar nadii ke yaar kaa Deraa, aaj milan hai teraa
o.Dh le tuu leharo.n kii chunarii baa.Ndh le mauj kaa seharaa
Dole me.n ma.Njhadhaar ke hogii aaj terii vidaaii

Duub ke in uu.Nchii leharo.n me.n naiyyaa paar lagaa le
ulfat ke tuufaan me.n zindaa rahate hai.n marane vaale
jiite-jii sa.nsaar me.n kisane pyaar kii ma.nzil paayii

tere dil ke khuun se hogaa laal chenaab kaa paanii
duniyaa kii taariikh me.n likhii jaayegii yeh qurbaanii
sohanii aur mahivaal ne apanii ishq me.n jaan ga.Nvaayii

## coda : Lata, Rafi ##
hamaare pyaar ke kisse sunaaye jaayenge
yeh giit saare zamaane me.n gaaye jaayenge
ham na ho.nge fasaana hogaa (2)
aane vaale ko aanaa hogaa, jaane vaale ko jaanaa hogaa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8dEwM52Bww

Three movies back, I gave you a song from the 1957 movie Pak Daman that starred Chitra and Sudesh Kumar. The movie was directed by SM Yusuf and it had Ghulam Mohammad’s music. The success of that movie made SM Yusuf to retain the same team for his 1958 movie Maalik. It turned out to be the biggest box-office hit of that year.

Maalik starred Talat Mahmood and Suraiyya in the lead roles.

Ghulam Mohammad composed the following songs on the lyrics of Shakeel:

1. Man Dheere Dheere Gaye Re
Talat Mahmood, Suraiya
2. Ek Chhail Chhabilaa, Alabele Sayyaan Jhulanaa Jhulaa Jaa Re
Shamshad Begum, Suraiya
3. Padhoge Likhoge Banoge Nawab
Asha Bhosle
4. Baharo Ka Zamana
Suraiya
5. Kiya Tha Pyar
Asha Bhosle
6. Teer Nazron Ke Chalaye
Shamshad Begum, Bande Hasan

Lets take up Asha Bhosle’s Padhoge likhoge banoge nawab for the deep nostalgia involved with it.

Please enjoy: Padhoge likhoge banoge nawab….

padhoge likhoge banoge nawab tum banoge nawab
jo kheloge kudoge hoge kharab suno hoge kharab
padhoge likhoge banoge nawab tum banoge nawab
jo kheloge kudoge hoge kharab suno hoge kharab

jo bache kabhi likhte padhte nahi wo ijjat ki sidi pe chadhte nahi
jo bache kabhi likhte padhte nahi wo ijjat ki sidi pe chadhte nahi
yahi din hai padhne ke pad lo kitab
yahi din hai padhne ke pad lo kitab
padhoge likhoge banoge nawab tum banoge nawab
jo kheloge kudoge hoge kharab suno hoge kharab

burai ke raste se bach kar chalo burai ke raste se bach kar chalo
kabhi jhut bolo na chori karo kabhi jhut bolo na chori karo
agar mar bhi jao na pina sharab nahi pina sharab
agar mar bhi jao na pina sharab
padhoge likhoge banoge nawab tum banoge nawab
jo kheloge kudoge hoge kharab suno hoge kharab

jawa hoke bharat me nehru bano
jawa hoke bharat me nehru bano
tum itne bade hoke bapu bano tum itne bade hoke bapu bano
jawa hoke bharat me nehru bano tum itne bade hoke bapu bano
na ho duniya bhar me tumhara jawab
na ho duniya bhar me tumhara jawab
padhoge likhoge banoge nawab tum banoge nawab
jo kheloge kudoge hoge kharab suno hoge kharab

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #12

As you are aware, I started these posts twelve days ago to bring home the point that whilst we genuinely love everything that Shakeel wrote, many other contemporary poets and lyricists were also good and popular.

Day #13 of 31
Song #37

Day #13 of 31
Song #38

The movie Mughal-e-Azam was released on 05 Aug 1960, just two days after Shakeel Badayuni’s 44th birthday. Here is from Wikipedia about the premiere of the movie:

The premiere of Mughal-e-Azam was held at the then new, 1,100-capacity Maratha Mandir cinema in Mumbai. Mirroring the nature of the film, the cinema’s foyer had been decorated to resemble a Mughal palace, and a 40-foot (12 m) cut-out of Prithviraj Kapoor was erected outside it. The Sheesh Mahal set was transported from the studio to the cinema, where ticket holders could go inside and experience its grandeur. Invitations to the premiere were sent as “royal invites” shaped like scrolls, which were written in Urdu and made to look like the Akbarnama, the official chronicle of the reign of Akbar. The premiere was held amidst great fanfare, with large crowds and an extensive media presence, in addition to hosting much of the film industry, although Dilip Kumar did not attend the event owing to his dispute with Asif. The film’s reels arrived at the premiere cinema atop a decorated elephant, accompanied by the music of bugles and shehnai”

Now that you have seen in the last song (Muhabbat ki jhooti kahani pe roye) how Anarkali was chained by Akbar and thrown into a dungeon for her ‘crime’ of falling in love with Prince Salim, lets go back to the song whence she rebelliously proclaimed in his court that she had nothing to fear in love!

This song was by far the most iconic song of the movie since it had the open rebellion that finally led to Prince Salim take up army against his own father.

The lines: Chhup na sakega ishq hamara, charon taraf hai unaka nazaara, were memorably directed by K Asif in the Jaipur’s Sheesh Mahal in whose glass ceiling, when Akbar looks up he sees the dancing Anarkali rebelliously looking down from hundreds of small mirrors.

Raag Durga was used by Naushad for the composition of this song.

Please enjoy: Pyaar kiya to darna kyaa….

insaan kisii se duniyaa me.n ik baar muhabbat karataa hai
is dard ko lekar jiitaa hai, is dard ko lekar marataa hai

pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa
pyaar kiyaa koii chorii nahii.n kii pyaar kiyaa…
pyaar kiyaa koii chorii nahii.n kii chhup chhup aahe.n bharanaa kyaa
jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa
pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa

aaj kahe.nge dil kaa fasaanaa jaan bhii lele chaahe zamaanaa -2
maut vohii jo duniyaa dekhe
maut vohii jo duniyaa dekhe ghuT ghuT kar yuu.N maranaa kyaa
jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa
pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa

unakii tamannaa dil me.n rahegii, shammaa isii mahafil me.n rahegii hbox{-2}
ishq me.n jiinaa ishq me.n maranaa
ishq me.n jiinaa ishq me.n maranaa aur hame.n ab karanaa kyaa
jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa
pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa

chhup na sakegaa ishq hamaaraa chaaro.n taraf hai unakaa nazaaraa -2
paradaa nahii.n jab koii khudaa se
paradaa nahii.n jab koii khudaa se ba.ndo.n se paradaa karanaa kyaa
jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa
pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa jab pyaar kiyaa to Daranaa kyaa
pyaar kiyaa koii chorii…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdOS-0sIW-Y

Day #13 of 31
Song #39

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #13

As you are aware, I started these posts twelve days ago to bring home the point that whilst we genuinely love everything that Shakeel wrote, many other contemporary poets and lyricists were also good and popular.

It is, therefore, worth recalling their lyrics too in addition to Shakeel’s. It was the era of good lyrics.

Today we take up our 13th Lyricist Kavi Pradeep‘s creation.Kavi Pradeep was born as Ramchandra Narayanji Dwivedi a year and half before Shakeel Badayuni, on the . Before he died on 11 Dec 1998, he had penned some 1700 songs, mostly on his favourite topic: India and patriotism. He was given the title of Rashrakavi (National Poet) and awarded with the highest award: the Dadasaheb Phalke award for his lifelong contribution as a Lyricist.

His song, Aye mere watan ke logo, sung on 27th Jan 1963, immediately after the Sino-Indian War of 1962, sung by Lata Mangeshkar on a composition by C Ramchandra brought tears to the eyes of our then Prime Minister, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and thousands of others who had gathered at Lal Qila Delhi.

Bandhan (1940) was his debut film in which he wrote patriotic songs. Three years later, in 1943, he surprised everyone with his daring under the British when he wrote the song: Door hato ai duniya walo, Hindostan hamara hai.

Kavi Pradeep proves my point regarding good lyrics of songs being the primary things that fans looked forward in movies. Indeed, many fans would repeatedly see movies in which his songs were, in order to hear them over and over again (those were not the days when, unlike today, songs were available for listening all the while).

Shakeel too wrote some great inpirational and patriotic songs such as: Insaan bano (Baiju Bawra), Insaaf ki dagar pe bachcho dikhaao chal ke, ye desh hai hamaara neta tumhin ho kal ke (Ganga Jamuna), and the ever so popular Nanha munha raahi hoon (Son of India).

There are many matching lyrics by Kavi Prasdeep. I give you this one from the 1958 movie Paigham starring Dilip Kumar, Vyjayanthimala, Raaj Kumar and Motilal. It was composed by C Ramchandra and sung by Manna Dey.

Please enjoy: Insaan ka insaan se ho bhaichara, yahi paigham hamaara….

insan ka ho insan se bhaichara
yahi paigam hamara
yahi paigam hamara
naye jagat me huya purana
unch nich ka kissa
sabko mile mehnat ke
mutabik apna apna hissa
sabke liye sukh ka barabar ho bantwara
yahi paigam hamara
yahi paigam hamara

harek mahal se kaho ke
jhopdiyo me diye jalaye
chhoto aur bado me ab
koi phrak na rah jaye
is dharti par ho pyar ka
ghar ghar ujiyara
yahi paigam hamara
yahi paigam hamara
insan ka ho insan se bhaichara
yahi paigam hamara
yahi paigam hamara

Day #14 of 31
Song #40

Mughal-e-Azam was Shakeel’s 26th movie, and 16th with Naushad. By this time, he was already big league but he hadn’t won a Filmfare Award!

He had worked with Naushad (16 movies), Ghulam Mohammad (8) and one each of Khursheed Anwar and Sardar Malik (1949 Singaar and Chor Bazar respectively).

However, 1960 turned out to be a most successful year for him; he received his first Filmfare award for the movie Chaudhvinh Ka Chand. However, before we reach there, there are two other movies in between: Kohinoor and Ghunghat.

Lets take Kohinoor first, produced by Dr. VN Sinha and directed by SU Sunny. This light-hearted movie of love between a prince and a princess of neighbouring kingdoms was devidsed to give a break to the tragedy-king Dilip Kumar from his lugubrious roles that had started affecting him mentally. Similar was the case with Meena Kumari.

You would think that Shakeel with his sad, tragic, despondent songs would be misfit here. No, not the last. He penned light-hearted romantic numbers with equal ease:

1 Madhuban Mein Radhika Nache Re Mohammed Rafi 6:02
2 Dil Mein Baji Pyar Ki Shehnaiyan Lata Mangeshkar 3:27
3 Tan Rang Lo Ji Aaj Man Ranglo Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar 3:26
4 Jadugar Qatil Hazir Hai Mera Dil Asha Bhonsle 3:33
5 Zara Man Ki Kewadiya Khol Mohammed Rafi 3:17
6 Chalenge Teer Jab Dil Par Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar 3:27
7 Yeh Kya Zindagi Hai Lata Mangeshkar 3:00
8 Dhal Chuki Sham-E-Gham Mohammed Rafi 3:17
9 Do Sitaron Ka Zameen Par Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi 3:32
10 Koi Pyar Ki Dekhe Jadugari Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar 3:24

And, what can you see about Naushad? Only this that he being the versatile composer that he was composed them equally well.

The first one, above, was done by him in Raag Hamir and Tal Tintal. Many people think of this rare Raag as a derivative of Raag Bilawal. It is sung at night (9 PM to midnihgt).

Please enjoy Mohammad Rafi sing: Madhuban mein Radhika naache re….

madhuban me.n raadhikaa naache re -2
giradhar kii muraliyaa baaje re -2
madhuban me.n…

pag me.n ghu.Ngharuu baa.Ndhake, aa…
pag me.n ghu.Ngharuu baa.Ndhake
ghu.NghaTaa mukh par Daal ke
nainan me.n kajaraa lagaake re
madhuban me.n…

Dolat chham-chham kaaminii, aa…
Dolat chham-chham kaaminii
chamakat jaise daaminii
cha.nchal pyaarii chhavi laage re
madhuban me.n…

mrida.ng baaje titakitadhuum titakitadhuum taa taa -2
na chaka chuum chuum thaa thay thaa thay
chaka chuum chuum chana na na chuum chuum chana na na
kran taa kran taa kran taa dhaa dhaa dhaa
madhuban me.n raadhikaa naache re

madhuban me.n raadhikaa
nI sA re sA gA re mA gA pA mA
dhA pA nI dhA sA nI re sA
re sA nI dhA pA mA
pA dhA nI sA re sA nI dhA pA mA
pA gA mA
dhA pA gA mA re sA

madhuban me.n raadhikaa naache re
sA sA sA nI dhA pA mA
pA dhA pA gA mA re sA nI re sA
sA sA gA mA dhA dhA nI dhA sA
madhuban me.n raadhikaa naache re
madhuban me.n raadhikaa

o de nA dir dir dhA nI tA dhA re dIm dIm tA nA nA
nA dir dir dhA nI tA dhA re dIm dIm tA nA nA
nA dir dir dhA nI tA dhA re dIm dIm tA nA nA
nA dir dir dhA nI tA dhA re
o de tana dir dir tana dir dir dir dir duum dir dir dir
dhaa titakita tak duum titakita tak
titakita titakita tA dhA nI
nA dir dir dhA nI tA dhA re …

Day #14 of 31
Song #41

Day #14 of 31
Song #42

Appreciating Good Lyrics
Song #14

As you are aware, I started these posts twelve days ago to bring home the point that whilst we genuinely love everything that Shakeel wrote, many other contemporary poets and lyricists were also good and popular.

It is, therefore, worth recalling their lyrics too in addition to Shakeel’s. It was the era of good lyrics.

So far, we have taken up in the last thirteen days:

1. Shailendra with his Kuchh aur zamaana kehta hai.
2. Rajinder Krishan with his Mujhase mat poochh mere ishq mein.
3. Kaifi Azmi with his Jaane kyaa dhoondati rehati hain ye aankhen mujh mein.
4. Sahir Ludhianvi with Aurat ne janam diya mardon ko.
5. Majrooh Sultanpuri with Teri aankhon ke siwa duniya mein rakha kyaa hai.
6. Jaan Nisar Akhtar with his Mujhape ilzaam-e-bewafai hai.
7. Hasrat Jaipuri with his Aansu bhari hain ye jeevan ki raahen.
8. Qamar Jalalabadi with his Ai meri zindagi tujhe dhoondun kahan.
9. Raja Mehdi Ali Khan with Mera sundar sapna beet gaya.
10. Indeevar with Bade armaano se rakha hai balam teri kasam.
11. DN Madhok with Man ka taar hila ja
12. Kidar Sharma with Teri duniya mein dil lagta nahin waapas bula le.
13. Kavi Pradeep with Insaan ka insaan se ho bhaichara.

Today we take up the creation of our 14th Lyricist Pt. Indra Chandra. I have taken this information verbatim from a site called www.anmolfankaar.com since the information given on this forgotten Lyricist by Aditya Pant is the best. In the beginning of the article it says that this article was written for the Guzra Hua Zamana series on Sangeet Ke Sitare, a music group on Facebook.

“It’s a sad reality that among all the contributors that embellish film songs, the lyricists are probably the least remembered (except the musicians and chorus singer, of course). Pt. Indra’s is a classic case in point. One of the most prolific Hindi film lyricists of his time, Pt. Indra had a career spanning three decades during which he wrote more than 875 songs in 128 films. Yet his name is hardly known.

Not much is known about the early life of Pandit Indra Chandra Dadhich. Hailing from Churu district in Rajasthan, Pt. Indra came to Bombay in 1933. He was first hired as a writer and lyricist for Gandharv Cinetone’s Sati Mahananda (1933). He continued to be associated exclusively with them for the first few years and worked on films like Maharani (1934) and Pardesi Saiyan (1935). When Master Vinayak co-founded his company – Huns Chitra – in 1936, he hired Pt. Indra for Chhaya (1936), where he was responsible for translating from the original Marathi. Pt. Indra continued to work for Huns Chitra for the next couple of years, while expanding his association with other film companies like Sagar Movietone and a few others.

It was in 1939 that he got the first opportunity to work with Chandulal Shah’s Ranjit Movietone in Sant Tulsidas. But it wasn’t until 1942, with Dheeraj and Iqraar (Tyaag), that Pt. Indra became a regular lyricist with Ranjit Movietone. By 1950 he had worked in 33 films produced by Ranjit Movietone, his most significant association with any film company. Some of the noteworthy films of this association include Tansen (1944), Dhanna Bhagat (1945), Moorti (1945), Prabhu Ka Ghar (1945), Rajputani (1946), Chheen Le Azadi (1947), Piya Ghar Aaja (1947), Gunsundari (1948) and Jogan (1950). Many years later when Chandulal Shah directed Zameen Ke Taare (1960) he once again called Pt. Indra for his services, although the film was made under the banner of Chandra Movies.

Apart from Ranjit Movietone for whom he produced a bulk of his output, Pt. Indra also did considerable amount of work for Vijay Bhatt’s Prakash Pictures (9 films), Homi Wadia’s Wadia Movietone (8 films), Huns Chitra (7 films) and Sagar Movietone (6 films). Since he had close relations with both, when Ranjit Movietone and Wadia Movietone decided to co-produce Return of Toofan Mail in 1942, Pt. Indra was the obvious choice for the main lyricist.

In 1948, S. S Vasan decided to remake his super hit film Chandralekha in Hindi. The responsibility of writing the lyrics as well as the dialogues fell on Pt. Indra. Thus began another fruitful association for Pt. Indra. He became an in-house lyricist for Gemini Films, writing for all their subsequent Hindi films like Nishaan (1949), Mangala (1950), Sansar (1951), Mr. Sampat (1952), Bahut Din Hue (1954) and Do Dulhe (1955).

Those were the days when artistes were closely tied to film companies, working on a monthly salary. It is, therefore, natural that the music directors Pt. Indra worked with was dependent on the film companies he was associated with. From Govindrao Tembe in his first film to Dhaniram, Jamal Sen and Shivram Krishna in his final films, Pt. Indra worked with around 50 different composers. Yet, a fairly large proportion of his work is with composers who were closely associated with Ranjit Movietone i.e. Bulo C. Rani (21 films), Gyan Dutt (17 films), Khemchand Prakash (12 films) and Hansraj Bahl (11 films). Jogan (1950) with Bulo C. Rani, Geet Govind (1947) with Gyan Dutt, and Tansen (1943) with Khemchand Prakash can be considered as Pt. Indra’s milestone films. While working with Gemini, he got the opportunity to work with prominent composers of South India like S. Rajeshwar Rao, E. Sankara Shastri, B.S Kalla and M. D Parthasarthy. Other prominent composers he worked with include S. N Tripathi (6 films), Anil Biswas (5 films) and Dada Chandekar (4 films).

After his very first film Sati Mahanada, Pt. Indra had several more opportunities to show his mettle as a dialogue writer. Some of the films for which he wrote the story/dialogues include Maharani (1934), Pardesi Saiyan (1935), Chhaya (1936), Sati Pingala (1937), Jwala (1938), Brahmachari (1938), Brandy Ki Botal (1939), Sant Tulsidas (1939), Ghar Ki Rani (1940), Chandralekha (1949), Jalsa (1948) and Bahut Din Hue (1954). Many of these films were dubbed versions/remakes of regional language films.

Pt. Indra also tried his hand at production when he co-produced Sheikh Chilli (1956) with Ramchandra Thakur. He also produced a few Rajasthani films like Babasa Ri Ladli (1961), Nanibai Ko Maayro (1962), Gangaur (1964) and Gopichand Bharthari (1965). He wrote the lyrics for these films as well, as also for other Rajasthani films like Dhani Lugai (1964) and Gogaji Pir (1969). Even in Hindi films he brought in the flavor of Rajasthan whenever an opportunity arose. Songs like ‘mharo chhail bhanwar ro kangasiyo’ (Karwaan 1944), ‘kunwar thane mujro kar kar haari’ (Rajputani 1946) and ‘mora chhail bhanwar ’ (Rajputani 1946) were either completely or partially written in Rajasthani.

A glance at his work reveals that at the beginning of his career, there was a noticeable literary influence in his choice of words both in Hindi and Urdu. For example, ‘saavan ghan barse chaatak kyun tarse’ (Maharani 1934), ‘mansarovar taj chale rajhans’ (Chhaya 1936), ‘yakta ye husn mana farsh-e-zameen pe ho’ (Pardesi Saiyan 1935), ‘mere dil-e-saudai kis waqt haya aayi’ (Pardesi Saiyan, 1935), etc. But largely, the language he used was simple and colloquial as was in vogue in the films of 1930s and 40s. He primarily stuck to the demands of the film rather than overtly and incongruously exhibiting his language skills. However, whenever he had the opportunity, either due to the subject of the film or when he got a free hand from the film makers, he did revert to pure, literary language. A case in point will be his songs from Geet Govind (1947), where he penned songs like ‘viyogini deepshikha se jare’ or ‘chamakat damakat daamini’. He also used the literary device of anupraas alankaar (alliteration) whenever he could as is evident in songs like ‘o mrignayani madhubani menaka’ (Mr. Sampat 1952), ‘kookat koyaliya kunjan mein’ (Bharthari 1944) and ‘maai ri main to madhuban mein’ (Chandalekha 1948). In the last example, which is jointly credited to Pt. Indra & Bharat Vyas, the use of alliteration was not restricted only to the mukhda. The last antara of that song had another lovely usage of alliteration when the singer sings ‘ho gaye naina nihaal nirakh liyo nandlal’.

It is difficult to compartmentalize Pt. Indra’s writing style. He was truly versatile, writing just about every kind of song. However, there are a few recurring motifs that appear in his songs. One cannot call that as something unique to him as those themes were quite prevalent in that era in general, but given his prolificacy those themes appear more often in his work as compared to some other lyricists. One such theme is that of Radha Krishna, either alone or together. This seems to be quite a favorite among most lyric writers till around the 70s. In Pt. Indra’s oeuvre this theme emerges not only in films based on this subject like Geet Govind (1947), where he penned songs like ‘shyam meri bindiya bikhar na jaye’, ‘kit ho nand kumar’, ‘meethi meethi murali shyam bajaye’, or Krishna Kanhaiya (1952) where almost every song referred to Radha and/or Shyam, but also films with varied themes. Some of these examples include ‘bijli chamak gayi shyam’, ‘kunj mein dole akeli aaj raadhika shyam bina’(Maharani 1934), ‘aao jhoola jhoolen kanha’ (Brandy Ki Botal 1939), ‘matwale mere shyam’ (Amrit 1941), ‘radha jhoola jhoole jhulaven ghanshyam’ (Raj Nartaki 1941), ‘madhuban mein radha jhoole hindole’ (Prabhu Ka Ghar 1945) ‘radha paniya bharan kaise jaye’ (Dharti 1946), ‘bol bol gokul ke gwale’ (Gwalan 1946), and many more.

Another recurring character that has been a favorite of poets from time immemorial, and which found its way into Pt. Indra’s work as well, is the moon. I must add that he mostly stuck to the conventional roles of the moon, and I don’t find any innovative invocation of the moon in his work. His moon is fairly comfortable wearing the conventional garb. It becomes a messenger in ‘chanda desh piya ke ja’ (Bharthari 1944) or ‘sheetal chandni khili khili’ (Draupadi 1944), transforms into a close confidante in ‘o sharad poonam ki chandni’ (Gunsundari 1948), is advised not to cast an evil eye in ‘ae chand nazar na lagana’ (Moorti 1945), becomes a playful mate in ‘chanda khele aankh michauli’ (Jogan 1950), is equated to the beloved in ‘chanda chamke neel gagan mein’ (Bahut Din Hue 1954), is used a metaphor for beauty as well as accused of being a thief in ‘chandavadani sundar sajni’ (Man Ka Meet 1950), or simply transforms into an object decorating the mise-en-scene in a romantic song like ‘chanda chamkti raat’ (Do Dulhe 1955). And of course, a mother equating her child to the moon as she sings a lori cannot be far behind, as in ‘pyare more chanda ae mere ladle’ (Mangala 1950).

Pt. Indra also had his share of patriotic or nationalistic songs of various hues and tones. While ‘ajab hindustan ghazab hindustan’ (Pardesi Mehman 1948) was a stinging satirical attack on the state of the nation immediately after independence, ‘hindustan mahan hamara’ (Mr. Sampat 1952) was an expression of pride, yet an utopian and idealistic view. National leaders were invoked in Brandy Ki Botal (1939) with songs like ‘gandhi baba ka aaya raaj’, a song about Gandhi’s call for prohibition, and ‘bharat mata ke rajdulare’, which referenced Jawaharlal Nehru. His words exhorted people to rise and fight for their motherland in songs like ‘veer chalo janani pukare maiya bharati’ (Maharani 1934) and ‘jaag jaag mewar’ (Rajputani 1946).”

In bringing out comparison with Shakeel, I have chosen his song from the 1943 movie Tansen in which KL Saigal played the title role and Khursheed Bano as the love of his life: the shepherdess Tani.

Why this film’s song for comparison, you may ask? I have already given you Shakeel’s song for 1960 movie Mughal-e-Azam: Mohe panghat pe Nandlal chhed gayo re. This song as composed by Naushad was inspired by Kahe Gumaan kare re Gori in Gaara raag from the film Tansen!

Here is the list of songs from Tansen that Pt. Indra Chandra penned:

1. Ghata Ghanaghor Ghor Khursheed Bano
2. Aao Gori Aao Shyama Khursheed Bano
3. Kahe Guman Kare Re Gori Kundan Lal Saigal
4. Rumajhum Rumajhum Chaal Tihaari Kundan Lal Saigal
5. Baag Laga Dun Sajani Kundan Lal Saigal
6. More Balpan Ke Sathi Chhaila Bhul Jaio Na Kundan Lal Saigal, Khursheed Bano
7. Sapt Suran Tin Graam Gaavo Sab Gunijan Kundan Lal Saigal
8. Ho Dukhiya Jiyara Rote Naina Khursheed Bano
9. Ab Raja Baye More Balam Khursheed Bano
10. Binaa Pankh Panchhi Hun Main Kundan Lal Saigal
11. Diya Jalao Kundan Lal Saigal
12. Din Soona Sooraj Bina Kundan Lal Saigal
13. Baraso Re Khursheed Bano

Lets take up this favourite of mine which was composed in Raag Megh Malhar by Khemchand Prakash and sung by KL Saigal.

Please enjoy: Baag laga doon sajani….

baaG lagaa duu.N sajanii (2)
tore nainan maaNii geharii (2)
sundar sudhar salonii
baaG lagaa duu.N sajanii (2)

tum basa.nt ho tum bahaar ho (2)
tum hii giit ho tum pukaar ho (2)
tum koyal tum kuuk hamaarii (2)
giit sunaa madhubayanii
baaG lagaa duu.N sajanii (2)

ra.ng bira.nge phuul khile.nge (2)
ban ke pa.nchhii gale mile.nge (2)
dulhan banakar kaliyaa.n ha.Nsatii (2)
dekh dekh mR^iganayanii
baaG lagaa duu.N sajanii (2)

With that we come to the end of the second week of Countdown to the Birth Centenary of Shakeel Badayuni.

Please await the Part III with the third week of the Countdown.