Beautiful Duet Series
I started this series on my Facebook group Yaad Kiya Dil Ne on 23 Aug 20. Since then, many other members have put up these songs. Here, I shall be giving you one of my own, per day.
Last time, I gave you Beautiful Duet #13 – Ek pardesi mera dil le gaya. So here, then, is the next one:
Song #14
Jeevan mein piya tera saath rahe
Another Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammad Rafi Duet
We all want newness and hence, after having enjoyed Lata – Rafi duets during our entire life, we want to sound novel by liking other singers. However, we know that some of the best duets in Hindi movies were sung by them. Somewhere, in the layers of our memory these are lying dormant until someone like me re-evokes them. I had given you, on 07 Sep, for example, their Teri duniya se door chale hoke majboor and most of you agreed that that was a classic.
This is yet another one.
Vijay Bhatt’s 1959 Movie Goonj Uthi Shehnai
Vijay Bhatt did it once for the 1952 movie Baiju Bawra whose songs are still fondly remembered. He did it again in this movie that had the Bharat Ratna Bismillah Khan playing the Shehnai all throughout in the movie. The 1962 movie Himalaya Ki God Mein and 1965 movie Hariyali Aur Raasta are some other popular movies of his.
Songs of the movies have been a strong attraction in his movies. Baiju Bawra had 13 songs composed by Naushad and penned by Shakeel Badayuni, each one composed in a raag.
Goonj Uthi Shehnai’s story revolved around Rajendra Kumar as Kishan having learnt Shehnai on his own until Ulhas as Raghunath Maharaj hones his talent by taking him as a disciple when he was a boy. Raghunath’s daughter Ramkali (played by Anita Guha) adores him and dreams of becoming his wife. However, Kishan is so deeply in love with his childhood friend Gopi (played by Ameeta) that Rami (Ramkali) soon takes up the role of Kishan’s mother/sister to facilitate their love. Postman IS Johar as Kanhaiya is the fly in their ointment and gradually succeeds in separating the couple. In the end they die and only their souls meet.
Of course, Gopi is enamoured by Kishan’s Shehnai and feels that the right combination for them is his Sur (musical notes) and her Geet (songs).
Bharat Vyas and Vasant Desai
This duo of Lyricist – Music Director have given us some memorable songs; eg, Aye malik tere bande hum in V Shantaram’s classic Do Aankhen Barha Haath. Certainly, some of those cherished songs are in this movie:
- “Teri Shehnai Bole” Lata Mangeshkar, Mohd. Rafi
- “Tere Sur Aur Mere Geet” Lata Mangeshkar
- “Maine Peena Seekh Liya” Mohd. Rafi
- “Jivan Men Piya Tera Sath Rahe” Lata Mangeshkar, Mohd. Rafi
- “Haule Haule Ghoonghat Pat Khole” Lata Mangeshkar, Mohd. Rafi
- “Akhiyan Bhool Gain Hain Sona” Lata Mangeshkar, Geeta Dutt
- “Mujhko Agar Bhool Jaoge Tum” Lata Mangeshkar
- “Kah Do Koi Na Kare Yahan Pyaar” Mohd. Rafi
- “Dil Ka Khilona Hai Toot Gaya” Lata Mangeshkar
The melodious resolve by the lovers to live, love and die together has been brought out beautifully in the lyrics of Bharat Vyas and extraordinarily beautiful composition by Vasant Desai.
The Lyrics
जीवन में पिया तेरा साथ रहे
हाथों में तेरे मेरा हाथ रहे
जीवन में पिया तेरा साथ रहे
जब तक सूरज चन्दा चमके
गंगा जमुना में बहे पानी
रहे तब तक प्रीत अमर अपनी
है ये जनम जनम की दीवानी
ओ रानी याद मिलन
ओ जी हो ओ ओ ओ
ओ रानी याद मिलन की ये रात रहे
हाथों में तेरे मेरा हाथ रहे …
{शृ}ंगार भरा पिया प्यार तेरा
झंकार करे है मेरे कँगना में
लगी जब से लगन मेरे मन में सजन
शहनाई बजे है मेरे अँगना में
ओ पिया याद मिलन
ओ जी हो ओ ओ ओ
ओ पिया याद मिलन की ये रात रहे
हाथों में तेरे मेरा हाथ रहे …
My Own Poetry
Hamare Dil Ka Geet
रातों के ख्वाब दिन में भी लगे आने,
तेरे प्यार में सनम हम हो गए दीवाने।
सांस रुकने लगी,
आंख झुकने लगी,
तन्हाई के पल भी अब बन गए सुहाने।
मुहब्बत की यह धुन,
इसे दिल से सुन।
सेहरा में भी आ गयी बहार,
खिल उठा है मेरा घर संसार।
ठंडी ठंडी हवाएं,
भीगी भीगी फिजायें,
तेरा ही कर रही थी इंतज़ार।
मुहब्बत की यह धुन,
इसे दिल से सुन।
ज़िन्दगी भर रहेगा अपना साथ,
हमेशा रहेगा मेरे हाथों में तेरा हाथ।
बस यूँ ही यूँ है,
हर तरफ तूँ ही तूँ है,
जन्मों जन्मों की हमारी मुलाकात।
मुहब्बत की यह धुन,
इसे दिल से सुन।
Please enjoy: Jeevan mein piya tera saath rahe…
I hope you liked my choice of Beautiful Duet #14.
Please await Beautiful Duet #15- Dam bhar jo udhar moonh dekhe.
If Shailendra did magic in the Awaara song that I had put up on 16th: Dam bhar jo udhar moonh phere, Hasrat Jaipuri wrote this stunningly beautiful song for Chori Chori. Here is the natural succession: Raat leads to Chand, Chand leads to Love and Longing and Love and Longing lead to Hasrat Jaipuri.
The other day when I was attending a programme by Shankar Jaikishan Foundation, Ahmedabad, a dear friend remarked that my comments were about the singing prowess of the two female singers and nothing about Shankar Jaikishan. I was shocked. I promptly wrote: Sab kuchh unhin ka to hai!
They sang for Nargis and Raj Kapoor respectively and became part of the enchantment; the tune is easy and catchy and doesn’t require changing scales or pitches as you would find in, for example, Aji rooth kar ab kahan jayiyega.
She was nominated only once for the Filmfare Best Actress Award, ie, for her role in 18 years of her acting (not counting as child artiste) in Hindi movies, from 1947 Neel Kamal (also the debut movie of Raj Kapoor) until the 1964 Sharabi. However, she was so popular that even when she acted with Dilip Kumar (who she wanted to marry but for her father standing in their way), after the shots, people waited in queues just to get a glimpse of her. A complete movie industry depended upon her charms.
Bharat Bhushan, on the other hand, won the second Filmfare Best Actor Award in 1955 for Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, having wrested it from Dilip Kumar who won the first one for 1954 Daag. However, Dilip Kumar wrested it right back next year for Azaad and denied the same to Bharat Bhushan for Mirza Ghalib.
Phagun was a Bhibhuti Mitra production and directed movie that also starred Jeevan, Kammo, Nishi, Cuckoo and Mehmood.
Qamar Jalalabadi penned this song. He also penned songs for Raj Kapoor starrer Chhalia including the popular Dam dam diga diga. His song Din hai suhaana aaj pehli tareek hai used to be broadcast from Radio Ceylone for a number of years on the first of every month. My dad used to hum a popular song of his: Jab raat nahin katati zindagi kaise kategi. He also penned the super hit: Jab tumhaari yaad aayegi sanam. My favourite of his is, however, from Shammi Kapoor’s 1966 movie Preet Na Jaane Reet: Main bewafa nahin hoon tere pyaar ki kasam. Indeed, I titled one of my poems: Main Bewafa Nahin Hoon.
His songs in Phagun were composed by OP Nayyar, the music director who has the record of having most hit/super-hit songs in his movies. Take Phagun’s songs for example:
This song is from the 1960 RK Rakhan movie Kalpana starring Padmini in the title role. Her sister’s name is the title of the movie and her other sister Ragini (Travancore Sisters) also acts in the movie.
Lyrics are by Kaifi Azmi who mastered the art of conveying complex emotions in the most laconic way. Take this stanza itself. He talks about beautiful night, beautiful moon and then adds that she is more beautiful than all these.
If one knows the story of Biswajeet being married initially to his licentious wife and then marrying Waheeda Rehman after the first wife disappears; and Waheeda Rehman staying in the shadow and fear of the first wife, the lyrics would obtain even greater meaning. One wonders how Kaifi Azmi packed such tremendous meaning into those few words.
His voice is the voice of God, as seen by some. His voice is the means of transportation, the quickest way, of us into the world of the song. This happens to be one of his best on his own composition. You don’t even have to see the movie; merely by listening to him you can imagine the complete scene.
It was a Rajshri Production (such as Hum Aapke Hain Kaun), produced by Tarachand Barjatya and directed by Phani Majumdar. The movie starred Pradeep Kumar, Ashok Kumar and Meena Kumari and Shashikala, the complete cast that was repeated in Bheegi Raat with another great song: Dil jo na keh saka wohi raaz-e-dil kehne ki raat aayi.
All very good songs. Kidar Sharma is the one who gave a break to Roshan in the 1949 movie Neki Aur Badi. After the next movie, the 1950 movie Bawre Nain, there was no looking back for Roshan.
Laxmikant Pyarelal started off with 1963 movie Parasmani and they made such popular songs for their very first movie that these are fondly remembered even today:
Asad Bhopali, the lyricist of this song was born as Asadullah Khan on 10 Jul 1921 in Bhopal.
Here is what Wordsworth had to write about it in ‘Three Years She Grew By’:
She was born on this day in 1973. She was crowned Miss World 1994 in a pageant that crowned Sushmita Sen as Miss Universe.
It was produced and directed by Subhash Ghai and starred , in addition to her, Anil Kapoor, Akshay Khnaa, Amrish Puri and Alok Nath.
Five years ago, I wrote an essay about the treatment of women in Bengal based movies: ‘
The Sitar maestro (unquestionably, the best in the world) composed five songs for this movie; the first mainstream Hindi movie for which he was the Music Director. Each one is a classic (and suitable for the Raat or Din theme):
It has become fashionable for people to bring out that such and such female singer is better than Lata. I maintain that she always delivered to the expectations of her music directors, however difficult a composition may have been. I maintain that she is the best. If a singer has stayed with you for over six decades, naturally you may have some song or the other that proves your point!
The next was on 28th Sep when a movie on young love titled Bobby was released. It changed many things. It actually changed the way we looked at movies. For once, the lead actors really looked of college going age rather than what we had to make do with so far, eg, Rajendra Kumar being a college boy in Dhool Ka Phool in his thirties (the duet being Tere pyar ka aasra chahta hoon). Of course, Mala Sinha was seven years younger but she always had that quality of not looking like a girl.
Both Anand Bakshi and Laxmikant Pyarelal pioneered this movement.
In the same 1966 Raj Khosla movie Mera Saaya, a song he wrote in Raag Bhimpalasi was adored by the singer Lata Mahgeshkar as one of the best in raaga songs composed by her “Madan bhaiya”.
This 1946 movie was directed by the great Mehboob Khan (Mother India and Andaz). It starred Noor Jehan, Suraiya and Surendra. This song was sung by Noor Jehan and Surendra (one stanza each) for themselves.
