Welcome to October, 2014 edition of Carnival of Blogs on Golden Era of Hindi Film Music.
We have a discovery to report this month. It is a discovery on two counts – first one being that fact that I landed upon this blog only this month, though ought to have done so a little earlier, and the second one is because the blog itself is Back after a long hiatus!.
So, we will devote our beginning to posts on Songs, Stories, Books and More… Random Musings. However, we would pick up posts for the normal period of this edition and would find opportunities to delve into (relatively) older posts in the future editions of our carnival.
We have two posts on one subject, wherein both the posts have approached the subject from totally different angle. The subject is Lata Mangeshkar’s birthday (on 28th September). The First one is Happy Birthday, Lata ji,… despite loving Asha Bhosle to the core, there are many Lata songs that I am very fond of…The volume and quality of work she has behind her is unmatched and unparalleled. And this is an Asha fan saying this.. And the Second Post is: The Swar-Saamraagyi and the the Sangeet-Maartand: Best of Lata Mangeshkar by Anil Biswas, as can be expected on any SoY post, doing full justice the selection of the songs from 123 songs that Anil Biswas – LataMangeshkar combination has provided from 30 films.
October sets in… oh yes, Happy Birthday Asha Parekh… has chosen to present songs from Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon. Lakhon Hai Nigah Main, Zindagi Ki Raah Mein obviously draws a parallel with Jawaniyan Yeh Mast Mast Bin Piye [Tumsa Nahin Dekha]. “Both songs are favourites though (I) prefer to watch the Tumsa Nahin Dekha song and listen to Lakhon Hai Nigah Mein!”
Gungunaoonga Yehi Geet Main Tere Liye – Remembering Sachin Dev Burman and Majrooh Sultanpuri is in memory of 108th and 95th birth anniversaries respectively. “Mohd Rafi .. happens to be.. favourite singer and I remember reading somewhere that Dada Burman wanted him to sing this song. He wasn’t in favour of Talat saab because of that tremble in his voice. But luckily for us, Jaidev (his assistant then) convinced Dada Burman to give Talat saab this song. Thank god for that. However much, I adore Rafi, no one could have sung this song better than Talat saab.”
We have a pair of very interesting posts on Asha Bhosle and Geeta Dutt on “Songs…and More”.
The recent one Chali Re Chali Re Main toh Des Parayee (Saranga, 1961) presents a haunting, plaintive number from film Saranga, one of the films that did make a very special space for Sardar Malik as quite an accomplished music director. The second one is w.r.t. Asha Bhosle’s birthday – Thank you for the music and memories, Asha ji! – which has picked up quite a melodious piece of Humming in Kashmir Ki Kali (1964), among other songs.
Geeta Dutt’s song Rut Phire Par Din Hamare was not there Pyasa.(1957), but has found its place here on account of “Thou shalt write a long post on at least one Sahir Ludhianvi song per week” policy. Rut Phire Par din Hamare Phire Na (Pyaasa, 1957) recollects the topic of this song in Nasreen Munni Kabir’s book (Conversations with Waheeda Rehman). According t
o Waheeda, this song had been filmed with her rowing in a boat and everyone had appreciated the picturisation. However Waheeda Rehman differed with the view and she apparently pointed out that having that song slows the pace of the story and is just boring. Guru Dutt had heard her criticism and after the first screening, had agreed with her observation (seeing people walk out for a bathroom or coffee break), had taken it off. Excerpts from this bok can be glanced at Excerpt | Conversations With Waheeda Rehman. The other one is Na Main Dhan Chahun Na Ratan Chahun (Kala Bazaar, 1960), This duet, by Geeta Dutt and Sudha Malhotra is said to have ben (actually) composed by Jaidev, the then assistant to S D Burman. This seems quite logical since “Jaidev’s bhajans from Hum Dono (1961) are remembered to the day – Allah Tero Naam, and Prabhu Tero Naam.”
Guru Dutt’s 50th death anniversary brings in San San San Woh Chali Hawa – Kaagaz Ke Phool, 1959 ‘to remember Guru Dutt not as the melancholic, unhappy genius film maker but in happier times with a happy number! He was after all only 39 when he died.’
We have several other anniversary posts in the present episode of the carnival.
Happy 88th Birthday, Madam Noor Jehan! has clips of the entire ‘90s interview on BBC plus all of Noor Jehan birthday posts going back to 2009. A veritable treasure in on Noor Jehan, in one place !
On Begum Akhtar’s birth centenary, a musical tribute at her grave…..One hundred years after she was born, Begum Akhtar is being remembered and celebrated at the place where she was laid to rest.
How Begum Akhtar changed my life: a tribute on the singer’s 100th birth anniversary – Tisha Srivastav
“Now as a woman in my 40s, having lived life a little, the Begum is back in my life, as a modern-day primer to soothe me into understanding the subtext of experiences. Of love, shocks, surprises, loneliness, romancing life itself and laughing at one’s obsessions.”
The Lonely Ghazal Queen: Begum Akhtar , a legend in her lifetime, who achieved enormous fame at a very young age, and gave joy to millions of listeners of many generations, including doyens like Mehdi Hasan, Talat Mahmood, Madan Mohan, Pt. Jasraj and Pt. Ravi Shankar, Begum Akhtar’s own life seems to be full of sorrow, pain, abusive relationships, betrayal by people she loved and a deep melancholy.
Unfathomable greatness – Saleem Kidwai
The way [Begum Akhtar] would split words or combine them into musical phrases shows how comfortable she was with Urdu’s poetic idiom. This musical comfort level with the language also marked out some of her younger contemporaries like Mehdi Hasan, Iqbal Bano and Farida Khanum, and is sadly missing from most other singers.
Kishore Kumar’s duets by SD Burman : “With 115 songs, he gave Kishore Kumar more songs than any other (male) singer. Surjit Singh’s site indicates that out of this only 53 were solos, and 51 were Male –Female duets, 8 Male duets and 3 other songs. “.. and even die-hard opinionated person like me would very happily concede that quite a few of these pre-Aradhana duets did creditable justice to S D Burman’s marked preference to Kishore Kumar.
Geet Gaya Paththaron Ne – Rajakamal Studio is very passionate retrospective of films that have created a very respectable distinctive position for V. Shantaram. The post also carries link to a song each from Rajakamal Studio’s films from Shakuntala (1943) to Pinjra (1973).
My Favourites: Songs of Yearning – This ‘someone’ is a very hazy concept. We don’t usually know who, or how or when or where we will meet this particular person; we don’t even know that we will meet that special someone. And we do, perhaps – through choice, through circumstance, through fate. Or the someone we find becomes special. But in the meanwhile, we have our own hopes, dreams and expectations of finding that glorious love
Ten of my favourite string instrument songs, where it’s not an orchestra (Ted Lyons and His Cubs, anyone? Or The Monkees?), but a hero or heroine, not a professional musician, being the one ‘playing’ an instrument?
Radio Playback India has presented Raag Hansdhwani by Hariprasad Chaurasia.. I have especial fascination for Raag Hansdhwani, primarily because of Jaa To Se Nahin Bolun Kanhaiya , A Lata Mangeshakar – Manna Dey Duet from film Parivar(1956) , and then because of this song I landed upon this very famous Taranaa by Pandit Amir Khan Saheb Incidentally one of initial blog post is a compilation [Part I, Part II and Part III] of all that I could gather at that time on internet on Hansdhwani.
In our now a regular visit to Suresh Chandvankar’s articles, we have a topical article – When Bollywood maestros collaborated to put a Gandhi prayer to melody. The film musician Vasant Desai cut a disc of Gandhiji’s poem, sung by Manna Dey and Chorus. Gandhiji is credited as the lyricist .
How a goatherd and Mozart inspired the score for Bimal Roy’s ‘Madhumati’, is an excerpt, from Bimal Roy’s Madhumati: Untold Stories from Behind the Scenes by Rinki Roy Bhattacharya published by Rupa Publications India Pvt. Ltd..
Tamilnadus’ (ex)CM J. Jayalalitha was in the news recently. But we recall here ‘Four dance sequences from classic Jayalalithaa movies, of which one is from Hindi film Izzat (1967) – Jaagi Badan Men Jwala, Saiyan Tune Kya Kar Dala.
MANMOHAN KRISHNA SINGS FOR OP NAYYAR is one more post where we have very unique songs. Of the two non-film songs, both penned by Saroj Mohini Nayyar, the first one is Buje Diye Hua Andhera and the second one is Diya To Jala Sab Raat Re Balam. The latter song was also recorded in film Dhake Ki Malamal by C H Atma .
We round off this carnival edition with a post from Songs..Books and More – Sabhi Kuch Lutakar (Singer – Mohd Rafi, Movie Indrani, 1958) is a “wonderful romantic Hindi number was from an old Bengali film It is picturised on an unknown face. This man (a vagabond?) is strumming a guitar and singing this song. He is watched by Kumar and Sen – a just married couple – standing outside in the veranda of their house. Interspersed with Bengali dialogues, the mood of the song is indeed very romantic.”
The world is too small? or Is it? 