Shankar (Jaikishan) and Shailendra’s Songs Fading From the Memory: 1956 (Part II)
Shankar (Singh Raghuvanshi) – B: 25 October 1922 | D: 26 April 1987) of Shankar Jaikishan music director duo and Shailendra (a.k.a. Shankardas Kesarilal, B: 30 August 1923 – D: 14 December 1966) of their Shailendra-Hasrat seamless pair of lyricists formed two adjacent sides of the SJ-Shailendra-Hasrat quartet.
The typical model of the films in 50s had an average of 5 to 8 songs. Where as most of the then successful music directors were able to give two to three hit songs in each film, Shankar Jaikishan had that very unique knack which created almost all songs of each film a great hit. As a result, whereas other music directors generally handled one or two films a year, S-J started getting three to five films a year, even when they went on jacking up their fees. In the beginning, as can be expected, Shankar and Jaikishan used to devote a good time together for the conception of the music composition for each film.
Several historians have recorded that with the mounting pressure of ever increasing workload, Shankar and Jaikishan had to compose the tunes for the songs that each one had pre-selected for a given film independently. That division of labor also lead to each partner working more with a lyricist with whom each one was naturally more comfortable with. As is very widely believed, and accepted, Shailendra mostly worked with Shankar and Hasrat Jaipuri with Jaikishan. After his marriage, it is said that Jaikishan had started composing music more from his home whereas Shankar used to work from their music studio.
The film historians also do take note of the fact that all through the 50s, even after their clear division of work there still was that great camaraderie between the two, each one improvising the other’s tune or orchestration. There have been notable instances when it is said that two had worked even with other than their normal lyricist partner.
It has been so much of personal pleasure for me to commemorate the birth anniversary of Shankar Singh Raghuvanshi, of this great S-J team, through the present series of Shankar (Jaikishan) and Shailendra’s Songs Fading From the Memory from October 2018. That pleasure gets multiplied several times while recalling their more famous numbers and listening to their less familiar songs from the films released in chronological order of year.
Till now, we have covered the years
1949 – 1953 in 2018
1953 (Continued) in 2019.
1954 in 2020
1955 and 1956 (Part I) in 2021
After an avalanche of as many as 6 Hindi films in 1953 and 5 in 1954, there was some lull during 1955, But the year 1956 had 7 films under the belt of S-J pair. Of these seven, we have covered Halaku, Kismat Ka Khel and Basant Bahar in the Part 1 of the SJ songs of 1956 in 2021. Presently, we will take up three more films of SJ duo in the year 1956, viz. Chori Chori, New Delhi and Rajhath,
Chori Chori (1956)
As may be observed from the poster of the film, Chori Chori was romantic film (with the then most coveted lead pair of Raj Kapoor and Nargis) fairly mixed with comedy (with two big guns – Johnny Walker and Bhagwan – playing comically grey roles).
Chori Chori had nine songs, of which Hasrat Jaipuri penned 5 and Shailendra penned four, of which Yeh Raat Bheegi Bheegi (Manna Dey, Lata Mangeshkar) remains one of the most iconoic romantic songs of Hindi cinema and another sweet duet Jahan Mein Jaati Hoon (Manna Dey, Lata Mangeshkar) is my one the most favorite one.
Tum AraboN Ka Her Pher Karanewale Ramji, Sava Lakh Ki Lattery Bhejo Apne Bhi Naam Jii – Mohammad Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar
Essentially a mandatory comedy song always assigned to Bhagwan Dada in any film, stands out because very effective lyrics and equally pleasing composition by Shankar (Jaikishan). Just note how tastefully orchestration for both interludes has been composed.
Manbhavan Ke Ghar Jaaye Gori Ghunghat Mein Sharmaye Gori Bandhi Rahe Ye Pyar Ki Dori Hamein Na Bhulana – Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle
The opportunity of entertainment stage show as part of the marriage ceremony has been converted by the music director and lyricist to weave in a traditional farewell song for the brides. Shailendra comes up with lyrics that has mix of pleasure of the friend getting married and sorrow of being away once she settles at the in-laws’ place. However Shankar(Jaikishan) uses the dance sequence to present their signature dance composition style – multiple rhythm instruments backed up multi-instruments interlude and counter-melody orchestration.
New Delhi (1956)
The story of the film moves around a newly graduated north Indian young man’s search for a rented premises to settle in his new job in New Delhi, which lands him at the doors of tradition bound South Indian family – both for home as well as his love. Kishore Kumar in the male lead and Vyjaintimala in the female lead naturally provide music directors a templated platform for light mood male songs and classical dance based female songs. Zone would certainly expect dance-based songs to be Composed by Shankar, but even majority of Kishore Kumar songs also have been composed by Shailendra-Shankar composition.
One would very easily recall Arre Bhai Nikal Ke Aa Ghar Se, Nakhrewali Dekhne Mein Dekh Lo Kitani Bholi Bhali, Milte Hi Nazar Aap Mere Dil Mein Sama Gaye (all by Kishore Kumar) Tum Sang Preet Lagayi Rasiya (Lata Mangeshkar, Choru).
Zindagi Bahar Hai Mohabbat Ki Bahar Hai – Lata Mangeshkar
One more fine example of Shankar (Jaikishan)’s own signature style composition for a dance song – rhythm by traditional Indian-rhythm instruments but orchestration of interlude music scores by multiple western instruments.
The song is filmed back-to-back with Nakharewali…
Baari Barssi Khattan Gaya Te Khat Ke Le Aaya Sotti – Lata Mangeshkar, chorus
Essentially this a traditional Punjabi folk dance. But just see how Shankar has given it a very different treatment by first listening to a song from Punjabi film
then listening to the Shankar (Jaikishan) composition.
Gori Tere Sapno Ke Sajna Aye Ter Angana Kar Le Solah Singaar Hoja Jaane Ko Ab Taiyaar Leke Doli Khade Hai Kahaar – Lata Mangeshkar, chorus
We have one more bride farewell song that will go on to demonstrate the wide range of tunes and compositions that Shankar Jaikishan could commandeer for the same theme.
Rajhath(1956)
Rajhath was Sohrab Modi’s romantic fantasy drama based on a historical plot. The story, revolving the animosity being perpetrated through the generations between two empires gave Sohrab Modi to lay the plot for a costume-drama and the two children of each state falling in love provided Shankar Jaikishan a wide freedom to compose songs that would help create one more hit album. Shailendra’s songs like Chale Sipaahi Dhool Udaate (Manna Dey, chorus) Mere Sapne Mein Aana Re (Lata Mangeshkar) Naache Ang Ang Ang Tere Aage (Lata Mangeshkar, chorus) went on to big hits at the box-office.
Aa Ja Aa Ja Nadiya Kinare TaaroN Ki Chhaiya Tujhe Kab Se Pukare – Lata Mangeshkar, chorus
The prelude to the dance song gives faint hint of tune that Shankar Jaikishan used as a full-fledged song in (possibly) in Kanhaiya (1959), which I am not able to precisely remember at this stage..
If only all the tunes the duo had composed during teir music room had been well documented, the Hindi Film music would have been far richer than what the tunes that went on to be converted in to songs or background pieces.
Kahaan Se Milte Moti Ansoo Mein Meri Taqdeer Mein – Lata Mangeshkar
A love story in a Hindi film has to mandatorily have a phase wherein the there are roadblocks to the road of love of the two protagonists, which would provide the opportunity for a couple of pathos songs to be composed by the music director.
Pyare Babul Se Bichad Ke … Ghar Ka Angana Suna Kar Ke Gori KahaN Chali Ghunghat Mein – Lata Mangeshkar, chorus
If one needed any validation test for Shankar Jaikishan’s vast range of tunes, here is one more bridal farewell song.
One more aspect of Shankar Jaikishan’s unique style that should be noted here is their use of very fast rhythms where normally other music directors would have used a slow rhythm in lower octave scale.
Aa Gayee Lo Aa Gayi Main Jhoomti… Ho AkhiyoN ko AkhiyoN Se Chumati – Lata Mangeshkar
The situations seems to be the case where Madhubala has impersonated as a native tribe girl and performs their traditional song with accompaniment of a folk-instrument (if I am not mistaken, it is Sarangi) player as a company.
Shankar (Jaikishan) seem to have game fully tried to recreate the desired effect with relyin more on use multiple flutes as the main instrument accompanying sarangi , but the composition does not come out from the shadow of their signature dance composition style – a fast rhythm with multiple instrument-orchestra.
We have one more film -Patrani – for the year 1956, but that deserves a full-scale post, Hence, we will carry forward the year 1956 to one more episode.
We will continue remembering Unforgettable Songs that seem to Fading away from our Memories every second Sunday of the month next year too……..
Disclaimer: All images are sourced from net. All copyrights of the respective image remain with the original owner of the image.
is probably a lyricist who worked with maximum number of big and small composers ever since he joined RK team (and was allowed to do ‘outside’ work) till he passed away in 1999. And that never affected his bond with Shankar-Jaikishan-Shailendra team bond. It is said that his first ever song, 
1987 – was one of the genius composers of the famous duo Shankar Jaikishan. Shankar had a long stint of training in classical music. He was a tabla player at the core, but went onto learn several rhythm and string instruments successfully in the initial period of struggle He got the basic training in the nitty-gritty of film music composition as assistant to Ram Ganguli in Raj Kapoor’s maiden venture, Aag (1948)
December 1966) ‘s poetry and films songs reflected his temperamental proximity to the common man. In the famous quartet of Shankar Jaikishan Shailendra and Hasrat Jaipuri, Shankar and Shailendra worked as one part of the team with Hasrat Jaipuri, and Jaikishan made up the other half. Apart from the personal preferences and proximity related to friendship, this division of work was more in accordance with the inherent composition patterns of the two composers. Shankar always loved composing serious thematic songs with a lot of emotional content that only Shailendra could do justice to whereas Jaikishan was more into composing light- hearted romantic stuff that came so naturally to Hasrat.
had his own distinctive style, whether it was his Urdu or Hindi poetry of Hindi film lyrics. One of the basic corner stone of RK’s Shankar-Jaikishan- Shailendra Hasrat music team. Starting with Barsat (1949), the first break-up came when Shailendra passed away in 1966, Jaikishan’s death in 1971 is said to have so loosened the bond, that Shankar started to seeking collaboration with other lyricists as well.
Jaikishan (a.k.a. Jaikishan Dahyabhai Panchal) – B: 4 November 1929 | D: 12 September 1971] was considered to be more creative with romantic tunes. Background scores were his forte. Jaikishan also had fair amount of training and exposure to music in his early years. His father was a musician to royalty in Gujarat.
Hum To Hai Kathputhli Kaath Ke Hey Ram – Hemant Kumar
The world is too small? or Is it? 