Chabi Biswas was sublime in Maya Mrigo.

Chabi Biswas was sublime in Maya Mrigo.

Legendary actor Chabi Biswas was unparallel and sublime in the film Maya Mrigo. The film was directed by renowned director Chitta Basu in 1960. The film was based on the classic literature of Niharranjan Gupta. The writer always had glorified the character of mother in his literature. He had been prominent for his epic literature “Ulka” which was successful as play in Kolkata and also used in the bollywood film Meri Surat Teri Ankhen.

Maya Mrigo was the debut of the actor Biswajeet Chatterji and actress Sandhya Roy who were launched together as romantic pair in Bengali film in 1960. Chabi Biswas played the role of eminent barrister in the film, the husband of Sunanda Basu and the father of Biswajeet Chatterji. Sunanda Basu and Sandhya Rani were sisters. Sandhya Rani was married to Bikash Roy, who had a number of children. But Sunanda Basu was child-less. She took one son of Sandhya Rani and brought him up as her own son.

During second world war, Bikash Roy lost his limbs and Sandhya Rani lost all their children. Being helpless she came to Kolkata in the house of Chabi Biswas who had given shelter to a number of tenants including Uttam Kumar, Tarun Kumar, Tulsi Chakaravarty, Jahar Roy and others.

Sunanda Debi never greeted Sandhya Rani well, as she feared that if Biswajeet Chatterji came to know that he was the son of Bikash Roy and Sandha Rani, it would have been fatal for her. Bikash Roy died in the film. At the end of the film the truth was unfolded, but Chabi Biswas explained to everyone that both Sunanda Debi and Sandhya Rani, were accepted as the mother of Biswajeet, as one gave birth while the other brought up the child.

Manobendra Mukherjee composed excellent music in the film with hit songs like “bidhi re” and “metidiamericar kabyo” sung by him, “ore shon shon gerobaj” sung by Hemanta Mukherjee, and “bok bok bok bokum bokum paira” sung by Sandhya Mukherjee. But Chabi Biswas’s brilliant personality had overshadowed all the other performances in the film. He showed a contrast of expressions, including the kindness shown to Sandhya Rani and also the strictness shown to his tenants. The film should be restored for the brilliant performance of Chabi Biswas and also classic literature of Niharranjan Gupta.

Chabi Biswas was unparallel in the film Dadathakur.

Chabi Biswas was unparallel in the film Dadathakur.

Legendary actor Chabi Biswas was unparallel in the film Dadathakur. The film was directed by director Sudhir Mukherjee. It was based on the real life of stalwart personality Sharat Pandit.

Chabi Biswas who played the role of Sharat Pandit, who was popularly known as Dadathakur, created his own press during the colonial period. He was known for his wisdom and thought provoking literature. In every piece of literature he tried to make the readers laugh.

Tarun Kumar, a known swadeshi during British Raj took shelter in the house of Chabi Biswas. His wife played by Chaya Debi did not prevent it. Chabi Biswas helped the neighbours. He tried to get Sulata Choudhury married to a neighbouring zamindar played by Biswajeet Chatterji. During a procession when the swadeshis tried to put the Indian flag in place, the British police fired at the Indians and Biswajeet got killed.

Chabi Biswas believed in his own capability and never accepted any gift from the Britishers. When he went to buy the tools relating to his Press machine, he was offered the machine without any monetary consideration but Chabi Biswas bought it by paying money. Once he took contract to print question papers of a nearby high school. He went to give the question papers by travelling in train for the next 8 miles. But during monsoon, the railway track got submerged in water, and Chabi Biswas walked down the railway track to reach the question paper to the high school.

He even sold his own written work in the streets of Kolkata like a hawker. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose saw him doing it, and being the mayor of Kolkata Corporation, he gave a hawking license to Chabi Biswas. It was a very difficult role to play as Dadathakur had been considered as one of the great intellectuals that graced Bengali soil during the freedom movement. But Chabi Biswas with his asthma, did a brilliant job and tried to depict the character of the maestro in his own way and got awarded also. The film should be preserved for its historical value.

Happy birthday to Nitu Singh.

Happy birthday to Nitu Singh.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Nitu Singh on 8th July 2010. She had started her career as child actress and later kept a mark as leading actress in commercial films.

In the late 60s, her performance in the film do Kaliyan attracted attention. Biswajeet Chatterji and Mala Sinha were the lead performers in the film. Nitu Singh got double role. Both the sisters were sad due to the separation of their parents. At the end of the film the differences between Biswajeet and Mala Sinha were sorted out.

She acted in many successful films opposite Rishi Kapoor whom she married later. The successful films included Kabhi Kabhi, Khel Khel Me, Amar Akbar Anthony, Rafoo Chakkar, etc. The songs of Amar Akbar Anthony also created history with Rafi’s qawalli “parda hai parda” and “humko tumse ho gaya hai pyar kya Karen”. The film directed by Manmohan Desai stormed bollywood in the late 70s.

Nitu Singh acted opposite all the leading stars of bollywood films in the 70s. Her successful films opposite Big B included Parvarish, The Great Gambler, to name a few. Her successful film opposite Shashi Kapoor included Dewaar. Her successful film opposite Jeetender included Burning Train. Viewers still remember her elegant lips in the song “pal do pal ka saath hamara” sung by Rafi and Asha Bhosle in the film Burning Train.

She acted in the films directed by eminent directors like Manmohan Desai in films like Amar Akbar Anthony, Yash Chopra in films like Kabhi Kabhi, Kala Patthar, BR Chopra in films like Burning Train, to name a few. After marrying Rishi Kapoor, she left films in the 80s.

Probably she had concentrated in upbringing of Rishi Kapoor’s son and daughter, including Ranbir Kapoor. But she had a lot of acting left in her. The viewers of bollywood films wish her to make comeback in contemporary films in character roles.

Remembering Hemant Kumar on his birthday.

Remembering Hemant Kumar on his birthday.

The viewers of bollywood and Bengali films pay their homage to evergreen singer Hemant Kumar on his birthday on 16th June, 2010. He had died more than 16 years back, but had left lot of memories which are cherished by the following generations.

He composed music in many bollywood films in the 50s and 60s and carried forward the legacy of Rabindra Sangeet beyond the Bengal border and made it popular all across India. He composed music in the film Nagin and got the filmfare award for the best composer in 1955. His tune “man dole” sung by Lata for Vaijayantimala became extremely popular in the mid -50s.

He sang a number of songs for Dev Anand including “yeh raat yeh chandni” in the film Jaal, “yeh apna dil” in Solwa Saal composed by SD Burman, songs in Patita composed by Shankar Jaikishan, etc. He also sang the legendary song “jane yeh kaise” for Guru Dutt in the film Pyaasa. His composition in Biswajeet’s films Bees Saal Baad and Kohra, became super hit. Successful songs included “yeh nayan dhali dhali”, “zara nazron se kahdo ji”, etc. In fact Hemant Kumar produced the film Bees Saal Baad, which was the sequel of Bengali crime thriller Jighansha, directed by Ajoy Kar.

Hemant Kumar’s composition in the other films included Biswajeet’s Do Dil, Dilip Kumar’s Paigam, Dharmender’s Khamoshi, Guru Dutt’s Sahe Bibi Aur Ghulam, to name a few. Some of the hit songs sung by Hemant Kumar in those films included “tum pukarke”, and others. Besides he had given many hit songs to Lata, Asha and Geeta Dutt in those films.

Hemant Kumar had sung majority of playback songs for Bengali superstar Uttam Kumar in the 50s. His songs included “surer akashe tumi je go shuktara” from the film Shapmochon in 1955, “tare bole diyo” from the film Dui Bhai in 1961, “nir choto khoti nei” from the film Indrani in 1958, “ei poth Jodi na shesh hoi” from the film Saptapadi in 1961, “jai chole jai” from the film Kal Tumi Aleya in 1965, “sapno jagano raat” from the film Shudhu Ekti Bachar in 1966, “mou bane aaj” from the film Bondhu in 1958, to name a few.

Besides most of the Rabindra Sangeet sung by Hemant Kumar in Bengali films became hits, including “tumi robe nirobe” in Biswajeet’s Kuheli, “ami pothbhola ek pathik” in Uttam Kumar’s Mon Niye, “jokhon porbe na mor” in Uttam Kumar’s film Bibhas, “purano shei diner kotha” in Uttam Kumar’s Agnisshar, etc. Hemant Kumar had composed songs in more than 50 bengali films like Shap Mochon, Harano Sur, Saptapadi, Deep Jele Jai, Sathihara, Palatak, Phuleshwari, Dadar Kirti, Dui Bhai, Surjotoron, etc., most of which became dashing hits.

Hemant Kumar had sung more than 1000 bengali modern songs under different composers. He had sung trend-setting songs composed by Salil Choudhury like “runner”, “kono ek gayer bodhu”, “patha harabo bole ebar”, “palki chole”. Nochiketa Ghosh composed landmark song for Hemant Kumar titled “amar ganer shorolipi lekha robe”. He had sung many ranbindra sangeet and showed his own skill aside other giants like Pankaj Mallick, Subinoy Ray, Dijen Mukherjee, Debrata Biswas and others. Hemant Kumar’s contribution in Bengali modern songs and film songs is so huge that articles after articles can be devoted for the melody king of Bengal. The viewers pay their respect for the departed soul of legendary singer Hemant Kumar on his birthday.

Rafi's soft number composed by Shankar Jaikishan.

Rafi’s soft numbers composed by Shankar Jaikishan.

Mohammad Rafi was the virtual ruler of world of playback singing in the 60s. As far as his combination with Shankar Jaikishan is concerned, generally the loud numbers gather popularity due to the pomp and grandeur of those songs.

For example Rafi’s song “chahe koi mujhe jungle kahen” in Junglee, picturised on Shammi Kapoor, “kaun hai jo sapno me aya” in Jhuk Gaya Aasman picturised on Rajender Kumar, “jiya ho jiya ho jiya kuch bol do” in Jab Par Kisi Se Hota Hai, picturised on Dev Anand, “Japan, Love in Tokyo”, in Love in Tokyo, picturised on Joy Mukherjee, “april fool banaya, in April Fool picturised on Biswajeet , etc., were the most popular songs of those films. Shankar Jaikishan’s innovative orchestrations were involved with all these songs.

But if SJ’s softer numbers are looked at they provided gems for Rafi during the 50s and 60s. In Shammi Kapoor’s Junglee, “ehsaan tera hoga mujhpar” was a masterpiece where Rafi’s romantic presentation can take anyone to a different world. In Rajender Kumar’s Humrahi, “mujhko aapne gale lagalo” was a brilliant song where Rafi’s andaz was as outstanding as that of Mubarak Begum. Aye Milan Ki Bela had evergreen gems embedded in them. All the soft numbers of Rafi like “tum khamseen ho”, “to bura maan gaye”, “o sanam tere ho gaye hum” created everlasting appeal in the minds of the youth of the 60s.

SJ matured into the country most glamourous western composers by mid-60s. Rafi’s brilliant voice was complimented by superlative utilization of western instruments in most of the songs of SJ during that period. In Biswajeet’s April Fool Rafi’s presentation of “aa gale lag ja” showed him to be a Hollywood singer whose rendition had Western andaz. In Joy Mukherjee’s Love In Tokyo, Rafi presented the seductive andaz in the song “aaja re aa zara aa” which can put anyone to sleep. Rafi’s ghazal andaz in the same film “o mere shahe khuba” had equally everlasting appeal.

In Rajender Kumar’s Zindagi, “pehele milethe sapno me” showed Rafi’s effortlessness in rendering romantic songs. All the songs of Rajender Kumar’s Aman were brilliant. Especially “surahidar garden koel si hi awaz”, and “aaj ki raat” had Rafi’s powerful level of intonation to back up SJ’s romantic andaz. Besides the orchestration had Japanese flavor.

In Shammi Kapoor’s Professor, “awaz deke hume tum bulayo” created the tempo for the film. All the duets in that film created sensation including “mai chali mai chali”. Rafi complimented Lata in most of the duets backed by SJ’s effective use of sexaphone. In Shammi Kapoor’s An Evening in Paris, Rafi’s measured number in the duet song “raat ke humsafar” probably had the most intoxicating appeal in the entire film as against the loud numbers like “aasmaan se aya farishta”.

Rajender Kumar’s musical blockbuster Aarzoo, probably had Rafi at his best. If “aye nargisi mastana” showed Rafi’s effortlessness, “aji hum se bachkar” showed Rafi’s classical control, where as “chalke tere aankho sharab aur ziada” showed Rafi’s brilliant ghazal andaz. Rafi was at his best in Rajender Kumar’s Suraj as well. All the songs in the film had grand appeal. Probably the songs “kaise samjhayun” and “baharon phool barsayo” received the viewers’ attention. But “gustaqi maaf” and “itna hai tujhse pyar mujhe” were more melodious.

Shammi Kapoor’s Brahmchari had the theme music “mai gayun tum so jayo”. The song had been played a number of times by Shankar Jaikishan once too slowly while the other at a faster pace. Rafi was equally romantic in both the songs. Besides “dil ke jharoke me” was an experiment of SJ asking Rafi to sing at a high note which he did in style. In Shammi Kapoor’s Raj Kumar “tumne kisi ki jaan ko jate hue dekha hai” and “yeh rangbirangee duniya me” Rafi’s romantic rendition appealed to the masses.

In Dharmender’s Pyar Hi Pyar, Rafi showed the ghazal andaz in the song “dekha hai teri aankho me pyar hi pyar beshumar”. In Jeetender’s Mere Huzoor, Rafi’s song “rukh se zara naqab, uta do mere huzur” expressed the shy delivery of the hero. In Raj Kumar’s Lal Patthar “unke khayal aye to” showed Rafi’s royal andaz or probably the badshahi andaz in delivering as the characters were related to Indian history of kings.

In Dev Anand’s Pyar Muhobbat, “dil ki awaz khuda khair Karen” had an enchanting appeal. Again Rafi’s seductive andaz in Manoj Kumar’s Gumnaam in “jane chaman shola badan” entertained the viewers and listeners. Rafi presented the songs in Uttam Kumar’s Choti Si Mulakat also with stylish westernized manner. Viewers can also cherish Rafi’s song “tum hi tum ho” in Raj Kapoor’s Ek Dil Sau Afsane picturised on Raj Kapoor. “Khuda bhi aasman se” in Rajender Kumar’s Dharti is still unforgettable even today. The list of SJ’s soft numbers for Rafi can go on.

Some way or the other SJ’s relationship with Rafi never got predominance due to erroneous interpretation of Shankar Jaikishan over the years by the media. Just because SJ were associated with Showman Raj Kapoor in almost 20 films, so the entire focus went to Mukesh and Manna Dey’s songs composed by SJ. But if the rest of SJ’s creations in almost 170 films are analysed it will be seen that Rafi had sung almost 800 songs for SJ, which include more than 20 films of Shammi Kapoor, 10 films of Rajender Kumar, 7 films of Dev Anand, 3 films of Dilip Kumar, to name a few. The films and the songs should be revisited.

Happy birthday to Mala Sinha.

Happy birthday to Mala Sinha.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Mala Singh on 11th November, 2009. She had been a legendary actress of bollywood films and contributed in both bollywood films and Bengali films for more than 40 years.

In the 50s, Mala Sinha had acted in classic films like Parvarish, Phir Subah Hogi opposite Raj Kapoor. These films became immortal for their unforgettable songs like “anshu bhari hai”, “woh subah kabhi to ayegi”, etc. Mala Sinha was sublime opposite Dev Anand in the film Love Marriage. The music of the film composed by Shankar Jaikishan was equally grand. The hit songs included “dheere dheere chal”, “kahan ja rahete”, etc.

Mala Sinha contributed well in Guru Dutt’s classic film Pyaasa. The romantic andaz displayed by Mala Sinha was very significant in the film in the songs “hum aapke aankho me”, sung by Rafi and Geeta Dutt. Mala Sinha continued her dream run in the 60s by performing in historical films like Jahanara opposite Bharat Bhushan. The film was a musical block buster. The songs “baad muddar key eh ghari aye”, “kisi ki yaad me”, etc., composed by Madan Mohan created history. The biggest achievement of Mala Sinha lies in sustaining in bollywood industry amidst high competition from other leading actresses like Nargis, Meena Kumari, Madhubala, Vaijayantimala, etc.

Mala Sinha also acted with the next generation of actors like Rajender Kumar and Dharmender. Her successful films opposite Rajender Kumar included Dhool Ka Phool, Lalkar and Geet. Her successful films opposite Dharmender included Ankhen, Neela Akash, etc. which did great business. She did very well in films opposite Biswajeet like Night in London and Shammi Kapoor in Dil Tera Diwana.

Mala Sinha played a very long innings in Bengali films as well. Her successful films opposite Uttam Kumar included Khelaghar, Shaharer Itikatha, Bandhu, Putrabadhu, Saathihara, to name a few. Her other notable films include Dhuli, Abhaya Srikanto, etc.

She even featured in modern films in the 90s like Khel where she had played character roles opposite Madhuri Dixit. The viewers expect her to continue in character roles in films in future.

Happy birthday to Saira Banu.

Happy birthday to Saira Banu.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Saira Banu on 13th August, 2009. She used to be called beauty-queen of the 60s. Acting was there in her blood with her mother Nasim Banu doing well in many films in the 40s.

Saira Banu started her career with the film Junglee opposite Shammi Kapoor in 1961. The brilliant music of Shankar Jaikishan given in the film and exotic locations of Jammu and Kashmir flabbergasted the audience in the early 60s. All the songs in the film were super hit including “suku suku”, “meri yaar shabba khair”, “ehsaan tera hoga mujhpar”, “Kashmir ki kali hun mai”, to name a few.

Saira Banu went on to give hit after hit with Biswajeet and Joy Mukherjee as well. With Biswajeet her film April Fool became super hit. The songs of SJ again created storm including “april fool banaya”, “aa gale lag jaa”, etc. With Joy Mukherjee Saira Banu’s film Shagird stormed box-office in 1967. All the songs of Rafi and Lata were hits including “dil vil pyar vyar”, “woh hai zara khafa khafa”, “o bare miya diwane”, “duniya mehfil hai”, etc.

Saira Banu’s combination with Rajender Kumar was well accepted by the audience. All the three films opposite Jubilee Kumar including Ayee Milan Ki Bela, Aman and Jhuk Gaya Aasman became super hit. The songs of all those films composed by SJ again struck box-office. Prominent songs included “o priya kaun hai jo sapno me aya”, “tum khamseen ho”, “kahan chal diye”, “surahidar garden”, etc. Saira Banu balanced the powerful performance of Rajender Kumar in those films.

After marrying Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu acted in a number of films opposite him including Sagina, Gopi and Bairaag, most of which did well in the box-office. Her films with Raj Kapoor titled Diwana and Dev Anand titled Par Muhabbat did good business mainly due to hit music of Shankar Jaikishan. The songs of those films including “ai sanam jisne tujhe chaand si surat di hai”, “dil ki awaz khuda khair Karen” still remain the landmarks of Indian film music. Even Saira Banu’s comedy films like Parosan opposite Sunil Dutt, Kishore Kumar and Mehmood did brilliant business.

From the mid-70s Saira Banu faded away from the industry before acting in films opposite Big B like Zameer and Hera Pheri. The viewers expect her to contribute in bollywood films in character roles again.

Manobendra Mukherjee in the 70s.

Manobendra Mukherjee in the 70s.

Manobendra Mukherjee was considered as the greatest classical singer that Bengal had ever produced during the golden age. He had the weighty bass like Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya, classical control like Satinath Mukherjee and Akhil Bondhu Ghosh, variation and modulation like Manna Dey. To a big section of Bengali listeners he used to be considered the Neil Harvey of Bengali modern songs. Just as Neil Harvey used his wristy stroke play to establish himself as the greatest stylish batsman of all times, Manobendra Mukherjee used his classical touch, (in musical terms called harkat) in such a stylish manner that he emerged as the most romantic singer of the golden age during an era when melodious singers like Shyamal Mitra, Hemanta Mukherjee, Subir Sen, Tarun Banerjee were big names. His emergence in Bengali musical arena created a dimension which may be called romantic saga which in turn swayed the innate emotions of middleclass Bengali listeners of the golden age in the world of melody.

His song “emni kore porbe mone baki jiban dhore”, sung in the mid-50s flabbergasted the Bengali audience and brought a new expression for plutonic romance. The lyrics in interlude including “sabai bole bhalobashar moron naaki nei, proti rate tara hoye dei je dekha sei” created everlasting impact in the world of romance which listeners cherished for the last 50 years. Chitta Ranjan Chatterji, Ex-Chief Public Prosecutor, Bankshall Court, a great admirer of Manobendra Mukherjee had echoed the emotions Manobendra himself, when he interviewed the legendary singer in a musical function organized in Beerpara (Paikpara) in 1986, where Manobendra admitted that if “nai chondon lekha” created his romantic debut in Bengali musical arena, “emni kore porbe mone” was the most romantic song he had sung in his illustrious career.

While the 60s showed Manobendra’s skillful compositions both in Bengali films and Bengali modern songs, the 70s showed his jugglery in classical creations. His notable creations in the 60s included Uttam Kumar’s Mayamrigo, 1960, Biswajeet’s Godhuli Belai, 1964, Bosonto Choudhury’s Bodhu, 1962, Bosonto Choudhury’s Koshtipathor, etc. His modern songs “Jodi amake dekho tumi udashi” composed by Abhijit Banerjee, “rimjhim baje monjiro kar” composed by himself, “koto je soyechi betha” composed by Chinmoy Lahiri, “bare bare ke jeno dake” composed by Sailen Mukherjee, “mayur kanthi ratero nile” composed by Sudhin Dasgupta, “ami parini bujhite parini” composed by Salil Choudhury, “amar pather panthe” composed by Satinath Mukherjee, to name a few.

The 70s was marked by the decline of Bengali modern songs. When Manobendra saw that composers like Robin Chatterji or Anil Bagchi were no more in the 70s, he composed most of the songs himself. Quality lyricists like Shyamal Gupta, Pulak Banerjee, Pabitra Mitra provided the romantic lyrics for him during that age. His landmark songs during that period included “ei ganga ei padda”, “borosha klanto o duti nayan mele”, mone pore jay koto shriti mayabhora”, “hajar jonom dhore”, “jaak na megher araale chand”, “jolke tora jaabi jare”, “halka megher palki chore chandrakola jay”, “ami je mondo tate”, “phiria dekona mahua bonero pakhi”, to name a few. He was such a dynamic singer that 700 to 800 songs sung by him were composed by himself.

Even in the film arena Manobendra contributed in films like Uttam Kumar’s Joy joyanti (for which he won different awards including Indira Gandhi award for excellence in music composition), Soumitra Chatterji’s Sudur Niharika, Joto Mot Tato Bath, Sadhok Bamakhepa, to name a few.

One of the biggest achievements of Manobendra was bringing junior artists from grass root level and reaching them to limelight with his tunes. His landmark tunes for other singers included “kemone janabo bolo e pranero bedona” sung by Shefali Chakrabarty”, “champakali go koto name dekechi tomay” sung by Tarun Banerjee, “ami sundar bole tai to bondhu besecho bhalo amay” sung by Alpona Banerjee, “gane gane ami je khuji tomay” sung by Supriti Ghosh, “kuasha ghera neel pahare” sung by Bani Ghoshal, to name a few.

Manobendra Mukherjee showed his excellence in so many diverse fields that separate articles can be written on his nazrulgeeti, bagbajarer gaan, puratoni, ragprodhan, kirtan, bhakti geeti, shyama sangeet, etc. His death in early 90s, had brought huge loss to Akashbani Kolkata, Kolkata Doordarshan, all the record companies of Bengal and music journals where he was an indispensable figure. His songs and compositions should be restored, preserved and revisited.

Remembering Hemant Kumar on his birthday.

Remembering Hemant Kumar on his birthday.

The viewers of bollywood and Bengali films pay their homage to evergreen singer Hemant Kumar on his birthday on 16th June, 2009. He had died more than 15 years back, but had left lot of memories which are cherished by the following generations.

He composed music in many bollywood films in the 50s and 60s and carried forward the legacy of Rabindra Sangeet beyond the Bengal border and made it popular all across India. He composed music in the film Nagin and got the filmfare award for the best composer in 1955. His tune “man dole” sung by Lata for Vaijayantimala became extremely popular in the mid -50s.

He sang a number of songs for Dev Anand including “yeh raat yeh chandni” in the film Jaal, “yeh apna dil” in Solwa Saal, songs in Patita, etc. He also sang the legendary song “jane yeh kaise” for Guru Dutt in the film Pyaasa. His composition in Biswajeet’s film Bees Saal Baad and Kohra became super hit. Successful songs included “yeh nayan dhali dhali”, “zara nazron se kahdo ji”, etc.

Hemant Kumar’s composition in the other films included Biswajeet’s Do Dil, Dilip Kumar’s Paigam, Dharmender’s Khamoshi, Guru Dutt’s Sahe Bibi Aur Ghulam. Some of the hit songs sung by Hemant Kumar in those films included “tum pukarke”, and others. Besides he had given many hit songs to Lata, Asha and Geeta Dutt in those films.

Hemant Kumar had sung majority of playback songs for Bengali superstar Uttam Kumar in the 50s. His songs included “surer akashe tumi je go shuktara” from the film Shapmochon, “tare bole diyo” from the film Dui Bhai, “nir choto khoti nei” from the film Indrani, “ei poth Jodi na shesh hoi” from the film Saptapadi, “jai chole jai” from the film Kal Tumi Aleya, “sapno jagano raat” from the film Shudhu Ekti Bachar, “mou bane aaj” from the film Bondhu, to name a few.

Besides most of the Rabindra Sangeet sung by Hemant Kumar in Bengali films became hits, including “tumi robe nirobe” in Biswajeet Kuheli, “ami pothbhola ek pathik” in Uttam Kumar’s Mon Niye, “jokhon porbe na mor” in Uttam Kumar’s film Bibhas, etc.

Hemant Kumar’s contribution in Bengali modern songs and film songs is so huge that articles after articles can be devoted for the melody king of Bengal. The viewers pay their respect for the departed soul of legendary singer Hemant Kumar on his birthday.

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Rajashree - the classical dancer of the 60s.

Rajashree – the classical dancer of the 60s.

Rajashree, daughter of famous director V. Shantaram and classical dancer Sandhya, made a notable contribution in bollywood films in the 60s. She faced very strong competition from Vaijayantimala, Sadhna, Asha Parekh, Saira Banu, and yet maintained her stardom in hit films opposite leading stars of bollywood films.

She was extremely successful opposite Shammi Kapoor, in the film Janwar. Shammi Kapoor brought westernized mannerisms in bollywood films in the 60s, and his style was enhanced by fantastic music composed by Shankar Jaikishan, and colourful locations where the films were picturised. The same thing happened in the film Janwar.

Most part of the film was picturised in Jammu & Kashmir, and the songs of Rafi like “lal chadi”, “tumse accha kaun hai”, etc., became super hit. Rajashree had adequate classical training for exhibiting her dancing skills which she showed in the song “mere sang ga gunguna”.

The second part of the film dealt with the conspiracy committed against Shammi Kapoor, and her marriage with Shammi Kapoor got stuck due to those reasons. Over all her performance was very impressive and the film became super hit.

The same combination was again successful in the film Brahmchari. Shammi Kapoor ran an orphan house where the children were brought by him and he did not marry to help out the orphan children in the film. Rajashree intereacted with Shammi Kapoor in the film and for different reasons, Shammi Kapoor taught her to be modern and arranged her marriage with Pran.

After knowing that Pran had a very bad reputation in society and was also involved with Mumtaz, the marriage was cancelled and Rajashree was saved at the end of the film. Again the scintillating music of Shankar Jaikishan amused the viewers. All the songs of Rafi including “aajkal tere mere pyar ke charche”, “chakke pe chakka”, “dil ke jharoke me tujhko bithakar”, “mai gayun tum so jayo”, became landmark hits in the late 60s.

Rajashree was extremely successful opposite Raj Kapoor in the film Around the World. Raj Kapoor played the role of an innocent person who had to travel all across the world, first as a worker in a ship and then after joining different forms of employments. He was attached with Rajashree during his travel to different places. The fantastic location of West Indies, United States, etc., was balanced by classic music of Shankar Jaikishan once again. Mukesh’s songs “kitna akela hoon mai”, “duniya ka sair kar lo”, “chale jana” became landmark hits in the late 60s.

Rajashree acted in successful films opposite the other leading stars of bollywood films in the 60s, including Biswajeet, Joy Mukherjee, Jeetender, to name a few. Most of those films including Sehnai, became successful. Rajashree faded out from the industry in the 70s. Her films should be restored for the next generations.