Happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna.

Happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna
The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna on 29th December, 2010. He had remained one of the most popular actors of 70s, before Amitabh Bacchan entered the film arena and gave birth to action films. The other reason why Rajesh Khanna is remembered even today was for the melodious music that he got from Kalyanji Anandji, RD Burman, Salil Choudhury, Laxmikant Pyarellal and other composers.

Although he started his career with films like Akhri Khat, Raaz, etc., in the late 60s, he got recognition with Shakti Shamanta’s super hit film Aradhana which was released in 1969. In the 70s, Rajesh Khanna had a dream run with films of different directors including Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Asit Sen, Shakti Samanta and others.

Most of his films from 1971 to 1973, were super hit. And the music of these films created history. The songs of the film Anand, composed by Salil Choudhury were super hit, including “kahin door jab din dhal jaye”, “maine tere liye hi saat rang” sung by Mukesh and “zindagi kaisi hai peheli” sung by Manna Dey. The songs of the film Aan Milo Sajna composed by LP became super hit including Rafi’s song “aan milo sajna” and Kishore’s song “accha to hum chalte hai”.

The songs of the film Amar Prem composed by RD Burman became super hit including KK’s song “chingari koi bharke”, “kuch to log kahenge”, etc. Amar Prem was the hindi version of Uttam Kumar’s famour Bengali film Nishipadda. Similarly the songs of the film Kati Patang composed by RD Burman became super hit including songs of KK like “ai shaam mastani”, Mukesh’s song “jis gali me”, etc.

Similarly songs of the film Safar composed by Kalyanji Anandji became super hit. Kishore’s song “zindagi ka safar” can be considered as one of the best songs that he sang during his long career. The songs of the film Namak Haram composed by RD Burman, Roti composed by LP, Raaz composed by Kalyanji Anandji, Bawarchi composed by Madanmohan, were all very successful.

Rajesh Khanna created a romantic image and his films opposite various actresses like Sharmila Tagore in films like Aradhana, Amar Prem, Mumtaz in Aap Ki Kasam, Asha Parekh in Kati Patang, Aan Milo Sajna, Tanuja in Mere Jeevan Saathi, Hema Malini in Mehbooba, and others created an era of romantic films. He became a role model for the younger generation.

But from the time Amitabh Bacchan entered the film arena he not only dethroned Rajesh Khanna but more than that changed the dimension of bollywood films. He played anti-establishment characters and persuaded other superstars like Vinod Khanna, Shatrughun Sinha, Dharmender, Firoz Khan, Sunil Dutt and others to play similar type of roles.

Action films dominated bollywood industry and films like Sholay, Deewar, Kalicharan, Burning Train, Jugnu, Zakhmee, Dharmatma faded away Rajesh Khanna’s romantic films like Soutan, Prem Nagar and other films.

Rajesh Khanna’s wife Dimple Kapadia established herself into one of the most powerful actresses of bollywood films with success in Saagar, Jaanbaaz, Rudaali, Lekin, Krantiveer, etc.

Even then Rajesh Khanna continued acting for another 20 years and is even seen in a recent film in a role of an old person. Even Rishi Kapoor did cast him in his directorial venture title A ab laut chale. He had received filmfare best actor award a number of times and also received lifetime achievement award.

The viewers expect Rajesh Khanna to contribute in character roles the way Big B, Vinod Khanna and other veteran actors have done over the years.

Happy birthday to Asha Bhosle.

Happy birthday to Asha Bhosle.

The viewers of bollywood films and listeners of music all across the country wish happy birthday to Asha Bhosle on 8th September, 2010. She had remained a legend of legends in the field of music. She came to limelight in the 70s and 80s and ended up being the most successful female playback singer after Lata Mangeshkar.

In the 50s, Asha Bhosle had to face the competition from other singers dominating the bollywood playback industry like Lata, Shamshad Begum, Noorjahan, Suraiya, Geeta Dutt, Suman Kalyanpur, Sudha Malhotra and many other singers. Asha’s successful songs in the 50s include “mur murke na dekh” composed by Shankar Jaikishan in the film Shree 420, “aiye meherban” composed by OP Nayyar in the film Howrah Bridge, “accha ji mai hari” composed by SD Burman in the film Kala Pani, to name a few.

In the 60s, OP Nayyar backed Asha Bhosle, and her duets with Rafi in films like Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Ek Musafir Ek Haseena, Mere Sanam, Kashmir Ki Kali, are considered milestones in Indian film music. Her famous duets with Rafi include “naznee bara rangeen hai wada”, “mai pyar ka rahi hoon”, “isharon isharon”, “diwana hua badal”, “bahut shukriya”, “zulf ki chayon me chehere ka ujala lekar”, etc. Few other composers only reposed their confidence on Asha like Khayyam who made her sing memorable songs in Raj Kapoor’s film Phir Subah Hogi, Ravi, who had given songs to Asha Bhosle in films like Waqt, Humraaz, Gumraah, etc. Some of her notable songs in those films include “in baharon me in fizayon me”, “wo subah kabhi to ayegi”, etc.

In the 70s Asha Bhosle married RD Burman and it changed the career of the premier singer. Her westernized style of singing was used by RD to give her super hit songs like “piya tu ab tu aja” in the film Karwan, “dum maro dum” in the film Hare Rama Hare Krishna, “chura liya” in the film Yaadon Ki Baraat, etc. She sang in almost all the films where RD Burman composed music. Asha Bhosle had sung landmark qawallies opposite Mohd. Rafi like “hum kisi se kum nahi”, in the film Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahi, “pal do pal ka” in the film Burning Train, etc.

In the 80s, Asha Bhosle crossed new milestones by showing her skills in singing mujras in the film Umrao Jaan, composed by Khayyam. All the songs in the film including “dil cheez kya hai”, “justju”, etc., were appreciated by the critics. Her song “mera kuch saman” in Gulzar’s film Ijazat showed the versatile class of singing of Asha Bhosle. She received filmfare awards a number of times and she balanced the innovative style of singing of Kishore Kumar with her own innovation. It is not possible to cover the accomplishments of legendary singer Asha Bhosle in a single article as she had sung more than 25000 songs in hindi and other languages. Even her songs in Uttam Kumar’s Bengali film Choddobeshi composed by Sudhin Dasgupta was worth mentioning. After marrying RD Burman, she had sung a number of Bengali songs composed by RD Burman.
The listeners expect Asha Bhosle to continue the great work she had started 50 years back.

Kishore Kumar had been remembered on his birthday.

Kishore Kumar had been remembered on his birthday.

Kishore Kumar had been remembered on his birthday on 4th August, 2010. Kishore Kumar, the master entertainer had been one of the most colourful personalities of bollywood who just became more and more and more popular over the years, now it is almost 21 years after his demise. In respect of his acting performances hardly any actor even dared to imitate him as his improvisations were spontaneous. The part that is followed by numerous singers all over the country is his singing style.

When KK acted as hero in bollywood films he showed his acting capability even in playback singing like the song “c a t cat, cat mane billi” in the film Dilli Ka Thag. He brought out all the sounds of the animals that were named in the song. In the film Chalti Ka Naam Gari, in the song “paanch rupaiya bara ana” he imitated SD Burman and in every paragraph he had created a new style which justified the lyrics. In Half Ticket he showed the childishness in the song “chil chil chillake” composed by Salil Choudhury, which became very popular among children. He even sang the ladies version of the song “o sawariya” in the film Half Ticket, when he was teasing Pran during a song sequence.

All his innovations created history when he concentrated in playback singing only in the 70s. He made the audience realize that he was singing for Dev Anand, or Rajesh Khanna or Big B, to name a few. His songs “gata rahe mera dil” from Guide, “roop tera mastana” from Aradhana, “kuch to log kahenge” from Amar Prem, “tere mere Milan ki” from Abhimaan have created history over the years.

In the 80s, it was KK all the way, when he had no competitors. All his songs in Big B’s film Namakhalal, Sharaabi, became record hits. Even in Rishi Kapoor’s Sagar, his song “sagar kinare” had romantic appeal. Composers like RD Burman, Bappi Lahiri, Rajesh Roshan could not think about any composition without KK. He became the legend of legends and all the actors of the 70s and 80s are indebted for his colourful playback.

After his death Kumar Shanu, Abhijeet, Vinod Rathod, Babul Supriyo and other singers had established themselves by following his style of singing. It has not happened with any other playback singer of bollywood. His styles were very entertaining, romantic and filmic.

Articles after articles can be devoted to the master entertainer and it can be said that he had remained alive all over the years in his numerous films and thousands of songs. His films and songs should be preserved.

The nation remembers Pancham on his birthday.

The nation remembers Pancham on his birthday.

The nation remembers Pancham, better known as Rahul Dev Burman, on his birthday on 27th June, 2010. Almost 16 years passed after his death, yet his tunes had kept him alive among the young generations.

Being the son of legendary singer and composer SD Burman, he had a monumental task of proving his identity in the 60s. He came out with innovative tunes sung by Rafi in Mehmood’s film Chote Nawab. From that time onwards critics understood that RD Burman had come to create his unique identity. His biggest in the 60s came in Shammi Kapoor’s film Teesri Manzil in 1966. All the songs sung by Rafi and Asha became landmark hits including “o haseena zulfonwali”, “aaja aaja mai hoon pyar tera”, “janeman janejaa”, etc. Along with western composers like Shankar Jaikishan, OP Nayyar, Salil Choudhury, who were ruling the industry, RD Burman kept his feet on strong platform.

RD Burman and Rafi combination continued in films like Abhilasha with songs like “wadiyan tera daaman”, Jeetender’s Karwan with songs like “kitna pyara wada”, “are chadti jawani”, “are ho goriyan kahan tera des re”, Shashi Kapoor’s Pyar Ka Mausam, with songs like “tum bin jayun kahan”, “ni sultana re”, Rajesh Khanna’s The Train, with songs like “gulaabi aankhe”, “tujshe bhala yeh”, etc. RD Burman composed brilliant music in the film Chandan Ka Palna. Rafi and Asha’s song “zulfon ko aap yun” had soft romantic andaz. In the 70s, RD took the bollywood industry by storm. With death of Jaikishan, Roshan, Ghulam Mohammad, Vasant Desai, etc., the industry depended on Pancham, Laxmikant Pyarellal and Kalyanji Anandji for best music. They provided stability to the industry for the next 15 years.

RD Burman had monumental contribution in Rajesh Khanna and Big B’s films and gave a new life to Kishore Kumar. All the songs of films like Amar Prem, Kati Patang, Aap Ki Kasam, Namak Haram, Mehbooba, Barsaat Ki Ek Raat, Shaan, Shakti, etc. Memorable songs included “tere naina”, “kuch to log kahenge”, “ai sham mastani”, “janu meri jaan”, etc.

RD Burman contributed a lot in Uttam Kumar’s Bengali film Raj Kumari in 1970. The song “ki holo kabe holo” , created history which was remade in hindi in the film Amar Prem. Critics argue that RD Burman reserved his best music in Gulzar’s films. His songs for Lata in Suchitra Sen’s Aandhi titled “is mor se jaate hai”, Uttam Kumar’s Kitaab, “aa ii masterjiki ho gayi chutti”, Jeetender’s Kinara where Bhupinder Singh and Lata did their best in “naam gum jayega”, “meethe bol bole”, “ek hi khwab”, etc., Sanjeev Kumar’s Parichay, with Bhupinder’s “biti na bitai rehna”, etc.

He won the filmfare award for the best composer three times. The young generations associate themselves with RD’s tunes even today, in that count he was one of the versatile composers after Shankar Jaikishan, Naushad, Madanmohan, Roshan, etc.

On 22nd June, 2010, versatile singer Asha Bhosle came as judge in the Indian Idol music competition held by Sony Television. Very significantly veteran musicians who played landmark instruments with RD Burman adorned the show including famous Sexaphone Player Manohari Singh. The participants sang songs composed by RD Burman like “aaja aaja mai hoon pyar tera”, “janeman janeja”, “samundar mai nahake”, “one two cha cha cha”, etc. Asha Bhosle provided her expert comments to the participants and shared her experience with RD Burman. She said that had RD Burman survived, he would have given chance to the new participants as he liked new talents. The other judges namely Anu Malik, Sunidhi Chauhan and Salim Merchant also payed their tribute to RD Burman. RD Burman’s songs and films should be restored and revisited.

Effect of Jaikishan's death on bollywood films.

Effect of Jaikishan’s death on bollywood films.

Shankar Jaikishan dominated bollywood music for more than 25 years ranging from the late 40s to early 70s. Due to sad demise of Jaikishan in the 70s, the evergreen combination broke up and critics repent about the end of the contribution of the giant composers.

Shankar was very loyal towards the SJ Banner and continued to use it in films after 1971, when Jaikishan died and Shankar had composed the music himself. Jaikishan’s death was a big blow for Shankar who already was shocked about the demise of lyricist Shailendra in the late 60s, who had contributed for the tunes of Shankar. Shankar lost the big banners in the 70s, due to the death of Jaikishan.

For example Raj Kapoor shifted towards the music of Laxmikant Pyarellal from Bobby, in 1973, when Shankar was still alive and gave music in many films in the 70s. Raj Kapoor had never thought about any other composer in his entire career other than SJ, excepting films like Jagte Raho, where he had used Salil Choudhury or Ab Dilli Door Nahi, where Dattaram contributed, who was the assistant of SJ.

The big banner of GP Sippy went to RD Burman after the death of Jaikishan. SJ composed the music for the film Andaz in 1971. But RD Burman got the scope of composing music in films like Seeta Aur Geeta in 1972, Sholay in 1975, Shaan in 1980, Saagar in 1985, all were made under the GP Sippy Banner. Although Shankar continued to compose music in the mid-70s in films of Manoj Kumar like Beimaan or Sanyasi, but the big banner of GP Sippy was lost.

Shankar also lost the banner of Shakti Shamanta after 1971. Previously SJ composed music in Shakti Shamanta’s films An Evening in Paris and Pagla Kahin Ka. But after the death of Jaikishan, RD Burman got the scope of composing music in his films including Kati Patang and Amar Prem which were hit as well.

Whether the music suffered or changed after the death of Jaikishan is another question to be answered, but there is no doubt that Shankar lost most of the big banners in the 70s, after the death of Jaikishan in 1971.

As far as trend of bollywood music was concerned there was a sea change after the death of Jaikishan in 1971. Loud orchestrations were evident in major films because of the trends existing in Hollywood. Beat oriented music prevailed. RD Burman had a beat of his own exhibited in films like Anamika, Jheel Ke Us Paar, Sholay, Shaan, etc. Bappi Lahiri had his own beat exhibited in Disco Dancer, Namakhalal, Sharabi, etc. The composer-duo who did not stick to a beat but shuffled with them included Laxmikant Pyarellal. They were the only duo who compromised with the requirements of the age and transformed their own music in films like Ek Duje Ke Liye or Prem Rog, etc.

But Shankar Jaikishan’s blend of east and west faded away in the 70s. Also the utilization of folk music in films like Shree 420, Teesri Kasam, reduced down.

The compositions of Shankar Jaikishan should be restored and preserved.

Combination of Rafi with Rishi Kapoor.

Combination of Rafi with Rishi Kapoor.

Mohammad Rafi virtually ruled bollywood music during the 50s and 60s. Therefore his contribution was unique in the career of all the leading stars of the golden age including Dilip Kumar, Rajender Kumar, Shammi Kapoor, Pradeep Kumar, Bharat Bhushan, Guru Dutt, Pradip Kumar, Joy Mukherjee, Biswajeet, Dharmender, Jeetender and others.

But in the 70s, Rafi did not get the same amount of songs from the upcoming composers if compared with his domination in the 60s. He made his existence felt in style with romantic combination in the films of Rishi Kapoor. Two factors went in his favour. Firstly Rishi Kapoor was the leading romantic actor of that age who balanced the action films of Big B, Vinod Khanna, Shatrughun Sinha and others with his romantic films. At the other hand Laxmikant Pyarellal, the composer who was loyal to Rafi till the last day of his life was the main contributor in Rishi Kapoor’s films.

In the film Badalte Rishtey, Rafi’s song for Rishi Kapoor “woh woh na rahen” reminded the viewers about the romantic andaz that he displayed for the previous 30 years. Besides the song “yeh duniya ke badalte rishte” was equally impressive. Madan Mohan and Jaidev combined together to compose the songs for Rishi Kapoor’s epic film Laila Majnu.

Laila Majnu flabbergasted the viewers with the flavor of music of middle-east, the area related to the subject matter of the film. Each song of Rafi had a class of its own including “ mai tere dar pe aya hoon”, “barbad muhobbat ki dua saah liye ja”, “is reshmi pazeeb ki jhankar ke sadpe” (sung by Lata and Rafi), “likhkar tera naam zamee par” (sung by Lata and Rafi).

Rafi and Rishi Kapoor continued the romantic combination in the film Sargam. All the songs in the film were backed by very loud melodious orchestration. Rafi’s songs with Lata became super hit including “ramjiki nikli sawari”, “dafliwale dafli baja”, “koel boli duniya doli”, to name a few. Rafi’s solo numbers in the film like “hum to chale pardes”, “kahan tera insaaf hai”, appealed to the masses. Rishi Kapoor’s excellent lips were complimented by Jaya Prada’s classical dance in the film. Rafi was brilliant as ever.

Rishi Kapoor and Rafi combination entertained the viewers and listeners in the film Amar Akbar Anthony as well. All the songs composed by LP for Rafi created sensation. The qawalli “parda hai parda” was considered to be the last conventional qawalli composed in the 70s which faded away in the 80s and 90s due to absence of Rafi and had been revived in recent times. The other songs “shirdi wali saibaba” required high pitch which Rafi provided in style. Rafi sang the song “humko tumse ho gaya hai pyar kya Karen” with Kishore and Mukesh in the same film.

The Rafi Rishi Kapoor combination continued in the film Karz. The song “darde-dil darde-jigar” had remained one of the leading songs that are played on Valentine’s day for years. LP’s strong insistence for Rafi with Rishi Kapoor also motivated RD Burman to use Rafi in films of Rishi Kapoor. The song “pucho na yaar kya hua” showed Rafi’s elegance in westernized songs where Rishi Kapoor gave brilliant lips. Also Rishi Kapoor gave able lips in the qawalli sung in the film Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahi in late 70s. Rafi was outstanding by every musical standard.

It was a huge tragedy that Rafi died in 1980, otherwise he could have sung many romantic songs for Rishi Kapoor who gave adequate expression in the songs sung by Rafi. Although Rafi’s songs for Rishi Kapoor did not have the class that was evident in the songs of the 60s as giants of giants like Naushad, Roshan, Ghulam Mohammad, Shankar Jaikishan, OP Nayyar, Madanmohan were at their zenith during that age, the combination of Rafi and Rishi Kapoor still has importance because it came at a time when action films eroded the requirement for soft romantic songs in films. For those reasons the songs and the films should be preserved.

Happy birthday to Ramesh Sippy

Happy birthday to Ramesh Sippy.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Ramesh Sippy on 23rd January, 2010. He had been a trend setter in the history of action films in India and was followed by majority of directors of the contemporary period.

Being the relative of GP Sippy, he was associated with hit films from the early part of 70s. The film Andaz with Shammi Kapoor and Hema Malini became a musical blockbuster due to the brilliant tunes created for the film. Shankar Jaikishan composed music of the film and the major songs for the film sung by Rafi like “hai na bolo bolo”, “re mamma re mamma”, “dil use do jo jaan de de” became super hit. Seeta Aur Geeta was another super hit film released in 1972. Hema Malini in a double role was as brilliant as Dharmender and Sanjeev Kumar in their respective roles.

In 1975, Ramesh Sippy made the film of his life, which became the most popular entertainer in the entire millennium. The film was related to the dominance of dacoits in the north and central Indian villages. Amzad Khan in the role of Gabbar Singh gave the best performance of his career in the role of the leader of the dacoits. Sanjeev Kumar showed astounding personality in the role of a thakur of the village who lost his two hands and his entire family in his fight against the dacoits. Amitabh Bacchan and Dharmender being two thieves fought against the dacoits and freed the village from their menace. Ramesh Sippy’s casting in the film including heroines like Hema Malini and Jaya Bacchan, comedians like Asrani, Jagdeep was brilliant. The music of RD Burman mesmerized the viewers with songs like “jab tak hai jaan”, “mehbooba mehbooba”, “holi ke din”, etc.

Ramesh Sippy continued his brilliance in another action film Shaan in 1980. Big B, Shashi Kapoor, Shatrughun Sinha, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Majhar Khan all were their best in the film. The scene where Sunil Dutt as chased by dogs in the films, was extraordinary and the viewers could not distinguish whether they were seeing Hollywood films or bollywood films. Vindya Goswami and Parveen Babi were at their best in the respective romantic roles. The music of RD Burman was brilliant with hit songs of Rafi, Kishore like “janu meri jaan” and Asha like “pyar karne wale”, to name a few.

Ramesh Sippy was unparallel in the film Shakti, where Dilip Kumar’s personality in the role of honest police officer had outcast angry young man Amitabh Bacchan who played the role of his son and a smuggler in the film. Rakhee played the role of the wife of Dilip Kumar and balanced the two personalities in the film. Amrish Puri played the role of notorious smuggler who was eventually killed by Big B. The film became super hit in the early 80s.

Ramesh Sippy was equally evergreen in romantic films like Saagar. He balanced the romantic performance of Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia and Kamal Hassan in the same film. It is not possible to highlight the achievements of giant director like Ramesh Sippy in a small article considering his success even in the early 90s in films like Akela.

For more than 20 years he was the path-breaker in action films and his films should be preserved and restored to teach the art of film making for the upcoming directors.

Happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna

Happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna
The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna on 29th December, 2009. He had remained one of the most popular actors of 70s, before Amitabh Bacchan entered the film arena and gave birth to action films. The other reason why Rajesh Khanna is remembered even today was for the melodious music that he got from Kalyanji Anandji, RD Burman, Salil Choudhury, Laxmikant Pyarellal and other composers.

Although he started his career with films like Akhri Khat, Raaz, etc., in the late 60s, he got recognition with Shakti Shamanta’s super hit film Aradhana. In the 70s, Rajesh Khanna had a dream run with films of different directors including Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Asit Sen, Shakti Samanta and others.

Most of his films from 1971 to 1973, were super hit. And the music of these films created history. The songs of the film Anand, composed by Salil Choudhury were super hit, including “kahin door jab din dhal jaye”, “maine tere liye hi saat rang” sung by Mukesh and “zindagi kaisi hai peheli” sung by Manna Dey. The songs of the film Aan Milo Sajna composed by LP became super hit including Rafi’s song “aan milo sajna” and Kishore’s song “accha to hum chalte hai”.

The songs of the film Amar Prem composed by RD Burman became super hit including KK’s song “chingari koi bharke”, “kuch to log kahenge”, etc. Amar Prem was the hindi version of Uttam Kumar’s famour Bengali film Nishipadda. Similarly the songs of the film Kati Patang composed by RD Burman became super hit including songs of KK like “ai shaam mastani”, Mukesh’s song “jis gali me”, etc.

Similarly songs of the film Safar composed by Kalyanji Anandji became super hit. Kishore’s song “zindagi ka safar” can be considered as one of the best songs that he sang during his long career. The songs of the film Namak Haram composed by RD Burman, Roti composed by LP, Raaz composed by Kalyanji Anandji, Bawarchi composed by Madanmohan, were all very successful.

Rajesh Khanna created a romantic image and his films opposite various actresses like Sharmila Tagore in films like Aradhana, Amar Prem, Mumtaz in Aap Ki Kasam, Asha Parekh in Kati Patang, Aan Milo Sajna, Tanuja in Mere Jeevan Saathi, Hema Malini in Mehbooba, and others created an era of romantic films. He became a role model for the younger generation.

But from the time Amitabh Bacchan entered the film arena he not only dethroned Rajesh Khanna but more than that changed the dimension of bollywood films. He played anti-establishment characters and persuaded other superstars like Vinod Khanna, Shatrughun Sinha, Dharmender, Firoz Khan, Sunil Dutt and others to play similar type of roles.

Action films dominated bollywood industry and films like Sholay, Deewar, Kalicharan, Burning Train, Jugnu, Zakhmee, Dharmatma faded away Rajesh Khanna’s romantic films like Soutan, Prem Nagar and other films.

Rajesh Khanna’s wife Dimple Kapadia established herself into one of the most powerful actresses of bollywood films with success in Saagar, Jaanbaaz, Rudaali, Lekin, Krantiveer, etc.

Even then Rajesh Khanna continued acting for another 20 years and is even seen in a recent film in a role of an old person. Even Rishi Kapoor did cast him in his directorial venture title A ab laut chale.

The viewers expect Rajesh Khanna to contribute in character roles the way Big B, Vinod Khanna and other veteran actors have done over the years.

Happy birthday to Asha Bhosle.

Happy birthday to Asha Bhosle.

The viewers of bollywood films and listeners of music all across the country wish happy birthday to Asha Bhosle on 8th September, 2009. She had remained a legend of legends in the field of music. She came to limelight in the 70s and 80s and ended up being the most successful female playback singer after Lata Mangeshkar.

In the 50s, Asha Bhosle had to face the competition from other singers dominating the bollywood playback industry like Lata, Shamshad Begum, Noorjahan, Suraiya, Geeta Dutt, Suman Kalyanpur, Sudha Malhotra and many other singers. Asha’s successful songs in the 50s include “mur murke na dekh” composed by Shankar Jaikishan in the film Shree 420, “aiye meherban” composed by OP Nayyar in the film Howrah Bridge, “accha ji mai hari” composed by SD Burman in the film Kala Pani, to name a few.

In the 60s, OP Nayyar backed Asha Bhosle, and her duets with Rafi in films like Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Ek Musafir Ek Haseena, Mere Sanam, Kashmir Ki Kali, are considered milestones in Indian film music. Her famous duets with Rafi include “naznee bara rangeen hai wada”, “mai pyar ka rahi hoon”, “isharon isharon”, “diwana hua badal”, etc. Few other composers only reposed their confidence on Asha like Khayyam who made her sing memorable songs in Raj Kapoor’s film Phir Subah Hogi, Ravi, who had given songs to Asha Bhosle in films like Waqt, Humraaz, Gumraah, etc.

In the 70s Asha Bhosle married RD Burman and it changed the career of the premier singer. Her westernized style of singing was used by RD to give her super hit songs like “piya tu ab tu aja” in the film Karwan, “dum maro dum” in the film Hare Rama Hare Krishna, etc. She sang in almost all the films where RD Burman composed music.

In the 80s, Asha Bhosle crossed new milestones by showing her skills in singing mujras in the film Umrao Jaan, composed by Khayyam. All the songs in the film including “dil cheez kya hai”, “justju”, etc., were appreciated by the critics. She received filmfare awards a number of times and she balanced the innovative style of singing of Kishore Kumar with her own innovation. It is not possible to cover the accomplishments of legendary singer Asha Bhosle in a single article as she had sung more than 25000 songs in hindi and other languages. Even her songs in Uttam Kumar’s film Choddobeshi composed by Sudhin Dasgupta was worth mentioning.The listeners expect Asha Bhosle to continue the great work she had started more than 50 years ago.

The nation remembers Pancham on his birthday.

The nation remembers Pancham on his birthday.

The nation remembers Pancham, better known as Rahul Dev Burman, on his birthday on 27th June, 2009. Almost 15 years passed after his death, yet his tunes had kept him alive among the young generations.

Being the son of legendary singer and composer SD Burman, he had a monumental task of proving his identity in the 60s. He came out with innovative tunes sung by Rafi in Mehmood’s film Chote Nawab. From that time onwards critics understood that RD Burman had come to create his unique identity. His biggest in the 60s came in Shammi Kapoor’s film Teesri Manzil in 1966. All the songs sung by Rafi and Asha became landmark hits including “o haseena zulfonwali”, “aaja aaja mai hoon pyar tera”, “janeman janejaa”, etc. Along with western composers like Shankar Jaikishan, OP Nayyar, Salil Choudhury, who were ruling the industry, RD Burman kept his feet on strong platform.

RD Burman and Rafi combination continued in films like Abhilasha with songs like “wadiyan tera daaman”, Jeetender’s Karwan with songs like “kitna pyara wada”, “are chadti jawani”, “are ho goriyan kahan tera des re”, Shashi Kapoor’s Pyar Ka Mausam, with songs like “tum bin jayun kahan”, “ni sultana re”, Rajesh Khanna’s The Train, with songs like “gulaabi aankhe”, “tujshe bhala yeh”, etc. In the 70s, RD took the bollywood industry by storm. With death of Jaikishan, Roshan, Ghulam Mohammad, Vasant Desai, etc., the industry depended on Pancham, Laxmikant Pyarellal and Kalyanji Anandji for best music. They provided stability to the industry for the next 15 years.

RD Burman had monumental contribution in Rajesh Khanna and Big B’s films and gave a new life to Kishore Kumar. All the songs of films like Amar Prem, Kati Patang, Aap Ki Kasam, Namak Haram, Mehbooba, Barsaat Ki Ek Raat, Shaan, Shakti, etc. Memorable songs included “tere naina”, “kuch to log kahenge”, “ai sham mastani”, “janu meri jaan”, etc.

RD Burman contributed a lot in Uttam Kumar’s Bengali film Raj Kumari in 1970. The song “ki holo kabe holo” , created history which was remade in hindi in the film Amar Prem. Critics argue that RD Burman reserved his best music in Gulzar’s films. His songs for Lata in Suchitra Sen’s Aandhi titled “is mor se jaate hai”, Uttam Kumar’s Kitaab, “aa ii masterjiki ho gayi chutti”, Jeetender’s Kinara where Bhupinder Singh and Lata did their best in “naam gum jayega”, “meethe bol bole”, “ek hi khwab”, etc., Sanjeev Kumar’s Parichay, with Bhupinder’s “biti na bitai rehna”, etc.

He won the filmfare award for the best composer three times. The young generations associate themselves with RD’s tunes even today, in that count he was one of the versatile composers after Shankar Jaikishan, Naushad, Madanmohan, Roshan, etc.

Laxmikant Pyarellal v. RD Burman in the 70s.

Laxmikant Pyarellal v. RD Burman in the 70s.

There is a big debate about who dominated bollywood music in the 70s, was it Laxmikant Pyarellal or was it RD Burman? Before dealing with the debate a brief introduction is necessary about the status of composers in the early 70s. Composers like Jaikishan, Roshan, Madanmohan, SD Burman, died in the late 60s or early 70s. Composers like OP Nayyar, Salil Choudhury, Naushad, Vasant Desai, Ghulam Mohammad, C. Ramchandran either left films or faded away from the industry.

So there was three-fold competition between RD Burman, LP and Kalyanji Anandji. Some of the films of KA were hits, others received critical acclaimation. There major films included Dev Anand’s Johnny Mera Naam, Dilip Kumar’s Gopi, Big B’s Zanjeer, Don, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Firoz Khan’s Dharmatma, to name a few. But the young actors were inclined to both LP and RD Burman.

The other factor that counted in the industry was that Kishore Kumar created a big competition for Mohammad Rafi who dominated bollywood films in the 60s and 70s. Firstly Rajesh Khanna’s films had the music of both RD Burman and LP. On one hand RD Burman’s music in films like Kati Patang, Amar Prem, Mere Jeevan Saathi, Aap Ki Kasam, stormed bollywood, on the other hand LP contributed with his music in Rajesh Khanna’s films like Aan Milo Sajna, Roti, Hathi Mere Saathi, etc.

With the appearance of Rishi Kapoor in bollywood films again musical films got predominance in the mid-70s. On one hand LP introduced new singers in the industry like Shailendra Singh and created a partnership with Rishi Kapoor which started with Bobby and went on in films like Badalte Rishte, Sargam, Karz, Amar Akbar Anthony, etc. RD Burman also contributed heavily in Rishi Kapoor’s films like Khel Khel Me, Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai, Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahi, to name a few. Very significantly both Rafi and Kishore were used by RD and LP successfully.

Both RD Burman and LP contributed equally in Big B’s films. While LP contributed in films like Ek Nazar, Amar Akbar Anthony, Suhaag, Naseeb, etc., RD Burman contributed in films like Dewaar, Sholay, Shaan, etc.

Even in the films of Dharmender both LP and RD Burman contributed a lot. LP gave music in films like Jeevan Mrityu, Aya Sawaan Jhumke, Izzat, Loafer, etc., while RD Burman contributed in films like Yaadon Ki Baraat, Jheel Ke Us Paar, Burning Train, etc.

LP contributed more than RD Burman in films of Jeetender. The list starts with Farz and includes Banphool, Badalte Rishte, Jeegri Dost, Humjoli, Aasha, etc. RD Burman also made notable contribution in Jeetender’s films like Karwa, Burning Train, Parichay, Khusbu, Kinaara.

LP had composed music in other significant films like Manoj Kumar’s Shor, Sanjeev Kumar’s Khilouna, Rajender Kumar’s Gora Aur Kala, Aap Aye Bahar Aye, while RD Burman was sublime in Dev Anand’s Hare Rama Hare Krishna, Sanjeev Kumar’s Aandhi, Uttam Kumar’s Kitaab.

It is difficult to infer who actually had an edge in music composition in bollywood films in the 70s, whether RD Burman or LP, it can be said that RD Burman had gained popularity many years after his death as many of his songs are still sung by modern bollywood singers like Kumar Shanu, Abhijeet, Vinod Rathod, Babul Supriyo, who had imitated Kishore Kumar to create their fanbase in bollywood. LP was only used by the industry for more than 35 years, and just like Shankar Jaikishan, always had remained unwept, unsung, unlamented, unrecognized.