Vividh Bharati – An indispensable part of my life

I was introduced to radio in Bhutan. I spent the first few years of my life there. Television broadcasting was banned in Bhutan in the 80’s and 90’s. And my parents used to often tune in to radio to listen to news. But that’s all I knew – news and few Nepali songs that used to be played on AIR.

Then we moved to Nepal and there was a time when I used to listen to Nepal’s national radio a little, in the early 90’s. I started tuning in to Vividh Bharati in 1995 but there was only one program that I would listen to then – Chitralok. Though I didn’t know Hindi, I still used to listen to it. Hindi songs and movies were very popular in the region I grew up in. But I wasn’t into movies/music myself then, I would hardly watch TV and till I was 12, I must have seen around 10 movies (both Nepali and Hindi put together). And then I got hooked to Chandrakanta and slowly started understanding Hindi a little.
 
I changed my school when I was in 8th standard. And our Maths teacher was a big Kishore Kumar fan. He used to keep singing Kishore Da’s songs every now and then. Most of my classmates used to sing along but I didn’t know the lyrics so used to stay queit and used to feel left out. I was ashamed of myself because I had grown up listening to those songs, and yet I didn’t know them. It was then that I started listening to my Dad’s collection and writing down the lyrics of all those songs. Though I didn’t understand what most of them meant, I at least knew the words and I could sing along with the rest in class.

Then one Friday night, my Dad made me watch AmarPrem on Doordarshan and my life’s never been the same again. I got addicted to the world of Hindi Cinema and music. I started watching Rangoli and Chitrahaar with Dad. And because I had started watching movies and musci programs, when I would hear a song, it started sounding familiar. I could relate more to it. I slowly started understanding them better and eventually fell in love with them.

A year later, one of our cousins came to live with us. He had a small transistor and he would carry it with him whereever he went and he used to listen to Vividh Bharati a lot.
It was then that I started listening to other programs on radio. We had a cow at home then and we (my cousin and me) used go to the feilds to cut grass in the afternoons (1:15-1:30 PM), during my school vacations, on his bi-cycle. He would hang the transistor on the cycle’s handle, tune in to Vividh Bharati and then sing along all way. Once we reached the fields, he would first find a place to put the radio and then get to work.
And sometimes, in the night we would listen to chhaya geet. But I would still be seen with a casette player more.  The cassette player would be in kitchen, lawn, backyard. No matter which part of the house I am in, it would be around me (we had extension cords of all lengths).

Then in June 1999, I left home. I went to Vijayawada and was in hostel – a new place, new language. Everything was so different. My roommate had a small transistor (the same model that my cousin had back home) but she was not into Hindi songs. She tried searching for stations that would play something in Nepali but when she couldn’t find any, she kind of discarded it and that’s how it came to me.

And then when I tuned in to Vividh Bharati and heard the RJs talk, listened to the songs it never felt like I had left home and I was in a new land. Music and Vividh Bharati instantly became a connecting factor – when I would listen to Rafi, Kishore, Lata, Asha, Talat, Mukesh (and many more, in fact everybody else), it felt like I was back home. And before I realized, radio became an indispensible part of my life. It won’t be an exaggeration if I say I’ve never ever felt alone after that.

I  usually used to listen to the programs on radio in the morning – Bhoole Bisre Geet, Sangeet Sarita, Triveni and then leave for college. Tune into Manchahe Geet sometimes during lunch break or during free hours in college. Listen to Pitara at 4:00 clock when our special classes would get cancelled. Then a part of Jaimala in the evening and then the programs in the night – from 9 to 11.
I used to have the radio on during study hours. We were not allowed to sit on our beds during study hours, had to use chair and table. I used to have the volume so low and would have my head (ears) literally on the radio and would do my homework with my head bent on the table (over the radio) or used to have ear-phones. I had to leave my hair open to cover both my ears so that the warden wouldn’t notice it when she would come on rounds.

I studied in a missionary college. And our hostel had so many rules and one of them was putting the lights off at 10:00 PM. Listening to programs (esp Chhaya Geet) after the lights were out – staring at the sky from the window (through the mosquito net) felt heavenly. I still remember listening ‘Yeh dil aur unki nigahon ke saaye’, ‘Taaron ki zubaan par hai mohabbat ki kahani’, ‘Aap ki haseen rukh par aaj naya noor hai’, ‘Chup hai dharti chup hai chaand sitaare’, ‘O chaand jahan woh jaaye’, ‘Mujhe dard-e-dil ka pata na tha’, ‘Dil unko uthake de diya’, ‘Palkon ke peeche se jo tumne keh daala’  etc. for the first time. ‘Kali palak teri gori’ reminds me of Sanjay Manjrekar even today, because it was during his interview that I had heard it for the first time.

In 1999, there used to be a special program for Fauji Bhai at 10:30 (if I’m not mistaken) in the night, that was during the Kargil war. And listening to their messages, I would miss home so much I would silently weep. And then they would play such lovely songs and I would end up smiling the very next moment.
I still remember listening to Bheegi Raat’s story on Bioscope ki Baatein one Friday evening. I haven’t seen the movie yet, but I know the movie, remember the story even today.

Then I ended up in Secunderabad for my graduation. And this time I took a transistor of my own when I went to hostel. It was a missionary college again and we still had similar rules.
By then I knew all the programs on Vividh Bharati and the RJs had become like a family to me. In addition to just the songs, listening to Kamal Sharma, Renu Bansal, Yunus Khan, Nimmi Mishra, Mamta Singh, Amarkanth, Rajendra etc would make me feel happy.

I used to religiously listen to programs in the morning (06:30 to 08:00) and after 9:00 in the night (09:00 to 11:00), and the whole day on weekends and holidays. I didn’t know anybody there, didn’t have local guardians. So I would stay back in hostel on long weekends and holidays when everybody else would go home.
We had huge stone slabs and water taps in the backyard in hostel and we could use them to wash clothes. I usually used to do my laundry there on Sunday afternoons, with the radio on, of course. Slowly my friends started joining me and we used to have a musical session washing clothes. Good old days!

I used to have the radio on during study hours even here, it kind of became a habit. And our warden was so used to seeing the radio on my study table with it’s antenna up that she woudn’t even bother to come to the room and check if it was on. And I had a song book by then. Close to 6 hours of study time everyday (apart from college hours) was a little too much. So, I would sit and write down the lyrics of the songs playing on radio instead. But I would miss out so many words in between, used to leave blank spaces and continue. And next time that song would come on radio (after a week, a month or months together), I would search for the page where I’d written the song and then fill in the blanks. It was such a good timepass. Didn’t have an option of rewinding and listening to it, so had to wait till it came again.
(Note : It’s not that I never studied during my college days, I did when I had to.)

Another bioscope incident that I remember is listening to Khamoshi’s story. And I just went numb and had tears streaming down my cheeks when the program got over. I had heard the songs, even seen their picturization (Tum pukar lo and Woh shaam kuch ajeeb thi) but had not seen the movie. I just fell in love with it’s story.
During summer holidays one year, I was home and was just switching channels. I saw one scene at the hospital and figured out it was Khamoshi. I stopped everything I was doing and sat down to watch the movie. Thankfully only dad was home that evening and he was ok with having late dinner, and that too because of Kaka and Waheeda (he would never mind that). We both watched the movie together and it’s one of my favourite movies till date.

After I finished college I started working and one thing I would miss the most in office was listening to radio. The surprise element is what I like the most about listening to songs on radio, not knowing what the next song is going to be. And the familiarity too – be it the program structure, content, presentation or the RJs’ voice. It was no fun searching for a song and listening to it on raaga, youtube or musicindiaonline.

One day I discovered an online radio station called bollywoodondemand.com. That site had some good programs but they closed down after a year or so.

I would still listen to radio at home or on my cell (fm at 102.8) in the cab/bus but I used to miss it at work (used to spend 10-12 hours a day in office). And then one fine day a friend sent me the link to voicevibes.net. I can never express in words how grateful I am for it. Though my Managers and co-workers initially found it weird that I would play music at work, over a period of time they came to accept the fact that I concentrate better with it and didn’t mind me sitting in office tuned to vividh bharati with my ear phones on.

In 2011-2012, I used to work during EST hours and work from home most of the time. Once all the meetings were done, I would put the radio on and work. We used to live in the out-skirts and evenings/nights were cool and breezy. I used to leave the front door open. April (our dog) would sit by the door and give me company. We would listen to radio till wee hours of the morning and then go to sleep.

I’ve been travelling quite a lot especially in the last couple of years – have been to different countries on different projects, working with different people but one thing that has remained constant is Vividh Bharati.
I was in Doha on a project. We were around 20 of us in that project and we were allotted one room to sit and work in, it was called the project room. Once I reached office, I would open voicevibes.net, plug my earphones and start work. Everybody else in the room would speak in Tamil most of the time. One day my project manager who used to sit next to me said – “We all speak in Tamil most of the time. We’ve had resources complaining about it in the past. If you have any problem, do let us know, we will try to speak in English”
I replied : “I have no problem, as long as you tell me what I need to know about the project and we have our meetings in English. Rest of the time you can carry on, doesn’t matter to me.” I put my earphones back and resumed my work.
Looking back I seriously feel if I had stayed on that project a little longer I would definitely have ended up learning a little bit of Tamil.

When I joined my office in Boston, I used to get strange looks because I would sit in my cubicle with ear-phones/headphones on. But since there were no major issues/escalations in my track, which meant I was doing my job well, nobody said anything about it, at least not to me.
 
Vividh Bharati was not available online for around 4 months last year (from August to December) and I almost went mad. I used to listen to AIR FM Gold, Radio City and Tunein, and they do play great songs but for me Vividh Bharati is the definition of radio. The day I got a message from Yunus ji, saying voicevibes.net is working, was one of the best days of my life.

Unfortunately in my current company external sites are blocked and I’ve already exhausted the data plan I had on my phone listening to radio online for the last 3 weeks. So, I’ve been VB-less for the last couple of days at work.

I’m in a new and a different time zone again and am still getting used to it. I wake up at 6:00 AM and it’s 09:30 PM in India. The first thing I do in the morning is to put the radio on. I listen to Aaj ke Funkaar, Chhaya Geet and a part of Aap Ki Farmaish before I leave home at 07:15 in the morning. And then I tune in the first thing I get back home and continue from previous day’s pitara till Manchahe Geet and then go to sleep. I’m still getting used to the new programs being aired in the night – SMS ke Bahane, Raat Ke HumSafar, Non-stop Express and Jaagte Raho. I miss the old format where they would repeat the programs in the night. That way I could catch up on what I had missed during the day and those programs were familiar to me.

But no complaints. No matter where I am, what I’m doing, I have Vividh Bharati playing in the background most of the time. The sound of “Yeh hai Vividh Bharati” makes me feel at home.  When I call home, we usually have the same songs playing in the background and and it feels so wonderful. My Dad’s tuned in to Vividh Bharati too and sometimes we just end up talking about the song that’s playing and Mom goes crazy.

It’s not loud and noisy and I like that the best. The programs are informative, interactive and entertaining. It has a balanced blend of everything – old and new songs, programs on health awareness, social issues, current affairs etc. The way it’s programs are structured and the time at which they are presented, it’s very evident that there’s been a lot of planning and a lot of thought’s been put into it.
It’s my one-stop destination for all those small things in life that keep me happy. It keeps me connected to my roots, reminds me of festivals and never lets me feel I’m so far away from home, from my family. It takes me away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and soothes my senses. It keeps me calm and balanced and cheers me up. A good song is all I need to remain happy no matter how my day’s been going and Vividh Bharati never disappoints me when it comes to that.

Vividh Bharati has been by my side for the last 14 years and I can’t imagine how my life would have been without it. In short, I love Vividh Bharati! Wish you a very Happy Birthday! And I sincerely hope and pray that you continue to entertain your audience the way you’ve been doing all these years.

A big thank you to each and every member involved in making Vividh Bharati what it is and to Raj to making it accessible to those living outside India. My life wouldn’t be the same without it! 🙂

Mukesh sings for Rajesh Khanna

Kishore Kumar was the voice of Rajesh Khanna. But Mukesh and Rafi have sung few songs for him and such great ones at that. I had started this post last month to publish it in the last week of July, somewhere around Mukesh’s birth anniversary and Rafi’s death anniversary.  But like it’s said – waqt se aaghe kabhi kisi ko kuch nahin milta, even a post doesnt get published. Hopefully the list of songs that Rafi has sung for him will be ready by 24th Dec.

Mukesh has sung just a few songs for Kaka. In fact, I can think of only 6 such songs. And I like all of them, so here they are!

1. Maine tere liye hi saat rang ke sapne (Anand, 1971) : What a beautiful song this is! I can never do enough justice to this song by writing anything about it. Rajesh Khanna plays the character of a cancer patient in this movie, he knows he’s going to die and has just a couple of months left to live. But he doesnt let that dampen his spirits. On the contrary, he tries living his life to the fullest. I wont start with the dialogues all over again. I wont be able to stop at one or two if I do. I’ve seen this movie so many times but I was never sure who this song was actually meant for (in fact never thought about it). When he gets his jhola and refers before starting the second antara, there’s a hint of sadness, loneliness in his eyes. He doesnt have a heroine paired opposite to him here though he mentions a girl who he was in love with. Is he thinking of her while singing this song or is he singing this to himself, to his life. Now the more I listen to it the more I feel it’s Anand’s  life from his point of view. Both Mukesh and Rajesh Khanna have done an outstanding job and brought out the right emotions in this song.

Gulzar, Mukesh, Salil Chaudhary

2. Kahin door jab din dhal jaaye (Anand, 1971) : It’s quite a strange thing that Mukesh has sung two songs for Rajesh in the same movie! This song is a top top favourite of mine. If I ever have to make a list of my all-time favourite songs, this would definitely feature in it. I cannot explain in words what I feel when I listen to it or watch it.  This is the only time we see Anand sad, weak and vulnerable in the movie. This song reminds me of Solitary Reaper, I think of that poem almost everytime I hear this song.  It’s so poignant – the setting sun, the longing : longing for life and what couldn’t be his, there’s so much of sadness in it and yet it’s so beautiful and so soothing.

Dil jaane mere saare bhed yeh gehre
Kho gaye kaise mere sapne sunhere
Yeh mere sapne yehi toh hai apne
Mujhse juda na honge inke yeh saaye

Mukesh, Salil Da, Yogesh

I had come across this site sometime ago and I saw it today again when I was searching for this song. They have done a complete justice to it, described exactly how I feel when I listen to it.

3. Jis gali mein tera ghar na ho baalma (Kati Patang, 1970) : Another favourite Mukesh-on-Rajesh Khanna song of mine. I grew up listening to this song but saw it for the first time only while watching the movie. And Kati Patang is among the movies I saw right after Amar Prem. And this was the first time I was listening to Mukesh and watching Rajesh Khanna on screen, it kind of felt odd. He declares his love to his best friend’s widow, with a style and a charm that was uniquely his. Any girl would be on cloud nine listening to someone sing such beautiful poetry to her, but Asha, impersonating her friend,  holds herself back but that doesnt discourage him a bit.

Anand Bakshi, Mukesh, RDB

Mr. and Mrs. 55 have written about this song as well and must say they are very good at it!
4. Phool aahista pheko (Prem Kahani) : This is one movie I’ve never been able to get hold of till now. But the songs, be it cheerfully romantic title track or this one, they are just terrific. And the exchange of sher-o-shayaris before the song is masha-allah!

Anand Bakshi, LP, Mukesh & Lata

5. Zubaan pe dard bhari (Maryada, 1971) : Mukesh’s voice is usually referred to as dard-bhari awaaz. And we all know, he was the best when it came to bringing out the sorrow. Nobody can sing tragic songs like him, one of the main reasons why I have resisted him for so many years. And here he is singing Zubaan pe dard bhari. I wonder if he was roped in to sing this song because of the lyrics. But whatever it may be, this song wouldn’t have been the same if somebody else had to sing it. I dont remember much of this movie (probably because I didnt find it all that great) except for the fact that Mala Sinha was in a double role. I have vague memories of Raj Kumar wandering with a cage, and just Chup ke se dil de de and this song.

Anand Bakshi, Kalyanji-Anandi, Mukesh

6. Dil sambhale sambhalta nahin (Raaz, 1967) : This is one hell of a romantic song (Mukesh doesnt sing only dard-bhare songs) and a very catchy one. It’s one of those let-me-go shaam dhalne lagi songs which I totally love. Such beautiful background (blue sky spotted with fluffy white clouds, snow-capped mountains glistening, greenery, cattles grazing) , two very good looking people romancing onscreen and two of the greatest singers singing it for them – all one has to do is just sit back and enjoy and let it’s beauty sink in. They sound so helplessly in love and that just adds to the cuteness factor of this song!

Kalyanji-Anandji, Mukesh * Lata

R.I.P Mukesh!

Can you think of any other song that Mukesh has sung for Kaka?

K for Kishore – I (Kishore sings for Rajesh Khanna)

I am not as regular on my blog as I would like to be. Let me see if I can complete this post today. Almost everybody knows that Shammi Kapoor and Rafi are the love of my life. But they also know that it was Rajesh Khanna and Kishore Kumar who came into my life before them. It was because of these two that I started watching old films and listening to old songs. And though I have been planning to do a post on Kishore Da for a long time, I have never been able to so it so far.

It’s impossible to select just a handful of his songs and list them as favourites. I was planning to do a post on songs that Mukesh (22nd Jul) and Rafi (31st Jul) have sung for Rajesh Khanna (18th Jul), as a tribute to all three of them. I started with it but haven’t finished it yet, though the list is ready, description isn’t. Since Mukesh and Rafi didn’t sing many songs for Kaka, it wasnt a very difficult task. But how and where do I start with Kishore’s songs?

Kishore Da was the voice of Rajesh Khanna and most of their songs were just magical, they were so popular and they still are even today. Today, on Kishore Da’s birth anniversary, I thought of doing a post on those songs of this duo which are not as popular as the others. I dont know if they were big hits and popular when they were released but these are some songs which we dont get to hear them as often as the likes of Meri sapno ki raani, Yeh shaam mastaani, Zindagi ka safar, O mere dil ke chain…etc today. There are loads of such songs but these are 10 of my favourite songs, in no particular order. I’m further restricting myself only to solo songs –

1. Ladkhadane do mujhe (Palkon Ki Chhaon Mein, 1977) : This is one movie that I had liked a lot. Simple, sweet and it had a very good plot. Rajesh Khanna is in love with Hema Malini, who’s in love with Jeetendra, even secretly married to him. When Rajesh learns about her past, he decides to help her find her love, though he himself is heartbroken. A perfect setting for a song complete with daaru ka tadka. Kishore is marvellous as always.
Maut ke baad sahi milne ka vaadha karlo
Humne bhi kaunsi jeene ki kasam khayi hai

2. Saath mein pyaara saathi hai (Dil Daulat Duniya, 1972) : This is one very romantic song, seductively so! And we can hear that in Kishore’s singing. I havent seen the movie so dont know how it was but I really like this song a lot.

Aise mein ab tum hi kaho neend kisse kab aati hai

3.  Chhalkao jhoom ke paimaana khushi ka (Phir Wohi Raat, 1980) : This song has a very happy feel to it – a typical birthday song. But when we watch it, we can sense an impending danger, especially with some characters lurking around suspiciously. The first time I saw this movie (I was still in school), I had seen it from the middle, somewhere in between. Since I had missed the beginning, I didnt know what movie it was, never knew the name. Few years later, when I had gone home for summer vacation (when I was in hostel) and realized there was a Rajesh Khanna movie coming on tv, I sat down to watch it. This time around I made sure I watched it from the beginning,I already knew the name this time as I had seen it’s trailer. Half way through I realized it was the same movie but then there was a power cut and I couldnt watch it fully. Though I remember the story, most of it, I had completely forgotten the songs. One day I was watching  a Danny-Asha Bhosle song (Nepali) on youtube and in the comments section someone had mentioned that there is a Hindi song with a similar tune. And I couldn’t rest peacefully till I knew which one it was. I searched and searched and finally found it – Sang mere nikle the saajan from Phir Wohi Raat. I was little sad that I had seen the movie and didnt remember it’s songs. So I sat and watched all the songs of this movie that day and that’s when I re-discovered Chhalko jhoom ke also.

4. Aaiye aapko main apne (Joroo Ka Ghulam, 1972) :  I simply love this song! Rajesh looks so cute, especially that image of him sitting with flour all over him is so very adorable. And love the way it’s sung. I can’t help laughing everytime it goes Aur yeh…main hoon.

5. Pyaar ki waadiya de rahi hai sada (Jaanwar, 1983) : I had heard this song on radio and always thought of this it as a “cntrl+f” song, where hero and heroine have been separated and hero’s wandering all over searching for his love. It has that longing and desperation in Kishore’s voice that gives the feel to it. I happened to watch it only recently and from the time I have seen the video I’ve been wanting to see the movie. Songs used to be an important part of the story, and that’s one thing I love the most about Hindi films. Looks like Zeenat has lost her memory and Rajesh is trying to remind her of who she is and what they once shared.

6. Ruk meri jaan (Bundal Baaz, 1976) : Yet another song which I had heard very often on radio but never watched. I haven’t seen the movie yet and came across this song on youtube only recently. It’s a catchy song and entertaining too but I feel sad to see Ranjeet so helpless. Bechare ki image ki toh dhulai kardi . And Rajesh looks like a safedi ki chamkaar 🙂

7. Tera dil kya kehta hai (Aashiq Hoon Baharon Ka, 1977) : I dont remember the story though I think I have seen this movie. I vaguely remember the climax, ie if it’s the one where Rajesh is left on an island/or surrounded by waterbody where there are alligators all around. And Danny also makes it a point to leave some raw meat behind so that it’s smell would attract the reptiles and they would attack Rajesh. I had found the way Rajesh escapes from there very funny. I only remember the songs of this movie – the catchy title track, Purab Aur Paschim inspired song in the club – Mashriq se jo aaye and this one.
The best thing that I like about this particular song is Yunhi raston pe chalte jaye hum aur manzil kabhi bhi na aaye.

8. Ek raja ka ek beta tha (Tyaag, 1977) : This movie had some great songs. I love this one and a duet Hum tum tum hum hum tum ek nadi ke hai do kinare.  I like the chemistry that Rajesh shares with the kid and the way Kishore sings it – the conversational/story-telling like tone it has – esp tum jaichha hi pyaala pyaala. Though this song is not a complete solo song, I just cant help posting it.

 

9. Aisa rangeen sama hai re (Aanchal, 1980) : It’s picturization is OTT, but I still like this song because it makes me feel good and brings a smile on my face everytime I listen to it. It’s also about – we want lots of things in life but dont always get them. But it doesnt mean that we get disheartened and lose hope. A ray of hope always gives you a reason to look forward to and feel happy.

 

10. Fauji gaya jab gaon mein (Akraman, 1975) : There were few more songs in my mind and I had reached the end of this post even before I realized. After debating a lot between  Yeh mera jeevan tere liye hai from Babu and this one, I chose this because it’s so colorful to start with. And the narration is so entertaining – a total paisa vasool performance, esp Mera Baapu saath mere Jarnail Singh ban baitha and Rum ki botal part!

 

As always, I’ve reached the end of the post too soon. Be it popular or lesser popular songs, Rajesh Khanna and Kishore Kumar have left a legacy behind and they’ll continue to live in our hearts forever.

The phenomenon called Rajesh Khanna

I got a call from Tina,  my best friend from Australia at 4:30 AM today but was too sleepy to answer. I saw 2 missed calls from her when I woke up to stop the alarm.  Before I could go to my voice mail I opened FB on my phone itself and saw Pacifist’s post that said “‎*sob* *sob*” and had a link. And I knew it at that moment.

I knew he had been ill for some time now and was in hospital but when I read the news that he’s no more, and all the articles that talked about his stardom and the movies he had worked in, I had tears streaming down my cheeks and I didn’t even realize it for sometime.

I haven’t been able to concentrate on anything the whole day today. I’m feeling just so sad. So I thought I would at least pour out my feelings here and that might lift the burden a little from my heart.

Where do I start about this man? I was a carefree kid more than happy reading Fairy Tales, Roald Dahl series, Famous Five, Secret Seven and playing with the other kids in my neighborhood as long as as possible in the evenings. And that was a perfect life for me. One Friday evening, I was almost asleep at 9:30 when my Dad came, woke me up and took me to the hall where everybody else was already gathered, all prepared to watch a movie on Doordarshan. Movies were not even my last priorities back then. I didnt understand Hindi, to start with, so I was least interested in watching it. The movie that night was Amar Prem. But once the movie started, it sort of cast a spell on me and I sat and watched it till the end!  I dont know what I understood at that age but I was totally in awe, fascinated by it. Couldn’t believe that the movie was over. And then the rest, as they say, is a history.

When I saw Amar Prem that night, I fell head over heels in love with him. I had only heard from my Dad about his fan following, how crazy everybody was of Kaka back then, after Aradhana in 1969.   27 years later, in 1996, when I saw Rajesh Khanna in Amar Prem, I was mesmerized by his demeanor.  I wasn’t spared by his charm at the age of 13, so I can imagine the frenzy he must have created in his hey days.

After that, I literally used to wait for Fridays and I never missed a single movie of his that came on TV in the following 3 years – Kati Patang, Daag, Roti, Aap Ki Kasam, Aradhana, Raja Rani, Prem Nagar, Bawarchi, Anand, Do Raste, Bandhan, Khamoshi, Apna Desh…. I dont know how many movies of his I saw in the years that followed.
I was in Nepal then. Sunday used to be a working day. Dad used to watch Rangoli regularly and while getting ready for school I used to catch a glimpse of few songs here and there. My Dad has a huge collection of old songs. So, even though I didnt know the language and was not very interested in music then, quite a lot of songs were familiar. And slowly I started feeling good seeing those songs on tv and over a period of time started enjoying them. I slowly started recognizing the actors but I used to find all the actresses look the same. It’s only after I started watching movies, I started recognizing the actresses. And my definition of actresses back then was : Sharmila (Rajesh Khanna’s heroine in Amar Prem), Asha Parekh (she was the one in Kati Patang), Waheeda (the nurse in Khamoshi) and so on. Rajesh Khanna was one man who introduced me to this industry and most of the other actors/actresses. He was my first crush! All the others, including Shammi Kapoor, Dharmendra, Dev Anand, Manoj Kumar etc came a lot later in my life.

I have laughed and cried with him, mourned when his character died on screen, have fallen in love with him, sung and danced along when he sang, felt happy when he was happy and sad when he was sad, have learnt a lot about life from his movies. I have lived a very wide range of emotions with him. Though he wasn’t even aware of my existence, he’s been a part of my life ever since I watched him as Anand Babu that night in 1996! And today, the first thing I learn after I get up in the morning is that he’s no more. I felt so hollow, it felt as though I had lost a family member. And I’ve been so lost and disoriented the whole day.

Maximum numbers of songs on Zindagi that I know of are picturised on Rajesh Khanna. He’s taught us a lot about life and living through his songs and movies. So here are few of them that I can think of at the moment.

1. Zindagi kaisi hai paheli (Anand, 1971) : Anand has been one of my all-time favourites and I’ve seen it so many times that I’ve lost the count.  The climax is so good that everytime I watch it, I feel like I’m seeing it for the first time. And I keep wishing for some miracle to happen so that at least this time around, Anand doesnt die. The record and playback of  Amitabh’s Maut tu ek kavita hai to Rajesh’s Babumoshai, zindagi aur maut….the timing is so perfect that I, as an audience start praying and crying for Anand along with the rest of the characters in the movie. This movie is a lesson in itself – Zindagi badi honi chahiye lambi nahin. This song is so soothing and inspiring.

And towards the end, after Anand mara nahin, Anand marte nahin, we see the balloons flying taking us back to this song –
Jinhone sajaye yahaan mele
Sukh dukh sang sang jhele
Wohi chunkar khaamoshi
Yoon chale jaaye akele kahaan
Zindagi ……

2. Zindagi ek safar hai suhana (Andaaz, 1971) : Life’s unpredictable and we dont know what’s in store for us. So live the moment we have in hand to the fullest.
Maut aani hai aayegi ek din
Jaan jaani hai jayegi ek din
Aisi baaton se kya ghabraana

3. Zindagi ka safar hai yeh kaisa safar(Safar, 1970) : This song sums up what life’s all about – a journey. We all come to this world, live our lives and then go one day. When we are born, the only thing that we know for sure is that we are going to die someday. We neither know where  where life would take us and what it would make out of us. Then why do we fear death so much? Rajesh Khanna was one actor who romanced death with as much ease as he romanced his heroines.
Maine maut ko dekha nahin
Par shayad woh badi khuoobsurat hogi
Kambakht jo bhi usse milta hai jeena chhod deta hai

And the lines below from this song of his actually make death come across as something inevitable and yet, beautiful.

Zindagi ko bahut pyaar humne diya
Maut se bhi mohabbat nibhayenge hum
Rote rote zamaane mein aaye magar
Hanste hanste zamaane se jayenge hum

4. Zindagi ke safar mein guzar jaate hai jo muqaam (Aap Ki Kasam, 1974) : I actually hated his role in this movie when I had first watched it when I was around 14 years old. I kept asking myself, he’s the hero, he’s supposed to know. How can he suspect his wife like that and ruin everybody’s life? Time that’s gone once never comes back again, it’s only the memories that remain and come back to haunt. To err is human, but does one pay so heavily for his mistakes?
Yunhi waqt chalta hi rehta hai rukta nahin…
Ek baar chale jaate hai jo din raat subah shaam woh, woh phir nahin aate

5. Zindagi pyaar ka geet hai (Souten, 1983) : It’s love that makes life beautiful but life’s not always about love and joy and happiness. Where there’s life, there’s death; where there’s despair, there’s hope, where there’s love, there’s pain….without pain, sorrows and tears one would never learn to appreciate the true value of happiness. No matter how tough things get in life, one should always try to see the silver lining in the cloud, should never give up hope.

Zindagi ek muskaan hai
Dard ki koi pehchaan hai….
Zindagi ek mehmaan hai chhod sansaar jaana padega

6. Zindagi sau baras ki (Awaaz, 1984) :  I haven’t seen this movie, so I dont know much about the characters and the situation in which it is picturized. But   it’s so rightly said, no matter how long one lives, life’s always uncertain. The only thing that’s certain about life is it’s end – the death.

7. Nafrat ki duniya ko chhod ke (Haathi Mere Saathi, 1971) : Oh, how I had loved this movie and I remember crying along during this song. Today, Kaka is no more, all I would want to tell him is –

Iss jhoot ki nagari se tod ke naata jaa mere pyaar
Amar rahe tera pyaar, khush rehna mere yaar

8. Ek andhera lakh sitare (Aakhir Kyun?, 1985) : Life’s a gift that god has given us and we should appreciate it. It’s not always easy to achieve what we want in life, but it’s the struggle that makes it worth it.

Sabse badi saugat hai jeevan
Nadaan hai jo jeevan se haare

Dukh se agar pehchan na ho toh
Kaisa sukh aur kaisi khushiyan
Toofanon se ladkar hi toh lagte hai sahil kitne pyaare

These are the songs that I could think of on life. Rajesh Khanna was not just an actor or a superstar, he was my hero, my teacher. If I started watching Hindi movies because of him and learnt the language, I also learnt some lessons of life from him, from his movies. It sounds crazy and senseless but that’s been his impact on me.

Amar Prem – Love is immortal.
Kuchh toh log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna
Chhodo bekar ki baaton mein beet na jaye raina

Haathi Mere Saathi – Love animals. Humans are selfish, they might stab you and betray you but animals would never do that

Safar : Life’s a journey and one has to keep moving ahead
Nadiya chale chale re dhara
Chanda chale chale re taara
Tujh ko chalna hoga

Aakhir Kyon : Leave your past behind and work towards making a brighter future
Beete hue kal ke khatir tu aane wala kal mat khona

Anand : I have learnt to live from this movie!

Aap Ki Kasam : Believe only half of what you see and nothing that you hear. Little knowledge is dangerous, try finding out the full version of the truth before reacting.

Sachcha Jhoota : Dont go by the looks, looks are often deceptive
Dil sachcha aur chehra jhoota

Dushman : Being truthful isnt easy, it needs courage to accept your mistakes.
Sachchai chhup nahin sakti banawat ke ausulon se

Bawarchi : The joy of spreading happiness around you. Do small things for people you love, it makes them feel special.

Aavishkaar : Nobody’s perfect. We all have our faults and weaknesses. Learn to accept people with their imperfections.

And the list would just go on and on……

My Dad says he saw Aradhana 23 times in theater.  I always used to keep telling him that he had contributed his bit in making Kaka a Superstar. I have a friend named Aradhna. She says her Dad named her so after watching the movie.

This reminds me of one incident  –  Aradhna was my classmate in college. And there was a guy named Anand too in our class. One of my best friends, Moses, and I were discussing movies one day during lunch break in class. And it just happened that Aradhana was his favourite movie and Anand mine. A normal discussion ended up in an argument as to which is better. At the end of it we were just screaming Anand! (Me), Aradhana! (him), Anand!, Aradhana!
That’s when the bell rang and everybody walked into the classroom. Anand and Aradhna walked upto us and asked : What the hell’s going on? Why are you both fighting over us?

That was really hilarious!!!

I was in hostel during college days and we had only Doordarshan, that too with regional transmission most of the time. Moses used to call me and tell me everytime there was Anand coming on any of the cable channels and make me go green with jealousy. When I would go home during holidays, I would tell Dad – it’s been so long since I saw Anand. It’s one of those movies for which I have set an alarm and gone to sleep, then gotten up in the middle of the night to watch it. Something similar happened last week too. When I got up on Friday morning, I saw a post on one of the groups on facebook saying there was a special program (on making of Anand) on Vividh Bharati at 4 pm (IST), but by the time I saw it, the program was already over.  I found out the time of it’s repeat telecast, which was on Saturday morning, 10 AM (IST), that’s Friday night 12:30 AM for me. I set a reminder and tuned into Vividh Bharati at 12:30 AM just to listen to it.

There are so many incidents like these that make him and his films and his songs so special for me. We never lose people we love, they live in our hearts for ever.

Woh kal bhi paas paas tha
Woh aaj bhi kareeb hai

P.S. : A big thank you to Nisha for the banner!

He’s now beyond all pains and illness and am sure he had warm welcome up there. Rest in peace, Kaka!

Happy (belated) Birthday, Neetu Singh!

Two years ago, I had wanted to do a post on Neetu Singh but just ended up wishing her. Though I saw Do Kaliyaan that weekend, I couldn’t review it .

When I saw her at IIFA awards last week (on TV, of course!), I was just gazing at her, mesmerized. And I had promised myself to do a post dedicated to her. So, here I am!

I started with this post last week but couldn’t complete it because I got distracted and ended up watching her songs and interviews on youtube all day. Hopefully, I’ll be able to to finish it and publish it today.

Neetu, is one of the most bubbly and chulbuli actors till date. She looks good with all her co-actors but I personally feel she was at her best with Rishi. They are cuteness personified. In this post, I’m focussing on her solo songs. I know, she has featured in some of the best duets, but might as well save them up for some other occasion. For now, it’s her solo songs :

1. Bachche mann ke sachche (Do Kaliyan, 1968) : Too preachy at places, but cant help admiring the innocence of childhood either. Neetu looks super cute – simple and sweet, arrogant and proud all at the same time. I like the other version of this song better, it’s picturisation looks more natural and Neetu’s expressions are adorable but unfortunately it’s not her singing it on screen.

2. Jaa ri hawa chhed teri mohe nahin bhaye (Shatranj Ke Mohre, 1974) : She was a child actress just a few years ago and here she’s singing and dancing as a leading lady. Feels like she grew up right in front of our eyes! This is such a sweet and melodious song and she looks super cute dressed as a village belle. It’s such a carefree song – the way she goes around jumping around and dancing in the fields, wishing she was a butterfly. A live example of :
Madhosh ada yeh alhadpan
Bachpan to abhi rootha hi nahin

3. Kal raat usne sapne mein mujhe chheda ( Hawas, 1974) : She was in   “Main wohi, darpan wohi, Na jaane yeh kya hua, Sab kuch laage naya naya phase in the song above and now it’s the next phase. A typical gang of girls song. A girl sharing her dream with her girlfriends and enacting her lover. It’s more of a wishful thinking than a complain on her part. Very beautifully expressed and picturised with so much of masti. Everytime I see this song, it reminds me of my hostel days. Never knew this song  back then so never sang it but all the gossip about the latest crushes in girl’s hostel used to be a lot of fun. Even today, when we all get-together or just talk on the phone we laugh so much about those days and keep wondering how all those guys would react if they ever get to know how much they were discussed 😉

4. Nahin nahin jaana nahin (Zindadil, 1975) : A lovely song picturised against a very picturesque background on a very beautiful day and on one of the best couples ever! How long could Rishi resist her when she was singing and  pursuing him with so much of love. I love this song, I love Neetu in this, love her outfit, her boots – in short I love everything about this song.

5. Shyaam salona main hoon gori (Sharafat Chhod Di Maine, 1976) : There’s Hema dancing to it in parts, but that’s in Feroze’s memory and like the rest of the audience seated there, I choose to see only Neetu. No offence, I do love Hema  and she’s a great dancer but I haven’t come across any other song yet that features Neetu in this avataar.  Have seen her dancing to lots of other dance forms but not a classical. And any song, dance on Radha, Shyam and Gopis is always such a treat to watch, it’s one of my favourite themes. And this song (lyrics, dance, actors) does a complete justice to the theme.

6. Abhi zara si der mein (Maha Badmaash, 1977) : Ever since I have seen this song I’ve wanted to watch this movie. The name of the movie itself is pretty intriguing, has a very good-looking star-cast, a lovely song and a mysterious plot (at least that’s what this song suggests). She carries herself equally well in this hot and seductive number.

7. Tere bin kaise din (Priyatma, 1977) : Here’s Neetu emoting the song more than lip-syncing it. Her eyes speak volumes here –  her expressions bringing out the depth of the song, the sorrow is so well portrayed.

8. O chanda jiya chahe (Yuvaraaj, 1979) : Wishing to steal away the moon so that she could brighten up the night with it’s moonlight. And I feel like singing ek raat mein do do chaand khile, dono ke dono mere monitor pe, esp at 1:11 😛

The first time I heard this song, especially the first 2 lines, I was like – isn’t that exactly what chanda already does?  Then thought may be she wanted to preserve and lighten up the night on new moon. But by the time the song got over, I had fallen for it – Tu ho toh andhera bhi lagta hai bada pyaara – Haye haye! And I just had to see the video to like it even more.

9. Jhootha kahin ka (Jhootha Kahin Ka, 1979) : The chemistry these two share – be it romance, roothna-manana, sataana, jhagadna, or playing pranks, they are simply the best! She is a darling with that glint of mischief in her eyes.

10. Meri dooron se aayi baarat (Kaala Pathhar, 1979) : Well, this one’s not actually a solo song, a part of it is in chorus. But it’s Neetu’s song all way through, inspite of it being a multi-starrer. Songs at weddings are always so much fun (except for the ones on Vidaai). The color and flavour of this song is just so beautiful.

She was cute, sweet, beautiful, hot, had a great sex appeal and was a good actor too. She looks gorgeous even today and looks too young to be a grandmother.
At the age when other girls start thinking of making a career in movies, she retired to make a home.  And in the few years that she worked she earned a name, a place for herself in the industry and left a mark behind. We all love and admire her for her work, for what she is and for how she is. Here’s wishing her a great life ahead!

Happy Mother’s Day

Mother – The very first person who we learn to love in life and the one who we learn to love from.
Mother/Ma/Mom : The first word that a child learns to speak
Mother : Every child’s first teacher, role model, friend, confidante, guide, a necessity at every stage

It’s unbelievable that a person is capable of loving another so much. God forgot to set a limit to mother’s love. There’s this invisible bond that ties a mother to her child, no matter how far or near they are, a mother always seems to sense her child’s needs.

It’s strange how our relationship with our mothers changes with time – When we are small, our mother means the world to us. Then as we grow, we make friends and move ahead in life. We are in such a great hurry to grow up that we dont like mom fussing over us, we find her love and care irritating. We find her over possessive. And then one day we realize that she’s someone who’s always been there with us through thick and thin, always giving us all her support, someone who we can always rely on, someone who we can share everything with, someone who always has something nice to say, a best friend one can ever get.

It usually happens that we realize only too late in life that we should have spent a little more time with our parents, given them more importance – that’s something they deserve. Why does it always happen that we tend to take people who mean the most to us for granted? Why do we always expect them to understand and spare us for somebody else? We all love our mothers, our parents, but just loving them is not enough. We also need to show it, tell them how much they mean to us. It makes them feel so much happier.

Mothers are special and we need to make them feel so more often, not just on this day. This post is dedicated to all the wonderful mothers out there –

1. Koi aane wala hai (Mera Qasoor Kya Hai,1964) : The delight that a couple feels when they realize that they are expecting and all that they do to welcome their child into this world is something that can be never expressed in words. Just the news of a child’s arrival fills their life with so much of happiness.
Aane se pehle hai woh mere nigahon mein
Ankhiyan bichhaye baitha main bhi hoon raahon mein
The joy of impending parenthood is depicted so beautifully in this song.

2. Mera sooraj hai tu (Aradhna, 1969) : This song has become symbolic representation of a mother-son relationship in Hindi films. Be it a son or a daughter, a child is always the apple of mother’s eyes. With time, things change, we grow, our priorities in life change, but one thing that always remains constant is mother’s love. It’s something that can only increase with time.

3.Chanda mama door ke (Vachan, 1955): Feeding a child, putting him/her to sleep is not an easy task. Mother has to run behind the child, play with them, play multiple roles at the same time and yet a mother never complains of it. Bringing up a child is a full-time job. Only a mother can manage work, home, children at the same time and that too with such perfection.

4.Tu kitni achhi hai, tu kitni bholi hai (Raja Aur Runk, 1968) : A mother’s thought is never alone, it always has her children in them. She spends sleepless nights changing karvats, I mean diapers and attending to her child and yet she never tires. She finds happiness in her child’s happiness, her heart breaks into million pieces when she sees her child hurt. Her child’s well-being is everything that a Mother ever asks for.
Mere liye jaagi hai tu saari saari ratiyaan,
Meri nindiyaan pe apni nindiyaan bhi
Tune maari hai, o maa o maa

5. Maa mujhe apne aanachal mein chhupa le (Chhota Bhai, 1966) : We usually take our mothers for granted and dont value them as much as we should. They deserve a lot more than what we give them. And no matter how big we grow and how successful we become, we will always feel the need for our mothers in life. Life without a mother is just so incomplete.

6. Usko nahin dekha humne kabhi (Dadi Maa, 1966) : How can we talk about mothers and not talk about this song. I still remember the first time I had heard this song on radio when I was in hostel, along with Tu kitni achhi hai, I had literally cried. If there’s anybody on earth who’s equivalent to god, then it has to be our mothers.

7. Chham chham chham chale woh ma (Sahara, 1958) : Parents always want everything to be the best for their children. It’s a mother’s love and care that moulds a child to what he/she becomes later on. It’s always the mother who lays the foundation, teaches her child to love, learn, dream, hope, forgive and the list just goes on and on.

8. Mere ghar aayi ek nanhi pari (Kabhi Kabhi, ) : Another example of how an arrival of a child brings in so much of happiness to parents. Their entire life begins revolving around their child. For every parent, their child is always the best in the world and they can go to any extent to protect them and to make their dreams come true.
Dekh kar us ko jee nahin bharta
Chaahe dekhun usse hajaar baar

9. Main kabhi batlata nahin (Taaren Zameen Par, 2007) : Tujhe sab hai pata, hai na Ma – that part is so touching! One of those few songs of recent times that I really like. This a song that we all can relate ourselves to – At one point of time or the other we all have felt the same way. It reminds me so much of the day I left home and went to hostel for the first time.

10. Maa meri maa (Dasvidhaniya,2008) : It’s strange how we find mothers fussing over us irritating but when we are away from them, that’s exactly what we crave for the most.

It’s been almost 13 years I’ve been away from home, from my parents.  And everytime I call home, the first thing mom says is – I was waiting for your call the whole day. If I call in the morning today and in the evening the following day, she says – it’s been ages since I spoke to you.

Her day remains incomplete if any of us (my brother, sister and me) dont call and speak to her.  Any child in the neighbourhood learns to speak and she starts talking about how we were at that age, the way we used to pronounce certain words. Everything that happens around her in her day today life reminds her of us. At times it’s hard to believe that she manages to live without us.

Mothers are little emotional, their love knows no boundaries, they always think that we are too young to take care of ourselves and we cannot do anything right….but that’s how god has made mothers and we love them the way they are. Happy Mothers Day! 🙂

P.S : I came across this song in one of the musical groups in facebook this morning. It’s so good I  just couldnt help sharing it here –
Maa, pyaari maa, godh mein teri khela bachpan

Rafi fest – Birthday Special (I)

Dharmendra (8th), Dilip Kumar (11th), Raj Kapoor (15th, 14th), Biswajeet (15th), Naushad (24th, 25th), Rafi (24th), Rajesh Khanna (29th) – This post and the ones that will follow are dedicated to all these birthday boys.

My initial plan was to do one song with lyrics per day, whole of this month. But work demanded more of me, so couldn’t stick to the original plan.

I wont say all the songs that I’m posting here today are the ones that I have come across recently. They are just relatively less heard of. And some of them are songs which I’ve heard pretty often but noticed only now.

1. Na jaane kyun hamare dil ko tumne dil nahin samjha (Mohabbat Zindagi Hai, 1966) : I had first heard this song long long ago (dont remember where exactly, either we had a cassette/LP record at home or had heard it on radio) but had first seen it’s video when I had read the review of this movie on memsaab’s blog. And then had completely forgotten about it until I heard it on radio couple of weeks back. And now all of a sudden it’s pouring in everywhere! I dont know how I could forget such a great song in the first place! Though I wouldn’t call the video great, the song itself is amazing -with all chhed-chhad, haseen gile-shikwe wala lyrics and music. S.H Bihari is the lyricist and O.P Nayyar the music director. And all the songs featuring here this month are sung by Rafi! So that doesn’t even need to be explicitly mentioned.
Totally love  Tumhi ne jaan le li aur tumhe qaatil nahin samjha – the way it’s sung and picturized!

2. Tumhari mulaquat se (Mohabbat Zindagi Hai, 1966) : A more subdued one but so highly romantic!  If Dharam was trying to force himself too much on her in the previous song, in this he appears to have fallen for her at the very first sight. It’s such a beautifully written song – The way it describes the realization of one’s own emotions on meeting someone is so sweet. And it has more of happiness and acceptance to it than awe, making not just Dharmendra but even the one watching the song feel so good about him finding his love. He’s following her everywhere, holding her handbag and even sandals! His antics are really cute and adorable 🙂
Dharam looks even more garam in his shorts! Love Rafi’s restrained rendition inspite of all the paagalpan that goes on in the song, even the ‘hoye’ is sung with so much of control.

3. Yakeen karlo mujhe mohabbat hai tumse (Yakeen, 1969) : Sounds more like a Shammi Kapoor/Joy Mukherjee type song. This time around it’s our glam queen in shorts and uff her adas and nakhras! It’s as though Dharam is on patao-the-heroine spree. Watching the video makes me feel like they are playing catch-me-if-you-can!  But he does get lucky in this one towards the end. Like harvey mentioned, Dharmila jodi is so awesome! They share such a cute chemistry! Apart from being fun,  it’s such a catchy song. The magic of Rafi, Shankar-Jaikishan and Hasrat Jaipuri! I love the rise and fall of notes especially in ‘Tumhari tasveer hai nazar mein, charag jaise ho rehguzar mein‘…the way mein part suddenly drops down.

4. Baharon ki baarat aa gayi (Yakeen, 1969) : No, I wasn’t actually planning to do Ek Hi Film se, but it just sort of happened. Though I had heard both these songs before, I had never paid much attention to them. I heard Gar tum bhoola na doge from this movie on radio sometime back and then checked it out on youtube. I had no idea it was picturized on Dharmila. And I found these in the related links section. Surprisingly these two songs didnt gain the popularity of Gar tum bhoola na doge. This song does remind me of Kaun hai jo sapno mein aaya (Jhuk Gaya Aasmaan) and Chala jaata hoon kisi ki dhoon mein (Mere Jeevan Saathi). Must be the picturization but am wondering if Dharam too meets with an accident after the song. I didnt quite like this song when I saw  it the first time but it has grown on me. I really like the way ‘Suno toh mere dil, suno toh meri jaan, hothon pe dil ki baaaaaat aa gayi‘ is sung. The type puncture sequence is funny. The last antara is different in video and audio. Audio version has –
Honge muthi mein dono jahaan, jis ghadi main unhe paunga
Chaand suraj ke dole mein phir, apne ghar par unhe launga

5. Dil kahe ruk ja re ruk ja (Mann Ki Aankhen, 1970) : I heard this on radio few days ago and instantly fell in love with it. It wasn’t the first time I had heard it. I find it so strange that there are some songs which I have  heard all my life but never noticed. And one fine day, I hear it on radio and suddenly realize how good it is and get addicted to it. Wonder if the mood that I’m in has anything to do with it. But I saw the video for the first time last week. It reminded me a little of Suhana safar aur yeh mausam haseen and a little of Yeh kaun chitrakaar hai. This lovely song is written by Sahir and composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal.
Ruk ja re ruk ja makes me want to stop doing whatever I’m doing and just let the song take over.

Songs picturized on other actors (birthday boys) will come up in a day or two, as and when time permits.

Rafi Fest – Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya

Couldn’t have enough of Shammi Kapoor in yesterday’s post. So here’s one more song picturised on him.  Though I had heard this song a couple of times on radio, I saw it only recently when a friend had sent me the youtube link.

I find this song very entertaining! It’s so much fun to both listen and watch. Fast and lively music (OP Nayyar), fun-filled lyrics (Majrooh Sultanpuri), masti bhara andaaz of gaayeki and pehskash. Handsome Shammi, charming Nalini and Rafi’s addictive voice…what more could I ask for.

(Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya
Haye mujhe pe pe pe pe pyaar ho gaya) – 2
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya

(Dil dhadakta hai kadam badhte nahin aaghe
Tu woh qatil hai ke aashiq door se bhaage) – 2
Ban gaye fande magar yeh zulf ke dhaage
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya
Haye mujhe pe pe pe pe pyaar ho gaya
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya…..

(Tere honthon ka yeh rass, aakhon ka yeh jaadoo
Oho yeh kya keh gaya main hoke bekaabu ) – 2
Ho bada achha agar kuch bhi na samjhe tu
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya
Haye mujhe pe pe pe pe pyaar ho gaya
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya…..

(De de dekho yeh haalat ho gayi ab toh
Qa qa qa qayamat ho gayi ab toh) – 2
Mo mo mo mohabbat ho gayi ab toh
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya
Haye mujhe pe pe pe pe pyaar ho gaya
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya…..

Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya
Haye mujhe pppppyaar ho gaya
Tere aaghe bolna dushwaar ho gaya…..

Rafi fest – Ek nazar ek ada keemat-e-dil

I had mentioned about Rafi-Shammi jodi in yesterday’s post, so couldn’t resist posting one of their songs. But I had started this series to share some songs which are not very popular and the ones that I’ve come across only in the recent past.So, that rules out most of the famous Rafi-Shammi songs.

I came across this song just a few days ago on youtube. Though this song doesnt have the lethal effect that most of their other songs have,   it’s still a good song. Something with Rafi and Shammi in it can never be bad! (I cant vouch for the movie…but the songs, yes):-)

I find a striking resemblance in the picturisation of Yun toh humne lakh haseen dekhe hai and this, but it lacks the chemistry between the lead actors of the former and is not as spicy. There’s something missing in it, it feels incomplete. If only Jabeen Jaleel was little more expressive here and her response was a little karara….

It’s a great song to listen to and it’s always a pleasure to watch Shammi but  it’s picturisation fails to keep me glued to it. So, for me this one’s more of Rafi song than a Rafi-Shammi song.

When I first heard the prelude, I thought it was so OP Nayyarish, with the signature tonga beats and all. But checked and found out that it was Bipin-Babul’s composition. It was written by Vishwamitra Adil.

Shammi Kapoor rose to fame with Tumsa Nahin Dekha and most of his movies after that are very popular. It looks like this one just got lost somewhere. Since, it’s so rarely talked about, I always thought it was one of his pre-1957 films.

Aa ah ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ho ho ho
Ek nazzar ek ada, keemat-e- dil aur hai kya
Ha ha… ek nazar ek ada, keemat-e-dil aur hai kya
Ho ho ek nazar….

(Gaal surk hai, chup zubaan hai
Ho na ho koi meherbaan hai) – 2
Kaun hai woh kaho jaane jigar
Ha ha ek nazar ek ada, keemat dil aur hai kya
Ha ha ek nazzar….

Waha waha…

(Uljhi saans kyun dil pe haath kyun
Dil diya toh aisi baat kyun) – 2
Aankh ladegi toh hoga asar
Ek nazar ek ada, keemat-e- dil aur hai kya
Haan  ek nazar

Zulfon mein hai kya, arey gaal par hai kya
Kho  gayi hai jo, woh nazar hai kya
Ha ha ha ha ha ha…chhed chaad ka kaam kar gayi
Hoth khil gaye latt bikhar gayi
Lena ji ab zara apni khabar
Ek nazar ek ada, keemat-e-dil aur hai kya
Ha ha… ek nazar

(Chhodo in adaaon mein dum nahin
Tum haseen ho hum bhi kum nahin ) – 2
Ho na yahin (?) pe milao nazar
Haye…ek nazar ek ada, keemat-e-dil aur hai kya
Ha ha… ek nazar ek ada, keemat-e-dil aur hai kya

Rafi Fest – Abhi na phero nazar

I first came across this song when a friend had shared it’s link on facebook and was totally smitten. What a heavenly creation it is! *Sigh*!!!!

Superb lyrics, soothing and awesome music, divinely beautiful voice, great picturisation – everything’s  just so perfect about it. I dont know who the lyricist was but music’s by Chitragupta.   It’s from a 1966 film named Biradari. Though I’m a greater fan of Rafi-Shammi combination, I have to admit that Rafi and Shashi combination is equally lethal and intoxicating, especially in this one!

Aate ho satane ko, jaate ho rulane ko
Is aane ko kya kahiye, is jaane ko kya kahiye

Abhi na phero nazar zindagi sawaar toh le
Ke dil ke sheeshe mein hum aap ko utaar toh le
Abhi na phero nazar

Kareeb aake zara kismat jaga lene do – 2
Chamakte rukh se koi jalwa chura lene do
Ke hum bhi pyaar ke din jhoom ke guzaar toh le
Ke dil ke sheeshe mein hum aap ko utaar toh le
Abhi na phero nazar

Mere chaman mein koi aaya baaharein leke – 2
Jawan nazar mein mohabbat ke phuhare leke
Abhi baaharon se hum gulsitan nikhaar toh le
Ke dil ke sheeshe mein hum aap ko utaar toh le
Abhi na phero nazar

Tere deewane teri ulfat liye baithe hai – 2
Taraste dil mein yehi hasrat Iiye baithe hai
Ke ab na keh ke kabhi aapko pukar toh le
Ke dil ke sheeshe mein hum aap ko utaar toh le
Abhi na phero nazar zindagi sawaar toh le
Abhi na phero nazar