I never get tired of listening to him. His voice is full of life. I must have first heard him in the late sixties, on radio when I was around 8 or 9. The early songs may have been Yeh dil, na hota bechara, from Jewel Thief, and then the delectable Mere sapnon ki rani kab aayegi tu from Aradhana. I still listen to these two.
In between, the range of songs I heard and liked grew into a big number. Almost all Rajesh Khanna films had him, and so did most Dev Anand films. Pal bhar ke liye koi hamein pyar kar le, picturised on Dev Anand and Hema Mailini was a favourite those days, and so was the duet from the same film (Johny Mera Naam) -O mere Raja,..and still are.
Hum the woh thi aur samaa rangeen was my favourite among many lovely songs in Chalti ka Naam Gaadi, and his own acting was even better. Paanch rupiah baarah aana, also for its innovative lyrics. The film called Padosan was non-stop fun, in large part due to his singing and acting.
He also sang some superb songs in relatively unknown films- only the songs are remembered today. Pyar maanga hai tumhise from College Girl, Tum kitni khoobsurat ho fro Jangal Mein Mangal, O hansini from Zahreela Insaan, Aise na mujhe tum dekho from Darling Darling are some examples.
His duets from Aandhi are probably the best ever. And there were three in the film. Other duets that are memorable, for me Koi maane ya na maane, from Adhikaar, Pyar hua hai jab se, Mere meet bata, Tu laali hai savere wali, Gore rang pe na itna gumaan kar, Maar gayi mujhe teri judaai, Jaisa des waisa bhes phir kya darna, Neend churake raaton mein, Tum bhi chalo hum bhi chalen chalti rahe zindagi,..
Soulful songs? Those were in plenty also- Ajnabi, tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho is one standout song in this category. Mere mehboob qayamat hogi is another. All his songs from Amar Prem too.
Qawwali? He sang one in Anokhi Ada in this style- Haal kya hai dilon ka na poocchho sanam. Bhajan? Jai Govindam, Jai Gopalam (a parody), with the funniest lines- peechhe pad gaya income taxum, etc..
Nonsense lyrics? Ina mina dika, ..
In between, the range of songs I heard and liked grew into a big number. Almost all Rajesh Khanna films had him, and so did most Dev Anand films. Pal bhar ke liye koi hamein pyar kar le, picturised on Dev Anand and Hema Mailini was a favourite those days, and so was the duet from the same film (Johny Mera Naam) -O mere Raja,..and still are.
Hum the woh thi aur samaa rangeen was my favourite among many lovely songs in Chalti ka Naam Gaadi, and his own acting was even better. Paanch rupiah baarah aana, also for its innovative lyrics. The film called Padosan was non-stop fun, in large part due to his singing and acting.
He also sang some superb songs in relatively unknown films- only the songs are remembered today. Pyar maanga hai tumhise from College Girl, Tum kitni khoobsurat ho fro Jangal Mein Mangal, O hansini from Zahreela Insaan, Aise na mujhe tum dekho from Darling Darling are some examples.
His duets from Aandhi are probably the best ever. And there were three in the film. Other duets that are memorable, for me Koi maane ya na maane, from Adhikaar, Pyar hua hai jab se, Mere meet bata, Tu laali hai savere wali, Gore rang pe na itna gumaan kar, Maar gayi mujhe teri judaai, Jaisa des waisa bhes phir kya darna, Neend churake raaton mein, Tum bhi chalo hum bhi chalen chalti rahe zindagi,..
Soulful songs? Those were in plenty also- Ajnabi, tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho is one standout song in this category. Mere mehboob qayamat hogi is another. All his songs from Amar Prem too.
Qawwali? He sang one in Anokhi Ada in this style- Haal kya hai dilon ka na poocchho sanam. Bhajan? Jai Govindam, Jai Gopalam (a parody), with the funniest lines- peechhe pad gaya income taxum, etc..
Nonsense lyrics? Ina mina dika, ..
