Dil Dhadakne Do- Short Review, Long Film

This film could have benefited from a good editor. At least, the message of the film would have got through. It's not a new message, either. That kids need to make their own choices, and khandan ki izzat (family pride, that priceless entity) can take a hike.

All the seventies Bollywood films pretty much had the same message, and some of them were more effective in communicating it. I agree the director gets to decide how to tell a story, but the narrative style is really boring and long-winded in this one, sorry to say.

Ho-hum, with a few good scenes which come late in the second half, after you have long given up. Avoid. And watch any seventies film instead.

Artists at Their Peak

There is something special about artists who are at their peak form. I am going to talk of a few Hindi music and film greats that I remember. All of them made an impact.

The sixties and seventies saw a few singers at their greatest form. These include Kishore Kumar, Mohammad Rafi, Manna Dey, Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle. My favourites were Kishore and Asha, but all of them produced many great songs. There were also heroes at their peak. Rajesh Khanna (Aradhana, Kati Patang, Anand, Aap ki Kasam), Dharmendra (Aadmi aur Insaan, Aankhen, Blackmail, up to Yadon ki Baraat) , Dev Anand (from Jewel Thief to Johny Mera Naam), Sanjeev Kumar (Manchali, Manoranjan, Koshish, Aandhi, Sholay) and so on.

Of course, in music, we had RD Burman, Laxmikant Pyarelal, Kalyanji Anandji who dominated the landscape, with their superhit numbers. Filmmakers in my view included Basu Chatterji (Rajnigandha, Chitchor, Chhoti si Baat, Shaukeen), Hrishikesh Mukherjee (Golmaal, Chupke Chupke), Gulzar (Parichay, Aandhi), and Nasir Husain (Yaadon Ki Baraat, Hum Kisise Kum Nahin), Manmohan Desai (Amar Akbar Anthony, Roti). Govind Nihalani with Aakrosh and Ardh Satya.

In classical Hindustani music, we had Bhimsen Joshi, unparalleled in many ways. In instrumentals, Shiv Kumar Sharma and Hariprasad Chaurasia. whom I have also heard live. Ghulam Ali, Pankaj Udhas and Mehdi Hasan, and Jagjit Singh in ghazals.

I feel fortunate that so many of these artists were at the peak and I along with my friends and contemporaries enjoyed their wonderful performances.

Corny Love Songs

Jaagi badan mein jwaala, from a movie called Izzat made in 1968. It is an item number, in the tradition of  Hindi films of that vintage- extras in village belle costumes gyrating to charming, old-world dance steps, heaving bosons (sorry, bosoms), et. al. But the surprise part is the lead dancer or in today's lingo- 'item' girl. None other than Jayalalitha. Yes, the same. Search for this song on youtube if you don't believe me. I happened to discover it while listening to Ameen Sayani's Binaca Geet Mala ki chhaon mein.

Corny songs of love abound in Bollywood, and sixties and seventies had a huge number of decent ones where the heroes and heroines were-well, running around the trees, singing songs. We used to joke that the music director is hiding in the bushes to provide music to the couple.

Some good ones I remember lovingly from that era are-

Bekhudi mein sanam uth gaye jo kadam...

Yeh dil diwana hai, dil to diwana hai, diwana dil hai yeh, dil diwana..

Yeh raaten yeh mausam nadi ka kinara yeh chanchal hawa

Yeh duniyawale poochenge, mulaqat hui kya baat hui,

O Nigaahen mastana, dekh samaa hai suhaana..

Main sitaron ka tarana main baharon ka phasaana leke ek angdai hum pe dal nazar ban ja diwana

Haal kaisa hai janab ka

Are yaar meri tum bhi ho ghazab..

Likha hai teri aankhon mein kiska afsaana..

Achcha to hum chalte hain..

Yeh reshmi zulfein, yeh sharbati aankhen, inhe dekh kar

Karwatein badalte rahein saari raat hum..aapki kasam..

Hum dono do premee duniya chhod chalein..

Almost all songs of Julie and Jawani Diwani.

Kasme Vade nibhayenge hum..

Tumne kisi se kabhi pyaar kiya hai..

Kya khoob lagti ho, badi sundar dikhti ho..

Neele parbaton ki dhaara aayi dhoondhne kinara badi door se..

Hamaare siwa tumhare aur kitne diwane hain (Apradh, Feroz Khan)

O mere Raja

Gulabi aankhen jo teri dekhi sharabi yeh dil ho gaya

Hey, Maine kasam li, hey, tune kasam li..nahin honge juda hum..

Chudi nahin yeh mera dil hai..

Shokhiyon mein ghola jaaye.

Tum aagaye ho, noor aa gaya hai..


Another genre of songs I want to explore is the 'piano' songs. So many had the hero strumming the piano keys (or banging them)..to comic or tragic effect ( at least for the piano)..some other time.