Songs Picturised on Sanjeev Kumar

 There have been some great songs picturised on him, just like they were On Rajesh Khanna or Dev Anand or Sanjeev Kumar. 

Shaadi ke liye razamand kar li, maine ek ladki pasand kar li

O manchali kahaan chali

Tere bina zindagi se koi shikwa nahi

Is mod se jaate hain

Tum aa gaye ho, noor aa gaya hai

Dil dhoondhta hai phir wahi fursat ke raat din

Jadugar tere naina

Meri bheegi bheegi si

Hawa ke saath saath ghata ke sang sang

Khilona jaan kar tum to..

Potential Quizzes

 What/Who comes to your mind, when you see these words?

1. The Skull Cave/Col. Worobu/Guran

2. Gestures Hypnotically

3. Ina Mina Dika

4. Chupke Chupke Raat Din

5. Ek taraf uska ghar, ek taraf maikada

6. Gori tera gaon bada pyara

7. Ye kya ho raha hai?

8. Bindiya chamkegi, choodi khankegi

9. Woh kagaz ki kashti, woh baarish ka pani

10. Made in India

11. Shola jo bhadke dil mera dhadke

12. Hum kale hain to kya hua dilwale hain?

13. Tu auron ki kyun ho gayi?

14. Dil mein ek lehar si uthi hai abhi

dialogue

1. Mogambo khush hua

2. Peene ka pani alag, gutter ka pani alag

3. Behno aur bhaiyon..

4. Lilly, don't be silly

5. Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahi, naamumin hai

6. Babu moshai,...

7. Ek chutki sindoor ki keemat tum kya jano.

8. Ye kya ji, goda chatur, goda chatur? 

9. Pushpa, I hate tears.

10. kkk..Kiran..

Weird Translations of Hindi Film Songs

 These are Hindi film songs, translated into English. We played this game when young and stupid.. ha ha.

1. Ok, I am going. See you again tomorrow.

2. Stop stop stop, stop my dear..

3. Smoke your joint, sorrows get wiped out..

4. Where will you get such a chance again?

5. Today tomorrow our love story is on every tongue..

6. Your dreams and mine are one colour now

7. Two words only, story of the heart..

8. In the window opposite mine, lives a piece of the Moon.

9. A clever woman, after decking up..

10. A wet, wet girl, sleeps at night as if awake..

Favourite Songs From the 70s

 Most of my favourite songs are from the period 1969- 79.

Aradhana, from 1969, is why I also included 1969 in the decade. Another film that had good songs was Mahal, also from 1969. Aankhon aankhon ein hum tum ho gaye deewane, Yeh duniyawale poochhenge, and Aaiye aap ka tha hamein intezaar were three good songs.

Phoolon ke rang se, Shokhiyon mein ghola jaaye, from Prem Pujari, and Dil aaj shayar hai, and Chudi nahi ye mera dil hai.. are songs from Dev Anand films that are top of my list, during this period.

Rajesh Khanna had several films with hit songs, Kati Patang among the top ones- Pyar Deewana hota ahi, Ye jo mohabbat hai, and Ye shaam mastaani, were three great songs from that film.

Amar Prem was another with Chingari koi bhadke, Kuchh to log kahenge and Ye kya hua, were three gems. Again with Rajesh Khanna in them.

Aap ki Kasam and Mere Jeevan Sathi had great songs too- Zindagi ke safar mein guzar jaate hain jo makaam from the first, and Chala jaata hoon kisi ki dhun mein, O mere dil ke chain, Deewana leke aaya hai from the second were great.

Hare Rama hare Krishna had Dum Maro Dum, and Sholay had Mehbooba, mehbooba..

Rajesh Roshan entered with a big bang in Julie, and Dil kya kare, and Bhool gaya sab kuchh were great songs from that film. 

Apradh and Dharmatma by Feroz Khan had good songs too. I liked Hamare siwa tumhare aur kitne deewane hain, and Tum Mile pyar se, from Apradh, and Tere chehre mein woh jadu hai from Dharmatma.

Rajnigandha had its captivating title song, and Chitchor had several, sung so well by Yesudas- Gori tera gaon bada pyara and Aaj se pehle, and Tu jo mere sur mein.

Jawani deewani had great songs like Jaane jaan dhoondhta phir raha.. and Ye jawani hai deewani, and Samne ye kaun aaya dil mein hui hulchul.

Namak haram was another film of Rajesh Khanna with great songs like Main shayar badnaam and Nadiya se dariya..

Gol maal had the song Aanewala pal jaanewala hai.

Parichay had a favourite of mine- Musafir hoon yaaro..

Aandhi had 3 great songs- Tere bina zindagi se koi shikwa, Tum aa gaye ho, noor aa gaya hai, and Is mod se jaate hain.

Music and Me

 I have grown up with film music-Hindi. And still love the older songs. Added some ghazal and non-film music due to various influences, but film songs continue to be my first love, due to the longer association. I am a regular radio listener, and as I write this, am listening to Amit Khanna, lyricist, present a special Jaimala on Vividh Bharathi.

He is most known for songs like Chalte Chalte, mere ye geet yaad rakhna (Bappi Lahiri tuned it), and I like many of his songs from Des Pardes or other Dev Anand films. Dev Anand persuaded him to come into Mumbai, and films.

Songs that made an impact on me were mostly Kishore Kumar in my younger days. It may be a coincidence, but I am only 3 hours from where he grew up-Khandwa.

Music Group Themes I Hosted

 I am part of a music group devoted to Hindi songs, film and non-film. We have a weekly host who runs a theme, around which members have to post songs. I had a theme related to lyricists with place names-Indori, Jaipuri, Bhopali, Sultanpuri etc. This was my report at the end of that week.

Theme Owner Report for Bhopal se Jaipur.

Behno aur bhaiyo,

Is hafte phir JCB jaag utha. An Uttar Bharat discovery tour! Pilibhiti, Kashmiri, three Jaipuris and a couple of Lakhnavis were unexpected. Ek Hyderabadi bhi nikla, dhoondhne ke baad. With a tadka from Panipatis and Dewasis and so on.. Gorakhpuri and Kanpuri were somewhat expected. And some were really far out, unknown to me at least. Shows how committed to digging our members are- even more than Bangalore (or Chennai) road-diggers! Came up with gold. Heartening for me were also the plethora of black and white era songs, most of which were both lyrical AND tuneful. Naturally! MSMTans ko Soorma (Bhopali) ghoshit kar diya jaaye, after this sterling performance. Binaca geet mala style bigul bhi bajaaya jaaye, is Khushi ko zahir karte hue..

I started out imagining that 5-6 mainstream poets/lyricists would dominate. How wrong I was, and happy to be! Good to have Indira back, and Ratnamadhavi, adding 4 moons to the theme. Students ki last minute entry ki aadat ab tak barkaraar hai, ye Ishita ne saabit kar diya. 😊

Admins. ko salaam, aur sabhi doston ko Ram ram, meri agli theme tak. I am hoping to meet at least one MSMT member this weekend, magar let it remain a secret till it happens.. 😊

Rajendra

Jan 29-Feb. 3, 2023

What Makes a Film Watchable?

 This is a million dollar question, and if any predictive analyst, or fortune-teller can tell, the producer will be eternally grateful. I have been a movie-goer for at least 50 years, and I don't know for sure the answer as to why I watch a particular film.

One is, it is situational. Like a friend and you decide to go out, and a film just appears as a viable option. But which one? You may like a hero/heroine/director and decide on that basis. Or, a good review you read or saw on TV may persuade you. Also, your friends saw it and so you want to. 

In the sixties or seventies, there was no TV in India, and we were starved for entertainment. So we ended up watching almost every film - Hindi in my case, and a few Telugu films as I lived in Hyderabad. Many were good, though a bit theatrical, but usually had decent story, acting and production values, though technology was not too advanced, and not digital. They were also long, about 2 and a half to three hours, as they had to deliver value for money.

Anand, Sholay, Hare Rama Hare Krishna, Anjaana, Jhuk Gaya Aasmaan, Aadmi aur Insaan (the song Zindagi, ittefaq hai is in this one), Teesri Manzil, Jewel Thief, Tere Mere Sapne, Zanjeer, Chupke Chupke, Rajnigandha, The Train, Roti, Amar Akbar Anthony, Love in Tokyo, Namak Halaal, were some films I remember from the seventies. Aradhana's songs are still popular. So is Gulabi aankhen jo teri dekhi from The Train. Many songs had an impact, and drove people to watch the movie! 

Among recent ones, (eighties and later), Ayushman Khurana films, or Sriram Raghavan-directed films have been usually good. Happy Bhag Jayegi was very good, and I watched it because it was shown in our auditorium at IIM Indore. I liked Finding Fanny also, and a few others on diverse subjects-Vicky Donor, about a sperm donor, or Bareilly ki Barfi, about a small-town girl. Bahubali was great for its special effects, and casting. RRR and KGF were watchable and entertaining as spectacles. 

So I guess there's no formula, really. Lost and found worked for a while, with Yaadon Ki Baraat, but the film was well-made with great music too...Chura liya hai tumne jo dil ko is a classic.

English Translations of Hindi Songs

 Attempting some literal translations.

-Want to tell you, tell you, Today I want to tell you for the first time..

        Kehna hai kehna hai, aaj tumse

-I was going by the road. 

          Main to raste se ja raha tha.

-Mad fellow has come bearing a song of the heart

          Deewana leke aaya hai dil ka taraana

-Look mother, your boy is getting spoilt

           Amma dekh, tera munda bigda jaaye

-From your world, I am going away helpless

           Teri duniya se hoke majboor chala..

-Other than me, how many admirers do you have?

            Hamare siwa, tumhare aur kitne deewane hain?

-When my magic is in the air, nobody can escape.

            Jab chhaye, mera jadu, koi bach na paaye

-Each better than the other, I've got gifts galore

             Ek se badh kar ek, main layi hoon tohfe anek

Rafiology or Songs by Rafi

 Though I am a bigger fan of Kishore Kumar, there are some superb songs sung by Mohammad Rafi that I like a lot. A sample-

1. Nazar na lag jaye kisi ki rahon mein.

2. Gulabi ankhen jo teri dekhi

3. Bekhudi mein sanam

4. Nisultana re pyar ka mausam aaya

5. O haseena zulfonwali jane jahaan

6. O mere shahe khuba o meri jane jhanaana

7. Main kahin kavi na ban jaun tere pyar mein ae Kavita

8. Baharon ki baraat aa gayi..

9. Jiya o jiya o jiya kuchh bol do..

10. Main zindagi ka saath nibhaata chala gaya..

Top Ten of RD Burman

 Ten is an arbitrary number, but maybe I will expand it another day. My personal favourites-

1. O mere dil ke chain

2. Chala jaata hoon kisi ki dhun mein

3. Yeh shaam mastani

4. Gum hai kisi ke pyar mein

5. Chingari koi bhadke

6. Musafir hoon yaaro

7. Dum maro dum

8. Zindagi ke safar mein guzar jate hain jo makaam..

9. Aaj unse pehli mulaqaat hogi

10. Kiska rasta dekhe 

Romancing the Song

 The title is inspired by the English film I saw called Romancing the Stone-very entertaining film. But this is about Hindi film songs. We have a huge number of romantic songs in our films. Recalling a few on the occasion of Valentine's Day (need an excuse, that's all).

Choodi nahi yeh mera dil hai..

O mere dil ke chain

Aaja sanam madhur chandni mein hum tum

O mere sona re sona re sona re

Wada karo jaanam, na chhodoge yeh daaman, zamaana chahe chhoote

Bekhudi mein sanam uth gaye jo kadam, aa gaye paas hum

Tumko mere dil ne pukara hai bade naaz se..

Tum mile pyar se mujhe jeena gawara hua

Piya piya piya mora jiya pukare

Meri neendon mein tum mere khwabon mein tum..

Chura liya hai tumne jo dil ko nazar nahin churana sanam

Main kahin kavi na ban jaun tere pyar mein ae Kavita

Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To Aisa Laga

No, I am not recounting my experience, though I could. This is a tribute to my favourite music composer R.D. Burman, whose Death anniversary was January 4th. One of his last films was 1942, a Love Story, from which I have chosen this song, Ek ladki ko..

He was a fabulous composer, and I will only recount what I remember off the cuff, from his vast repertoire of songs, with a categorisation of my own-

Innovative- Jaane jaan dhoondhta phir raha., Dum maro dum, mit jaaye gham,...

Philosophical- Musafir hoon yaaron, na ghar hai na thikaana, Aanewala pal, jaanewala hai, Chingari koi bhadke,..

Romantic- Ek ajnabi haseena se, Pyar deewana hota hai mastana hota hai, O mere dil ke chain, Kehna hai, kehna hai, aaj tumse yeh pehli baar, gulabi aankhen jo teri dekhi...

In his own voice- Mehbooba mehbooba,  Dhanno ki aankhon mein, Duniya mein logon ko dhokha kabhi ho jaata hai..

Classical- Mere naina saawan bhaadon, Hamein tumse pyar kitna yeh hum nahin jaante, ...

Mature- Songs from Aandhi, Ghar,..

Exuberant- Chala jaata hoon kisi ki dhun mein..

Comic- Mere saamne wali khidki mein, Ek chatur naar,..

Rocking on stage- Most songs from Teesri Manzil, Yaadon ki Baaraat, and Hum Kisise Kum Nahin.

This blog gets its name from one that he composed- Yeh shaam mastani, Madhosh kiye jaaye..

A to Z of Kishore Kumar

I will try and list songs sung by Kishore Kumar that start with each letter or have it in the first word.

A- Are yaar meri tum bhi ho ghazab
B- Bhanwre ki gunjan hai mera dil
C- Chingari, koi bhadke..
D- Deewana leke aaya hai dil ka taraana
E- Ek main aur ek tu dono mile is tarah
F- Maaf karo o baba maaf karo
G- Guni jano re bhakt jano
H- Hum the woh thi aur sama rangeen samajh gaye na..mannu, tera hua ab mera kya hoga?
I - Is mod se jaate hain.
J- Jaane kya soch kar nahin guzra
K- Kuchh to log kahenge
L- Lekar hum deewana dil
M- Main hoon jhum jhum jhum jhum jhumroo
N- Nakhrewali, dekhne mein dekhlo yeh kaisi bholi bhali
O- O mere dil ke chain
P- Phoolon ke rang se
Q- Beqaraar dil tu gaaye ja
R- Raatkali ek khwab mein aayi aur gale ka haar hui
S- Saamne yeh kaun aaya dil mein hui hulchul
T- Teri duniya se hoke majboor chala
U- Ulfat mein zamaane ki har rasm ko thukrao
V- Vaada tera vaada..
W- Woh shaam kuchh ajeeb thee
X- (From Mr. X in Bombay)- Mere mehboob qayamat hogi..
Y- Yeh dil na hota bechara
Z- Zindagi ke safar mein guzar jaate hai jo makaam woh phir nahin aate..

Karaoke- An Invention I Like

For years, we have had small booklets that contained Hindi film songs (lyrics) by some category-usually, by singer. I have a couple. If you had to sing a song, you could look up the lyrics and do it.
The music would not be around.

With a karaoke mic, you have both the music and the lyrics available, and you can look at the lyrics on the monitor and sing along. Many of these are called Sing-along mics. In my view, it has democratised singing, and added life to many a party. It brings in enthusiastic participation after an initial hesitation, and I have seen lots of people totally enthused and practising their favourite songs. I have also discovered singers through this process, among close friends and others. Some pics of karaoke parties we have had- in the family, it is a regular affair..we consider ourselves The Sound of Music-wala Von Trapps.. my favourite song is Phoolon ke rang se, dil ki kalam se from Prem Pujari.

 Sadhana, Swathika Kalaivani and Akshaya look on, while Madhan sings.

 Pratyush is entertaining all of us.

 Radhika likes what she sees, and makes good use of the mic.

Long live Karaoke!

Urdu Words on Song

In songs, actually, is what I meant. Some Urdu words that are appealing when used in film songs-

Dagabaaz ho banke piya,...a very old song.

Iqraar karna mushkil hai, inkaar karna mushkil hai..Manisha sang it in a remake (there were many) of Sleeping With the Enemy.

Beqaraar dil tu gaaye ja khushiyon se bhare woh taraane (Ashok Kumar sang in Kishore Kumar's voice, and Sulakshana Pandit sang for Tanuja).

Mohabbat. Yeh jo mohabbat hai yeh unka hai kaam..

Qayamat- Kamar patli, nazar bijli, suraahidaar gardan, qayamat se meri jaan kam nahin ho..

Haseena- O haseena zulfonwali jaane jahan,..

Bekhudi- Bekhudi mein sanam uth gaye jo kadam.

Lost in Translation?

It's fun translating things into another language..so I decided to translate a few song lines into Hyderabadi from Hindi (for those unaware, these are two distinct languages- like French and Chinese)-

Jab pyar kiya to darna kya?
 Pyar karinge, kaiku to bi daringe?

Naam gum jaayega
 Gum hote yaaro, hoshiyar rehna.

Papa ko Mummy se pyar hai
 Bawa ku ammi se pyar hai..

Nahi nahi, abhi nahi, abhi karo intezaar..
  Nakko nakko, abbii nakko bolrun na..

Thoda ruk jayegi to tera kya jayega?
  Thoda ruke to qayamat aa jati?

Gore rang pe na itna gumaan kar..
 Hume kaale hain to kya hua dilwale hain..

Akele akele kahaan ja rahe ho?..
 Badkamma Badkamma Badkamma ekkada potau ra? (Telugu is also a part of Hyderabadi)

My Name is Anthony Gonsalves

No, of course, it isn't. I am simple trying to recall some songs which made an impact when I first saw them on screen. Some like this one, were fun, with Amitabh emerging out of an Egg..egdum jhakaas. Some others-

O manchali, kahaan chali..the music, and the masti in the picturisation caught my attention.

Aaj kal tere mere pyar ke charche har zabaan par and from another movie, Badan pe sitare lapete hue..Shammi Kappor's unique dance style.

Hum kaale hain to kya hua dilwale hain..unique lyrics, and Mehmood. Aa ri aaja, nindiya tu lekar kahin udankhatole mein..is a moving lullaby also sung on screen by Mehmood.

Ek chatur naar karke singaar,..by Mehmood and Sunil Dutt on screen.

Zindagi ittefaq hai, kal bhi ittefaq thi, aaj bhi ittefaq hai..Mumtaz does a great job of bringing Asha Bhosle's singing to life on screen.

Mehbooba, mehbooba,..Helen sets the screen on fire. This was popular even before the film released.

Chalo ek baar phir se ajnabi ban jaayein hum dono- the power of lyrics (by Sahir Ludhianvi) to mesmerise..Mahendra Kapoor's silken voice..

Dil in Hindi Film Songs

The fact is 90 percent of Hindi films are romances, and therefore, about the heart, or dil in Hindi. The songs (again, almost all Hindi films are musicals) too have loads of romance. Here are some common uses of the word 'dil' in songs -

Dil machal raha hai..hard to translate, but roughly, the heart is exuberant..

Dil beqaraar sa hai..again, tough to achieve an accurate translation ..but restless heart could be close.

O mere dil ke chain..addressing the loved one as the balm for the heart.

Dil ek mandir hai..the heart is a temple.

Deewana leke aaya hai dil ka taraana ..the heart as a gift to the beloved.

and of course, Dilwaale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge..it started as a song in Chor Machaye Shor, and went on to be the title of a blockbuster starring one of the best screen pairs -Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. Literal translation..the guy with a heart will take away the bride.

Victoria No. 203- the Original Film

There was a director called Brij who made this film in the seventies, with Navin Nishchal and Saira Banu in the romantic lead, and Ashok Kumar and Pran in the real lead. Their roles (the older actors') were central to the theme, about a missing cache of diamonds worth a few crores. I just saw this film again, on TV.

It is rollicking fun, with a lot of twists and turns, and some good music, particularly the song- "Do bechare bina sahare, dekho poochh poochh kar haare, bin taale ki chaabi lekar phirte maare maare." Saira Banu's dad is implicated in a murder related to the stolen diamonds, and she is forced to disguise herself as a man and drive his Victoria (women were not allowed).

There is a lot of fun with Ashok Kumar (who plays a drunkard) and Pran, small time crooks who find the key to the locker where the secret about the diamonds is stored, but don't know which locker. Finally, their search leads them back to the Victoria (horse-cart) and its lamp. But the original goons who killed the person carrying them get into the act, and mayhem ensues in a climax that's also great fun, Bollywood-style of course.

A crime-comedy caper in the best traditions of Bollywood.

Duets I Fancy

Several songs in Bollywood (Hindi films) are great for lyrics, music, or both. This is just a short list of a few duets that I like.

Mere meet bata tujhe mujhse kab pyar hua aur kaise..a vague film called Putlibai, but what a song!

Tum mile pyar se mujhe jeena gawara hua..from Feroz Khan-Mumtaz starrer Apradh.

From Mahal, a Dev Anand-Asha Parekh film, this lovely duet- Aankhon aankhon mein hum tum ho gaye deewane,..a slow, melodious tune that grows on you..

Are yaar meri yum bhi ho ghazab ghhonghat to zara odho..from Teen Deviyaan, starring Dev Anand and Kalpana. Has a unique tune, in a conversational style.

Chalti Ka Naam Gadi- the ultimate pair of Madhubala and Kishore Kumar - Haal kaisa hai janaab ka, kya khayal hai aap ka? Awesome.

Abhilasha is the film, and Sanjay Khan-Nanda the unlikely pairing. But the song is fabulous- Pyar hua hai jab se. mujhko nahin chain aata...

Piya piya piya mora jiya pukaare- from Baap re Baap. Kishore Kumar yodels to perfection on an OP Nayyar tune.

Naya Andaz- the film. The song Meri neendon mein tum mere khwabon mein tum has a dreamy quality. It is unique because Shamshad Begum is the female singer, with Kishore Kumar. They haven't sung many together.

Tu laali hai savere wali gagan rang de tu mere man ka..Incredibly, this song stars Danny and Jaya Bhaduri. Film Abhi to Jee Lein. 

Koi mane ya na mane jo kal tak the anjaane woh aaj hamein jaan se bhi pyare ho gaye- from the film Adhikaar.

Achhi nahin sanam dillagi dil-e beqaraar se..from the film Rakhi aur Hathkadi. Vijay Arora had this great song with Asha Parekh.

Waada karo jaanam na chhodoge yeh daaman zamaana chahe chhoote..Vinod Mehra sings this with Maushumi in Sabse Bada Rupaiah.

Of course, there are many more..