Will Rekha Bhardwaj come to limelight in 2010?

Will Rekha Bhardwaj come to limelight in 2010?

Rekha Bhardwaj, the wife of notable composer Vishal Bhardwaj, had stolen the show with her rusty voice in 2009, by singing the biggest hit of the year “genda phool” in the film Dilli 6, composed by AR Rehman for which she received the filmfare award for best singer in 2010. Music-lovers wonder whether she can continue the successful run and steal the show in 2010 also.

She released her first album in 2004 titled “Ishqa Ishqa” which was appreciated by the critics. The notable song in that album included “raat ki jogan”. She stormed bollywood with the song “namak” written by Gulzar and composed by Vishal in the film Omkara. From there she never looked back.

Her other notable song in contemporary films included “ehi thaiyaa motiya” in the film Laga Chunari Me Daag, composed by Shantanu Moitra. The film did not do great business, but the song was hit. Her songs “ranaji” and “beedo” in the film Gulaal appealed to the masses. Her rusty voice was well used by composer Piyush Mishra.

Her song in the hit film 2009 Kaminey, had been hummed by many individuals, titled “raat ke dhai baje”, composed by Vishal Bhardwaj. In 2010, her song in the film Ishqiya also became big hit. The songs “ab mujhe koi” and “badi dheere jail” also became sensational hit. The music had been composed by Vishal Bhardwaj.

In the film Veer, her song “kanha” also became a big hit. The music had been composed by Sajid Wajid. Although the film did mediocre business, her song was well received by the audience. She hasan important role to play in the success of the film Raavan with her song.

If she can continue the good work and bring more variety in singing there a huge scope of shining and doing well in future.

Is Sunidhi Chauhan still in a dominating position in bollywood music?

Is Sunidhi Chauhan still in a dominating position in bollywood music?

Very strangely the world of bollywood singers had got more competitive and diversified. Few years back the contest for the top female playback singer was between Alka Yagnik, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Alisha Chinoy, Sunidhi Chauhan and Shreya Ghoshal.

Sunidhi Chauhan, born on August 14th, 1983, stormed bollywood music with her brilliant performance in the song “ruki ruki si zindagi” in Ram Gopal Verma’s film Mast. Her powerful westernized intonation and presentation had created an interest in most composers to cast her in westernized songs and also folk songs.

She made her presence strongly felt in songs like “desi girl” in Dostana, composed by Vishal Shekhar, “race sanson ki” in Race, composed by Pritam, “dance pe chance” in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, composed by Salim Sulaiman, “kaisi peheli” in Parineeta, composed by Shantonu Moitra, to name a few. She got nominations for the best female singer in filmfare awards a number of times.

She won the filmfare award for the best female playback singer in the film Omkara, for the song “beeri jalaile”. But the scenario had changed in the last couple of years. Along with the dominance of ace singers like Sunidhi Chauhan, Shreya Ghoshal, Alisha Chinoy and others, new female singers had entered the competitive scenario.

The most popular songs of 2009, had been “genda phool” sung by Rekha Bharadwaj from film Dilli 6, composed by AR Rehman, and “iktaara” sung by Kavita Seth from film Wake Up Sid, composed by Shankar Ehsaan Loy, creating a new trend in recent times. In addition to that, other singers like Mahalakshmi Iyer, Shilpa Rao, had created stiff competition for the already established singers like Sunidhi Chauhan.

The question that hovers in the minds of music lovers that is Sunidhi Chauhan safe at her dominating position in 2010, when upcoming singers had divided the singing scenario into more compartments. Recently Sunidhi Chauhan had been judging Indian idol contestants with Anu Malik and Salim Merchant herself. She herself is also looking for new voices. Time will tell, when Sunidhi Chauhan can keep up her good work and strong presence felt in bollywood films.

Happy birthday to Pooja Bedi

Happy birthday to Pooja Bedi.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Pooja Bedi, the daughter of legendary actor Kabir Bedi on 11th May, 2010. She was born in a star family with her mother Pratima Bedi being a classical dancerand father being an established actor. Although she came from an acting family as Kabir Bedi had experience of performing in Hollywood films as well, her contribution in bollywood films had not been that substantial.

Her film Vishkanya in the early part of her career was based on the story related to snakes. In Indian films fantasies based on the life of snakes had amazed the viewers in the past. The film Nagin in the mid-70s, with Reena Roy, Jeetender, Mumtaz and others, did fantastic business. So Pooja Bedi was lucky to start her career with such films.

Later on her film with Amir Khan, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander, did fantastic business. The film was based on teenage romance. Amir Khan always had a special place in the minds of viewers as his romantic appeal always attracted the female audience right from the release of the film Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. Pooja Bedi probably had given her best. Pooja Bedi’s role of a teenage girl did fit the requirement of the story and the film. All the songs in the film became successful including the song “pehla nasha, pehla khumar” sung by Udit Narayan.

Her other notable films included Aatank Hi Aatank and Lootere. She was very impressive in Mahesh Bhatt’s film Phir Teri Kahani Yaad Ayee. It was a film related to human relationship and Pooja Bedi’s performance in a supporting role was appreciated by the critics. She was as impressive as Pooja Bhatt and Rahul Roy in the film.

In the late 90s, all of a sudden she faded away from the industry. But she continued to appear in television shows. She was the anchor of the TV shows Not Just Page 3 and Just Pooja in Zoom TV. These programs became very popular in the years when they were telecast. In the following period she even participated as contestant in TV shows like Jhalak Dikhlaja in Sony TV, Heart Beat, Mum Tum or Hum, Jodi Kamaal Ki, Nach Baliye, etc., in Star TV, also Fear Factor – Khatron Ki Khiladi in Colors.

The viewers expect her make a comeback in bollywood films in the years to come.

Asitboron had impressive screen presence in Bengali films.

Asitboron had impressive screen presence in Bengali films.

Asitboron was the established Bengali star of the golden age, namely the 40s and 50s, whom Uttam Kumar surpassed and became a super star. An actor of more than 100 film, he had an impressive screen presence.

Born in 1913, he learned tabla lessons from renowned singer and composer Gyan Prokash Ghosh. He was noticed by actor Pahari Sanyal while performing in All In Radio and was given opportunity in Hemchandra Chandra’s film Pratisruti in 1941.

He played notable roles in the late 40s and early 50s. His successful films included Jaideb opposite Anubha Gupta, Kar Pape opposite Manju Dey, Nay Dondo opposite Arundhuti Debi. In Kar Pape he played the role of patient suffering from the disease of syphilis who married Manju Dey against the wishes of the doctor Chabi Biswas who advised him not to marry before he got absolutely cured. When Manju Dey got infected with syphilis and her children also died she fired Asit Boron at the end of the film when he was preparing for another marriage. The film created sensation in early 50s.

Asit Boron played the notable role of Mathur in the film Rani Rasmani. He was the son in law of Malina Debi in the film who never believed in God. But Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramhanshadeb’s appearance changed his mind set. Malina Debi and Gurudas Bandhopadhyay’s spirited performance was balanced by Asit Boron’s smart performance. In Uttam Kumar’s film Khokababur Protyaborton, Asit Boron played the role of the Judge, whose son was lost by Uttam Kumar, the servant of the house, who sacrificed his own son in the film. It was Tagore’s classic literature which moved the audience. Ex-Chief Public Prosecutor, Bankshall Court (CMM Court),(North) Chitta Ranjan Chatterji, in an interview before Ananda Bazar Patrika mentioned that Asit Boron and Manju Dey came to Birpara and BK Paul Ground to play tennis in the early 50s, aside the lake where the Metro Railway from Dum Dum Station had been build. That showed the extra-curricular talents of the romantic actors who had huge fanbase during the 50s and 60s.

Asit Boron was professional singer and tabla player and all those skills were exhibited in the role of hero in the films of 50s and 60s. He played notable roles opposite Suchitra Sen in the film Sriti Tuku Thak and Shilpi, opposite Mala Sinha in Bandhu, Sandharani in the film Brotocharini, to name a few. Besides he played landmark roles in historical films like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Antony Firingi, etc. In Antony Firingi he played the role of Bhola Moira, who contested against Uttam Kumar in the kabir larai, war between poets. He provided elegant performances in the films of other heroes, like Bosonto Choudhury’s Bodhu and Shreyasi, Nirmal Kumar’s Kono Ek Din, Uttam Kumar’s Surjo Toron, to name a few.

At the frag end of his career he showed his potentiality in Tapan Sinha’s film Harmonium. He was zamindar in the film whose harmonium was sold by his daughter and changed different hands and returned back to the daughter played by Arundhuti Debi. He commanded respect from the film community under his nickname “kaloda”. His films and songs should be preserved.

Prince had done average business.

Prince had done average business.

Kookie V. Gulati’s film Prince had done average business in the last three weeks after being released in early April, 2010. It had been produced by Kumar S. Taurani and music had been composed by Sachin Gupta.

In the film Vivek Oberoi played the role of a great thief. He realized one morning that he had a gunshot wound in his hand which he could not remember from where he had got it. He came to know that his name was Prince. He worked for a person named Sarang played by Isaiah. His girlfriend’s name was Maya, played by Aruna Shields.

Vivek Oberoi was wanted by Indian intelligence agency called IGRIP who dealt with white collar criminals across the world. He met a new girl everyday who claimed herself to be Maya. He had also hidden a heist which he never remembered. He had six days to solve the problem. The film revolved around that theme.

Although Vivek Oberoi had taken exceptional stunts and his performance in the film had been excellent, the Indian viewers had not received the film with that much enthusiasm. In the last 5 years, very few action films had done exceptional business, and that too under big banners, like Abbas Mastan’s film Race, are the ones which brought great revenue. Last year Vivek Oberoi’s matured performance in the film Kurbaan also could not revive the box-office of the film, inspite of the story being interesting.

The songs like “oh mere khuda” and “aa bhi jaa sanam” sung by Atif Aslam was well received by the audience. But save them, the music also could not create sensation. All these factors contributed to the average business of the film.

Bollywood industry is looking forward to the upcoming releases like Rajneeti, Guzaarish, Kites, Ravan, etc. , which can change the fortune of the industry. In the first four months of the year none of the films created any sensation. Let us hope the films to be released later on in the year would be successful.

Contribution of C. Ramchandra in bollywood films.

Contribution of C. Ramchandran in bollywood films.

C. Ramchandran glorified bollywood films of the 50s and 60s with his innovative music. Born in 1918, in Puntumba town of Ahmadnagar District of Maharashtra, he studied music under Vinayakbua Patwardhan at Gandharva Mahavidyalaya.

He acted in bollywood films like Naganand, Saeed-e – Havas and Atma Tarang in the late 40s. He independently composed music in Tamil films like Jayakkodi and Vanamohini. As far as bollywood films were concerned he got break in Bhagwandada’s film Sukhi Jeevan. His biggest hit with Bhagwan came in the film Albela in 1951. All the songs in the film became super hit including “bholi surat dil ke khote”, “shola jo bharke”, “dheere se aja”, etc.

In the mid-50s, Anarkali was the greatest hit music composed by C. Ramchandran in his entire career. Lata’s song “yeh zindagi usi ki hai” stormed bollywood with Bina Roy and Pradeep Kumar becoming immortal in the roles of Anarkali and Salim respectively. In the mid-50s, C. Ramchandran’s music in Dilip Kumar Meena Kumari’s film Azad became super hit. The landmark songs included “aaplam chaplam” sung by Lata and Usha Mangeshkar, “dekhoji bahar ayi” sung by Lata, to name a few.

C. Ramchandran’s music in Dev Anand’s film Amardeep became super hit in 1958. Rafi and Asha’s duet song “dekh hume awaaz na dena” became super hit along with Lata’s song “mera manka bhawra panchi”. C. Ramchandran was probably at his best in the film Navrang released in 1959. Mahendra Kapoor and Asha Bhosle’s duet “adha hai chandrama raat aadhi”, “aare jaare natkhat na chu re mera ghoonghat”, became everlasting classic. Manna Dey’s duet song with Asha Bhosle titled “tu chupi hai kahan” became another super hit song from the same film.

The other hit films where C. Ramchandran composed landmark tunes included Raj Kapoor’s Sharda in 1957, and Dev Anand’s Baarish in 1957. His music in Kishore Kumar’s film Asha also stormed bollywood in late 50s.

C. Ramchandran was also known for the immortal tune for Lata’s song “aye mere watan ke logon” written by poet Pradeep. It had remained as one of the most landmark songs related to India’s freedom struggle movement which brought tears in the eyes of Jawahar Lal Nehru in 1963, when sung during Republic Day by Lata. In the 60s, C. Ramchandran’s music in Feroz Khan’s film Oonche Log stormed bollywood with Rafi’s hit song “jag dil-e diwana ruth jaage”. It is not possible to highlight the contribution of C. Ramchandran in a small article as he composed music in more than 100 films in a span of 40 years. With the dominance of Shankar Jaikishan and OP Nayyar in the 60s, C. Ramchandran gradually faded away from the industry. But his hit music in films like Anarkali, Amardeep, Asha, Albela, etc. had made him immortal. His music and the films should be preserved and restored.

Pankh will do average business.

Pankh will do average business.

In 2010, a number of bollywood films were released till April, but excepting Ishqiya and Karthik Calling Karthik, none of the other films did good business. Pankh was written and directed by Sudipto Chattopadhyay and produced by Sanjay Gupta. It had been released on 2nd April, 2010.

The film was related to the repercussions happening in a little boy who had done a number of female roles at young age. The child roles were done with the name Baby Kusum. He wanted to be an actor after attaining adulthood. He had a strain relationship with his mother.

Due to poverty and other differences in the family he ended up being drug addict. He created an imaginary character for himself which was played by Bipasha Basu. Bipasha Basu taunted him and fought against him.

He was made to face the camera again as a young person which led to his downfall. The film highlighted the general practice of Indian films to cast child artists in role opposite to their gender.

The main role were played by Maradona Rebello, Bipasha Basu, Lilette Dube, Mahesh Manjrekar, Ronit Roy, Sanjeeta Sheikh and Amit Purohit. Music had been composed by Raju Singh. The only prominent song in the film was sung by Sunidhi Chauhan titled “jiya jalana”.

Although the theme of the film had been good, the facts did not entertain the viewers during the period of the entire film. The slowness of the subject and abstractness had led to boredom. The performances of all the actors and actresses had been good.

The film may get critical acclamation for the rare subject matter, but the box-office report would not be encouraging. The film is scheduled to do average business.

Dilip Mukherjee's directorial contribution in Bengali films.

Dilip Mukherjee’s directorial contribution in Bengali films.

Dilip Mukherjee was known for his innovative films and decent performances in Bengali celluloid. He started his directorial debut with Tarun Majumdar and Sachin Majumdar under the name of Jatrik. Their film Chawa Pawa in 1959 with Bengali superstar Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen stormed tollywood.

Chawa Pawa was based on the romantic Hollywood blockbuster Roman Holiday, where Gregory Pegg and Audrey Hepburn mesmerized the international viewers in the 50s. Uttam Kumar played the role of the journalist who reached Suchitra Sen, the daughter of wealthy industrialist Chabi Biswas, to her father’s house, before she left the house for avoiding arranged marriage. Sandhya Mukherjee’s song “ei to kache chawa” became super hit.

While Dilip Mukherjee made the romantic film during his early days, he shifted to realistic films in early 60s. His film Sriti Tuku Thaak with Suchitra Sen, Bikash Roy and Asitboron appealed to the audience. Suchitra Sen played a double role in the film. She lost her memory, and after knowing that her sister married her husband Asit Boron, she sacrificed her life for him. Sandhya Mukherjee’s song “monero madhuri mishaye” composed by Robin Chatterji became super hit in early 60s.

Dilip Mukherjee’s film Kacher Swargo, related to the unemployment problem in Bengal and related to a very abstract story moved the intellectuals of the country. Critics feel that Dilip Mukherjee, who played the central character in the film had given his best performance in Kancher Swarga. In the mid-60s, Jatrik got divided and Tarun Majumdar independently directly super hit films like Palatak, Sriman Prithviraj, Dadar Kirti, etc.

Dilip Mukherjee continued his direction after retaining the Jatrik Banner. His notable film Ekhane Pinjor with Uttam Kumar got critically acclaimed. Dilip Mukherjee came to Uttam Kumar in Kolkata to get a job. Uttam Kumar could not help him and he committed suicide. Uttam Kumar went to his house in the village and saw his needy mother and sister Aparna Sen. Uttam Kumar felt pity for the family as they lost the single bread-earner Dilip Mukherjee, so he stayed in their house financially helped them.

Uttam Kumar played double role in Dilip Mukherjee’s film Chinna Patra. Dilip Mukherjee acted in the role of villain who killed one of the brother played by Uttam Kumar. The other Uttam Kumar had facial similarities with the deceased and went to his native place to take revenge. Supriya Choudhury, the wife of Uttam Kumar got killed in the process.

Dilip Mukherjee’s film Nagar Darpane also stormed Bengali celluloid in the mid-70s. Uttam Kumar played a very dynamic role in the film. He was the brother of Dilip Mukherjee, who became insane at the end of the film after seeing the degrading value system in the society. Dilip Mukherjee played the role of a police officer who assaulted Uttam Kumar in the film.

Dilip Mukherjee also did shine as an actor. He had provided many notable performances in films like Uttar Falguni, Kancher Swargo, Thana Theke Aaschi, etc. His films both as director and actor should be restored.

Happy birthday to Moushumi Chatterji.

Happy birthday to Moushumi Chatterji.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to actress Moushumi Chatterji on 26th April, 2010. She started her career in films by playing an important character in Bengali film Parineeta. With her she attracted the attention of leading producers and directors of Bengali films including Ajoy Kar and Tarun Majumdar. She acted in a number of Bengali films and then went to Bombay.

In bollywood she played notable roles during the period when the directors like Basu Chatterji, Basu Bhattacharya were involved in making realistic films. Her film Manzil Manzil opposite Big B, became successful, as the film was based on the realistic story titled Akash Kusum which was the Bengali film directed by Mrinal Sen. Her performance in the film Benam, opposite Big B was also outstanding. It was a suspense thriller where Big B’s son was kidnapped and Moushumi expressed the anxiety very well in the film.

In the 70s, Moushumi’s performance in the film Anuraag, opposite Vinod Mehra was worth mentioning. She played the role of a blind girl and did very well in the role. The music in the film composed by SD Burman was also very successful including Rafi’s song “who kya hai”. Mushumi did well also in the action films of that period including the film Goutam Govinda, where Shashi Kapoor and Shatrughun Sinha were brothers and helped the villagers against the oppression of Premnath in the film.

In the early 80s, Moushumi’s performance in superstar Uttam Kumar’s film Ogo Bodhu Sundari gave a special place for her in Bengali films. The film was the last film of Uttam Kumar as he died on 24th July, 1980. The story was based on the epic literature of George Bernard Shaw titled Pygmalion. Uttam Kumat brought Moushumi in his house to teach her. She was totally uneducated and learned culture, education and living style in a modern society from Uttam Kumar. The music of Bappi Lahiri in the film was equally successful.

In the 90s, Moushumi did extremely well in character roles. She was sublime in Sunny Deol’s film Ghayal, where she played the role of the sister- in-law of Sunny. A scandal was publicized against her and she committed suicide in the film.

She also contested MP elections from Kolkata from the Congress (I) ticket in 2004. Viewers agree that there is lot of acting left in Moushumi and they want her to continue the brilliant work both in bollywood films and Bengali films.

Happy birthday to Mamta Kulkarni.

Happy birthday to Mamta Kulkarni.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Mamta Kulkarni on 20th April, 2010. She played very significant roles in the films of 90s. She was given prominent roles in successful bollywood films during that period.

Rakesh Roshan gave a significant role to Mamta Kulkarni in the film Karan Arjun. She was the wife of Salman Khan in the film. Both Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan were shown to have two lives. In their first lives they were tortured and killed by Amrish Puri. In their second life they were born at other places but came to Rajasthan to stop the illegal activities of Amrish Puri and his men. Mamta Kulkarni and Kajol contributed with their respective roles along with Rakhee, who had the prominent part in the film. Although the film was related to superstitious beliefs, Rakesh Roshan succeeded in entertaining the audience and the film ended up being big hit.

Mamta Kulkarni got the role of her lifetime in Raj Kumar Santoshi’s film China Gate. She was the relative of Om Puri who called him up to rescue the villagers from the rule of dacoits in the region. Om Puri was a retired major, who left the armed forces after one of their missions failed. Om Puri called all his friends who worked in the last mission, including Amrish Puri, Naseeruddin Shah, Danny, Tinu Anand, Jagdeep , etc., and formed a team to combat the dacoits. Mamta Kulkarni kept the retired military officers in her house and provided them food and amenities during their stay. The police office in that jurisdiction Paresh Rawal conspired with the dacoits and betrayed the military officers. But ultimately the military officers under the leadership of Om Puri succeeded in killing the dacoits and bringing peace within the village. The film was off-beat in nature and Mamta Kulkarni showed her acting skills in the film.

Her other successful films also included Krantiveer, where she acted opposite Atul Agnihotri. Nana Patekar and Dimple Kapadia had the main roles in the action film, but Mamta Kulkarni showed her frustration after she came to know about her father being involved in the gang of lawbreakers who were responsible for riots and other destructive activities. The film was related to corruption existing in society which included the police officers, judges, the executive and politicians.
After the late-90s all of sudden Mamta Kulkarni left bollywood films. Viewer remember her both in glamourous and non-glamourous roles. Now that she had attained age, she can contribute in character roles. The viewers expect her to make a comeback in recent bollywood films and entertain the viewers once again just like the way she entertained the viewers in the films of the 90s

Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur duets composed by Shankar Jaikishan.

Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur duets composed by Shankar Jaikishan.

Shankar Jaikishan in the 60s made immense number of experiments in bollywood film music. Right from westernized compositions to Indian classical songs to folk tunes, the compositions had a wide variety. Rafi was the automatic choice of the legendary musical duo, with his tremendous range and romantic appeal. Suman Kalyanpur sang landmark duet song with Rafi under the composition of giant composers during the 60s, including Naushad “dil-e-betaab ko sinese lagana hoga”, in Palki, Madanmohan “baad muddat ke yeh ghari aye”, Jahanara, Roshan “rahe na rahe hum”, in Mamta, Khayyam “parbaton ke pero par sham ka basera hai”, in Shagun, to name a few. Suman Kalyanpur sang many immortal duet songs with Rafi in the 60s and 70s under the composition of Shankar Jaikishan.

In Dil Ek Mandir, the title song “dil ek mandir hai” was sung by Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur with utmost elegance in 1963. The song was sung after the death of Rajender Kumar in the film and therefore the singers displayed the tragic andaz in the song. Rafi had his own solo songs in the film like “jahan koi nahi” and “yaad na jaye” which became immortal over a period of time. Suman Kalyanpur’s solo song “juhi ki kali meri ladli” also had a soothing appeal. In Saanjh Aur Sawera, in 1964, the classical song “ajahuna aye balma, sawan bita jaye” was probably one of the most immortal duet sung by Suman Kalyanpur with Rafi composed by SJ.

In 1964, Biswajeet’s April Fool had a number of romantic songs of SJ sung by Rafi. Rafi was unparallel in the song “aa gale lag ja”. Suman Kalyanpur accompanied Rafi very well in the songs “tujhe pyar karte karte” and “kehdo kehdo jahan se kehdo”. In Sunil Dutt’s film Beti Bete, the song “agar terii jalwa numai na hoti” showed the melodious impact of duet of Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur under the composition of Shankar Jaikishan. The duet “tumne pukara aur hum chale aye” sung by Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur composed by SJ in Shammi Kapoor’s Rajkumar again stormed box-office in 1964.

In 1966, Rafi and Suman’s duet “itna hai tujhse pyar mujhe mere raazdaar” in Rajender Kumar’s super hit film Suraj stands out as the most romantic song of the film. Rafi sang for Rajender Kumar while Suman Kalyanpur sang for Vyjayantimala.

In the late 60s, Shankar Jaikishan’s rock and roll composition for Shammi Kapoor in the film Brahmchari had probably the most entertaining duets of Rafi with Suman Kalyanpur titled “aajkal tere mere pyar ke charche har jawanpar”. The brilliant orchestration was loud but rhythm –oriented as well. The film ended up being blockbuster and the music of the film played a very important role in the success of the film. Shankar Jaikishan composed a very romantic duet in Uttam Kumar’s film Choti Si Mulakat, titled “tumhe dekha, tumhe chaha” Rafi and Suman. Rafi sang Uttam Kumar’s portion while Suman Kalyanpur had sung Vaijayantimala’s portion. The list of Rafi Suman duets under Shankar Jaikishan was too long.

In the early 70s, SJ’s composition for Suman Kalyanpur in Shammi Kapoor’s film Andaz was well received by the audience. The song “hai na bolo bolo” was sung by Rafi, Suman Kalyanpur, Sushma Shreshta and Pratibha.

After the death of Jaikishan in 1971, many producers and directors who were involved with Shankar Jaikishan shifted towards RD Burman and Laxmikant Pyarellal. So Suman Kalyanpur’s scope of singing duets with Rafi reduced down inspite of Shankar providing good tunes to both Suman Kalyanpur and Rafi. Shankar Jaikishan composed hit song of Suman in Dharmender’s film Resham Ki Dori, “behnane bhai ki kalayi se” in the mid -70s. Rafi’s duets with Suman Kalyanpur under the composition of Shankar Jaikishan require both restoration and publicity.

Rafi's immortal relationship with Khayyam.

Rafi’s immortal relationship with Khayyam.

Mohammad Zahur Khayyam Hashmi, better known as Khayyam, was generally an off-beat composer whose level of excellence could be very well compared with Naushad or Shankar Jaikishan or Roshan, inspite of composing music in less number of films.

Born in 1927, Khayyam, learnt music from Baba Chisti, a renowned composer of Pakistan. He learnt music from also Hunslal Bhagatram and Pandit Amar Nath. He assisted composer G.A. Chisti in Lahore for some time. He returned back to Ludhiana in 1943. He went to Bombay to be an actor. He got a role in the Yeh Hai Zindagi in 1947. After assisting a number of composers, who composed music independently for the first time in Zia Sarhadi’s film Footpath in 1953. His song “sham-e-gham ki kasam” sung by Talat Mehmood in Dilip Kumar’s successful film created a separate identity for Khayyam. His songs in Raj Kapoor’s film Phir Subah Hogi, became equally famous. Mukesh’s songs “wo subah kabhi to ayegi”, “chin-o-arab hamara”, “phir na kije gustaq nigah ka gila”, were very soft romantic numbers , while Rafi’s song “jo bore kare yaar ko” had comedy andaz picturised on Rehman. Rafi sang in Khayyam’s early contribution in the film Tattar Ka Chor in 1955 titled “dekho zara ulfat ka asar”. In the less known film Barood in 1960, Rafi sang a solo “chala chal chala chal ghar hai andhera”.

Rafi’s best songs composed by Khayyam were in the film Shola Aur Shabnam. All the songs were written by Kaifi Azmi, with great philosophy embedded in them. Rafi’s voice was probably at its best in the songs “jane kya dhoonti rehti hai yeh ankhe mujhme”, “jeet hi lenge baazi hum tum”, “pehle to aankh milna” in the film. Dharmender was blessed with the soft romantic songs in the early part of his career which took to a huge distance in his goal of being a successful romantic actor. Khayyam provided his hilly tunes in the film Shagun in 1964, where Rafi’s number “parbaton ke paron par sham ka basera hai” still haunts listeners. Rafi’s other songs in the same film composed by Khayyam titled “tum chali jayogi, parchaiyan reh jayegi” and “yeh raat bahut rangeen sahi” can make any listener intoxicated. The brilliant lyrics were written by Sahir Ludhianvi who probably had written some of his best shayeris for Khayyam. Due to the fact the main actor in that film being Kanwaljeet, having limited box-office presence, the songs did not get the publicity that they deserved.

The magic combination of Rafi with Khayyam continued in the film Muhabbat Is Ko Kehte Hai. Rafi’s songs for Shashi Kapoor namely “meri nigahen” and the duet song with Suman Kalyanpur namely “thehriye hosh me aaloon to chale jaiyega” had ghazal andaz and ended up being big hits.

In Rajesh Khanna’s Akhri Khat in 1966, Khayyam’s composition for Rafi titled “aur thori der theher” mesmerize the audience equally like Lata’s solo song “baharon mera jeevan bhi sawaron”. Khayyam’s songs always had very orthodox urdu poetry attached with them, so the classic words balanced the meaningful orchestration accompanied by the sweet voice of Rafi. Rafi sang a duet song “nain milake pyar jatake” along with Jagjit Kaur in the film Mera Bhai Mera Dushman in 1967.

For the next four five years, Khayyam did not compose music prominently. In the mid-70s, Khayyam got recognition for his touchy numbers in the film Kabhi Kabhi in 1975, and landmark mujras in Umrao Jaan in 1981, for which he received filmfare awards for best composer. Mukesh’s songs “kabhi kabhi mere dil me”, “mai pal do pal ka shayar hoon” and Asha Bhosle’s songs “in ankhon ki masti”, “ dil cheez kya hai” had become musical classics over a period of time. Even Bhupinder Singh’s song “karoge yaad to” can be considered to a legendary ghazal of Khayyam.

The combination of Rafi and Khayyam in film music faded away from mid-70s. But at the same time Khayyam composed landmark bhajans for Rafi which again had great musical value. It is a pity that composers like Khayyam had composed songs in less number of films, otherwise Rafi and Khayyam combination could have featured more. The films, the songs and the non-film albums should be preserved.

Alpona Banerjee could have continued with her music career in films instead of nursery songs.

Alpona Banerjee could have continued with her music career in films instead of nursery songs.

Alpona Banerjee, the romantic playback singer of Bengal during the 50s and 60s, had earned stardom through the songs she had sung for children. Prominent among them included “chottopakhi chandana”, “hattimatim tim”, “kana machi bho bho”, “charka kate buri”, “agdum bagdum ghoradum”, “dol dol duluni”, etc. But while her popularity before the children remained intact over 70 years, her stardom in the film industry declined.

Born on 14th March, 1934, she got breaks in bollywood films due to her father’s intimacy with legendary composer Robin Chatterji and lyricist Gouri Prasanna Majumdar. Her song “matir ghare aaj nemeche chand re” entertained the Bengali film viewers in the early 50s. From providing playback in Bengali film Bidyasagar, she sang a number of romantic songs in leading films of the 50s.

Her song “hriday amar sundoro taba paye” composed by Robin Chatterji in Uttam Kumar Suchitra Sen’s film Sagarika stormed the audience. Her song performance in the film Shubhada was specially acclaimed.

While her film career blossomed in the 50s, her Bengali modern songs bewildered the Bengali audience. Her romantic song “ami sundar bole tai to bondhu besecho bhalo amay” composed by Manobendra Mukherjee can be considered to be the most romantic song she had ever sung in her life. The other composition of Manobendra Mukherjee for her titled “mon bolche aaj sondhay kichu bolte tumi aasbeki” which became super hit.

Her other songs “Jodi tomar jibone” and “bolechile tumi gaan shonaabe” were equally romantic. She at the same time sung songs in prominent films like Chele Kar under composition of Kalipada Sen, Personal Assistant under composition of Nochiketa Ghosh, Pathe Holo Deri composed by Robin Chatterji. She was married to Sridhar Mukherjee and faded away from the film music arena in the 60s.

She also sang songs in romyogeeti in All India Radio. The other films where she made valuable contribution included Bidhilipi, Kar Pape, Na, Chele Kar, Shilpi, Agni Parikkha, Bhangagara, etc. Her other basic discs which were prominent included “ami alpone eke jai”, “bokulgandhe Jodi akash”, “tomar moner rong legeche”, “samiran phire chao”, etc.

Viewers wonder that if Alpona Banerjee had not sung nursery songs for children which in Bengali is termed “charar gaan”, she could have done great justice to her romantic voice and her place would have been besides Sandhya Mukherjee and Geeta Dutt who dominated Bengali film music and modern songs during 50s and 60s. The audience had an impression of Alpona Banerjee’s voice related to children’s fairy tales which got more predominance over other songs. She died on 24th July, 2009, at the age of 75 years. Her songs and films should be preserved.

Can Housefull bring back the stardom of Lara Dutta?

Can Housefull bring back the stardom of Lara Dutta?

April is the birthday month of Lara Dutta. She was born on 16th April, 1978. Lara Dutta is perhaps one of the most underrated actress of bollywood films in recent years. She possessed same amount of talent like that of Priyanka Chopra, yet could not attain the level that Priyanka attained within the short time. During the month of her birthday, viewers wonder whether Housefull will bring back the stardom of the attractive actress.

She started her career with Priyanka and Akshay Kumar in Andaz and showed a lot of promise. But after doing great job in films like Bardasht opposite Bobby Deol, Zinda opposite Sanjay Dutt, Bombai Se Aya Mera Dost with Abhishek Bacchan, some way or the other lost focus.

She was also not as lucky in respect of bagging important roles like Priyanka Chopra. She showed her standard of smartness and comedy instincts in films like No Entry and Partner.

No Entry is probably one of the greatest hits of Lara Dutta till now. She balanced the comedy instincts of Anil Kapoor and did outcast Bipasha Basu, Celina Jaitley and Esha Deol in the film. Her lips in the main songs in the film were also appreciated.

She was sublime in Partner opposite Salman Khan. Her lips in the songs “maria maria” and others did attract the viewers. Her acting was equally realistic. In 2009, she even showed her daring nature in accepting a role of village girl opposite Irfan Khan in the film Billu Barber. She acted hardly without any make up and brought out the innocence of a village girl in the film.

The big question lies in the minds of people whether Lara Dutta can get her stardom back with her performance in the film Housefull. She had learned scuva diving and showed acrobatic stunts which hardly any actress had done in Indian celluloid till now for the performance in the film Blue. Besides she had acted with Katrina Kaif, the reigning queen of bollywood in the same film. But inspite of her performance opposite her in that film being appreciated by the viewers, Blue was considered the biggest flop of Akshay Kumar and bollywood films released in 2009. After huge amount money being spend in underwater shooting the viewers could not appreciate the great pains taken by the entire team of Blue.

Let us hope that Lara Dutta retains her popularity with the film Housefull and provide stiff competition to Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif in future.

Housefull will be successful.

Housefull will be successful.

Sajid Khan’s new film Housefull will be very successful. The film had been produced by Sajid
Nadiawala and Sharan Kapoor. He had almost used the same team that he used in Hey Babby, except Vidya Balan

Akshay Kumar had been looking for better luck in the film. He thought that by extending friendship with other friends his luck could be brought back. He married Deepika Padukone. But Deepika Padukone could not change his destiny.

He then married Lara Dutta for better fortunes. Lara Dutta lived with him but again failed to change his destiny. At that time, he rung his friend Ritesh Deshmukh to seek his advice. Ritesh Deshmukh asked him to divorce Lara Dutta. Ritesh Deshmukh after that develops relationship with Lara Dutta.

Then an old fashioned girl Jiah Khan was brought to change the luck. It did not work. In fact the truth that Akshay Kumar had two wives was unfolded and let to complications. Arjun Rampal reacted to it.

The music of the film had been composed by Shankar Ehsaan Loy. Already the songs “papa jaa jayega”, “I don’t know what to do”, “oh girl you are mine” had become popular. The music will be successful as well.

In the past Sajid Khan had been successful with comedy films like Hey Babby. In this case also the film had good comedy punch. Besides the film had been shot in exotic locations, so the viewers would like them. Boman Irani and Randhir Kapoor played important character roles.

The film will be a big success.

Use of Subodh Ghosh's literature in Bollywood and Bengali films.

Use of Subodh Ghosh’s literature in Bollywood and Bengali films.

Born in 1909, Subodh Ghosh was considered another “kathashilpi”, an artist of words, after Sarat Chandra Chatterji. Born in Harazibag, he studied in St. Columbus College. He travelled to East Africa to work as contractor’s worker. He accompanied Gandhiji in riot-torn Noakhali at the eve of independence. In late 30s he joined Anandabazar Patrika at Calcutta. The University of Calcutta honored him with prestigious Jagattarini Gold Medal.

He rose to fame with his brilliant work Bharat Prem Katha. His stories had been converted in cine-classics both in bollywood and Bengali films. His story based on collusion of aristocracy and business interests against common man was used by Bimal Roy to make the film Anjangarh in 1948. His story Ajantrik, an abstract theme relating to relationship of human being with a car, was given expression by award winning director Hrithik Ghatak in 1958. Kali Banerjee stormed Bengali audience with his compassionate performance.

In 1959, Bimal Roy used Subodh Ghosh’s classic literature Sujata, where Nutan provided lifetime performance in the role of outcast woman who loved a Brahmin boy played by Sunil Dutt. The film received critical acclamation. Subodh Ghosh won the award for the best story writer for Sujata. Ajoy Kar’s romantic blockbuster Suno Boro Nari in 1960 stormed Bengali audience. Uttam Kumar’s character of Bengali Professor who was humiliated after his student giving assurance of marriage, marrying a wealthy person, and who resided in Giridih in the disguise of homeopathic doctor touched the souls of middle-class bengalies. His submissiveness before the dignified Barrister Udashin played by Chabi Biswas created a new dimension in the history of cine-classic. Supriya Choudhury, the daughter of Chabi Biswas deserted her house to embrace Uttam Kumar, when he was at the verge of leaving Giridih in a train. Subodh Ghosh’s words had entered the veins and arteries of sensitive viewers.

Tapan Sinha’s epic film Jodugriha shook the Bengali audience in 1964 with the brilliant story of Subodh Ghosh. Uttam Kumar and Arundhuti Debi’s sacred relationship which got fragmented due to lack of children touched the Bengali audience. Both respected each other even after separation, and the last travel in two separate train bifurcating each other tantalized the viewers with the message of eternal realization. The character artists in film including Anil Chatterji, Bikash Roy displayed their level of excellence in their respective roles. The power packed of performance in Tapan Sinha’s film inspired Gulzar to make Ijaazat, with Naseeruddin Shah and Rekha but the film did not receive similar level of critical acclamation like Jotugriha.

His story Parashuramer Khutar was used by noted filmmaker Nabendu Chatter for making his classic film where Arun Mukherjee played the role of tanga-owner who could not dream about the means of transport with which he earned his livelihood. His story Teen Adhyay was used in Uttam Kumar’s successful film in late 60s. Tarun Majumdar used his story in the film Thagini where Utpal Dutta played a landmark role relating to revenge being taken against a cheat in Kolkata. It is difficult to highlight the immortal stories of Subodh Ghosh in a small article as he was the inspiration of landmark writers of following age including Bimal Kar.

The Japanese Wife is quite an Abstract Film.

The Japanese Wife is quite an Abstract Film.

Aparna Sen had experimented with Kunal Basu’s story in her film The Japanese Wife. The story of the film is very abstract.

In the film Rahul Bose and Chigusa Takaku were pen friends who exchanged wedding vows through letters. They did not meet each other within 15 years, yet their attachment towards each other remained intact.

The relationship faced challenge when a young widow played by Raima Sen with a small child came to stay with Rahul Bose. Rahul Bose a teacher in Sunderbans and cared for the rural population of the place.

He cared for his unseen Japanese wife as well. When he came to know that she was ill with cancer, he took leave from his school to find a cure for the ailment. But later when the entire village was infected with malaria, he got infected too. He died at the end.

His Japanese wife came to the village in white saree, the symbol of a widow. The performances of Rahul Bose, Raima Sen and Chigusa Takaku were excellent. Moushumi Chatterji also did well in her respective role.

The music of Sagar Desai was soft and meaningful. Aparna Sen used the camera to perfection. But the trouble with these films lies in the ability of the viewers to accept it. Firstly the development of romantic relationship between a man and a woman through letters in the 21st century is very much imaginative.

Life had become so fast in the last years , that the impulses of slow moving personalities can reach the viewers to boredom. The story had very strong human values embedded in it, and the direction of Aparna Sen had been brilliant, but going by the record of realistic films in the last 5 years, it does not seem like being a crowd-puller in the real sense.

Even then it was a brilliant effort on the part of Aparna Sen to choose such a subject and do justice with it.

Well Done Abba had been a masterpiece.

Well Done Abba had been a masterpiece.

The film Well Done Abba made by Shyam Benegal had been a masterpiece. Shyam Benegal had always remained an innovative story-teller and the films had moved the inner impulses of the viewers over the period of time. From Ankur to Manthan, from Sooraj Ka Satwaa Ghora to Welcome to Sajjanpur, his story telling had remained unblemish and no other Indian director other than Satyajit Ray could make the roads, trees, nature speak in the way Shyam Benegal had done.

He had written the story of the film himself. In this film, Armaan Ali was a driver working in Mumbai. He took a leave from his employer to find a groom. He went to Hyderabad, and the search for the groom in the native village took more than three months.

Obviously as he could not keep his word, his job was at stake. But his employer listened to the story of the driver and that was the most important turning point in the film.

Shyam Benegal had given the important role of the driver Armaan Ali to Boman Irani. Boman Irani had proved his versatility by performing in notable role in the films Munnabhai MBBS, Lage Raho Munnabhai and The Three Idiots. It was a great selection by Shyam Benegal.

The other leading artists in the film included Minissha Lamba as Muskan Ali, Sammir Dattani, Ila Arun, Sonali Kulkarni, Rajit Kapoor, Yashpal Sharma, and others. The music of the film had been composed by Shantanu Moitra.

The notable songs in the film included “pani ko taraste” by Raja Hassan, “sandesa sandesa” by Shreya Ghoshal and Rupankar, “meri bano hoshiyar” by Ila Arun and Daniel George, to name a few. Shyam Benegal’s films had never depended upon box-office success.

Critics will definitely acknowledge the powerful script and breezy story telling. Viewers should watch the film.

Jeetender's evergreen combination with Rafi.

Jeetender’s evergreen combination with Rafi.

Jeetender was one of the bollywood stars who maintained his stardom with successful films for over 30 years. Born in 1942, his success started in the 60s and continued till the 80s. Rafi had sung innumerable number of golden songs which had remained timeless gems.

Although he started his career with Geet Gaya Pattharon Ne in 1964, he created attention with his dancing skills in the film Farz in 1967. All the songs composed by LP and sung by Rafi became smashhit. The successful songs included “mast baharon ka mai aashiq”, “baar baar din yeh aye”, “tumse wo haseena”, to name a few. The Rafi Jeetender combination continued in the film Jeene Ki Raah. All the songs of the film became successful including “aap mujhe acche lagne lage”, “ai mare humjoli aa” and “ek banjara gaye”.

It was a tragedy that Shankar Jaikishan composed music in few films of Jeetender. But in those films too the Rafi SJ bond was strengthened again. In Mere Huzoor, the landmark songs like “apne rukh par nigah”, “gham uthane ko”, “jo guzar rahi hai”, “phalak pe jitney sitaren hai” were priceless gems. The song “rukh se zara naqab uthalo mere huzoor” can stand out as one of the ten best ghazals sung by Rafi in his illustrious career. LP rocked bollywood with his songs composed for Jeetender in the film Jigri Dost. Rafi was probably at his best in each and every song of the hit film. The most romantic amongst them included “raat suhani jag rahi hai”. Suman Kalyanpur balanced the romantic andaz of Rafi in the film. The other songs like “mere desh me pawan chale”, “dil me kya hai”, “phool hai baharon ka”, were equally melodious and brilliant.

In the early 70s, the LP Jeetender Rafi combination came out of super hit songs. In Banphool, the songs “wo sapno ki raani”, “gulaabi gulaabi ankhose” created the charm of the evergreen combination. In Humjoli, the songs “dhal gaya din” where Rafi sang with Asha, the beat of badminton game was synchronized by LP with the beat of the song. It was very romantic presentation of both Rafi and Asha. The other songs of Rafi like “hai re hai” with Lata and “tik tik tik” had the westernized orchestration and romantic appeal embedded in them.

In the mid-70s, multi-starrer film Jaani Dushman did great business. Jeetender was one of the performers in the horror film aside Sunil Dutt, Shatrughun Sinha, and others. The song “tere haathon me pehnake churiya” sung by Rafi became big hit. Rafi sang notable songs in Jeetender’s film Nagin as well in the 70s including “tera mera yarane”, “tere ishq ka mujhpe hua ya asar”. In the late 70s, Jeetender’s film Asha, had a number of hit songs of Rafi. The music was composed by LP. The hit songs included “ashawon ki sawan me”, “jane hum sadak ke logon”, to name a few.

RD Burman also used Rafi in hit films of Jeetender like Carwa. The songs “kitna pyara wada”, “are ho goriyan kahan tera des re”, “chatdi jawani” were big hits. RD Burman used Rafi successfully in the landmark qawalli picturised on Jeetender in the film Burning Train. The song “pal do pal ka” set the suspense of the film in place, where Asha had contributed well along with Rafi.

Rafi had sung hit songs for Jeetender in other films like Ek Nari Ek Brahmchari composed by Shankar Jaikishan, Badalte Rishte, composed by LP. It is not possible to highlight the combination of Rafi with Jeetender in a small article because both were involved in more than 25 films together and the combination existed for more than 15 years. It was a tragedy that Rafi died in 1980, otherwise the listeners could find the evergreen combination in more films in the 80s. The films and the songs should be restored.

Future of Sonakshi Sinha.

Future of Sonakshi Sinha.

Sonakshi Sinha, the daughter of renowned bollywood actor Shatrughun Sinha will start her acting career with the bollywood film Debanng opposite Salman Khan. The big question that comes in the minds of many viewers is that whether there is any future of her in the industry.

Before considering her potentiality, the careers of noted actors and actresses can be looked at. While th sons of legendary actor Dharmender, namely Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol, and the son of Showman Raj Kapoor, namely Rishi Kapoor, and in the third generation Ranbir Kapoor, had got equal success like their fathers, there is a line of actors and actresses who had not achieved the desired stardom.

Hema Malini ruled bollywood films during the 70s. She was associated with biggest bollywood hits of that age including Jugnu, Sholay, Seeta Aur Geeta, etc. But her daughter Esha Deol had an average career so far. Same is the case of Tanuja’s daughter Tanisha. Although Kajol was successful, Tanisha could not reach stardom.

Fardeen Khan’s stardom is nowhere compared with Stylish actor Feroz Khan, while Tushar Kapoor had not been a match to Jeetender. Even Abhishek Bacchan when compared with the success of Big B, looks a mediocre, who had hit films but is not the ruler of bollywood.

The biggest challenge that is faced by the sons and daughters of stars is the comparison that is made with their fathers of mothers. The viewers see their performance with the mindset that they will have the same qualities as that of their star parents. In some case, they have their individuality, in other cases where they try to imitate their parents, the viewers never accept it.

Keeping that in mind Sonakshi Sinha also has a very strong challenge to rise up to the occasion. She had remained successful as a model. But if the fate of other star daughters are seen in the recent times (Anil Kapoor’s daughter Sonam Kapoor is still struggling), Sonakshi Sinha will have a monumental task to get acceptance from the viewers. The viewers can with her good luck.

Jagjit Singh was not exhaustively used in bollywood films.

Jagjit Singh was not exhaustively used in bollywood films.

Ghazal King Jagjit Singh’s voice was not utilized exhaustively in bollywood films. There was a time, during the 50s and 60s, when ghazal featured in every alternative film including Chaudavi Ka Chand, Mirza Ghalib, Jahanara, Mere Mehboob, Taj Mahal, Barsaat Ki Raat, etc. The songs of Rafi, Talat Mehmood, Suraiya, and others and the compositions of musical maestros like Naushad, Shankar Jaikishan, Roshan, Madanmohan, OP Nayyar, kept the flavor of ghazals intact during the golden age.

But from the 70s, music lost its overall efficacy in bollywood films with the advent of action films. Born in 1941, Jagjit Singh stormed the world of ghazals during the 80s, during a time, when the legendary composers like Jaikishan, Roshan, Madanmohan, Ghulam Mohammad, all expired. Kuldeep Singh composed landmark songs for him in the film Arth. Jagjit Singh’s ghazals “tum itna jo muskura rahi ho”, “koi yeh kaise bataye”, “jhuki jhuki si nazar” bewildered the audience with romantic appeal. Raj Kiran gave lips in the legendary songs.

Jagjit Singh kept his mark in the art film Saath Saath. All the songs were composed by himself. The songs “tumko dekha to yeh khayal aya”, “yeh tera ghar yeh mera ghar”, “hum zindagi ke rah me majboor ho gaye”, sung by Jagjit and Chitra Singh, contained sweetness and depth of voice. The lyrics were excellent. The performance of Farooq Sheikh and Deepti Naval were remembered by the audience even after 30 years of the release of the film.

The other hit film song of Jagjit Singh included “hoton se chulon tum” in the film Prem Geet. But if the success of Jagjit Singh is compared with the private albums, Ecstasies, A Sound Affairs, Passion, etc., made with Chitra Singh, the success looks insignificant. After the death of his son Vivek at the age of 21, Chitra Singh stopped singing. The last album of Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh included Someone Somewhere.

Although he had sung landmark songs in films like Dushman, Sarfarosh, Tarqeib, but it was not proportional to his immense ghazal talent. No other ghazal singer in India had galvanized the world of ghazals to the extent Jagjit Singh. The composers could have experimented more with the legend of legends.

Happy birthday to Arshad Warsi

Happy birthday to Arshad Warsi.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Arshad Warsi on 19th April, 2010. During the last few years he had featured in one successful bollywood film out of every four films released during that period.

His greatest recognition came in the role of circuit in the film Munnabhai MBBS and Lageraho Munnabhai. In both of these films he had played the role of the assistant of Sanjay Dutt and used his gundas to evict tenants and other persons when they were paid for doing so. Both the films were serio-comic in nature and in that respect Arshad Warsi’s comedy conception entertained the viewers.

In Munnabhai MBBS he used his muscle power to help Sanjay Dutt for giving exam on medical science and also for treating patients. In Lageraho Munnabhai, he compelled the academicians to give answers to Vidya Balan on questions related to Mahatma Gandhi on behalf of Sanjay Dutt. Sanjay Dutt knew nothing about the questions but due to the help of the academicians proved before Vidya Balan that he was a learned Professor. Arshad Warsi’s lips in the songs “lage raho munnabhai”, and “munnabhai mbbs” in both these films require special mention.

Arshad Warsi had been great asset to the bollywood industry for his comedy skills especially due to the fact that in the last few years the only type of films which did steady business includes comedy films. His performance in the film Maine Pyar Kyun Kiya, with Sanjay Dutt and Isha Koppikar requires special mention. While Sanjay Dutt was an orthopedic surgeon in the film Arshad Warsi was an actor. He made an excellent submission in an artificial courtroom where the divorce of Salman Khan with Sushmita Sen was organized to impress Katrina Kaif. His comparison of Salman’s relationship with Sushmita Sen with a car whose break had failed and which dashed with every object on the road made everyone laugh. His lips in the song “saajan” along with Isha Koppikar, was equally impressive.

Similarly he had done a great job in the film Salaam Namaste with Saif Ali Khan in the role of a lawyer. Whenever Saif Ali Khan required legal assistance during fight against Preeti Zinta he took the help of Arshad Warsi and he gave a witty answer. His performance in the film Dhamaal was equally brilliant. He was one of the four friends including Ritesh Deshmukh, Javed Jaffery and other who went to Goa to get treasure. They were stopped at every point by Sanjay Dutt, the police officer who also went to Goa for the treasure. At the end of the film the money had to be given for the cause of orphan children.

In 2010, he had already showed his metal in the film Ishqiya, with Vidya Balan and Naseeruddin Shah and the film You, me and ghost. Ishqiya had got both commercial success and critical acclaimation. Arshad Warsi had started his own production and is committed to do well there too.

Arshad Warsi was sublime in many films including Golmaal and Golmaal Returns and viewers expect the ever-smiling talented actor to continue his brilliant work in future also.

Irfan Khan was brilliant in Right Yaa Wrong.

Irfan Khan was brilliant in Right Yaa Wrong.

Irfan Khan was brilliant in the film Right Yaa Wrong. He played the role of the friend of Sunny Deol who had worked in police force for a long time with him.

Sunny Deol’s wife Isha Koppikar had an affair with another person known to Sunny Deol. When Sunny Deol’s leg got injured after bullets entered the lower part of his body, he had to walk on wheelchair. He recovered and started walking.

But when he saw his wife in bed with an adulterer he could not resist himself. He made a cold-blooded plan to kill his wife and the adulterer. He asked them to shoot him with a gun having false bullets. When his wife and the adulterer failed to kill him, he shot both of them and killed them. But there was no evidence to prove that Sunny was guilty.

Irfan Khan did the difficult job of finding clues in the case. He proved that Sunny could walk, because the bullet that killed Isha Koppikar was shot from parallel direction, absolutely straight. For doing that the killer required to stand up. It was not possible to kill Isha Koppikar by firing from the wheel chair, as she was standing at the time of being killed. Sunny explained before the enquiry commission that he threw a hard substance at his wife. She bend down to avoid being hit and Sunny fired her even after sitting in a wheel chair, parallel, at straight angle.

Irfan Khan was right, but he was proved wrong. In the Court of law, Konkona Sen Sharma, the defense counsel tried to prove that Irfan Khan was jealous about Sunny and falsely implicated him. Irfan Khan said Sunny was ill-tempered. Konkona Sen Sharma proved that if he was ill-tempered then he could not have committed the murder, because it was done in a cool manner.

At the end of the film, Sunny wrote in a letter to irfan Khan before boarding in a flight, that he was guilty. Even the lie-detector test could not prove it. He did it to save his little son’s life who was motherless.

Irfan Khan expressed his frustration very well. His acting had reflections of actors of parallel cinema. The film should be watched by viewers.

Contribution of Prabir Mojumdar in Bengali modern songs.

Contribution of Prabir Mojumdar in Bengali modern songs.

Probir Mojumdar was one of innovative composers of the golden age who had contributed for Bengali modern songs both with innovative lyrics and brilliant tunes during 50s, 60s and 70s. He was associated with Salil Choudhury for some time and learnt the art of music composition from him too.

Born in 1928, Probir Mojumdar created attention in the Bengali arena with his landmark composition for Dhananjoy Bhattacharya titled “matite janmo nilam, mati tai rakte misheche” in the late 50s. The lyrics of the songs were also written by Probir Mojumdar himself. The song was related to the struggle for freedom during the 40s.

Probir Mojumdar, was remembered for one of the most romantic songs sung by classical singer Manobendra Mukherjee, titled “ei nil nil jal sagore, elomelo sure gan gaowa”. The song had very balanced use of the piano and the soft orchestration was as poetic as the romantic presentation of Manobendra Mukherjee.

Other song for Manobendra Mukherjee tilted “ekhono ei raat” was a blank verse having an odd beat. The song became superhit with the charismatic intonation of Manobendra Mukherjee. The other brilliant composition of Prabir Mojumdar included “kanak chapa dhan” sung by Tarun Banerjee.

He created the brilliant song “raat koto ke jane” for Manna Dey which became superhit. His composition for Nirmala Mishra titled “o tota pakhire” became an everlasting hit having folk flavor.

Probir Mojumdar made notable contribution in Bengali film music as well. He composed music for the film Sri Sri Ramkrishna in the mid-50s. He composed music for Rajen Tarafdar’s off-beat film Jibon Kahini in the early 60s.

The other films for which he composed music, included Teen Pari Choy Premik, Surjosakhhi, Karoti, etc., which were released in the 80s. His name is used with the same dignity as the name of other followers of Salil Choudhury like Kanu Ghosh, Abhijit Banerjee, Anal Chatterji. His music and the films should be restored.

Contribution of Manobendra Mukherjee as composer.

Contribution of Manobendra Mukherjee as composer.

Manobendra Mukherjee had glorified the world of Bengali classical music for more than 35 years. The entire 50s, 60s and 70s was designated as the golden age of Bengali modern songs and Manobendra Mukherjee’s individual performance as vocal classical singer require no special introduction.

But his contribution as composer requires to be highlighted. Manobendra’s composition for himself in the 50s was unique. The romantic songs composed by him included “emni kore porbe mone baki jibon dhore”, “ami eto je tomay bhalobesechi”, “koto asha niye tumi esechile”, etc. Most of these songs stand out as the most romantic songs in the entire history of Bengali modern songs. The lyrics of Shyamal Gupta took the listeners to a different world of plutonic love.

In the 60s, Manobendra Mukherjee continued with his majestic tunes most of which did great business in Bengal. Some of them had classical appeal including “na jeona modhu jamini”, “ei moshumi mon”, “sangi bihongi tumi je amar”, etc. His composition in films like Chapadangar Bou in 1954, Sanjher Pradeep in 1955, Mayamrigo in 1960, Bodhu in 1962, Godhuli Belai in 1966, Joy Jayanti in 1970, created by that period of time.

But Manobendra Mukherjee’s composition for other leading singers of Bengal, both male and female, created sensation in the 50s, 60s and 70s. His landmark composition for Supriti Ghosh titled “gane gane ami je khuji tomay”, composition for Bani Ghoshal titled “kuasha ghera nil pahare” created sensation in the 50s.

Manobendra Mukherjee’s composition for Alpona Banerjee titled “mon bolche sandhay kichu bolte tumi aasbe ki” and “tumi sundor bole tai to bondhu”, created sensation in the 60s. Manobendra gave melodious tune to Shefali Chakravarty titled “kemone janabo bolo e pranero bedona” having both classical and romantic tune.

Manobendra Mukherjee gave folk tune to Tarun Banerjee in the song “champakoli go koto name dekechi tomay”. The list can go on.

Manobendra’s creation requires to be unearthed. There are many melodious compositions of Manobendra made in the 50s, which had not been reprinted by HMV. If displayed, they can attract the new generation and entertain them.

Happy birthday to Jeetender.

Happy birthday to Jeetender.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Jeetender, the golden hero of the 60s on 7th April, 2010. He has been considered as one of the most consistent actors who had steady box-office in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

In the early 60s, he started his career with the success in the film Geet Gaya Pattharone, opposite Rajashree. Bollywood industry was flooded with actors at that time including Showman Raj Kapoor, Tragedy King Dilip Kumar and the other matinee idols like Rajender Kumar, Pradeep Kumar, Shammi Kapoor, Bharat Bhushan and others. He had to face very strong competition to stay in the competition at that time.

Within a short period of time his dancing skills were cultivated by the directors and his films started making profits. His film Farz in 1967, opposite Babita, became super hit. The songs composed by LP and sung by Rafi created storms, including “mast baharon ka mai ashiq”, “baar baar din yeh aye”, etc. Besides, Jeetender’s dance performance in most of the songs entertained the viewers to a big extent.

From that time onwards, Jeetender had a great combination with LP, Rafi and Anand Bakshi. All the songs of the film Humjoli, Jeegri Dost and Banphool became superhit. Prominent songs included “mere desh me”, “dhal gaya din”, etc. Initially critics called Jeetender jumping jack, but his dancing skills followed by his acting skills made him a ruler in the 70s and 80s. He was blessed with romantic songs of Rafi and the composition of many brilliant composers of 60s and 70s. The songs of his film Mere Huzoor were equally romantic.

In 70s, he was probably the only romantic actor other than Rishi Kapoor, he survived the period relating to action films, when Big B, Vinod Khanna, Shatrughu Sinha and others gave hit action films one after the other. The hit films of Jeetender in the 70s include Karwan, Nagin, which continued in the 80s with the success of films like Asha opposite Reena Roy.

Jeetender also played a crucial in off-beat films of Gulzar like Parichay, Khushbu and Kinara where the intellectual audience had appreciated him. He gave very elegant lips in brilliant songs of Bhupinder Singh like “naam gum jayega”, “meethe bol bole”, etc. He transformed himself from an excited, energetic, youth to a reserve personality in Parichay, Khusbu and Kinara.

Jeetender’s in the 80s had compelled producers to launch him opposite young actresses like Sri Devi and Jaya Prada who were much younger than him in films like Himmatwala or Dharm Adhikari. After the launching of his son Tushar Kapoor in modern films, he had reduced acting in contemporary films.

But the viewers expect him to still continue in modern films in character roles just like before.