Station Hollywood: mohammed rafi

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Sunday, May 22, 2016

OP Nayyar and Rafisahab were made for each other.

The combination of OP Nayyar and Mohammad Rafi was like tea and milk. The musiclovers had remembered legendary composer Omkar Prasad Nayyar, popularly known as OP Nayyar on his birthday on 16th January, 2016. He had died few years back, but his tunes had remained immortal for the audience of bollywood films for years. Whenever the name of OP Nayyar appeared in the minds of the audience, the name of immortal singer Mohammad Rafi had come together, without whom OP Nayyar was incomplete. The relationship between the two greats can be compared as tea and milk. OP Nayyar started his career with the film Kaneej in 1949. Guru Dutt had created his image in bollywood films in different categories being a thoughtful director and producer, dynamic actor, good choreographer. One of the numerous reasons for which his films became super hit in the 50s and 60s included the brilliant songs sung by Rafi during the golden age. Rafi’s songs in Guru Dutt’s Aar Paar, released in 1954 and composed by OP Nayyar became super hit. It was followed by Mr and Mrs. 55 released in 1955. Songs picturized on both Guru Dutt and Johnny Walker had melody and sweetness. Rafi’s songs like “dil pe kiya aisa jaadu”, “muhobbat karlo aji karlo”, “sun sun sun sun zaalima”, composed by OP Nayyar, created landmark in the mid-50s and Rafi emerged as the greatest singer of bollywood films during that time. In many of the songs Geeta Dutt did a great job in duets sung along with Mohammad Rafi. The same combination of Guru Dutt, OP Nayyar and Rafi gave everlasting hit in the film 12 O Clock with songs like “mai kho gaya”. Also in CID, OP Nayyar and Rafi combination created gold with songs like “aye dil mushkil jeena yahan”, “leke pehla pehla pyar”, “ankhon hi ankhon me”, etc. The magic combination of Rafi and OP Nayyar mesmerized the audience in Dilip Kumar’s Naya Daur. The super hit songs “saathi hath barana”, “mangke saath tumhara”, “mai bombai ka babu”, contributed a lot in the absolute success of the film. OP Nayyar received the filmfare award for the best music director only once in his career. Credit goes to Rafisahab for the great rendition of each songs of Naya Daur. The brilliant combination of OP Nayyar and Rafi continued in Raj Kapoor’s film Do Ustad. All the songs in the film became extremely popular including “tu ladki mai ladka”, “ruk ruk ruk, chor na de diwane”, “nazron ke teer mare kas kas kas”, etc. Rafisahab was the first choice of OP Nayyar, and inspite of Raj Kapoor’s voice having closeness with Mukesh and Manna Dey. OP Nayyar gave all the songs of Do Ustad released in 1959 to Mohammad Rafi Sahab. Even in Bharat Bhushan’s Phagun, OP Nayyar composed all the songs for great Rafi Sahab. So of the most super hit songs included “kaun se pardesi mera dil le gaya”, “tum rooth ke mat jana”, “mai soya ankhiya miche”. Qamar Jalalabadi’s words were as brilliant as Rafisahab’s velvety voice. Joy Mukherjee’s film Ek Musafir Ek Hasina did brilliant business in the early 60s. Raj Khosla’s musical thriller released in 1962 addressed every section of the society with romantic performance of Joy Mukherjee and Sadhna. All the songs of Rafi and Asha picturized on Joy Mukherjee and Sadhna became super hit. It includes songs like “aap yuhin agar humse milte rahe”, “mujhe dekhkar aapka muskurana”, “phir tere shahar me”, “mai pyar ka rahi hoon”, “bahut shukhriya, bari meherbani”, “humko tumhari isqh ne”, to name a few. Rafi was elegant as ever in the songs “phir tere shahar me” and “humko tumhare ishq ne”. OP Nayyar was probably at his best in the film and his blend of eastern and western music created the romantic mood for the film. Joy Mukherjee, Rafi and OP Nayyar’s magical combination continued in the film Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon. Most part of the film released in 1963 was shot at picturesque locations of Jammu & Kashmir and the landscape was as romantic as the songs sung by Rafi and Asha in the film. The prominent songs included “banda parwar, thamlo jigar”, “lakho hai nigahon me”, “nazneen bara rangeen hai wada tera”, “aanchal me sajalena kaliyan”, “zulf ke chayon me chehere ka ujala lekar”, to name a few. Rafi had shown his excellent classical skills in the songs “zulf ke chayon me”, and “aancal me sajalena kaliyan”. Asha Parekh showed her dancing skills to perfection in the film. Rajender Nath played the role of the relief character in the film. In fact OP Nayyar maintained the same standard of music in Shammi Kapoor’s film Kashmir Ki Kali and Biswajeet’s film Mere Sanam which were made after Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon. Joy Mukherjee’s combination with OP Nayyar continued in the film Humsaya. In that film Sharmila Tagore got the lead role opposite Joy Mukherjee. By that time due to emergence on new actors and actresses in bollywood films, Joy Mukherjee’s popularity declined and the film also did moderate business. In respect of the songs, Rafi’s song “dil ki awaaz bhi sun” became hit. But OP Nayyar gave a number of songs to Mahendra Kapoor was well which did not strike gold in the box –office. Besides Rafi’s western romantic mood is utilized by OP Nayyar in a very stylish way in the songs “Diwana hua badal, sawan ki ghata chayi” and “Yeh Chand Sa Roshan Chehera” in the film Kashmir Ki Kali, 1964 picturised on Shammi Kapoor and “Humne to dilko aap ke kadmome rakh diya, is dil ka kya karenge yeh ab aap sochiye” in the film Mere Sanam, 1965 and “Phir Miloge Kabhi is baat ka wada karlo, humse ek aur mulakat ka wada karlo” in the film Yeh Raat Phir Na Ayegi, picturised on Biswajeet. In all these songs the sarengi and santoor had played a very pivotal role accompanied by the intoxicating appeal of Rafi’s voice. In the film Baharen Phir Bhi Aayegi, Rafi’s ghazal “aap ki haseen rukh” composed by OP Nayyar and picturised on Dharmender was extremely romantic and made the audience spellbound in the early 60s. OP Nayyar composed peppy numbers for Rafi Sahab in Dharmender’s film Muhobbat Zindagi Hai in 1966. Rafisahab’s song “na jaane kyun” was as brilliant as “tumhari mulakat se” and “yeh purnur chehra yeh dilkash ada”. The list of films where OP Nayyar and Rafi’s magic flabbergasted the listeners just goes on including films like Tumsa Nahi Dekha, Basant, Phagun, Kismat, etc. One article is too small to explain the domination of OP Nayyar and Mohammad Rafi in bollywood films of the 50s and 60s. But the songs and the films had not become obsolete and listeners can listen to them again and again. The songs and the films should be restored.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Biswajeet and Rafi.

Biswajeet Chatterji was one of the few Bengali actors who started his film career from Tollygunge film industry and kept his mark in bollywood films during the golden era. Although his initial films like Bees Saal Baad and Kohra were indebted to famous Bengali singer Hemant Kumar, his fame in bollywood was largely related to grand playback provided by Mohammad Rafi.

Rafi sang very melodious songs for Biswajeet in the film Do Dil, including songs like “tera husn rahe mera ishq rahe”. The songs in the film Mere Sanam composed by OP Nayyar, can be considered as one of the greatest creations of OP Nayyar in the 60s. All the songs of Rafi in the film picturised on Biswajeet including “pukarta chala hoon mai”, “humdum mere maan bhi jao”, “hue hai tumpe aashiq hum bhala mano bura mano”, “tukre hai mere dilki”, etc., became superhits.

Also the due songs of Rafi and Asha, picturised on Biswajeet and Sharmila Tagore titled “phir miloge kabhi is baat ka wada karlo” composed by OP Nayyar became very successful. Again all the songs composed by Shankar Jaikishan in the film April Fool, picturised on Biswajeet and Saira Banu impressed the listeners.

LP provided very romantic compositions for Rafi in the film Night in London, where Biswajeet was accompanied by Mala Sinha. The song “nazar na lag jaye” sung by Rafi had absolute European orchestration and included stylish presentation.

Even in the film Do Kaliyan, Ravi provided melodious songs for Rafi including “tumhari nazar”. Biswajeet’s other landmark songs include “na jhatko zulf se paani” where Rafi had addressed Rajashri in the film. All the songs of the Shehnai became very very successful.

With the advent of action films in the mid-70s, Biswajeet faded away from the film arena, otherwise he may have given elegant lips in more songs of Rafi in that period.

By: CR Chatterji.

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Friday, April 18, 2008

Rishi Kapoor and Rafi.

Rishi Kapoor had created a great combination with Rafi in the mid-70s, when most of the other actors for whom Rafi had given playback had shifted to character acting. In Laila Majnu, all the songs of Rafi like “likhe tera naam”, “tere dar pe aya hoon”, “barbad mohabbat”, composed by Madanmohan and Jaidev, became hits. Rishi always had given excellent lips in the songs that were picturised on him.

In Amar Akbar Anthony, all the songs of Rafi were hits, including “parda hai parda”, “shirdiwali saibaba”, “humto tumse ho gaya hai pyar”, etc. All the compositions of Laxmikant Pyarelal in the film were big hits. Besides Rishi’s character in the film was that of a qawalli singer. He was at his best and did justice to Rafi’s songs.

Rafi’s songs in the film Sargam, composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal, were also equally successful. The leading songs include “koel boli”, “dafliwale dafli baja”, “ramjiki nikli sawari” were big hits, where most of them were duet songs with Lata. Rishi played the dafli in style and complimented Jaya Prada’s outstanding choreography in the film.

Even in Karz, Rafi’s song was extremely successful with Rishi giving splendid lips in the song “dard-e-dil”, which was composed by LP. Rishi again played the role of a popular singer in the film which was directed by Subhash Ghai in style.

Rafi also did sing successful songs for Rishi, in films where RD Burman had given landmark tunes. For example, in Zamane ko Dikhana, Hai, Rafi’s song “sochenge pyar kya hua” with Asha was extremely melodious.

Also in Hum kisi Se Kam Nahi, the title song sung by Rafi, “hya agar dushman zamana” was one of the leading qawallies of that time. Due to Rishi’s extraordinary capability to give lips and Rafi’s sweet voice the directors could afford to give qawallies in the films of late 70s.

Had Rafi survived for more number of years, the combination could have given even more hits. The songs should be restored for their epic value.

By: CR Chatterji.

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Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Rafi and Rajender Kumar.

Rafi had probably sung the maximum number of sophisticated songs for Rajender Kumar. Rajender Kumar better known as Jubilee Kumar created a soft, humble romantic image during the 60s and was equally respected like Dilip Kumar, by the audience.

The leading composers of bollywood including Shanker Jaikishan, Naushad, Ravi, etc., kept the image of Rajender Kumar in mind while composing songs for Rafi The songs “dil –e- betaab ko sine se lagana hoga” from the film Palki, and songs of Mere Mehboob, titled “mere mehoob tujhe meri muhobbat ki kasam”, “ae husn zara jag”, “tumse ishaar-e haal” composed by Naushad maintained that image. Sadhna acted opposite Rajender Kumar in Mere Mehboob and Wahida Rehman acted opposite him in Palki. Rafi was a genius and showed his verstality in the ghazals composed in these films.

The leading songs composed by Shankar Jaikishan for Rajender Kumar and sung by Rafi include “mujhko apne gale lagalo” and “yeh ansoo meri dilki zuban hai” from Humrahi, “pehle mile the sapno me” in Zindagi, opposite Vaijayantimala, “yeh mera premepatra parkar” in Sangam, “tum khamseen ho”, “to bura maan gaye”, “o sanam”, etc. from Ayee Milan Ki Bela, “o priya”, “kahan chal diye” from Jhuk Gaya Aasman, opposite Saira Banu, “aye phoolon ki raani”, “chlake teri ankho se” from Aarzoo, opposite Sadhna, etc. Shankar Jaikishan had included ghazals, light classical, western waltz, other western notes for Rafi when he composed them for Rajender Kumar. Most of these songs were superduper hits.

Even Ravi composed songs like “husnwale tera jawab nahi” and “jabse tumhe dekha hai” in the film Gharana for Rafi which were picturised on Rajender Kumar and created alasting impression. SD Burman’s composition for Rajender Kumar in the film Talash also included romantic song of Rafi titled “palkon ke peeche se”.

The music in the films of Rajender Kumar and tremendous performance of Rafi had been the major reason for his immense success during the 60s and early 70s, in addition to soft performance of Rajender Kumar and all his co-artists. The films and the songs should be preserved for their immense musical value.

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Friday, April 4, 2008

Rafi and Dilip Kumar.

Tragedy King Dilip Kumar had been the only actor of the 40s and 50s who had created admirers in every decade and even the present generation has tremendous respect for the living legend for his capability of choosing respectable roles all through his career. Rafi had been instrumental in nurturing the respectability that Dilip Kumar had developed the years.

In Uran Khatola, in 1955, Naushad’s composition for Rafi titled “who door ke musafir” had amazed the audience. Dilip Kumar’s tragic andaz was unparallel in the film. Similarly the classical andaz of Naushad and Rafi in the song “madhuban me radhika nachere” from the film Kohinoor was bolstered by strong lips of Dilip Kumar. He even made the harkats taken by Rafi look lively. Dilip Kumar was even brilliant in the ghazal sung by Rafi in the same film titled “do sitaron ka zamee par hai milan aaj ki raat”, where Lata and Meena Kumari were equally elegant.

In Dil Diya Dard Liya, all the songs sung by Rafi and picturised on Dilip Kumar like “sawan aye ya na aye”, “dilruba maine tere”, “koi sagar dil ko behlata nahi” were masterpieces. Probably Naushad, Rafi and Dilip Kumar were at their best in that film.

The same standard of excellence was displayed in the film Ram Aur Shyam, where the songs “aaj ki raat mere”, “ayi hai bahare”, etc. were melodious and Dilip Kumar entertained the crowd with his romantic andaz.

The songs of Leader, sung by Rafi, including “ek shahenshah ne”, “teri husn ka kya tareef karun”, “aapni azaadi ko hum hargeez mita sakte nahi” were milestones in the history of bollywood music. Dilip Kumar was successful instilling patriotism in the minds of numerous Indians.

For over 30 years Rafi and Dilip Kumar had created history, and it is not possible to highlight their great work in a small article. The songs and the films should be preserved and restored for immense musical value.

By: CR Chatterji.

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Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Dev Anand and Rafi.

Whenever Rafi’s name is used in relation to bollywood films, mainly he is associated with either Dilip Kumar or Guru Dutt, or Shammi Kapoor, who were generally associated with classical composers like Naushad or westernised composers like Shankar Jaikishan.

The combination of Rafi with Dev Anand is overlooked as Dev Anand also gave lips in songs sung by Talat Mehmood, Hemant Kumar and Kishore Kumar.

The immortal songs of Rafi that were picturised on Dev Anand include “abhi na jao chor kar”, “kabhi khud pe kabhi halat pe rona aya’, “mai zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya”, composed by Jaidev in the film Hum Dono. Shankar Jaikishan gave all the songs of Asli Nakli, picturised on Dev Anand to Rafi including “ tujhe jeevan ki dor me”, “ek but banaunga”, etc. It was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and music played an important role in the success of the film.

The other successful songs of Rafi picturised on Dev Anand include “jiya ho jiya ho hiya kuch bol do”, “yeh anakhe”, “teri zulfo ki”, “sau saal pehle hume tumse pyar tha” from the film Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai, composed by Shankar Jaikishan. All the songs were superhits, just like any other composition of Shankar Jaikishan. Even SJ’s composition for Dev Anand and Rafi in the film Pyar Muhabbat, with songs like “pyar muhabbat”, “sun sun sun re balam”, etc., were evergreen and successful.

OP Nayyar always admired Rafi and in CID, the song picturised on Dev Anand titled “ankho hi ankho me ishara ho gaya” became everlasting hit. Lastly SD Burman also known for his folk tunes, had provided immortal tunes to Rafi in Dev Anand’s films. The notable songs include “tere mere sapne”, “din dhal jaye”, “kya se kya ho gaya” from the film Guide; “dekho rutha na karo”, “dil ka bhanwar kare pukar”, “tere ghar ke saamne”, from the film Tere Ghar Ke Saamne; “hum bekhudhi me tumko pukare” from Kala Pani; “khoya khoya chaand” from Kala Bazar.

Although Dev Anand did give lips in less number of songs sung by Rafi in comparison to Rajender Kumar or Joy Mukherjee, but nearly all the songs sung by Rafi for Dev Anand had entertained the audience and became immortal over the years. The songs should be restored for the new generation.

By: Rumi Chatterji.

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Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Dharmender and Rafi.

Dharmender had a very long a struggling career in bollywoood cinema and at every stage of his career the playback of Mohammad Rafi had an impact on the viewers. Dharmender initially performed in romantic films where music was probably the major element which had contributed for the success of the films. In Mere Humdum ere Dost, all the songs of Rafi including "na ja", "hui shaam unka", were hits.

In Izzat, Laxmikant Pyarelal's composition for Rafi, namely "lute dil pe diya jalta nahi", picturisede on Dharmender created an aded attraction for the film. In Yakeen, Rafi's song for Dharmender tilted "ek hassen shaam ko dil mera kho gaya", became very big hit.

In the early 70s, Dharmender switched to action films, but there also music played a part. In Aaya Sawan Jhukme, LP's compostion and Rafi's songs like "majhi chal", "aya sawan jhumke", contributed a lot in the success of the film in adition to excellent choreography of Asha Parekh. Dharmender gave good lips in the song "aj mausam batra beimann hai" in the film Loafer, opposite Mumtaz.

Rafi had followed the diaglogue throwing and mannerism of a number of actors in his long career, and in respect of Dharmender, whenever he did sing any song it appeared to the audience that Dharmender was singing it himself. The songs of the film Jeevan Mrityu, composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal and sung by Rafi including "jhilmil sitaron" became very very successful.

The bond of Rafi and Dharmender was strong that the last song Rafi sung in his career, was dedicated to Dharmender in the film Aas Pas. The other succesful songs of Rafi which were picturised on Dharmender include "sare gama" from the film Chupke Chupke, composed by SD Burman, "aakhree geet muhabbat" composed by Madanmohan, "mai kahee kavi na banjayun", from film Pyar Hi Pyar, composed by Shankar Jaikishan, all the songs of Ram Balram, etc.

As Rafi had sung around 26000 songs within 35 years and Dharmender had acted in more than 200 films within period, it is not possible to mention all the successful songs sung by Rafi for Dharmender. But the songs and the films should be restored for the viewers and the musiclovers.

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Thursday, March 13, 2008

Rajender Kumar and Rafi.

Jubilee Kumar Rajender Kumar was probably one of the most romantic actors of bollywood films whose films have become immortal due to their extraordinary music. Due to strong dominance of Dilip Kumar during the 50s and 60s, Rajender Kumar’s tragic-oriented performances got overshadowed but the playback provided by Rafi in nearly all his films had created history. From 1963 to 1966, all the films of Rajender Kumar celebrated silver-jubilee and he became Jubilee Kumar.

Rafi’s epic songs picturised on Rajender Kumar range from “jeevan me priya tera saath rahe”, in Goonjh Uthi Sehnai, composed by Vasant Desai to “palko ke peeche se” from Talash, composed by SD Burman. Shankar Jaikishan’s marathon compositions for Rafi and Rajender Kumar include “chalke teri aankho se”, “ai nargisi mastana” from Aarzoo, “yaad na jaye” and “dil ek mandir hai” from Dil Ek Mandir, “mujhko apne gale laga lo” and “yeh ansoo meri dil ki zuban hai”, from Humrahi, “meherbaan likhoon” from Sangam, “ to buraman gaye” and “tum khamseen ho” from Ayee Milan Ki Bela, “o priya, kaun hai jo sapno me aya” from Jhuk Gaya Aasman, “baharon phool barsao” and “kaise samjhayun” from Suraj, “teri pyari pyari surat ko”, from Sasural, “khuda bhi aasma se” from Dharti, etc. The list can go on. Shankar Jaikishan probably covered every possible types of songs from Rafi that were picturised on Rajender Kumar, including soft romantic songs, ghazals, pure classical, westernised chord-oriented compositions.

Other than Dilip Kumar, Naushad had probably composed music for maximum number of films of Rajender Kumar, which include Palki, Ganwar, Mere Mehboob, etc. Rafi’s songs “mere mehboob tujhe” and “ai husn zara jag”, from Mere Mehboob, stands out as the most refined classical compositions depicting the pardanashin community of Aligarh and surrounding areas.

Even when Laxmikant Pyarelal composed songs for Rajender Kumar, he kept Rafi in mind and composed songs which suited both of them, including “aap aye bahar aye”, from Aap Aye Bahar Aye, “tu meri sapno ka rani banegi” from Gora Aur Kala. Even Ravi had composed melodious songs for Rafi and Rajender Kumar.

If the films of Rajender Kumar should be revisited for story telling, strong performance of him and the actresses like Meena Kumari, Vaijayantimala, Wahida Rehman, Sadhna, then the songs composed by legendary composers and sung by Rafi should restored as well for their immense musical value.

By: Supriya Chatterji.

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Monday, March 10, 2008

Rafi and Jeetender.

Rafi had an everlasting combination with Jeetender and contributed a lot for the success of Jeetender in bollywood films. In Farz, Laxmikant Pyarelal’s composition for Rafi including “mast baharon ka mai aashiq”, “baar baar din yeh aye”, became superduper hits. Similarly Shankar Jaikishan’s composition for Jeetender which was sung by Rafi titled “rukh se zarah naqab” from the film Mere Huzoor became very successful.

Jeetender was a very powerful dancer and RD Burman’s composition for him in the film Carwa, complimented his dancing style. The songs sung by Rafi including “are ho goriyan kahan tera desh re”, “kitna pyara wada hai” became big hits and the film also did well with powerful performance of Asha Parekh.

All the songs composed in the film Banphool by Laxmikant Pyarelal for Jeetender became successful. Rafi had sung the songs “o sapno ki rani” and other songs of Banphool extremely well. The other notable songs of Rafi which were picturised on Jeetender include “dhal gaya din”, “tick tick tick”, “mere des me pawan kare”, etc. Some of them had westernised orchestration, while the other songs were based on rural tunes.

The song “raat suhani jag rahi hai” in the film Jeegri Dost, picturised on Jeetender and Mumtaz became very very successful. The orchestration of Laxmikant Pyarelal was excellent, Rafi and Lata were at their best form, also the picturisation of the dream sequence also requires special mention.

Even Rafi’s song “bari mastani hai meri mehbooba” picturised on Jeetender and sung for Tanuja, became big hit in the late 60s. Even during the late 70s, when Jeetender shifted to other types of films including the films of Gulzar like Kinara, Rafi’s combination with Jeetender continued in films like Asha, where Rafi’s song “ashaoke sawan me” with Lata stormed the silver screen.

Even in Burning Train, the famous qawalli titled “pal do pal ka saath hamara’ was picturised on Jeetender and Neetu Singh and sung by Rafi and Asha. Had Rafi survived for a longer period musiclovers could have got more number of melodious songs sung by Rafi for Jeetender. All these songs should be preserved as they signify the golden creation during the 60s, 70s and early 80s.

By: Supriya Chatterji.

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Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Rafi and Shankar Jaikishan.

Mohammed Rafi and Shankar Jaikishan.

As shankar jaikishan had given tunes to all the leading singers of bollywood films, including Mukesh, Manna Dey, Kishore, Talat, Hemant Kumar, Mahendra Kapoor, etc., shankar jaikishan’s special relationship with Rafi went unnoticed. Rafi was a sensation in the history of playback singing and SJ acknowledged his talent over the years.

Rafi’s westernised andaz was used by shankar jaikishan in the songs “raat ke humsafar” picturised on Shammi Kapoor, in An Evening in Paris, “aja je a zara aa”, picturised on Joy Mukherjee, in Love In Tokyo, “O Priya”, picturised on Rajender Kumar in Jhuk Gaya Asman, “ai chand zara chup jaa” picturised on Shammi Kapoor in Laat Sahab, to name a few. shankar jaikishan had given landmark ghazals to Rafi, including ‘chaalke teri ankho se sharab aur ziada,” picturised on Rajender Kumar in Aarzoo, “unke khayal aye to ake chale gaye” picturised on Raj Kumar in Lal Pathhar, “o mere shahe-khuba” picturised on Joy Mukherjee in Love In Tokyo, “rukh se zara naqab” picturised on Jeetender in Mere Huzur.

shankar jaikishan had provided tragic tunes which were made immortal by sweet performance of Rafi including “ehsaan tera hoga mujhpar”, picturised on Shammi Kapoor, in Junglee, “teri zulfo ki” picturised on Dev Anand, in Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai, “yaad na jaye” picturised on Rajender Kumar in Dil Ek Mandir, etc.

shankar jaikishan had composed classical songs for Rafi including “kaise samjhaun bari na samajh ho” in Suraj, “radhe ke tune bansuri churayi” in Betibete, “awaaz deke hume tum bulayo” in Professor, etc. As shankar jaikishan dominated bollywood films from the 40s to the 70s, the viewers had lost count about the different category of songs given to Rafi by shankar jaikishan. The songs having the flavour of folk music also became famous like “ramaiya vasta maiya” in Shree 420, which was also sung by Mukesh and Lata along with Rafi.

shankar jaikishan’s excellent orchestration is evident in Rafi’s songs “aaj kal tere mere pyar ke charche”, “jaan pehchaan ho”, “akele akele kahan ja rahe ho”, “le gayi dil”, “meherbaa likhoon”, to name a few. Had Jaikishan survived for a longer time, the combination could have given everlasting tunes for more number of years. All the classic creations should be restored for future generations who can cherish the rich compositions.

By: Rumi Chatterji.

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Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Did Rafi face any competition in bollywood films?

Did Rafi at all face any competition in the golden age of bollywood films?

Whenever the golden age of Indian films are revisited, one of the most notable personalities, Mohammad Rafi, comes into our mind automatically. Much had been written about the maestro and yet not everything has been written. If Rafi had sung around 26,000 songs within a span of 35 years, then the obvious question hovers in the mind of music lovers is that did Rafi at all face any competition during the golden age.

Before answering the question, the other singing personalities should be referred, among female singers Lata Mangeshkar, Samshad Begum, Geeta Dutt, Asha Bhosle, Suman Kalyanpur, Sudha Malhotra, were the dominating figures, while Manna Dey, Mukesh, Talat Mehmood, Kishore Kumar, Hemant Kumar, Mahendra Kapoor, were the male singers contributing to playback singing in Indian films. Mukesh mainly contributed to films of Raj Kapoor and Manoj Kumar, although he had sung hit songs for Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt, specially when they were composed by Shankar Jaikishan or Salil Chowdhury. Talat Mehmood was mainly associated with Dilip Kumar, Hemant Kumar and Kishore Kumar were associated with Dev Anand, Manna Dey was associated with Raj Kapoor, Mahendra Kapoor contributed to Manoj Kumar’s films and BR Chopra’s films.

In respect of female singers Shamshad Begum faded away in the 60s and Geeta Dutt, after the death of Guru Dutt, did not make major contribution to Indian films. Asha Bhosle initially was associated with compositions of OP Nayyar and Ravi, but sang under most of the big banners from the 70s. That leaves us with the nightingale of India that is Lata Mangeshkar. If Rafi had faced true competition from any singer then it was Lata all the way. The statistics of around 440 duets being sung by Rafi and Lata, provides the picture that the film industry was equally dependant on Lata Mangeshkar as they were dependant on Mohammad Rafi.

Very significantly those composers who were obsessed about Rafi, the same composers had liking for Lata. Shankar Jaikishan had provided immortal duet songs for Rafi and Lata and Asha like “itna hai tujhse pyar mujhe”, “ kaise samjhayun bari nasamajh ho” in the film Suraj, in 1966. Naushad’s composition “do sitaron ka zamee par hai milan aaj ki raat” for Rafi and Lata, in the film Kohinoor, in 1960, bolsters his liking towards both the singers. Roshan had experimented with the title song in Barsaat ki raat, in 1960, with both Rafi and Lata. He also asked Rafi and Lata to sing the song “dil jo na keh saka” in the film Bheegi Raat, in 1965, separately at different times in the same film. Laxmikant Pyarellal had composed the duet song of Rafi and Lata titled “woh jab yaad aye bahut yaad aye” from the film Parasmani, in 1963.

Besides Kalyanji Anandji, composed the song “akele hai chale ayo” for both Rafi and Lata who had sung it at different times in the film Raaz in 1968. Besides if Madan Mohan had tremendous liking for Rafi with songs like “tum jo mil gaye ho”, “tumhari zulfoke saye me sham karlunga”, he had equal love for Lata with songs like “tu jaha jaha chalega”, “zarahsi aahat hoti hai”, etc. Besides he composed the same song “teri aankho ke siva duniya me rakha kya hai” for both Rafi and Lata in the film Chirag, 1968. Ghulam Mohammad had provided immortal duet for Rafi and Lata titled “chalo dildar chalo” in the film Pakiza in 1971.

Excepting mid-70s, when Kishore Kumar had sung for leading actors like Amitabh Bachhan, Vinod Mehra, etc., Rafi never faced any competition from any male contemporary singers. Even in that age, Rafi was preferred by those composers like Madan Mohan, Naushad, who had classical affiliation and never compromised with class. Manna Dey faced Rafi in musical competitions with his versatile classical orientation in songs like “yeh isq isq”, from the film Barsaat ki raat, composed by Roshan. The debate relating to Rafi’s competitors can go on, and some of the music lovers highlight the song in Amar Akbar Anthony, in 1977, “humko tumse ho gaya hai pyar”, where Rafi sung for Rishi Kapoor, Kishore Kumar for Amitabh Bacchan and Mukesh sung for Vinod Khanna, to emphasis the fact of equal popularity of Mukesh and Kishore Kumar with Rafi. But if the interviews of leading composers, lyricists, producers and directors are studied, there is no second opinion that Rafi was given separate consideration and given added honour without disrespecting any of the other singers who also had made significant contribution to the world of playback singing in bollywood films.

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Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Naushad's relationship with Rafi

Naushad’s association with Rafi:

Naushad Ali, is probably one of the grand composers of Indian silver screen who had been successful to bring out the Hindustani ragas that were captivated in the darbars of nawabs and feudal lords and simplified them for the common man. Born in 1919, he did spend his childhood in Lucknow, and learned music from Ustad Ghurbat Ali, Ustad Yusuf Ali and Ustad Babban Saheb.

Naushad had shaped the careers of a number of singing legends in the country including Saigal, but his association with Mohammad Rafi had marked the most golden combination which galvanised the outstanding music composed during the golden age in Indian music, the 50s and 60s. His composition in the film Dulari, 1947, for Mohammad Rafi titled “suhani raat dhal chuki” makes a music lover addicted and it has an appeal even after 60 years of its composition.

Baiju Bawra, with Bharat Bhusha and Meena Kumari, in 1952, marks the best creation possible from any composer, it had bhajans, extraordinary use of Hindustani ragas, folk songs and possibly Naushad had been successful to use the range of Rafi to the fullest extent. Other than “woh duniya ke rakhwale”, “tu ganga ki mauj”, there were many songs which explained the relationship of the ragas with rain, the seasons of nature, etc. Naushad received film fare award for the best music composed in that year.

In Uran Khatola, 1955, Naushad’s composition for Rafi, “woh durke musafir, humko bhi saath lele re” showed his capability of using chorus with eastern effect. Naushad’s composition in Son of India, “dil torneewale”, duet for Rafi and Lata, shows the effective use of instruments in that age when recording was not developed to that extent. In Dilip Kumar’s Kohinoor, 1960, Rafi’s songs “madhuban me radhika nachere”, “do sitaron ka zamee par hai Milan aaj ki raat” marks Naushad’s control over bhajans and songs with chorus effects. In Rajender Kumar’s Mere Mehboob, 1963, Naushad had explained the transformation of nasams into ghazals. His songs “mere mehboob tujhe meri mohabbat ki kasam”, “tumse izhaar-e-haal kar baithe”, “ai husn zara jag tujhe isq dikhaye” enchanted the listeners. Naushad’s compositions were as outstanding as Shakeel Badayani’s lyrics and Rafi’s golden voice.

Naushad experimented with his classical control in Leader, 1964, where Rafi’s songs “tere husn ki kya tariff karun”, “ek shahenshah ne banwake haseen tajmahal”, “apni azaadi ko hum hargeez meeta sakte nahi”, had romantic appeal, classical appeal and the symbol of freedom movement embedded in them. Rafi was outstanding in every song in that film. In Dil Diya Dard Liya, 1966, Rafi’s songs “sawan aye ya na aye”, “dilruba maine tere”, “koi sagar dil ko behlata nahi”, “guzre hai” were masterpieces which matched Naushad’s compositions for Lata “phir teri kanani yaad ayi”. Ram Aur Shayam, 1967, the film where Dilip Kumar acted in double roles, had comedy, dance sequences, action and every element for which filmlovers visit cinema halls. Yet Naushad’s composition and Rafi’s songs superseded every other element. The notable songs include “aye hai baharen”, “aaj ki raat mere”, etc.

In Aadmi, 1967, Naushad’s compositions for Rafi including “aaj purani raho par”, “na aadmi ka koi bharosa”, showed the depth of thinking of the composer, where the songs matched the sequences of the film where Dilip Kumar amazed the viewers with his performance in wheel chair. Besides, Naushad had used folk songs to a great extent where the subjects in the films required them. For example in the film Ganga Jumna, 1961, his composition for Rafi including “nain lar jaihe” was created with bhojpuri effect, and Rafi had succeeded in pronouncing it in the manner expected from him. Rafi’s songs in Rajender Kumar’s Palki, Ganwar, composed by Naushad were also outstanding.

Besides just like Shankar Jaikishan, Naushad for doing justice to Rafi and Lata, had not done injustice to other singers. He used Bare Ghulam Ali khan in the film Mughal-I-Azam, in 1960, to sing a thumri, the way Shankar Jaikishen asked Bhim Sen Joshi to sing a classical composition in Basant Bahar, 1957. It is tragic that the film industry, could not utilise Naushad’s talent in 1970s and 80s, but if Shankar Jaikishan had utilised Rafi’s range in singing westernised compositions, Naushad had used Rafi’s classical andaz in the best possible manner. He was rightly awarded Dada Saheb Falke for his epic creations in the 40s, 50s, 60s. Rafi’s archive should contain Naushad’s compositions, because his career was given the right direction by legendary creations of the versatile genius.

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