Kitna Pyaara Geet Hai..Yeh Goya ke Chunanche..

"To me, Pancham was an enthusiastic chef who enjoyed the unexplored exotica; and not just an efficient cook. Pancham's primary identity was that of an exceptionally gifted musician..."

Thus wrote Shammi Kapoor - the original rock star - about RD.

It is Shammi Kapoor’s birth anniversary today. Shammi Kapoor, whose Teesri Manzil - that RD composed five years after making his debut - not only catapulted RD in a different league altogether, but also was instrumental in creating a team which provided scintillating score for almost 2 decades - that of Nasir Hussain, Majrooh & RD!

Unfortunately, post Teesri Manzil, there was no movie that had Shammi Kapoor as a hero & RD as a composer. However, so impressed was Shammi with RD, that for his two directorial ventures, Manoranjan & Bundal Baaz, RD was the obvious choice.

Manoranjan, incidentally, was one of the only unapologetic comedy about prostitutes - which did not sermonise. About a romance between a prostitute - Zeenat Aman and a constable - Sanjeev Kumar, the movie, due to the prevalent attitudes and Adults only tag did not do really too well. To some extent, this also affected the popularity of its music - despite RD being in one of his best elements.

There were a couple of amazing melodies, specially one by Lata Mangeshkar. However, for today, as a tribute to Shammi Kapoor, right song to feature would be this one – which apart from Lata & Kishore, also had Manna Dey, rendering his voice for Shammi Kapoor. 

The composition, like the movie, also has a joie-de-vivre with superb emphasis on the percussion all through out - specially during the stanzas where the song picks up each time after a brief pause. Add to that the class of the performers off & on the screen, and yet the song has remained under-appreciated - just like the movie itself. 

For a Pancham fan, this is an absolute delight though, specially when you realise that this was RD's & Shammi Kapoor's last hit together.