Pal Do Pal Ka Saath Hamara

What was just started as a one-off post to mark the 75th birth year of Pancham became a way of sharing my fascination with Pancham's music with the big world of Pancham-fans all over - some known and a lot many stranger earlier, but not any more. 

It would be apt to use an oft-quoted couplet from Majrooh, with whom RD created some of the biggest hits of his career:

Main Akela hi chala tha Jaanib-e-manzil, Magar

Log Aate Gaye Aur Caravan Banta Gaya

Talking about the caravan & the journey, here is another of Pancham's hit. This is in format of a quawwalli - a format which Pancham mastered, specially in 80s. 

The song, picturised on a fast moving train - from The Burning Train by Ravi Chopra - is a prelude to the mishap that is about to take place. Hence, keeping true to the format and the situation, the composition starts with Harmonium & Shehnai, and then becomes double paced to match the romance and the joyous mood inside the train, juxtaposed with the mood outside, where the train is racing towards a disaster. Unfortunately, despite a huge star cast, and a season of hugely popular disaster movies from Hollywood, this movie itself proved to be a disaster. However, Rafi & Asha's rendition in this excellent composition, proved to be a big draw, and is popular even now.

Philosophically, this is extension of Majrooh's couplet. While Majrooh wrote about gathering people on the journey, Sahir who penned the verse here, wrote about the need to enjoy the life now, due to its fickleness and the inevitability where by the end of the journey one is always left alone. Ironically, this was also the last movie of Sahir, just before his leaving for another journey - alone.

Nazaron ke shok nazrane Hontho ke garm paimaane

Hai aaj apni mahafil men, Kal kya ho koi kya jaane

Yeh pal kushi ki jannat hai, Is pal me ji le diwane

Aaj ki kushiyan ek haqiqat, Kal ki kushiya afsane hai

Pal do pal ka saath hamara, Pal do pal ke yarane hai

Is manzil par hai milne vale, Us manzil par kho jaane hai