Kaanp Rahi Main...

Namak Haram was released in 1973. This was indeed a good year for Pancham - with 19 releases. His compositions for the movies like Yaadon ki Baraat, Aa Gale Lag Ja, Namak Haram, Heera Panna & Anamika were instant hits & remained chart-toppers forever. On the other hand there were movies like Bandhe Haath where it took a long passage of time before its music got appreciated.

There were also mixed fares like Joshila - produced by Gulshan Rai (whose first production was Johny Mera Naam and whose son Rajiv Rai went on to make movies like Gupt & Mohra) and directed by Yash Chopra. The movie had that rare combination of Sahir & Pancham, yet except Kishore Kumar's outstanding rendition of "Kiska Rasta Dekhe", none of the songs really got the due recognition.

For example, this cabaret number, picturised on Padma Khanna. With a long prelude and longer interludes, the song is remarkable for its varying pace of composition as well as the vocal - which were rendered by Asha Bhosle. Listening to the number, one really wonders the reason for its not getting the kind of popularity which some of his other cabaret compositions could garner. Perhaps, again the reason could be that the movie itself turned out to be a dud - despite having Dev Anand, Hema & Rakhee as the lead cast.

Anyways, here is the number. I recommend that you must listen to it with earphones, to really enjoy the jamming of instruments in this not so often heard composition of Pancham:

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

Na Koi Dil Men Samaya..

Hello.. I am back again..from a trip into the heartland of the country where in a few days we criss-crossed the rivers, ravines, grasslands - and experienced the harmony that nature creates, from the very close quarters. More about the trip, however, later and at another page.

Here, on this page, to begin with, in response to my friend Taru's query to my last post comes another RD - Kishore special:

Yes, Sahir & Pancham did work together - but surprisingly almost a decade after Pancham had turned into a composer. Their first movie together was Aa Gale Lag Ja - directed by Manmohan Desai, who used RD's talent in only two movies. The movie itself, starring Shashi Kapoor & Sgarmila Tagore, was a story of misunderstanding,s, manipulations & lost & found - a genre MKD always preferred.

The music of Aa Gale Lag Ja went on to become one of the milestones for all those associated with it - RD, Kishore and Sahir. I had featured its most popular song - Tera Mujhse Hai Pahle Ka Naata Koi quite early on this page. 

Just like RD's other movies, there are other hidden gems - one of them being this Kishore number - again for its heartfelt rendition with Kishore using his trademark yodelling to reach right inside one's heart. Sahir, donning the cap of a lyricist - unlike the shair that he was, manages to infuse the verse with uncommon words like Tohmat and Aeb. 

The real magic of the song is, however, in the interludes wherein RD has used and mixed a variety of western instruments like accordion, guitar, violin & and bells - adding depth to the song.

Here it is:

Kuch Bhi Kar Lo..

Once upon a time, there existed a perfect world: A world where romance overshadowed all other emotions; a world where the hero remained young & energetic ever; a world where the lovely & beautiful heroines sang in a voice that sounded freshly in love, always!

Once upon a time, there existed Hindi movie world comprising of Yash Chopra, Dev Anand & Lata Mangeshkar . And then there was Pancham – with a remarkable capability to create such compositions which have remained young forever.

I began the week with a flurry of songs from Lata-RD combination. As the week is about to get over, it is becoming special - for the Hindi movie buffs - more so for those who are die-hard romantics.

A week which had us celebrating the birth anniversary of the youthful Dev Anand on 26^th,  of the king of Romance Yash Chopra today on 27^th and birthday of the queen of melody Lata Mangeshkar, tomorrow on 28th.

Here, at Celebrations with  Pancham, the best tribute to all of them would be this love-song from the movie Joshila.

Produced by Gulshan Rai, the movie had two young & beautiful actresses - Rakhee & Hema Malini - starring with not-so young - yet very, very, energetic Dev Anand - acting for the only time under the baton of Yash Chopra. If at all, all these creative minds together were not enough - the movie also had Sahir Ludhianvi penning the lyrics for the first time for RD's compositions.

This composition carries the hallmark of what Pancham was capable of - especially with vocal harmonization between Lata & Kishore while the beats continue to change.

It also brings out the flavor of a Yash Chopra romance, with his cinematographer Fali Mistry capturing the snow-capped mountains, lush green carpeted earth, lovely blue sky – and creating a visual of that world where the God was in heaven, everything was picture perfect & and the romance reigned supreme.

Ae Meri Topi Palat Ke Aa..

Can RD & Kishore's combination ever be enough? No!

So, please forgive me if I got stuck in this groove for last 2-3 days around Kishore Kumar's birth anniversary. However, now is the time to move on to other facets of Pancham's music. Yet before that one question: Which was the first song where Kishore sang on Pancham's tune?

Of course, every one knows the answer - Jaago Sone walon, Suno Meri Kahani - from Bhoot Bangla - Pancham's second movie as a music director. This is incorrect though, if we go by what Pancham himself told in an interview to Filmfare.

In 1951, at the age of 12 years, while speaking to his father during Sachin Dev Burman's visit to Calcutta, he made Sachin da hear a few tunes that he had composed by then. A couple of years later, while listening to a song, he suddenly realised - "My God, that's my tune". He wrote to his father, who admitted that yes, the song was based on Pancham's tune. 

This was the song,  picturised on Dev Ananad and sung by Kishore Kumar for Funtoosh - a Navketan movie released in 1956, directed by Chetan Anand. 

The interesting part is to find Sahir in a very different kind of mood when he writes:

Ae meri humjoli

Tu bhi gair ki ho li

Tu bhi de gayi dhakka, 

Auron ke sang ghoome

Ithalaye aur jhoome

Dekhun main bhaunchakka

Ae meri dilbar, Idhar Nazar Kar

Na ja bichad kar na ja

Does it not sound almost like a precursor to Champi tel Maalish? Interestingly, that is another song where the original tune is now being credited to Pancham. Well, more about that later. For the time being enjoy Ae Meri Topi Palat ke Aa..