Rajesh Roshan : The Last Of The Originals!!

Hi!

"The Last Of The Originals". this statement was made for Rajesh Roshan by none other than the legendary music director, Laxmikant (of Lamikant-Pyarelal fame)! In the mid 70's when Laxmikant Pyarelal, R. D. Burman and Kalyanji Anandji were making waves, came a young music director who not only made a sensational debut, but also started a trend for soft romantic numbers. Yes, we are talking of Rajesh Roshan (RR) ! After R.D. Burman, the first music director who entered the Hindi Film Music scene and had an impact is Rajesh Roshan! Virtually, no other music director could handle the storm that LP, RD, KA had created in the early 70's, and then came Rajesh Roshan in 1974. He debuted with a sensational score in Kunwara Baap, which had unforgettable numbers like Aa Ri Aa Jaa, Main Hoon Ghodha, and Saj Rahi Gali Meri. He followed it soon with an eternal score in Julie whose numbers were nothing short of masterpieces. How can any one forget the aura created by songs like Bhool Gaya Sab Kuch, Dil Kya Kare, Yeh Raatein, My Heart Is Beating and Saancha Naam Tera!
The score of Julie certified that Rajesh Roshan has arrived! The arrangement and the composition were so refreshingly different, that straightaway Rajesh Roshan entered the club of big boys of Hindi Fim Music! Julie was followed by scores like Swami, Priyatama, Khatta Meetha, Doosara Aadmi, Inkaar, Jay Vijay, Tumhari Kasam, Dillagi, Viswanath, Des Pardes, Swarg Narak, Baaton Baaton Mein, Janta Hawaldar, Mr. Natwarlal, Kaala Patthar, Man Pasand, Aap Ke Deewane, Swayamvar, Yaraana, Khuddar, Kaamchor, to name a few!
Rajesh Roshan's career can be divided into four parts. Let's take up each of the parts individually to understand how in each phase of his career, Rajesh Roshan struggled to keep the melody intact in his songs and what made Laxmikant to say - He Is The Last Of The Originals!

Phase 1 : 1974 - 1985
Without no doubt, this was the best phase of Rajesh Roshan's career. He blessed us with Julie, Swami, Priyatama, Khatta Meetha, Doosara Aadmi, Des Pardes, Swarg Narak, Baaton Baaton Mein, Janta Hawaldar, Mr. Natwarlal, Kaala Patthar, Man Pasand, Aap Ke Deewane, Swayamvar, Yaraana, Khuddar, Kaamchor, Aakhir Kyon in this phase!
This was the phase, in which RR created some unforgettable romantic numbers. The melody has always played a big role in RR's compositions, and that is one of the major reasons, why his songs still continue to remain fresh in the minds of the listeners. The music arrangement was always there to support the composition, and not in a single song by RR in this period, arrangements took over the composition. The third factor which makes any RR composition so wowee in this period is the effective use of Lata, Rafi, Kishore in his songs. Listen to one song - Chal Kahin Door Nikal Jaayein (Doosara Aadmi) in which these three legends sang together for RR, and you will know what I mean! RR always made the best use of the voices of Lata, Rafi, Kishore. These three singers and RR coming together for a song in this period meant magic!
RR replaced LP, RD, KA from their strongholds in this phase. Dev Anand, Yash Chopra, L.V. Prasad, Basu Chatterjee, Mehmood, Ravi Tandon, Subhash Ghai, J. Om Prakash, K. Vishwanath, all of these stalwarts left their favourite music directors to work with RR. Similarly, RR was equally at ease working with legends like Anand Bakshi, Majrooh, Rajendra Krishan, Sahir on one hand, and young dynamic lyricist like Amit Khanna on the other!


Phase 2 : 1986 - 1994
The Bappi wave took a toll and majorly the three music directors who suffered the most were RD, KA, and RR. The death of Kishore Kumar, Mohd. Rafi and selective singing of Lata Mangeshkar saw RR losing his ground. The compositions started losing the spark which were trademark RR. Somehow, RR's composition could not gel with the voices of Mohd. Aziz, Shabbir Kumar and Suresh Wadkar. Amit Kumar was the only exception, whose singing style did ample justice to the compositions of RR. The RR magic was evident in this phase in scores like Babu, Khudgarz, Kaash, Kabzaa, Khoon Bhari Maang, Aasmaan Se Ooncha, Kaala Bazaar, Kishan Kanhaiya, Jurm, Bahaar Aane Tak, Kasak, Khel, King Uncle and Gunaah. RR started using Kumar Sanu from the early 90's and Amit Kumar lost RR as well as other established music directors of those times!
In this period, music arrangement in RR's compositions got louder and louder! Perhaps, that was the struggle of the gentleman composer to change with the changing times. Still, whenever RR returned to his signature style, as evident in scores like Kaash, Jurm, Bahaar Aane Tak, Khel, Gunaah, the result was exemplary!

Phase 3 : 1995 - 1999
RR started 1995 with a bang! Karan Arjun produced and directed by his brother Rakesh Roshan saw RR ruling the popularity charts for the whole year! It had gems like Jaati Hoon Main, Yeh Bandhan To and Ik Munda. The other big hit of the year was Sabse Bada Khiladi. These two movies saw RR returning back to the popularity charts, which was eluding in the earlier phase. These four years saw the brilliance of RR in scores like Papa Kehte Hain, Dastak, Koyla, Ghulam-E-Mustafa, Keemat, Main Solah Baras Ki, Daag-The Fire, and Lawaaris. Although not all the scores were popular, RR still managed to keep the melody intact in the above mentioned scores.
This phase marked the return of RR as far as the popularity index goes. His scores were well attuned with the times, and that confidence was quite evident in every popular score by him in this phase!

Phase 4 : 2000-........
2000 - the year of Kaho Na Pyar Hai! RR ruled the year with songs like Kaho Na Pyar Hai, Chand Sitare, Ik Pal Ka Jeena, and Na Tum Jaano Na Hum! Kya Kehna, Moksha, Naa Tum Jaano Na Hum, Koi Mil Gaya, Krrish, Krazzy 4 followed suit. RR in this phase has cut down on his work heavily, to the extent that now his music can only be heard in movies produced by his brother - Rakesh Roshan!
The music of RR remains special as always, and how I wish that we get to hear more of his tuneful melodies! Considering the times where it is hard to distinguish between a pop album and a film score, the sincerity of RR always shines through in his scores!

Rajesh Roshan and his music, both of them have always been low profile! Easily, he is one of the most underrated composers of all times. His style of music making has been followed by his juniors and even his contemproraries. Bappi Lahiri, Anu Malik, Jatin Lalit, Shyam Surinder all have followed, what is the Rajesh Roshan school of music! I guess, this is what made Late Laxmikant to term him, The last of Originals! It is his sheer brilliance that he managed to create and retain his own style throughout his career. You will find the trademark RR signature in every popular score composed by him!

हम तो आप के दीवाने हैं
बड़े मस्ताने हैं ओ ओह ओ ओह!

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

P.S. Please put up your comments by clicking on comments below!

Why Laxmikant Pyarelal Became An Addiction To The Directors ??

Hi!!!!!!!!!
The biggest news of this week was the release of the music of 'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi'. The music review will be here this week - that's a promise!
Coming back to Laxmikant - Pyarelal (LP) and their Long Playing (LP) association with the biggest directors of the Hindi Cinema, the most notable thing is that they had a long lasting relationship with not one or two, but several prominent directors! When we speak about Shankar Jaikishan, their association with Raj Kapoor leads the party! When we speak about Ravi, B. R. Chopra was his man! Remember Kalyanji - Anandji, Manoj Kumar and Prakash Mehra's name flashes in your mind! R. D. Burman had Shakti Samanta and Nasir Hussain! S. D. Burman and Vijay Anand were inseparable! Now come to Laxmikant - Pyarelal, and there is list out there! Raj Khosla, Raj Kapoor, Subhash Ghai, J. Om Prakash, Mohan Kumar, Manmohan Desai, Manoj Kumar are some of the names that come in our minds! It must have been a miracle to have a long term bonding with these legends who had such varied taste as far as music in their films was concerned. Raj Khosla's music had earthiness, Raj Kapoor's music had to had a larger than life quality in even the simplest of songs, Subhash Ghai's music demanded melody, Mohan Kumar's musical inclination was simplicity, Manmohan Desai's music was aggressive, and Manoj Kumar had a taste for emotions! God, such diverse demands and two gentlemen always had something in them to satisfy each and every one of them! That was the beauty of Laxmikant-Pyarelal!
What I have said can be argued - readers may point out that apart from LP, the other music directors also had a long association with prominent directors, and that is very true! But the point is that LP had a bonding with not one but several of them, while others had a impactful relation with one or two!
Let's read more about LP's association with some melodic filmmakers.

Raj Khosla and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (10 Films)
Raj Khosla worked with S. D. Burman, O. P. Nayyar, Ravi and then he shifted to LP , who worked with him for 10 films right from Anita (1967) to Mera Dost Mera Dushman (1984). The association produced eternal scores like Anita, Mera Gaon Mera Desh, Do Raaste, Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki, Dostana! Raj Khosla had said on an occassion- Once you have LP, you don't need anybody else!


Raj Kapoor and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (3 Films)
The Showman of the Millenium - Raj Kapoor had a very successful bonding with Shankar Jaikishan (SJ) who worked with him right from Barsaat (1949) to Mera Naam Joker (1970). When he decided to launch his son - Rishi Kapoor in Bobby (1973), LP were signed to take over the SJ legacy! And what a brilliant choice it turned out to be! LP went on to give us memorable numbers like Main Shayar To Nahin, Hum Tum Ek Kamre Mein, Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate among many others in Bobby! Raj Kapoor directed three movies after Bobby - Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Prem Rog and Ram Teri Ganga Maili. Two of the last three movies directed by Raj Kapoor had Laxmikant Pyarelal as music directors!


Manoj Kumar and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (4 Films)
Manoj Kumar had a strong bonding with Kalyanji Anandji (KA) in Upkar and Purab Aur Pachchim. He shifted to LP with Shor, and post Shor only once he turned away from LP in Clerk! LP gave Manoj Kumar - Shor, Roti Kapda Aur Makaan, Kranti, Jai Hind-The Pride!


Manmohan Desai and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (9 Films)
Manmohan Desai, the Maestro of Formula Films, always aspired to have popular music in his directorial ventures, and had more or less been successful in that aspiration. He had started his career with Chalia in 1960 and till 1973 made 9 films using six music directors - Kalyanji Anandji, Shankar Jaikishan, O. P. Nayyar, Sonik Omi, R. D. Burman, Ganesh! In 1974 he made Roti, and for his next 9 directorial ventures LP was the constant factor! They together amalgamated to give us memorable scores in Roti, Dharam Veer, Amar Akbar Anthony, Suhaag, Parvarish, Suhaag, Naseeb, Desh Premee, Coolie! The last two ventures of Manmohan Desai had Anu Malik as music directors. Incidently, the last movie concieved by him saw the return of LP in MKD Films (Deewana Mastana 1997)!

Subhash Ghai and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (9 Films)
Subhash Ghai has been looked as a director who always had a flair for good music. He started his directorial career with Kalicharan which had Kalyanji Anandji, moved on to Vishwanath with Rajesh Roshan, and then he found his musical anchor in LP. The Subhash Ghai - LP association started in Guatam Govinda (1979) and lasted throughout the 80's and successfully culminated with Khalnayak in 1993! In between these years LP provided their magical touch in 9 out of the 10 movies directed by Subhash Ghai!

J. Om Prakash and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (9 Films)
J. Om Prakash had worked with Madan Mohan before he took R. D. Burman for Aap Ki Kasam in 1974, and he extracted excellent work from him. In Aakraman (1975), he teamed with LP, and that bond lasted till Agnee (1988). In between these 13 years, he directed 11 movies out of which 9 had music by LP. They together entertained us by giving us fantastic scores in Aakraman, Apnapan, Aashiq Hoon Baharon Ka, Aasha, Aas Paas, Arpan and Aap Ke Saath.

Mohan Kumar and Laxmikant-Pyarelal (9 Films)
Shankar Jaikishan and Madan Mohan were the favourite music directors of Mohan Kumar, but it all changed with Aap Aaye Bahaar Aayee(1971). Right from 1971 to 1990, Mohan Kumar never directed any movie without LP. The magic of LP with Mohan Kumar was evident in scores of Aap Aaye Bahaar Aayee, Anjaana, Mome Ki Gudiya, Amir Garib, Avtaar and Amrit!

The above are to be taken only as examples, because LP had a very successful tuning with other acclaimed directors like Mahesh Bhatt (Naam, Gumrah, Dhun), Satyen Bose (Dosti, Wapas, Aasra, Jeevan Mrityu), Brij (Night In London, Paise Ki Gudiya, Do Bhai), Mukul Anand (Insaaf, Hum, Khuda Gawah, Trimurti), J. P. Dutta (Ghulami, Batwara, Yateem, Hathyaar, Kshatriya), Dulal Guha (Dushman, Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke, Pratigya, Dost), Raghunath Jhalani (Aaye Din Bahaar Ke, Aaya Saawan Jhoom Ke, Man Ki Aankhein, Badalte Rishte), Raj Kumar Kohli (Lutera, Gora Aur Kala, Naagin, Jaani Dushman, Bees Saal Baad), Amar Kumar (Mere Humdum Mere Dost, Pyasi Shaam, Barkha Bahar), Harmesh Malhotra (Lafangey, Nagina, Nigahen, Heer Ranjha), Ramanand Sagar (Jalte Badan, Charas, Prem Bandhan, Baghavat), amongst many others!

The point I have tried to make by illustrating the association of LP with various directors is that LP were probably the only one who were chameleons as far as the requirements of the directors, script, setting was concerned. Once a director had the oppurtunity to work them, rarely they let them go! Why - ask this question to yourself and you will get the answer! The music of Raj Khosla's movies and music of Raj Kapoor's movies were as different as chalk and cheese. There was only one LP who could have bridged this gap between the varied tastes of filmmakers and change colours so magnificently!

बन्दा परवर मैं कहाँ
ये आपकी महफिल कहाँ
आपकी बंदानावाजी है
मैं इस काबिल कहाँ !

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

P.S. Please put up your comments by clicking on comments below!

Our Past Is Dying!!!!!!!!

Hi,

It has been incredible 15 days! I am touched and am honoured by the kind of response I am getting to my blog. The intention was exactly the same. I wanted the lovers of Hindi Cinema Music to come forward and talk about what made them lovers of this kind of music. I am thrilled to tell one and all, that this is happening! My friends, let us all join hands and preserve the treasure we have got!
Hindi Cinema Music is like a garden which has variety of flowers! You may love the fragrance of one flower and I may love another! But at the end of the day, we all are on the same side. Ras ke pujari aap bhi hain aur hum bhi, to hammein dooriyan kisliye (Roughly it means you and me , both are devotees of music, then why should there be any distance between us!)। I am here to spread love for our music, and I request all of you to do the same। Only being a lover of Hindi Cinema Music wont do! If you are in love with our music , then you have to spread it !
I have a very valid point to support what I have said earlier! How many of you have faced this - a kid dances to the tunes of Bachna Aye Haseeno and exclaims, damn Vishal - Shekhar are cool! They don't even know that this masterpiece was composed by a maestro named R. D. Burman ! For that matter the remix version of Mere Naseeb Mein Tu Hai, Leena O Leena, Yeh Mera Dil have been burning the dance floors for quite a while! I can guarantee you that the Youngistan (the new generation) don't even have a clue about the original composers and the singers of these songs. Add to that, they don't even know that there was a original song from where it has been ripped! Not knowing the facts is okay, but what is disastrous is the fact that they don't have the inclination to know the facts. This is no way their fault! The fault lies with us - have you ever informed your kid about the source behind these remixes and adaptations. I am sure, most of us dont care to do that, and that's why the ignorance. Doston (Friends), in this case ignorance is not bliss, it is a blunder!
Chitragupta, Usha Khanna, Roshan, Vasant Desai, Sonik Omi, Khemchand Prakash, Suman Kalyanpur, Shamshad Begum, Suraiya - does these names ring a bell? When was the last time you have heard their songs being played - there contributions have become extinct as far as the recall value is considered. Pull up your socks before the same happens to Shankar Jaikishan, Laxmikant Pyarelal, S. D. Burman, Mohd. Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh, and the rest of the Gods of Hindi Cinema Music!

जाने वो कैसे लोग थे जिनके प्यार को प्यार मिला
हमने तो जब कलियाँ मांगी कांटों का हार मिला !

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

P.S. Please put up your comments by clicking on comments below!

Clinical View of A Hindi Cinema Song !

Hi,

Have you ever noticed that in a Hindi Cinema song there is a definite pattern in which a song is framed? If you haven't, then let me tell you that in majority of the songs, there is a fixed pattern!
A Hindi cinema song generally consists of a prelude, the mukhda, the interlude, and the antaras! A song starts with the prelude music which is followed by the mukhda, which is further followed by the interlude music which acts as a bridge between two or three set of antaras. The mukhda comes after the prelude music and subsequently appears after every set of antara! Mukhda is a hindi word and the most liberal translation of it in English means face, and the word antara can be translated to heart/soul! You can very well understand that the mukhda of a Hindi Cinema Song is the face of the song, which in turn means that the mukhda tells you in short, what the song is all about! The antaras are the heart or the soul of the song, which is nothing but a detailed explanation of the contents of the mukhda!
The prelude music sets up the tone for a song and generally by hearing the prelude music of a Hindi Cinema song, you can identify whether you are going to hear a happy, sad, romantic, patriotic, sentimental or a philosophical song! In short the magic of a Hindi Cinema song starts right with the prelude music.
The interlude music connects mukhda with antaras and acts as a bridge between the antaras. The interlude music is the thread that binds the song together. It's function is to combine the different parts of the songs and make it one ! This means, the interlude music is the one that prevents a song from being disjointed!
Now when we know what are the basic components of a song, you might be eager to know what are the roles of a music director and a lyricist in a Hindi Cinema song! Actually the making of a song involves three parts - music compostion, music arrangement, lyrics! Philosophically speaking, the music composition gives body to a song, the music arrangement gives flair or dignity to a song, and last but not the least, the lyrics gives the character to a song. Take away any of the component mentioned above, and the song becomes incomplete!
Which is more important - the music or the lyrics - is probably one of the toughest question in this world? According to me, both of them are equally important, and I dont want to waste any further time to evaluate the superiority of either of the two!

गीत तेरे साज़ का
तेरी ही आवाज़ हूँ
तू भी मेरा साथी बन जा
मैं तेरी हमराज़ हूँ !

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

P.S. Please put up your comments by clicking on comments below!

Who Were The Most Popular Amongst Them All ???????

Hi,

I was listening to one of the collections of the most popular songs of 70's, when it striked to me that let's put up a list of the most popular music directors, singers and lyricists between 1950 to 2000! The idea is not to belittle the talents of these geniuses by placing them up in a ladder, but to explore which one of these contributed the most in terms of quantity, to entertain us. Before putting up the table of ranks, I must make it clear that the ranking has been done strictly on the basis of the most popular songs contributed by these talents.
So let's start rocking and find out the most popular amongst them all!

The 10 Most Popular Music Directors :
1. Laxmikant - Pyarelal
2. R. D. Burman
3. Shankar - Jaikishan
4. Kalyanji - Anandji
5. Bappi Lahiri
6. S. D. Burman
7. Rajesh Roshan
8. O. P. Nayyar
9. Nadeem - Shravan
10. Anand - Milind

The 10 Most Popular Singers :
1. Lata Mangeshkar
2. Mohd. Rafi
3. Kishore Kumar
4. Asha Bhonsle
5. Mukesh
6. Kumar Sanu
7. Manna Dey
8. Alka Yagnik
9. Mahendra Kapoor
10.Amit Kumar

The 10 Most Popular Lyricists:
1. Anand Bakshi
2. Majrooh Sultanpuri
3. Shailendra
4. Sameer
5. Hasrat Jaipuri
6. Sahir Ludhianvi
7. Rajinder Krishan
8. Shakeel Badayuni
9. Indivar
10.Gulzar











Take a look at the above rankings, and let me know what you feel !

गाता रहे मेरा दिल
तू ही मेरी मंजिल हाय
कहीं बीते ना ये रातें
कहीं बीते ना यह दिन!

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

The Musical Journey...2 (continued)

Hi,
A very Happy Dusshera to everybody out there! May Goddess Durga shower all her blessings to you and your family members.
Let's continue with the tags I had associated with the decades of Hindi Cinema Music.

Energetic 80's

According to the purists, this was the worst decade of Hindi Cinema Music and they generalise that by blaming Bappi Lahiri! But I beg to disagree that whatever came in this decade was totally crap! There were some real gems from this decade which continue to shine even today. The early half of this decade was dominated by Bappi fever , who made us feel for few years that disco was what Hindi Cinema music is all about! Disco from Bappi Lahiri's stable was bearable, anything that was intolerable was the music he scored for those South movies (movies produced by Southern India production houses). Bappi Lahiri is a music director who started his career in 1970's and in the seventies he was what I feel at his very best. Listen to the scores of Chalte Chalte (Chalte Chalte Mere Geet), Aangan Ki Kali (Tumhein Kaise Kahoon), Zakhmee (Jalta Hai Jiya Mera), Toote Khilone (Maana Ho Tum) and you will get the idea why I feel so! Bappi Lahiri gave good music in the 1980's in movies like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal, Sharabi! So it is quite unfair to blame him for all the troubles in 1980's!
Anyways, coming back to the 80's, this decade gave us scores like Silsila, Love Story, Aasha, Ek Duje Ke Liye, Karz, Hero, Prem Rog, Disco Dancer, Saagar, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Tezaab, Ram Lakhan, Maine Pyar Kiya amongst others! The Bappi fever was so severe in the early 80's and continued till 1985, that it threatened to change the course of Hindi Cinema Music. But that was not to be! Laxmikant - Pyarelal single handedly took over the charge and the fever was effectively medicated by the popularity of scores like Ghulami, Pyar Jhukta Nahin, Naam to name a few! Actually the flag of good popular music in the mid 80's was left only in the hands of L-P! And then, destiny intervened! Anand- Milind arrived with a bang in 1987 with a phenomenal score in Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, and gone were the Disco days! The movie's timeless melodies were the biggest reason for it's success. A score that was a trendsetter, and it single handedly brought back the era of love stories with good music. This trend was ably carried forward in the late 80's by a movie called Maine Pyar Kiya, which proved the eternal singing power of Lata Mangeshkar!
My opinion is that this was the most thrilling decade as far as the music in Hindi cinema is concerned! The highs were towering and the lows were stooping in this decade! The highs were achieved by scores like Silsila, Love Story, Ek Duje Ke Liye, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Maine Pyar Kiya, and in the same decade the lows came in the form of Mawaali, Justice Chowdhary, Pataal Bhairvi and several others which I don't even feel like mentioning! This contradiction of sorts among the music scores makes this decade one of my personal favourites! Only in this decade you can find scores which fill your heart with warmth and at the same time, you will find scores which will encourage you to stop listening to Hindi Cinema music! This is what I feel is the beauty of this decade! A thriller of a decade, and this thrill makes this decade, the Energetic 80's!

Transitional 90's
India became a liberal economy in the early 90's and this led to the opening of print media, electronic media, and suddenly India was bombarded with real time informations and news from the whole world! More and more Indians started getting the flavour of different cultures from all around the world and this exposure had it's reflection in the Hindi Cinema as well! Suddenly our filmmakers, the music directors all started looking west for inspiration. The previous decades were not oblivious from the west, but it became much more pronounced in the 90's, solely because there were some quick real time informations out there! This decade is also best remembered for the fact that the old guards of the Hindi Cinema Music, namely Laxmikant - Pyarelal, R. D. Burman, Kalyanji - Anandji handed over the mantle to a younger breed of music directors! This decade also saw the end of the era system. Not a single music director from this decade can claim that they enjoyed the unmatched success of their predecessors! Every year in this decade saw a new music director taking over the guard, but sadly no one had a consistent run in the popularity charts.
This decade gave us scores like Aashiqui, Saajan, Saudagar, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar, Khalnayak, Baazigar, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, 1942 A Love Story, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge, Dil To Paagal Hai, Gupt, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Taal, to name a few!
This decade had variety in music which is incomparable with any of the previous decades. The search for starting a new trend in Hindi Cinema Music was throughout there in the decade of 90's. The fading out of veteran music directors and the old guard of filmmakers was the primary reason behind this search! The younger breed of filmmakers came into the scene in this decade and had very noble intentions to create a new sound, a new flavour of Hindi Cinema music. There were many experiments made in this decade and the biggest of them was made by a music director from the South (Southern India) named A. R. Rehman. Right from his very first movie - Roja - he tried some fresh musical arrangements for his songs. This experiment worked big time and suddenly he bacame the blue -eyed boy of the whole nation! More often than not, his experiments failed post Roja, but no one can doubt his musical talents as far as the arrangement of a song goes! This decade's irony can very well be identified by the co existence of experimental music of A. R. Rehman and that of the conservative sounding music of the likes of Nadeem - Shravan and Anand - Milind!
My opinion is that, 90's music reflected the times we lived in! Every Indian was confused with his identity - he wanted to be a cool, chilled out guy who wanted to take on the world on his own terms, and at the same time he also could not let go of the Indian values with which he was born! This very irony is reflected in the Hindi Cinema music of the 90's! That makes this decade the Transitional 90's!

इक दिन बिक जायेगा माटी के मोल
जग में रह जायेंगे प्यारे तेरे बोल!
दूजे के होठों को देकर अपना गीत
कोई निशानी छोड़ फिर दुनिया से गोल!

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

P. S. If you wanna know about the movie or want to listen to the songs listed in this post, just click on the movie name or the song !

The Musical Journey....2

Hi!

Right away I thank my readers for the support and the encouragement they are providing me! That should show on the comments section too! Please put in a word or two in the comments section that follows the post. Positive, Negative, Good, Bad or Ugly, any kind of comment will do ! Par comment mangta hai, kya??? That will really help this blog to be more informative and interactive in every possible manner!
In my last post, I spoke about the impact the music of Barsaat had on the the music scene in Hindi Cinema. Let's pick up the threads from there and move ahead to explore what the next decades had in store as far as Hindi Cinema music is concerned.
The decades that followed can easily be tagged with the kind of music that came in that particular decade. This will help us in getting an overall idea about the kind of music we can expect when we listen to a song from a particular decade.

So here we go!
Soft 50's
Melodious 60's
Youthful 70's
Energetic 80's
Transitional 90's

A brief description for the tags that has been assigned for the decades follows :

Soft 50's

The decade when Hindi cinema music started coming on it's own! The decade when music for movies like Awara, Baiju Bawra, Madhumati, Shri 420, Nagin, Naya Daur, CID, Anari, Paying Guest, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Anarkali blessed us! Listen to any of these album and instantly the world seems a better place to live in! Everything's so pure about them - the lyrics, the music, the singing! No one seems to be in a hurry, and that reflects in the songs. There is a certain calmness in the songs which engulfs the listener and takes him to a world he thought never existed!
My opinion is that this purity and calmness comes from the way the music was composed. The music arrangements and the singing were softly done, the lyrics were simple, and that is why nothing from that decade hurts the ears! That according to me makes it Soft 50's!

Melodious 60's

The decade of romance! Romantic songs were abundant in this decade and that is one of the most striking feature of this decade. Romantic songs from movies like Sangam, Mere Mehboob, Aradhana, Jab Jab Phool Khile, Aarzoo, Do Raaste, Suraj, Taj Mahal, Junglee, Guide and many others continue to linger in our memories till this date. A certain lilting quality can be found in the songs from this decade and they were ably performed by the romantic heroes who ruled in this decade. Notable amongst the romanitc heroes were Shammi Kapoor, Rajendra Kumar, Dev Anand, Rajesh Khanna. Melody ruled supreme and that's what make the songs from this decade eternal!
My opinion is that songs started having a larger than life appeal and that reflected in the music arrangements and the style of singing! Listen to Chahe Koi Mujhe Junglee Kahe sung by Mohd. Rafi for Junglee to experience this! But the grandeur did not overtake the melody in the songs and that's why of all the decades of Hindi Cinema Music, the most songs that are still remembered is from this decade. That makes this decade the Melodious 60's!

Youthful 70's

The decade of Flower Power! Hippies, hashish, denims were the order of the day for this decade. But that was one side of the coin, there was another side of this decade that was ably represented by heroes like Rishi Kapoor. And then there were the shining stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Jeetendra, Rajesh Khanna, Shashi Kapoor who ruled the roost in the 70's! It may surprise you that while talking songs, why have I started talking about the heroes of this decade. This is because this decade saw songs being made for stars rather than the movies! Movies took a backseat in the sense that by hearing the songs you can identify the stars that may have starred in that particular movie! But the overiding feature of the songs in this decade is that the zest cannot be overlooked! Be it any movie, be it any star, the songs in this decade had a youthful flavour to it. Even in movies like Haathi Mera Saathi, Yaadon Ki Baraat starring veterans like Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra, the songs were full of energy. The youthfulness can be sampled in the songs of movies like Hare Rama Hare Krishna, Yaadon Ki Baraat, Bobby, Johny Mera Naam, Hum Kisise Kam Naheen, Amar Akbar Anthony, Haathi Mere Saathi, Julie amongst many others!
This decade also started a trend of having designer songs that were made to fit in a movie! Just for example listen to Duniya Mein Logon Ko from Apna Desh and you will know that this song was there in the movie just because Monica My Darling from Caravan was a huge hit and the filmmakers wanted songs from the same genre in their movie. Some of the movies that featured designer songs are Anamika, Raja Rani, The Train amongst others!
My opinion is that there was not a single popular score in this decade which was dull. This energy in the songs are totally due to the treatment of the songs by the leading music directors of this decade, namely, Laxmikant - Pyarelal, R. D. Burman, and Kalyanji - Anandji! This energy in the songs is what makes this decade the Youthful 70's!

(To be continued..........)

गीत गाता हूँ मैं
गुनगुनाता हूँ मैं
मैंने हंसने का वादा किया था कभी
इसलिए अब सदा मुस्कुराता हूँ मैं !

Bye for now!
आपकी अपनी आवाज़
Vishal

P. S. If you wanna know about the movie or want to listen to the songs listed in this post, just click on the movie name or the song !

The Musical Journey....1

Hi!
In India, music is an integral part of the day to day life of an Indian. When we talk about music in India, class, caste, sex - all the lines of discrimination fall apart. Not a single ceremony, whether child birth, marriage, religious ceremony, is complete without songs! Add to that, even small day to day events call for songs in India. When you are in love, when you are putting your child to sleep, when you are with your beloved, when you are in dumps, when there is nothing to say, when we have much to say - we generally have songs for practically each of these moments! Have you ever thought about the fact that all these songs have a single origin point, and they more or less originate from the Hindi Cinema!
When Hindi cinema music has and is making such an irreversible impact on our lives, it becomes very important for all of us to acknowledge this fact. Hindi cinema music has been for long crying for some respectability and dignity, and the time has come my friends, that we all come together and just do that! Let us go back in our memories and find out what is so beautiful about the Hindi cinema music! Let's dig deep into our history and marvel with pleasure, how a song of an average duration of four minutes can become so integral to our lives.
The musical journey of Hindi cinema started with Alam-Ara in 1931, and that was 77 years back! This journey of Hindi cinema music has been very exciting with all the twists and turns, highs and lows and had it's own ups and downs! In it's initial years, the music scene in Hindi Cinema kept on exploring itself and tried real hard to fit itself in the paradigm of Hindi cinema. This turmoil for Hindi cinema music continued from 1931 till 1949. There were sparks in between this period but nothing came in those years which could have have been followed in the years to come.
In 1949, the showman of the millennium -Raj Kapoor, alongwith a team comprising of music directors - Shankar & Jaikishan, singers - Lata Mangeshkar & Mukesh, and lyricists - Hasrat Jaipuri & Shailendra came together for a movie named "Barsaat", which according to me is the baap of all the music in Hindi cinema! The soundtrack of "Barsaat" has made such an impact that till this date whatever respectability and recognition songs have got in Hindi cinema could be singly attributed to this movie! The soundtrack of this movie was in true sense a trendsetter! The music arrangements, the singing style, the lyrics - all were so defining that till this date the basic pattern for a creation of a song somehow can owe its birth to this movie!
If we can divide the era of Hindi cinema music in two parts - pre Barsaat and post Barsaat, it is not hard to find the difference. The music of Barsaat declared with a bang that mainstream Hindi cinema music cannot be ignored, it cannot be taken for granted, and most of all - it is here to stay! Post Barsaat, Hindi cinema music has evolved to have it's own separate identity from the Hindi cinema itself. Movies are hits or flops, but their songs are treated distinctly. The Hindi cinema music has its own charts, they are hits or flops which has nothing to do with the movie they feature in!
Music in Hindi cinema does not live within the shadows of Hindi cinema, and this is the sole reason which makes Hindi cinema different from the rest of the world cinema! We may be making remakes of English, Korean, Italian movies, but the Indianness in all these movies comes from the music that features in all those movies!

Bye for now!

तुम मुझे यूँ भुला ना पाओगे
जब कभी भी सुनोगे गीत मेरे
संग संग तुम भी गुनगुनाओगे !

आपकी अपनी आवाज़,
Vishal

Mujhe Kisi Se Pyar Ho Gaya from the movie Barsaat (sung by Lata Mangeshkar)


Jiya Bekaraar Haifrom the movie Barsaat (sung by Lata Mangeshkar)

Introduction

A BIG Hi to everyone!

So finally I am here fully enthusiastic and encouraged by one and all. One and all here means the lovers of our music - the sangeet - the Hindi film music! It was high time one spoke about the various aspects of Hindi film music, and this is what this blog intends to do. Every now and then I'll pick up a topic which may range from the very old times to the most recent times and put across my views on them. The only common thing will be that I'll focus on the positive aspects of Hindi film music.
One of the objectives of this blog is that it has been started to make you aware about the very finer points of Hindi film music - those little things that have got lost in the passing times. It'll be my sincere effort to make you aware of those things that existed but you never knew!
Now the question that may arise in your mind is what makes me eligible to start this blog? Who am I?
The answer to these questions is that I am you! I am not a musicologist trying to put across any special qualities or the special nuances of Hindi film music! I am a common man just like you who has been listening to Hindi film music from the time I was born, and I know I'll continue to do so till the time I die! Yes, one thing that may be of some interest to you is that I have a collection of around 16000 Hindi film songs from 1940's till the most recent ones. Listening to all these songs made me realise that there is much more hidden in all these songs than what appears!
I dont have immaculate writng skills and I request to everybody out there that they forgive me if they find anything that they may not appeal to them.
No way this blog will become a platform for any kind of hatred to anybody in particular. I'll try to keep this blog as a forum where you and I can discuss about Hindi film music in general. No mud slinging or personal venedetta shall be encouraged.

Please do put up your comments to whatever I write - I'll deeply appreciate that!
Bye for now!

कल और आयेंगे नगमो की खिलती कलियाँ चुननेवाले
मुझसे बेहतर कहनेवाले तुमसे बेहतर सुननेवाले!

आपकी अपनी आवाज़,
Vishal