Bollywood has a song for every kind of love, specially the very first brush of love that happens at sweet sixteen. Pehla Pyaar or first love is a very common phrase in Bollywood songs, but Solah Baras Ki stands out as an exquisite piece of poetry exploring this impatient and passionate kind of love. Literally saluting the age of sixteen for its courage, it goes on to list everything young hearts love to do, from writing their names on a beach inside a heart to spending endless hours together.
The film, Ek Duje Ke Liye (Made for Each Other), the Hindi remake of the original Telugu film Maro Charitra (1979), is love story between two youngsters who come from a different cultural background. The film is funny and romantic at first with the lovers connecting despite the language barrier and the elders of the families obviously disapproving of the pair. Later, it moves on to more disturbing realities of India, where youngsters often find unrelenting opposition and even violence from their friends and family for falling in love/marrying outside of their cultural community, caste or religion. I feel this film is very important for its exploration of both real and psychological violence that forms the dark underbelly of the rosy appearances of Indian love stories featuring youngsters.
Duniya mein sabse pehle jisne yeh dil diya
Duniya ke sabse pehle dilbar ko salaam
Dil se nikalne waale raste ka shukriya
Dil tak pahunchne waali dagar ko salaam
Aye pyaar teri pehli nazar ko salaam
Salaam aye pyaar teri pehli nazar ko salaam
Milte rahe yahan hum yeh hai yahan likha
Is likhawat ki zerozabar ko salaam
Sahil ki rait par yun lehra utha yeh dil
Sagar mein uthne waali har lehar ko salaam
In mast gehri-gehri aankhon ki jheel mein
Jisne hamein duboya us bhanwar ko salaam
Ghoonghat ko chhod kar jo sar se sarak gayi
Aisi nigodi dhaani chunar ko salaam
Ulfat ke dushmanon ne
Ulfat ke dushmanon ne koshish hazaar ki
Phir bhi nahin jhuki jo us nazar ko salaam
Aye pyaar teri pehli nazar ko salaam
Solah baras ki baali umar ko salaam