Remembering Kalyanji-Anandji
Asif
Sikandar as a kid when the film came to town in the late 1978. While
everybody else lapped the performances of Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha
- superstars of those days - I became enamored more with the
magnificent musical score by Kalyanji-Anandji in the film. Be it
'Rote hue aate hain sab', 'O saathi re', or 'Salaam-e-ishq
meri jaan', I just did not know how to react in that darkened
theatre. I would frequently pinch myself to make sure I was not lost
in some magical melodic world. All those songs delighted me endlessly.
Yet the song that has stayed with me to date is the sumptuous 'Dil
to hai dil'. I still vividly remember the sheer excitement and goose
bumps I felt when this song flit across the screen. I had not heard of
this song before, and here it burst forth in its full glory on my ears
and before my eyes. It wowed me so much that I returned home restless
from the show - those 3 hours were not enough to fulfill my
just-found fantasy with the kind of music that sounded just of out this
world! Kalyanji-Anandji left an indelible impression on my heart with
their brilliant music in that classic film.
That's when I started exploring their music and also began my
lifelong fascination with K-A's rare, lesser-known, and
long-forgotten sweet songs such as 'Humko tumse pyaar hai' (Kaheen
Pyaar Na Ho Jaaye, 1963), 'Dil beqaraar sa hai' (Ishaara, 1964),
'Kabhi raat din hum door the' (Aamne Saamne, 1967), 'O dilbar
jaaniye' (Haseena Maan Jaayegi, 1968), 'Le chal mere jeevan
saathi' (Vishwas, 1969), 'Bol mere saathiya' (Lalkaar, 1972),
'Chal diye tum kahaan' (Ek Kunwara Ek Kunwari, 1973), 'Thhandi
thhandi rut hai' (Do Thug, 1975), 'Yeh pal chanchal' (Kalicharan,
1976), 'Tumhi ho tumhi ho jaan-e-jaan' (Rangeela Ratan, 1976),
'Jiska mujhe tha intezaar' (Don, 1978), 'Kasam na lo koi humse'
(Bombay 405 Miles, 1980), 'Dil se dil ki baat ho gayi' (Dharam Aur
Kanoon, 1984), and 'Kya hua kya naheen' (Yudh, 1985). The list is
endless. I might write a full feature on their work some day. Today,
however, I wrote up a few paragraphs on K-A's top 10 musical scores
and 20 top songs as my tribute to them. In those paragraphs I have
also included films where the late Kalyanji teamed with the late Virji
Shah simply because Anandji was their assistant in those films. By
assisting Kalyanji-Virji Shah he obviously took part in those
compositions.
Top 10 Musical Scores:
While selecting K-A's all-time top 10 musical scores, I kept in mind
the overall quality of the entire score (including its originality and
variety), its popularity with both the classes and the masses, and its
overall contribution to the film's success. In the process, which
was tough nevertheless, these scores clearly emerged as 10 all-time
finest from their rich repertoire:
1. Post Box 999 (1958) - This long-forgotten film, when mentioned
with its otherwise attractive title, immediately opens the floodgates
of memories of all those vintage gems, like 'O neend na mujkho
aaye,' 'Bichhude hue milenge phir,' 'Arre re main to giri re
giri re,' and 'Mere dil mein hai ik baat'. This was one of those
many excellent musical scores that graced those otherwise forgettable
films in the '50s and '60s. This film was a flop too, but those
splendid songs still come quietly forward into the present and
transport us leisurely back into the past.
2. Chhalia (1960) - This super hit film did not display the
joie-de-vivre so much present in earlier Raj Kapoor films, but the
film's music certainly made up for it with its sheer originality,
sparkle, and exuberance. Rarely has a musical score showcased so much
variety as this one, with the spry 'Dam dam diga diga' at one end
of the spectrum and the melancholy 'Mere toote hue dil se' at the
other while the romantic 'Meri jaan kuchh bhi keejiye' and the
soulful 'Teri raahon mein khade hain' completing the other vibrant
colors in the middle.
3. Dulha Dulhan (1964) - This flop film may have been lost in the
dust of time despite the presence of the star pair of Raj Kapoor and
Sadhana, but the film's brilliant music remains fresh in mind and
ears. Apparently inspired by their memorable music earlier in Chhalia
(1960), K-A came up with another superb string of both sad and
sprightly songs such as 'Humne tujkho pyaar kiya hai jitna,'
'Mujhe kahte hain kalloo qawwaal,' 'Piya khinche hue bandhe hue
chale aayenge,' and 'Jo pyaar toone mujkho diya tha'.
4. Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965) - The film was a big hit in its time,
but how the film's magnificent music helped it complete its memorable
show has become a legend of sorts. Those were the days of filming
romance and rhapsody in the picturesque vales and dales of Kashmir, and
those scintillating songs mingled beautifully with the mood of the film
and the backdrop of the nature: 'Pardesiyon se na ankhiyaan
milaana,' 'Ek tha gul aur ek thi bulbul,' 'Yeh samaan samaan
hai yeh pyaar ka,' 'Yahaan main ajnabi hoon,' 'Hamko tum pe
pyaar aaya,' and 'Na na karte pyaar tumhi se kar baithhe'.
5. Himalaya Ki God Mein (1965) - This hugely popular film was another
memorable cinema shot in Kashmir, and the film's sterling music,
complimenting the film beautifully, touched the peak of melody amidst
those snowcapped mountains and tall chinar trees. The musical score
offered the colorful delight in 'Chaand si mehbooba ho' and
'Oonche chinaaron ke neeche' as in those vibrant valleys and the
silent sadness in 'Main to ek khwaab hoon' and 'Ek too na mila'
as in those patchy peaks.
6. Upkaar (1967) - This super hit film offered an excellent
opportunity for displaying a myriad of human emotions and feelings in
terms of music, and K-A grabbed and milked it memorably. The possibly
finest patriotic song to date and the evergreen 'Mere desh ki
dharti' has never failed to rouse the otherwise dormant magic of the
motherland. The other masterpieces such as 'Kasme vaade pyaar
wafa,' 'Deewaanon se ye mat poochho,' 'Aayi jhoomke basant,'
and 'Har khushi hai wahaan' packed with soul-stirring lyrics,
beats, and renditions, and tugged at heartstrings effortlessly.
7. Saraswatichandra (1968) - This super flop film nevertheless
boasted of a musical score that ranks among the finest in the annals of
the Hindi film music. The film despite telling a lackluster tale and
showing black-and-white images in the age of color still attracts
viewers, thanks to its rich array of sumptuous songs such as 'Chandan
sa badan,' 'Chhod de saari duniya kisi ke liye,' 'Phool tumhe
bheja hai khat mein,' 'Humne apna sab kuchh khoya,' and 'Main
to bhool chali baabul ka des'. The matter whether even such a
brilliant score could not save the film from disaster or whether even
such a flimsy film could not sink the score into oblivion still remains
open for debate - 37 years after its release!
8. Safar (1970) - This classic hit film weaved a powerful story with
an equally powerful music. Those marvelous songs dressed the film with
a melodious message of their own. Whether it was the haunting
'Zindagi ka safar,' the inspiring 'Jeevan se bhari teri
aankhen,' the mournful 'Hum the jinke sahaare,' the tender 'Jo
tumko ho pasand,' or the truthful 'Nadiya chale chale re dhaara,'
the entire musical score was a soul-stirring lesson in life's
philosophy.
9. Johny Mera Naam (1970) - This super hit film was possibly the
first Hindi action saga complete with pulsating song-and-dance numbers.
Needlessly to say, as the film showed it abundantly, catchy songs
played an important part in the overall makeup of such Hindi films in
those days. Be it the cute 'Nafrat karne waalon ke,' the frothy
'O mere raja khafa na hona,' the lively 'Pal bhar ke liye,' the
serene 'Chhup chhup meera roye,' or the poignant 'O baabul
pyaare', the star pair of Dev Anand and Hema Malini looked awesome
while singing those ditties on the screen. The catchy cabaret number
'Husn ke laakhon ke rang' completed the musical array in this truly
entertaining film.
10. Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (1978) - This super hit film was a sparkling
example of a film blending a rich music into its overall frame to leave
a stunning, emotional impact on viewers in general and music lovers in
particular. They all lapped up those outstanding songs with equal
passion and returned to theatres again and again to watch them on the
screen. The resonant 'O saathi re' established the bond, the
stimulating 'Rote hue aate hain sab' melted the heart, the amorous
'Dil to hai dil' struck the chord, the electric 'Pyaar zindagi
hai' mounted the tension, and the buoyant 'Salaam-e-ishq meri
jaan' offered the hope - all in one great film and one great
musical score.
Top 10 Songs:
It was indeed tough to select top 10 gems from a vast sea of melody
that K-A left behind. When I scoured this sea I found countless
compositions worthy of this honor of being among the top 10, but I
found it difficult to bring all of them ashore. So I chose 20 of the
possibly finest gems and marked 10 of them in bold letters that I think
are the 10 best. It was interesting to note that while K-A gave Mukesh
the maximum number of their memorable songs, mostly solos, it was
Kishore Kumar who got an amazing number of truly immortal songs from
them. As interestingly, while Mukesh dominated K-A scores in the
'60s, Kishore Kumar did so in the '70s. K-A seemed to deliver
their best in solo numbers; however, they also gave us some of the most
enchanting duets in Hindi film music, like 'Tumhe yaad hoga' (Satta
Bazaar, 1959), 'Humne jo dekhe sapne' (Parivaar, 1967), and
'Waada kar le saajna' (Haath Ki Safaai, 1974). You might be
surprised, even shocked, to find only 3 songs of Mukesh, all 3 being
solos, among these 20 songs. However, if you add another 5 or 10 songs
to this list, then you might get at least half of them as Mukesh solos.
It was extremely difficult to leave out from these 20 songs such great
Mukesh solos as 'Mere toote hue dil se' (Chhalia, 1960), 'Mujhko
is raat ki tanhaai mein' (Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere, 1960), 'Hum
chhod chale hain mehfil ko' (Ji Chaahta Hai, 1964), 'Tumhe zindagi
ke ujaale mubaarak' (Poornima, 1965), 'Chaandi ki deewaar na
todi' (Vishwas, 1969), and 'Koi jab tumhaara hriday tod de'
(Purab Aur Paschim, 1970). But along with each one of these Mukesh
solos I had to also eliminate such other wonderful songs as 'Kasme
waade pyaar wafa' (Upkaar, 1967), 'Bekhudi mein sanam' (Haseena
Maan Jaayegi, 1968), 'Jeevan se bhari teri aankhen' (Safar, 1970),
'Samaan hai suhaana suhaana' (Ghar Ghar Ki Kahani, 1970), 'Saare
shehar mein' (Bairaag, 1974), and 'Tumhi ho tumhi ho jaan-e-jaan'
(Rangeela Ratan, 1976).
As you might notice, almost all these finest 20 songs were very popular
in their times; however, I selected them purely on the merit of melody
and composition. But then, almost as a rule of thumb, a good, catchy,
melodious song has always become popular, and K-A consistently hit the
high spots in popularity charts during their entire career. Even in
their twilight time they delivered a stunningly sweet hit in 'Aur is
dil mein kya rakkha hai' (Imaandaar, 1986). You might find 'Dil to
hai dil' (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, 1978) a bit odd in the company of
other great songs, but I would beg you to listen to this ditty
carefully. Believe me, it is a simply superb song. The cabaret number
'Yeh mera dil' (Don, 1978) is one of Asha Bhosle's finest and the
dazzling composition clearly shows it is one of K-A's finest too. The
other songs, as you will see, are the hugely popular ones and don't
need a discussion of their merit. So here it goes:
1. O neend na mujhko aaye (Post Box 999, 1958)
2. Tumhe yaad hoga (Satta Bazaar, 1959)
3. Dam dam diga diga (Chhalia, 1960)
4. Teri raahon mein khade hain (Chhalia, 1960)
5. Main to ek khwaab hoon (Himalaya Ki God Mein, 1965)
6. Pardesiyon se na ankhiyaan milaana (Jab Jab Phool Khile, 1965)
7. Yeh samaan samaan hai yeh pyaar ka (Jab Jab Phool Khile, 1965)
8. Mere desh ki dharti (Upkaar, 1967)
9. Humne jo dekhe sapne (Parivaar, 1967)
10. Chandan sa badan (Saraswatichandra, 1968)
11. Chale the saath milkar (Haseena Maan Jaayegi, 1968)
12. Zindagi ka safar (Safar, 1970)
13. Yaari hai imaan (Zanjeer, 1973)
14. Waada kar le saajna (Haath Ki Safaai, 1974)
15. Mera jeevan kora kaaghaz (Kora Kagaz, 1974)
16. Dil to hai dil (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, 1978)
17. Rote hue aate hain sab (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, 1978)
18. O saathi re (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, 1978)
19. Khaike paan Banaraswaala (Don, 1978)
20. Yeh mera dil pyaar ka deewaana (Don, 1978)
Regards,
Asif
Manish Wadhane
Asif.. that was a beautiful article on KA..
> You might find 'Dil to
> hai dil' (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, 1978) a bit odd in the company of
> other great songs
Not at all Asif. At one time this song used to be amongst my top 20
fav. Lata songs!!
I am tempted to list my fav. top 10 KA albums as well.
1) Jab Jab Phool Khile
This album has to be number 1 for its amazingly beautiful songs.
2) Safar
The variety of songs in this film is just amazing.
3) Upkaar
4) Johny Mera Naam
5) Don
6) Lawaris
7) Haseena Maan Jaayegi
8) Purab Aur Paschim
9) Sachcha Jhootha
10) Muqaddar Ka Sikandar
-Manish
maild...@yahoo.com
generally lacked good lyrics or the instrumentation were rushed-in.
In short, they songs were created with minimum cost
The first great song from K-A was for the film: DIL BHI TERA HUM BHI
TERE.
Yes, there was only one composition - Mujh Ko Is Raat Ki Tanhai Mein
...,
sung by Mukesh and by Lata (2 versions) and had everything what
makes a
song great - lyrics, tune, right instruments and very good rendering
by Mukesh
and Lata.
Betwe 1958 to 1969 , they composed for a large number of low-profile
films. The music was good, but certainly not great. Their next great
score was for film: SAFAR and from that point on-wards, their
compositions were much better than what they had created eralier
Sudhir
Asif
> Asif.. that was a beautiful article on KA..
>
> > You might find 'Dil to
> > hai dil' (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, 1978) a bit odd in the company of
> > other great songs
>
> Not at all Asif. At one time this song used to be amongst my top 20
> fav. Lata songs!!
>
Thanks Manish. :-) This is indeed extremely sweet song. The Muqaddar
Ka Sikandar CD is among my top favorites for listening pleasure. 'Rote
hue aate hain sab' and 'Dil to hai dil' get repeated plays. Then I
play Asha's 'O saathi re' and 'Pyaar zindagi hai' several times in one
sitting. I salute K-A for giving us these 4 superb songs and KK's 'O
saathi re' all in one album. I always find Asha's 'O saathi re' much
better than KK's just as I find Lata's 'Rimjhim gire saawan' (Manzil,
1979) better than KK's though in both cases I love KK's songs a lot
too.
The pathos that KK put in 'Rote hue aate hain sab' is mindblowing. As
for 'Dil to hai dil' I love everything about it - rendition, music,
tune, filming, lyrics, espeically the line 'beqaraari mein hai qaraar'.
One thing I always wanted to know: K-A used some 'heavy-souding' drum
or instrument as the main tempo/rhythm in 'Rote hue', 'O saathi re'
(both versions), 'Pyaar zindagi hai', 'Dil to hai dil', and even in
'Salaam-e-ishq' (KK part) - I cannot point this out, but that 'heavy'
sound set all these songs apart. Somehow I feel it was very special
musical effect on the mood and message of the film. It was not a light
film you know. You can easily sense that sound in Mahendra Kapoor's
antara in 'Pyaar zindagi hai' - something heavy. MK was excellent in
this song - I am just curious to know why K-A may have chosen him for
this song. Be that as it may, I can never imagine 'Pyaar zindagi hai'
without Mahendra Kappoor. Anyway, can someone please identify the
instrument/sound/pattern that I have been searching in those songs? I
think K-A never repeated that kind of music again, though I found just
a hint of it in 'Jiska koi naheen uska to khuda hai yaaro' (Lawaaris,
1981).
> I am tempted to list my fav. top 10 KA albums as well.
>
> 1) Jab Jab Phool Khile
> This album has to be number 1 for its amazingly beautiful songs.
>
True. This and Muqaddar Ka Sikandar are my top 2 of K-A. I really do
not to compare them - they belong to two different times.
Asif
do not think their overall quality suffered or improved in the '70s.
They may have done small-budget films in '60s, but their music was
excellent nonetheless. When I analyze their music pattern I see that
they changed to something noticeably diifferent in Haseena Maan Jaayegi
(1968) - 'Chale the saath milke' and 'Dilbar dilbar kahte kahte' set
the tone for their music to come in the '70s. I remember having seen
the film 4 times in a week just for 'Chale the saath milke' when the
film was screened in a local theatre in the mid-80s.
'Mujkho is raat ki' (Dil Bhi Tera Ham Bhi Tere, 1960) was nice song;
however, K-A created some more song in the same mood and style - 'Jo
pyaar toone mujhko diya that' (Dulha Dulhan, 1964), 'Main to ik khwaab
hoon' (Himalaya Ki God Mein, 1965), 'Jis dil mein basa tha' (Saheli,
1965), 'Khush raho har khushi hai' (Suhaagraat, 1968), and 'Koi jab
tumhaara hriday' (Purab Aur Paschim, 1970). And among all these I rate
'Main to ik khwaab hoon' as the finest.
Asif
Narendra
my favorites:
- Jis dil men basaa thaa pyaar tera (Saheli)
- Waqt karataa jo wafaa (movie?)
- Tumhen zindagi ke Ujaale mubarak (movie?)
... list goes on.
- Narendra
Srinivas Ganti
many of her songs from the 60's and 70's and I fell in love with the
compilation. Every night before sleeping I nicknamed the tape "soothing
songs". They used to create the perfect nocturne ambience and I would
ease into sleep. That compilation had quite a few KA compositions
. ham the jinke sahaare
. chhoD se saari duniyaa
. meri tamannaon ki taqdiir tum sa.nvaar do
. ham ne tujh ko pyaar kiyaa hai jitna
Those soothing song compilations have transformed over the years but
even today KA are special for me as I was introduced to the sublimity
of Lata's voice through some of their compostions.
kcp
> The pathos that KK put in 'Rote hue aate hain sab' is mindblowing.
ou are confusng with the singers ( "only" in "Rote Hue aate" I suppose
:P )
KK has no such rendition ( pathos laden ) in the film. That was Rafi
saab.
KKs song was FULL of energy - suiting to a T to Amitabh Bachchan ( as
usual - all throught - from the film "Sanjog" till KK's death )
KCP
Asif
singer. I feel that in even such an energetic song as this, KK managed
to impart certain realization of grief when he sings the lines 'zindagi
to bewafa hai ... saath lekar jaayegi' and 'hamne maana ye zamaana .. '
. Listen to how KK sings the word 'hai' in 'jaagir hai' and 'zanjeer
hai'... full of dejection, I would say. And if you closely notice
Amitabh Bachchan's performance in the song, including his body language
and facial expression, he reflected just the right emotions conveyed in
the song by KK. The song is not about celebration of joys in life, but
rather about the fight against the life's idiosyncrasies - and that was
a superb introduction to Amitabh's entry and his entire character in
the film. There is a certain pain hidden behind those seemingly
energetic lyrics and rendition, and that's what I meant when I said KK
put pathos in the song.
Even a slight jhatka/matka, even a slight expression of complete joy,
or even a slight hint of romance (remember Raakhee was present in the
song too - waiting for a bus on a street) on Amitabh's part would have
ruined the song on the screen. But to his credit, he delivered a
brilliant performance in the song. I am sure some in the audience may
have shed a few tears watching their hero saying those factual things
about life - at least I did. It was a powerful song, a powerful
music, and an equally powerful screen performance!
Asif
Kizzy
There are many more personal preferences and amongst them I would like
to mention a Kalyanji-Anandji song picturised on Rajesh Khanna/Sharmila
Tagore:
Song: Yeh Raat Hai Pyasi Pyasi
Film: Chhoti Bahu[1971]
Lyrics: Kaifi Azmi
Singer: Mohd. Rafi
Albeit a short song [3:04] everything about the song, Kaifiji's poetry,
Rafiji's rendition [...machalna sikhaane lagi hai...], the tabla and
santoor.
Kizzy
Ashok
We at RMIM have been guilty of a kind of benign neglect toward
a major music director pair. Unlike S-J and L-P, they escape
being demonized, but with the result that there is hardly
anything that gets written about their body of work. Your
article starts a process of rectifying it and I hope it
fetches adequate response.
A while ago, I happened to re-discover a relatively obscure
film of theirs by mistake. At the video rental place, I saw
two tapes named 'Kangan'. One was the classic 1939 film of
Ashok Kumar and Leela Chitnis, with music by Saraswati Devi
and Ramchandra Pal, which I had already seen. The storekeeper
told me that the other tape was not a second copy, but a
a later 'Kangan'. I brought it home to watch with keen interest.
I thought it would be the late 50s 'Kangan', also with Ashok
Kumar, this time with Nirupa Roy, and with music by Chitragupta.
I knew one great Lata song from the film (muskuraao ki jee
nahee.n lagataa) and wanted to check out what else the
soundtrack had.
As soon as I started the tape, I knew it wasn't that. The
film was in colour! It turned out to be the 'Kangan' of
early 70s. Ashok Kumar turned out to be ubiquitous in all
the Kangans! Lead pair was Sanjeev and Mala Sinha. I was
pleased to hear again two songs that used to come on the
radio occasionally and I had liked:
One's a nice Lata solo; you might say the title song:
. sataaye saaree rainaa, ku.nvaare ka.nganaa
naam teraa le leke o sajanaa
The other's a duet with interesting voices. It's sung
by Mahendra Kapoor, interspersed with lovely humming
by Usha Khanna:
. jhuke jo tere nainaa
u.nh hu hu ... (humming echoes the first lineP
jhuke jo tere nainaa
to choo.Dee teree khanakee, ye paayal teree chhanakee
ki teree meree
ki teree meree preet goree hai baalaapan kee (approximate words)
The overall effect is very delightful.
But the real surprise in the soundtrack was a song I had
never heard before. It's Ashok Kumar singing
. prabhu jee mere avaguN chit naa dharo
Interestingly, the song started with Ashok Kumar saying "mu'aaf
karanaa bhaaio aur bahano, baraso.n ke baad gaa rahaa hoo.N"!
That beginning gave the feeling that it might be a fooling-around
kind of song, but turned out to be seriously sung. As we know,
Ashok Kumar's vocal prowess is quite limited at the best of
times, but as usual he pulls off a very likable rendition.
Ashok
A remark about the name. You say:
>......................... In those paragraphs I have
>also included films where the late Kalyanji teamed with the late Virji
>Shah simply because Anandji was their assistant in those films. By
>assisting Kalyanji-Virji Shah he obviously took part in those
>compositions.
My understanding is that Kalyanji Veerji Shah is just the full
name of Kalyanji. If so, Veerji would be his patronymic rather
than his partner's name.
asi...@my-deja.com
Asif
> work.
They were always underrated for reasons beyond me. They delivered hit
music, hit films, and big films, yet somehow they remained in low
profile. Seemingly, media folks were busy harping on SJ, OPN, SDB, and
LP in the '60s and LP and RDB in the '70s.
Anyway, I will never ever forgive Filmfare for not even nominating
Muqaddar Ka Sikandar for Filmfare Best Music Award in 1978 - when, in
fact, this score truly deserved the award. At that time I thought that
by not nominating this score for Best Music Award, Filmfare cleverly
diverted public attention from it and thus made it easy for L-P (their
favorite MDs in those days) to win it for Satyam Shivam Sundaram. I
still maintain this thought.
> My understanding is that Kalyanji Veerji Shah is just the full
> name of Kalyanji.
I always thought there were two. Thanks for this information.
Asif