If Lata is in, can Asha be far away?

I must say, I have never enjoyed myself more. Making web pages dedicated to the golden era of Bollywood music was the best decision I have ever taken. I bet I would have visited these webpages more than anyone else. Whenever I get a chance, I pop in and do a quick listen to one of my favourite songs.

And this time I am back with Asha Bhosle. I was very uncomfortable with the fact that I had a web page dedicated to Lata, but nothing yet on Asha. ("What would Asha say?"). I feel a little better now.

Here have a listen yourself => Asha Bhosle, the Voice that Spans Generations

And in case, you are feeling lazy and do not want to scroll up and down searching for other Musical webpages, here's the complete list, so far.

25 Songs of the Nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar
25 Songs from a Musical Maestro, Manna Dey
5 Songs each from Bhupendra, Manhar, Suman Kalyanpur, Vani Jayram and Sharda
21 Songs from Music Directors singing their own composition
Female-Female Duets in Hindi Cinema
Binaca Geetmala 1953-1972

Since I am enjoying myself so much, you can be sure that this list is only going to grow.
Watch this space.
And thanks for all the support.

Musical Lenses Featuring Lata, Kishore, Manna, Hemant and many more

The last week and the weekend were spent in absolute ecstasy: listening and choosing music of the golden era of Hindi playback singing.
There is magic in these songs and now that I have created webpages that is a mini-collection of sorts, I now have two wishes:

a) that more people listen to these - both those who understand Hindi and those who don't
b) that these songs find their rightful place in world music.

Today, if you search music in Internet you will find Beatles or other pop-music at the top of the heap. I do not deny their rightful place, but is there any reason why Lata, Rafi, Kishore, Hemant, Manna, Asha should not rub shoulders with them.

So, here is a request. Please visit the webpages I have built. Give me your suggestion to make it more attractive. But more importantly,spread the word. Please tell at least 10 people you know to visit these webpages, and they can tell 10 more and so on ...

Here are the pages:

25 songs from the Nightingale of India: Lata Mangeshkar
25 songs from a musical maestro: Manna Dey
21 songs by Music Directors singing their own composition
25 songs from the minnows of Hindi Playback

You can rate the songs you like best. I hope you enjoy listening to these songs as much as I enjoyed creating the webpages.

My Top 10 Lata Mangeshkar Songs

30,000+ songs. How does one choose? Obviously I am not going to sift through this huge data. I have a simpler way. I will type in whichever Lata song comes to my mind as I blog. Blogging does not get much live than this.

So here's my list of Lata Mangeshkar Top 10:

1. Lag jaa galey ki phir yeh haseen raat ho na ho, shayad is janam mein mulakat ko na ho - from Woh Kaun Thi? The music is by Madan Mohan

2. Tera jaana, dil key armaanon ka loot jaana, koi dehke bun kay taqdeeron ka mitt jana - from Anadi. The music is by Shankar Jaikishan. Nutan is absolutely heartbroken.

3. O! Sajana, barkha bahar aayi, ras ki phuhar layi, aankhiyon mein pyaas layi - from Parakh - this one is brilliant. The music is by Salil Chodhury

4. Chura kay gaya sapna mera, baithi hoon kab ho savera - from Jewel Thief. The music is by S.D. Burman. Vyjantimala never looked more beautiful.

5. Aaa! Jaan-e-jaan, aa mera yeh husn jawan - from Intequam. The music is by Laxmikant Pyarelal. This one is special: the only cabaret number by Lata. Helen gives her best; so does the man, painted all black, in the cage. (Actually there is one more song from Intequam that I love - Kaisay rahoon chup kay meinay pi hi kya hai.)

6. Dilbar dil say pyare - from Caravan. The music is by R.D. Burman. Perhaps Aruna Irani's best dance number.

7. Biti na bitai raina, birha ki jayi raina - from Parichay; the brilliant Hindi remake of the Sound of Music. The music is by R.D. Burman. (Actually this is a duet with Bhupendra doing a cameo at the end). Gulzar, RD and Lata were a deadly combination.

8. Another Gulzar-Lata-RD number from Andhi: Tere bina zindagi say shikwa. Duet with the man with the golden voice, Kishore Kumar. (I love all the three songs from this movie. The other two ... tum aa gaye ho, nur aa gaya hai; and iss mod say jaatey hain, kuch sust kadam rakh kar. All three songs are filmed on Suchitra Sen, Bengal's pride and Sanjeev Kumar).

9. Thinking of Suchitra Sen ... this one is from another Hindi movie of hers, Mamta. The song ... Rahein na rahein hum, mehka kareingay ban kay kali .... I think the music is by Roshan.

10. A non-filmi song which brings a lump to my throat every time I even think of it ... Aye meray watan kay logon, zara aankh mein bhar lo paani. I think the music is by C Ramachandra.

Is it already number 10? Hmmm... sad. I have so many more to go.

Which are your favourite Lata Mangeshkar songs?

Slow down!

No, seriously, just slow down.

Learn to expand life the way

Hindustani Classical Music is expounded by masters. Now most of you would balk at the thought. Nothing can be boring than a Classical Music concert, right? Wrong! It may seem long drawn and boring vocalization but it holds within itself treasure.

It may seem anachronistic in this fast moving life but classical music has a lot to offer. The fundamental thesis of classical music is perfection of each note. The singer or the musician dwells on each note and moves on to the next only after reaching perfection. The full rendition of a piece of music is therefore long and deliberate. The idea is too reach perfection. What is bad about that?

Ok! A completely different subject. Have you seen a fast paced thriller movie twice? I bet you have. Notice how much you missed out when you saw it the first time. Many details escaped your notice. These tiny details made the movie much more enjoyable. So much so that you might have seen it again.

What about books? The pace is slower than a movie but definitely faster than classical music. Why then do you find details in the second reading that escaped you in the first?

How many times have to regretted taking a decision in double quick time? If only you had paused and given it a thought.

Take life slow. It is much too precious to be counted in minutes rushing past. If you like ice-cream you will know what I mean. Enjoy life one lick at a time and before taking the second lick savour the moment.

Picture Courtesy: Kriss Szkurlatowski

I Don't Care About Slumdog Millionaire

All I care about is Gulzar.
Not about Slumdog Millionaire.
Not about AR Rahman.
Only about Gulzar.
He should get the Oscar.

Not that he needs recognition from Hollywood. Rather the whole world needs to be introduced to wonderful poetry and lyrics of Gulzar.

In the crazy, madcap world of Mumbai masala movies, Gulzar has been the sole voice of reason. His lyrics are the bright spot of any movie, whether the movie itself is a hit or a flop. The sheer poetry of his lyrics can shred your heart to bits and then at the next moment make you smile with the drop of tear still clinging to your eyes.

I first heard Gulzar when I was small. Aandhi was the movie and the songs were captivating. The music of RD Burman and Gulzar mesmerized a nation.

I could go on and on about Gulzar but then there is lot more information on Gulzar on Internet.
Instead go to Youtube and just immerse yourself in what can only be termed as ecstasy.
Go here and here. Even if you do not understand Hindi, you will love the song. (By the way, the movie is directed by Gulzar)

Given a choice I would only listen to Gulzar songs. Here is one more of my favourite. And oh yes, Lata Mangeskar - the Nightingale of India - lends her voice to all three songs. Let me know if you liked the songs.

And you know what?
If Gulzar wins the Oscars, AR Rahman will win too. And so will Slumdog Millionaire.

Picture Courtesy: Ilker