The Big Two

My musical reminiscences couldn't have possibly completed with out paying by obeisance to Rafi and Kishore.

So here it is:
Rafi: The Voice that Launched 1000 Romances
Kishore Kumar: The Man with the Golden Voice

Did you know that in the earlier days of Kishore Kumar's career as an actor, Rafi was the playback for Kishore? It feels very surreal when you hear Rafi's voice when Kishore is singing on the screen. You can see a few such songs on the Kishore Kumar webpage above.

By the way, if you wish to include a few of your own favourites please drop a line in the Guest Book in the webpage and I will include it.

Have fun listening and seeing.

Celebrating Lyrics

Quick! Name 5 lyricist from Bollywood. Go on ... I can hear you ... Gulzar, one. Javed Akhtar, two. Very good. Go on ... Hmmm. I see you are struggling. Oh ... oh ... Anand Bakshi, ..., yes ... this is so difficult. And yet the songs that you have appreciated over the years are so much about lyrics. As are all songs. A pity that lyricists are a neglected tribe.

One name we tend to overlook is that of Neeraj. He is essentially a poet. His poetry has been translated into many languages. And yet, unless you are a cognoscenti, chances are that you would not have heard of him. Though I bet you listen to one song of his and you will recognize the song straight away.

Here's a compilation of 17 of his songs => Neeraj: The Poet Who Strayed Into Hindi Cinema. Each better that the other.
Check out Devanand humming ...

Saason ki sargam, dhakan ki beena, sapnon ki geetanjali tu;
Mann ki gali mein mehke jo hardum aisi juhi ki kali tu.

I wonder if Juhi Chawla's mother was inspired by this song.

Searching for Heroes

Remember the glorious songs of yester-years: 'yeh hai reshmi zulphon ka andhera', 'zindagi ittafq hai', 'Allah yeh adaa kaisi'? Remember the actress who made these songs memorable on screen? Oh yeah! I am talking of Mumtaz. Did you know that of the 17 odd years of her career, she spent only 7-8 years as a top rated actress. Before that she struggled as an extra, heroine's friend, supporting actress, and a side-kick. Now how many actor or actresses you know who have persevered and made it the top? Rekha's name comes to mind. But she was always a lead actress - a bad one who reinvented herself, but a lead actress, nonetheless. I checked with a few of my friends; there is no such example in the South India too. Similar, but not quite. That's why she is a hero and someone to be inspired by.

You can see and hear her journey here => mumtaz-a-study-in-perseverance

Did Amitabh Bachchan Kill Melody?

It is commonly assumed that rise of Amitabh Bachchan as the Angry Young Man in Hindi Movies is responsible for the death of melody in Hindi film songs. With a complete entertainment package like Amitabh in a movie, perhaps the emphasis on good music decreased. But is this impression really correct?

I have compiled some of the most memorable songs sung on Indian silver screen by Amitabh. The playbacks range from Kishore to Yesudas. Have a listen and let me know what you think of this collection.

The link => http://www.squidoo.com/amitabh-bachchan-and-melody

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.

Fact Borrowing From Fiction

I am not sure if the Taliban leaders have watched the over-the-top, hilarious movie "Tere Bin Laden". But I am very sure that the MI6 and the NATO commanders should have.

In the movie, a young TV reporter from Pakistan who desparately wishes to go to US and is in need to money, plants a story using a fake Bin Laden. The movie ends with a US intelligence officer, in charge of capturing the fake (he does not know that he is fake at this point in time) Bin Laden, becoming the US Secrtary of State (or Defence - not quite sure) after obtaining a peace offer from the fake (by now he knows) Bin Laden - and the reporter getting an invitation to the US for being the person who managed it all.

All one big tongue in the cheek comedy. Or is it? Have a look at this piece of news on peace talks with fake Taliban leader.

More power to Bollywood movies, I say.

Bollywood is in our blood

In India movies have a huge influence on people. We all grow up on a healthy diet of Bollywood movies. And contrary to popular view, the influence is not all negative.

Let me give an example how this works. I was just talking to a friend about tax saving. The talk veered to a common friend who takes a fair bit of liberty in interpreting the tax laws to his advantage. I disapprove of it but I haven't said so on the common friend's face. Anyways, as we were talking, my friend stated that sometimes circumstances may make a person push the limits and my reaction surprised even me. Before I could even think, I referred to a scene in an old Amitabh Bachchan movie Deewar where a teacher condones his son's act.

The scene is something like this ... A police officer, played by Shashi Kapoor, arrives at a scene where he sees a boy being chased by a big crowd screaming "thief, thief." The police officer joins the chase and after a couple of warnings shoots at the running boy. I think he hits his legs. When the police inspector discovers that all that the boy had stolen is bread, and the reason he steals this is because his father is a retired school teacher and there is no other earning member in the family. The police officer feels guilty and takes food to the old teacher's house and confesses that he was responsible for the shooting. The boy's mother takes off but the old teacher says that there are many other people in the world who are hungry; does it mean that all of them become thieves? This of course is the lesson our brave police officer was waiting for. He then takes this lesson to heart and goes on to shoot and kill his elder brother, a smuggler, played by Amitabh Bachchan. In all this there are some fantastic dialogs and a couple of memorable songs and romances ... you get the idea.

I think I saw the movie about 30 years ago. If my first reaction is to refer to an ancient movie, then you can very well imagine the impact Bollywood movies have on us.

Phew!