Happy Birthday Asha Bhosle

Desi Pundit, Films, India, Music 7 Responses »
Sep 082009

Asha Bhosle is like good wine. she has gotten better with age :) And today on her birthday – here are some of the songs that i would take away with me to a desert island !

The list is in, more or less, alphabetical order. If you are reading this in my FB notes – please note that FB doesn’t (or i haven’t figured how it does) pull embedded videos on blog posts – so to hear the music – you can cut and paste on youtube or come to my site (shameless plug) :)

Aage Bhi Jaane Na Tu - The film is Waqt – the music by O.P.Nayyar Ravi- thanks dhubha – and lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi . The first of the great lost and found sagas – the film had Ae Meri Zohar Zabin as its other great hit

Aao Huzur Tumko
Music, again, by O.P.Nayyar- for whom Ashatai sang some of her most well known songs- lyrics by Noor Devasi . The film is Kismat. The song is picturised on a Babita who is trying to seduce Biswajit under the influence of fermented Rooh Afza . The film had other great songs like kajra mohobat wala (asha & s, lakhon hein yahan dilwale.

two pieces of trivia here – Babita is the mother of Karishma & Kareena Kapoor ; and the director is Manmohan Desai of Amar Akbar Anthony fame !

Aayiye Meherban

Picturised on Madhubala, the film is Howrah Bridge – and the music director is O P Nayyar and lyrics are by Hasrat Jaipuri.

Bhanwara Bada Nadan Haye

The film is Sahib, Biwi aur Ghulam – directed by Abrar Alvi – not by Guru Dutt as popularly assumed – he was the film’s producer and lead actor. The music is by Hemant Kumar and the lyrics are by Shakeel Badayuni. The film that starred Rehman – as the Sahib, Meena Kumari as the Biwi and Guru Dutt as the Ghulam – is a claustrophobic tale of zamindars and their women -And, the quest of the wife for her husband’s attention that has disastrous consequences !
Asha is playback for Waheeda Rehman in this song

Asha has another great song in this film, and that is for Minoo Mumtaz

Saqiya Aaj Mujhe Neend Nahin

Chain se humko kabhie

the film is Pran Jaye Par Vachan na Jaye – music by O.P. Nayyar.

Chhota Sa Baalama

The film is Ragini. The music director is O.P.Nayyar – and the lyricist is Qamar Jalalabadi.

Dum Maro Dum

Yes – let’s all get high to possibly one of the greatest songs ever that celebrates pot culture. this is clapton and marley rolled (pardon the pun) into one. If this song had been composed today – some nutcase unit would have gone on rampage to get it banned. But, this was the swinging 70′s and Hare Krishna Hare Ram was a superduper hit, with no theater getting burnt :)

Music was by R.D.Burman, and Lyrics were by Anand Bakshi.
the song is picturized on Zeenat Aman (who wasn’t the heroine of this film, Mumtaaz was) and a whole bunch of hippies.

Jaiye Aap Kahan Jayenge
The film was Mere Sanam. Music by O.P.Nayyar and lyrics by Majrooh.

The film starred Biswajeet and Asha Parekh and had two great Asha numbers this and the one after this !

Yeh Hai Reshmi Zulfon Ka

Here is Asha Parekh trying to seduce Biswajeet – who shows all the charisma and sex appeal of a cold idli !

Jahan Mein Aisa Koun Hai

The film is Hum Dono. Music is by Jaidev
The movie has some of the best songs in Hindi films including Abhi Na Jao Chod Kar, Allah tero Naam, and Mein zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya !

Kaali Ghata Chhaye

The film is Sujata. Music is by S.D.Burman and lyrics by Majrooh.

The director is Bimal Roy – the film touches the issue of unapproachability. Sujata is a untouchable girl brought up in a Brahmin home – and falls for Sunil Dutt, who croon jalte hain jiske liye to her on the phone !. It is about the ‘stigma’ and the taunts that Sujata has to face while growing up.
The name Sujata itself is a pun – Su being good, and jata – being caste (fem).

Katra Katra

The film is Ijazat – a very, very grown up love story starring Nasiruddin Shah, Rekha and Anuradha Patel.

Music is by R.D.Burman, and lyrics by Gulzar.

Man Kyon Behka Re
The film is Utsav – based on the life of the courtesan Vasantsena. The song is a duet between Asha and her older sister Lata Mangeshkar.

Music is by Lakshmikant Pyarelal, and lyrics by Vasant Desai.

Trivia – the film is responsible for inflicting Shekar Suman on an unsuspecting world :)

Mohe Kanha

The film is Sardari Begum – the life of a courtesan that won Kiron Kher her national award. The music is by Vanraj Bhatia

Raat Akeli Hai

Man, can she move across scales without a hitch ! I marvel at her voice control.
The film is Jewel Thief – the actress is Tanuja – mother to Kajol and she is trying to seduce Dev Anand – who is resisting :)

Music is by S.D.Burman and lyrics are by Majrooh

Tanha Tanha
And, finally – the song that only she could sing. Picturised on Urmilla and Jackie Shroff – the film is Rangeela , music is by A.R.Rehman and lyrics are by Mehboob.

These are some of my favorites. what are yours ?

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Monsoon Melodies

Films, India, Music 19 Responses »
Jun 122008

It is Monsoons The streets look washed. There skies look silver and grey. The trees are swaying. The air smells fresh. There is a cool breeze that refreshes. The world looks great.

The monsoons have always been my favourite season. Traffic jams, water logging not withstanding — the moment i see a rain cloud my heart sings. The smell of fresh earth at this time of the year drives away any irritation at being stuck indoors. I am known to do silly things like walk in the rain to get wet …. it is almost like the rain is renewing me along with renewing the earth.

And of course, there is hot masala chai, pakodas – grandma used to make these great rava pakodas – and hindi film music. There is not much else you need in life :) .

My favourite rain songs from Hindi films — in no particular order of preference

Aaj Rapat Jaaye to Hame Na Uthayo – Amitabh Bachchan and Smita Patil sizzle in this rain song from Namak Halal. Making out on a hand cart never seemed more appealing :) . Brilliant music by Bappi Lahri and great lyrics by Anjaan.

Barsaat Mein Humse Mile Tum Sajan – A very young Lata Mangeshkar singing for a even younger Nargis. The film is the classic Barsaat. Music by Shankar Jaikishen, lyrics by Shailendra.



Dil Tera Deewana Hai Sanam - Thunder, Lightening and Rain seem to be a good combination for hormones to start acting up. In this song Shammi Kapoor declares undying love for Mala Sinha. The film is Dil Tera Deewana. Music is by Shankar Jaikishen, Lyrics are by Shailendra

Dum Dum Diga Diga – from the movie Chaliya. The director was Manmohan Desai – who gave blockbuster hits like Amar Akbar Anthony, Naseeb, Dharam Veer etal. It was loosely based on Dostovesky’s White Nights but set in the post Partition refugee space. Nutan and Raj Kapoor Star. Rehman has a wonderful cameo as Nutan’s husband. Music is by Kalyanji Anandji, and lyrics by Qamar Jalalabadi.

Ek Ladki Bhigi Bhagi Si – Kishore Kumar and Madhubala and a broken down car. The chemistry between the actors is sweet and playful. An indicator of a much more innocent era. Music by SD Burman, lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri.

Ghanana Ghanana Ghir – The fabulously energetic rain song from Lagaan. A.R.Rehman as his best. The song is relief, joy, yearning, all melded together with great melody, rythmn and a folksy quality that translates to the people’s link to rain. Lyrics are by Javed Akhtar

Koi Ladka Hai - from the film Dil to Pagal hai. The song has a great sense of innocence and reflects a great sense of the joy of life that has been rejuvenated by rains. The singers are Lata Mangeshkar and Udit Narayan. Music is by Uttam Singh and lyrics by Anand Bakshi. SRK and Madhuri and a gaggle of kids feature in this feel good song on the rains.

Mujhe Jaan Na Kaho Meri Jaan – a lovely romantic song by Geeta Dutt. Music is by Kanu Roy and Lyrics are by Gulzar. There is something about a rain drenched Mumbai and romance. The film features Sanjeev Kumar and Tanuja and their post marital ups and downs. The film is Anubhav and the director is Basu Bhattacharya who has the recurrent thread of marital discord running through his films.

O Sajna Barkha Bahar Aayi – Lata Mangeshkar at her sweetest best for this song from the Bimal Roy film Parakh. Music by Salil Choudhary.

Rhim Jhim Gire Sawan - there are two variations of this song, one by Lata Mangeshkar – featured on Amitabh Bachchan – who looked so yummy in this song – & Moushmi Chaterjee and Mumbai in the rains. and the other by Kishore Kumar. The film is Manzil, the music is by R.D.Burman, and lyrics by Yogesh ( not Majrooh Sultanpuri as posted earlier. Thankyou Vinay)

.


The Kishore Kumar variant.
and the Lata Mangeshkar variant


Zindagi Bhar Nahi Bhooli woh Barsaat ki Raat – Bharat Bhushan serenading a woman he met in the rain. And, a very wet Madhubala is the object of his music. The music is by Roshan Sahaab, and lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi. The movie is Barsaat ki Raat.

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Posted by gargi at 2:20 pm Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Changing Tastes

Culture, Diary, Uncategorized 9 Responses »
May 222008

rangeela

It is almost a decade since Rangeela was released. And, it was a fabulous film. A.R.Rehman had composed a brilliant soundtrack, there were some rocking numbers, and the actors sizzled. It was possibly my favourite Ram Gopal Verma movie after Shiva. I used to have the tape in my car and listen to it quite frequently. And, then my tape system died, CD’s came in and my PC became my home entertainment system. A lot of stuff I had on tape had not yet been converted to the CD format. And, I lost touch with a lot of music i listened to at that point in time.

Last week when I was out shopping, i saw a CD of Rangeela. Nostalgia overcame me, and i purchased it. A shiny new CD with my favourite songs …. i got into the car, peeled off the wrapping and put the CD to play…. to my astonishment i no longer liked the music. And, there was a part of me that felt terribly let down by it. I think, that in the intervening decade my tastes had changed … and i really didn’t realise it… But, it got me thinking … what else did i enjoy, that i can no longer handle now…. and here are a few of my (earlier) favourite things … that are no longer favourite…

a) American Prayer - by Jim Morrison – there was a time when R was still in Mumbai, when it would almost be an anthem… A whole bunch of semi inebriated people saying waah waah to the American Prayer. About six months ago I was at a friend’s place and there was something that sounded like a terrible audio mix that was coming out of his speakers…… ‘that sounds like cats being tortured’ I said … ‘ i thought you liked Morrison’ was his response…. I do like the Doors even now, but the American Prayer, is just too spaced out for me…

b) Ayn Rand - when i was 13 she was my heroine ….. i was in love with Howard Roark and John Galt. When i was 25 I re-read the books and was terribly impressed by the philosophy … “wouldn’t it be lovely to be an island without bothering about the world’s mediocrity and compromise” . was my take. And, then i read both Atlas Shrugged and the Fountainhead last year. My response to Atlas shrugged and its question “who is john galt” was who cares, and i was seriously appalled by the rape fantasy in Fountain Head — women generally don’t fall in love with men who rape them!!
I found the writing turgid and the philosophy juvenile. Maybe 10 years from now I will appreciate it again.

c) Partying - I used to be out 5 nights a week. A 14 hour working day, 5 hours of hard core partying. I simply got into the groove of socialising, going out, consuming copious amounts of everything that was not good :) and having fun. I can’t anymore….. I seriously don’t enjoy partying. Hanging out with friends is one thing, hanging out with groups is something quite different.

d) Directing — like most others in my profession i was terribly fida about the film making process. i spent hours preparing, fine tuning technique, understanding light, understanding edit and so on. I was, and still am, fairly good at it…. But, it no longer interests me to the level that it did…. If i am to direct something that is not documentary in nature, i seriously have to psyche myself up …. it is often like watching paint dry :)

e) Films – i used to devour Hindi Films & Hollywood films with equal gusto . Ever since DD introduced the Sunday film sometime last century, i have been hooked to films. I watched at least three a week (if not more) all the way till 1998 or 1999. And, then one day, i stopped. I could no longer handle the Feature Film. Most of them – Bollywood or Hollywood are excruciating, especially if they also happen to be box office hits :) . However, in the last year or so, i have seen stuff that is slowly bringing me back to being an occasional visitor to the theater !

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