Saturday 31 October 2020

S D Burman- He believed in simple Tunes

 


Shikari(1946) was the first Hindi film of Dada Burman as a composer. The songs of the film were not very popular but they received good reviews from music critics. He wanted to create music that would be part of the common man's everyday life, his joy, and sorrow.

In his biography, he said "When I was composing the music of Shikari, everybody in the studio was praising its music but he was not satisfied because the common man present in the studio was not responding. Sometime after the release of his film, another film "Rattan" was released. The songs of that film became so popular that one day he was composing music for another film he heard his servant was singing the song of Rattan while preparing tea for him.

It made him think that day in day out he listens to my compositions but  I have never heard him humming my tunes. I made up in my mind that from now onwards I will make a simple tune for his songs so that a common man could sing and understand.

I was composing the songs for Do Bhai whose first line was 'Mera Sundar Sapna Beet Gata'. Suddenly i heard my servant humming the same song. It made me realized that this song is going to click with the masses. My first Guru in the film music direction was that servant of mine.

He combined Indian classical music with folk music to create songs that had a lasting impact on the audience. He also started a trend of making a tune first and then ask lyricists to write on his tune.It provided space for a conversational style of music for songs like Haal Kaisa Hai Janab Ka (Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi, 1958). He didn't believe in a heavy orchestra, he emphasized more on its melodic content. He believed in the perfect coordination of the words and tunes. ‘Natural poetry would naturally create a worth-humming tune, He abandoned intricate twists and turns in his songs, preferring simplicity that touched the heart of the listeners..

Sachin da had the honesty and integrity of character to acknowledge the sources of his music and the genuine inspiration that he received and how he internalized it into his song/s. For example, once at the age of nineteen, he stumbled upon a rare tune sung by a group of village-women in Chittagong (now in Bangladesh). He liked the tune immensely and it stayed with him to bloom into Sahir Ludhianavi’s ‘Thandi hawaein lahra ke aayeen‘ (Naujawan, 1951). Some discerning connoisseurs of western classical and popular music feel that this was inspired by C’est la vie from the movie Algiers (1938).

Dada was a hard taskmaster but he also expressed his joy if a singer, lyricist, or instrumentalist performed exceptionally well and would reward the person in some form or the other.

SD Burman continued to work through the end of the 1960s and well into the 1970s.  "Abhiman" (1973), "Chupke Chupke" (1975), and "Mili" (1975), are a few compositions from this period which stands out.  However midway through his work on "Mili", he goes into a coma.  He died on October 31, 1975.

Song of Do Bhai (1947)

Song of Shabnam (1949)

Song of Mashaal (1950)

Song of Baazi (1951)

Song of Sazaa (1951)

Song of Naujawan (1951)

Song of Bahar ()1951)

Song of Jaal 1952

Song of Taxi Driver1954

Song of Munimji 1955

Song of Pyaasa 1957


Song of Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi, 1958



Song of Sujata 1959

























Friday 30 October 2020

Bollywood Films Based on Great Indian Novels

 



It is said that literature may or may not need films, but films undoubtedly need good literature. Many great films were made in great literature. Devdas was one such film based on Sharat Chandra Chatterji's novel Devdas. It is the most filmed non-epic story in India. 

There has been always a debate for book lovers, A book is better or a film is better? the very idea of seeing their favorite novel or work of literature turned into a movie is simply unacceptable.to many. Cinema is altogether a different media, Here the imagination of a director and cinematographic effects of the photographer and the screenplay can create an outstanding film.

Many great Hindi filmmakers like Bimal Roy, Guru Dutt, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Gulzar, Basu Chatterjee, and Vijay Anand have made films from great novels. If we look into today's filmmakers, we find Raju Hirani and Vishal Bhardwaj follow these great filmmakers.

Here are a few notable film versions of the great novels.

Chitralekha 

Song of Chitralekha 1941

It is a 1941 Indian Hindi-language film, directed by Kidar Sharma and based on the 1934 Hindi novel of the same name by Bhagwati Charan Verma. Its music is by noted classical musician Ustad Jhande Khan, giving popular songs like "Sun sun Neelkamal Muskaye,"It was the second-highest-grossing Indian film of 1941. This was the debut of actor Bharat Bhushan, who later achieved fame with Baiju Bawra (1952)  It was remade by Sharma in 1964, also titled Chitralekha, starring Meena Kumari and Ashok Kumar.


Milan


Song of Milan  1946

 It was a 1946 Hindi drama film directed by Nitin Bose. The film starred Dilip Kumar, Mira Misra, Ranjana, Pahari Sanyal, and Moni Chatterjee. It was an adaptation of Rabindranath Tagore's 1906 Bengali story Noukadubi (The Wreck). The screenplay adaptation was done by Sajanikanta Das with dialogues translated into Hindi by Pyare Lal Santoshi.


Parineeta 


Song of Parineeta  1953

It was a 1953 Indian Hindi-language drama film starring Ashok Kumar and Meena Kumari, based upon the 1914 Bengali novella of the same name by Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay. The film was directed by Bimal Roy. This version of the film is considered by many to be the most faithful adaptation of the novel.


Devdas


Song of Devdas 1955



It was a 1955  film directed by Bimal Roy, based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novel Devdas. He was only 17 years of age when he wrote this novel in Bengali. The film had Dilip Kumar in the title roleSuchitra Sen in her Bollywood debut as Parvati 'Paro' and Vyjayanthimala in her first dramatic role where she played Chandramukhi, a courtesanMotilalNazir HussainMurad, Pratima Devi, Iftekhar, and S Shivraj were playing other significant roles with Pran and Johnny Walker in extended cameo appearances.Many versions of Devdas in many Indian languages are made from time to time.


Kabuliwala 

Song of Kaabuliwala 1961

It was. a 1961 film based on the 1892 short story "Kabuliwala", by the Bengali writer Rabindranath Tagore. It was directed by Hemen Gupta and starred Balraj SahniUsha Kiran, Sajjan, Sonu, and Baby Farida. Hemen Gupta had remained private secretary to Subhas Chandra Bose, and went on to direct many films including Taksaal (1956), also starring Balraj Sahni, and his tribute Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose (1966). 


Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam 

Song of  Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam  1962

It was a 1962 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film produced by Guru Dutt and directed by Abrar Alvi. It is based on the 1953 Bengali novel, Saheb Bibi Golam by Bimal Mitra, and is a look into the tragic fall of the haveli-dom and feudalism in Bengal during the British RajThe film stars Meena KumariGuru DuttRehman, and Waheeda Rehman. The film was a major critical and commercial success, with critics attributing it to Meena Kumari's performance as Chhoti Bahu.


Godaan


Song of Godaan 1963

This is a very heart touching movie based on Munshi Premchand's novel "Godaan". Released in 1963 starring Raj Kumar, Kamini Kaushal, and Shashikala The book was published in 1937;.. It is counted among the greatest novels written in Hindi.



Meri Surat Teri Ankhen 


Song of Meri Surat Teri Ankhen 1963
It was a 1963 Bollywood film starring Ashok KumarAsha Parekh, and Pradeep Kumar. It is based on the Bengali novel Ulka by Nihar Ranjan Gupta.

Guide 

Song of Guide 1965

It was a 1965 Indian romantic drama film starring Dev Anand and Waheeda Rehman. It was directed by Vijay Anand, who contributed to the screenplay. The film is based on the 1958 novel The Guide, by R. K. NarayanGuide was highly successful at the box-office upon release.[3] It went on to become a Bollywood classic and proved to be memorable for its highly acclaimed performances by the lead actors and memorable music by S. D. BurmanTime magazine listed it at #4 on its list of Best Bollywood Classics.


Teesri Kasam

Song of Teesri Kasam 1966

 It was a 1966 film directed by Basu Bhattacharya and produced by lyricist Shailendra. It is based on the short story Mare Gaye Gulfam, by the Hindi novelist Phanishwarnath Renu. The film stars Raj Kapoor and Waheeda RehmanTeesri Kasam was an unconventional film that portrays rural Indian society. It is the story of a naive bullock cart driver Hiraman, who falls in love with Hirabai, a dancer at a nautanki. 


Gaban

Song of Gaban 1966

It was a 1966 Hindi film directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, based on Munshi Premchand's classic novel by the same name. It had Sunil Dutt and Sadhna playing the lead role. 


Kaajal

Song of Kaajal 1965

It was a 1965 Bollywood film produced by Pannalal Maheshwari and directed by Ram Maheshwari. The film stars Meena KumariDharmendraRaaj KumarPadminiHelenDurga KhoteTun TunMehmood, and Mumtaz.i.The film was adapted from Gulshan Nanda's novel "Maadhavi" by Phani Majumdar with Kidar Sharma writing the dialogues. The film was declared as a "Hit" at Box office 

Safar 

Song of Safar 1970

It was a 1970 Indian Hindi film produced by the Mushir-Riaz duo and directed by Asit Sen, based on a novel by Bengali writer Ashutosh Mukherjee. The film stars Ashok KumarRajesh KhannaSharmila Tagore, and Feroz Khan in lead roles. The film became the tenth top-grossing production of the year.Asit Sen remade the 1956 Bengali film Chalachal, which was directed by him.


Khushboo

Song of Khushboo 1975
It was a 1975 Hindi-language drama film, produced by Prasan Kapoor under the Tirupati Pictures banner, presented by Jeetendra and directed by Gulzar. It stars JeetendraHema Malini, and music composed by R. D. Burman. The film is based on the Bengali novel Panditmashai, by Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay, which was earlier filmed in Bengali in 1951 by Naresh Mitra.


Shatranj Ke Khilari 

Song of Shatranj Ke Khilari  1977

It was a 1977 Indian film written and directed by Satyajit Ray, based on Munshi Premchand's short story of the same name. Amjad Khan plays the role of Wajid Ali Shah, King of Awadh, and Richard Attenborough play the role of General James Outram. The film also features the actors Sanjeev KumarSaeed JaffreyShabana AzmiDavid Abraham, and Tom Alter, as well as Amitabh Bachchan as the narrator. This is the first Hindi feature film of filmmaker Satyajit Ray and second, being 'Sadgati'- another adaptation of Premchand's short story



Ek Chadar Maili Si




It is a 1986 film, directed by Sukhwant Dhadda, and is an adaptation of Rajinder Singh Bedi's classic Urdu novella by the same name. The novel won the 1965 Sahitya Akademi AwardThe film stars Hema Malini, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Rishi Kapoor and Poonam Dhillon in lead roles.



Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa '

It was an a1998, feature film that deals with the life of a woman who loses her son, a Naxalite, to the violence that is a result of his adopted ideology. The film was directed by Govind Nihalani and is based on Magsaysay and Jnanpith award recipient Mahasweta Devi's Bengali 1974 novel Hajar Churashir Maa