Friday 28 May 2021

Vinod (Eric Roberts) - The Forgotten Music Director

 

Vinod(May 28, 1922) born as Eric Robert was a music director of the golden era but  fell short of reaching the pinnacle of commercial success in an era dominated by prominent composers like Shankar Jaikishan, S D Burman, O P Nayyar and C Ramchandra  

He became a household name.with the song Lara Lappa Lara lappa Layee Rakhda from the 1949 film 'Ek Thi Ladki'. It was a big musical hit of 1949 like Mahboob's Andaz and Raj Kapoor's Barsat. 

The next two films in which Vinod composed were Kamini and Nagin. In 1950, Vinod came back with superb music in Anmol Ratan directed by M Sadiq, starring Meena and Karan Deewan. One could see the versatility in his compositions. Talat Mehmood and Lata sang their all-time great duets, Shikwa tera main gaun and Yaad aane wale phir yaad aa rahein hain, set in Kehrawa Tall with soft notes of flute.
Another rare gem was Talat's Jab kisi ke rukh pe zulfein aake lehrane lagi set in Raag Bhairv. Nirmala Arun (Govinda's mother) also sang a thumri, Lakhon mein ek hamare saiyan haye.
Vinod composed music in 32 Hindi films and also has half a dozen Punjabi films to his credit. Ladla, Oot Patang, Haa Haa Hee Hee Hoo Hoo, Shri Nakad Narayan Makkhi Choos, Seikh Chilly and Garma Garam

           Song of Ek Thl Ladki 1949

Song of Ek Thl Ladki 1949
 
 

                                   Song of Anmol Rattan 1950


                                     Song of Wafa 1950



                                Song of Aag Ka Dariya (1953)







Tuesday 25 May 2021

Laxmikant Pyarelal - Their Music was a Key to Success of a Film or a Career of an Actor

 


Music directors Laxmikant-Pyarelal have composed many of such popular songs which have benefited the films to become hits as well as the film actors/actresses' popularity hiked. Dosti (1964) film was a hit because of its songs.

Bindiya Chamke Gi’  from “Do Raaste” in 1969 gave name and fame as well as ‘star’ status to Mumtaz. Similarly, Sridevi became a star after ‘Hawa Hawai’ from “Mr India” in 1987. In this blog, I am discussing a few of such songs that have boosted the career of many actors.

Song of Do Raste 1969
Song of Mr India 1987


Their first film Parasmani (1963) was successful because of its music.
 Classic songs like "Woh Jab Yaad Aaye", "Mere Dil mein halki si", "Hansta hua", "Roshan Tumhi se" attracted the people to cinema halls to a B grade movie with no star cast. 

Song of Parasmani 1963

Dosti was amongst the top ten highest-grossing films of 1964, declared a "Super Hit" at the box office, with no star cast This was the music of the film which made the film hit. Laxmikant Pyarelal got their first Best Music Director
 
Song of Dosti 1964






Jeetendra became ‘star’ through the success of musical hit film “Farz”, 1967, in particular, the song ‘Mast Baharon Ka Aashiq
Song of  “Farz”, 1967,



Raja Aur Runk (1968) was a film starring Sanjeev Kumar and Kumkum with no star value was one such film that became a hit because of their music.  The hit team of Anand Bakshi and Laxmikant Pyarelal created melodious songs like 'Tu Kitni Achchi Hai...O Maa', 'O Phirkiwali', 'Mera Naam Hai Chameli' and 'Sang Basanti Ang Basanti'.
Song of  Raja Aur Runk (1968)

 Laxmi Chhaya is known for the songs like ‘Mar Diya Jaye Ke Chhod Diya Jaye’   ‘Hi Sharmau Kis Kis Ko Batau’  and ‘Aaya Aaya Atariaya Pe Koi Chor’ all from “Mera Gaon Mera Desh” 1971,
Song of Mera Gaon Mera Desh 1971


In the success of Bobby(1973) its music played a great role, This was a RK film but its music was super hit and Shailendra Singh, the singer became popular because of them.
Song of Bobby 1973

Madhuri Dixit became a star from the song Ek Do Teen from Tejab 1988. With this song, Alka Yagnik also became the Top Female playback singer. 
Song of Tejab 1988




 







Monday 24 May 2021

Majrooh Sultanpuri- A Long Lyrical Journey from 1946 t0 2001

 


His first film as a lyricist was Shahjehab(1946) writing the immortal song 'Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya' sung by K L Saigal and the last filmOne 2 Ka 4 (2001). He was the only lyricist who wrote songs for heroes ranging from Saigal to Shahrukh Khan and leading ladies from Nargis to Madhuri Dixit. 

He worked with all the top music directors of his time –  Naushad, Anil Biswas, Madan Mohan, OP Nayyar, Roshan, Laxmikant Pyarelal, his associations with SD Burman and later were with RD Burman stand out. In fact, he introduced R D Burman to Nasir Hussain for Teesri Manzil. In his last film, he wrote for A R Rehman.

He was part of the formidable quartet of lyricists that ruled Hindi Cinema in the 1950s and early 60s, the others being Sahir Ludhianvi, Shakeel Badayuni and Shailendra. Majrooh Saab’s career, spanning over five decades, saw him writing wonderful lyrics for well over 300 films, many of them extremely successful at the box office.

He could write any kind of lyrics tailor-made for the situation in the film. Be it the peppy “Hum hain rahi pyar ke” (Nau Doh Gyarah) or the nonsense lyrics of “C-A-T cat, cat maane billi” (Dilli Ka Thug) to “Aaj main upar aasman neeche” (Khamoshi – The Musical), Majrooh became the undisputed king of the “situational song. He got his first break as a lyricist in A R Kardar’s Shah Jahan in 1945, penning the last classic by K L Saigal “Jab dil hi toot gaya”.

.He subsequently did films like Natak (1947)Doli (1947), and Anjuman (1948) but his major breakthrough was Mehboob Khan’s immortal love triangle, Andaz (1949), with hit songs like Tu Kahe Agar, Jhoom Jhoom ke Naacho Aaj, Hum Aaj Kahin Dil Kho Baithe, Toote na Dil Toote na and Uthaye Ja Unke Situm.

He wrote many immortal songs, in this blog I have selected a few songs composed by various composersIn an interview to Film Division’s Jayanti Rasgotra in 1997, when asked to rate his three best songs, Majrooh listed them: Kahin bekhayal hokar yoon hi chhoo liya kisi ne (Teen Deviyaan, S D Burman, 1965), Raat kali ek khwaab mein aayee aur gale ka haar hui (Buddha mil gaya, 1971, R D Burman) and that immortal Rahein na rahein hum mahka karenge…(Mamta, Roshan, 1966, Lata Mangeshkar)

Song of Shah Jehan (1946) Composer Naushad

Song of Romeo Juliet 1947   Composer Husnalal Bhagatram

Song of Footpath 1953  Composer Khayyam

Song of Aar Paar 1954

Song of Paying Guest 1957 Composer S D Burman

Song of Maya 1961



Song from Aarti (1962)  Composer Roshan

Song of Ishara 1964

Song from Oonche Log 1965  Composer Chitragupt

Song of Dosti 1964  Composer Laxmikant Pyarelal



Song of Teesri Manzil 1967



Song of Dastak 1970 Composer Madan Mohan

Song of Bhumika 1977 Composer Vanraj Bhatia



Song of Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak  1988 Composer Anand Miland

Song of Khamoshi The Musical  1996 Composer Jatin Lalit

Song of Kya Kehna 2000 Composer Rajesh Roshan



Song of Pukar 2000 Composer A R Rehman





























Friday 21 May 2021

Subodh Mukharjee- Freedom Fighter to the Leading Filmmaker of the Golden Era

 


Subodh Mukharjee ( away from the nationalist movement and engaged him film making. He started as a continuity assistant and writer He was given the first film as an independent director Munimji (1955).  The film was a hit. The song "Jeevan Ke Safar Mein Rahi," sung by Kishore Kumar, became a super hit. The next film he directed was Paying Guest(1957), which was again a hit.

He started his own banner SMP Subodh Mukharjee Productions. The first film of this house was Love Marriage starring Dev Anand and Mala Sinha. This was the third film in a row under his direction All three films were hit. The next film under his direction and production house was Junglee with Shammi Kapoor. The film was a super hit. He was then a leading Filmmaker of Bollywood.

 After Junglee he made April Fool in 1964 and Saaj Aur Awaz in 1966, both the films were average in Box Office. In both the films, Saira Banu was the heroine, who was introduced by him in the 1961 film Junglee.
In 1967 he produced Shagird, the direction was given to Samir Ganguly. The film stars Joy Mukherjee and Saira Banu in lead roles The film was a super hit. He then made two films simultaneously, Sharmilee(1971) was directed by Sameer Ganguli, and the other film Abhinetri(1970) was directed by him.

In the first two decades of his career, he had a high success percentage, but like so many movie-makers of his generation, he floundered from the seventies and quit in 1985. He produced 8 films and directed 9 films in his career. The last 2 films were Teesri Aankh 1982 and Ulta Seedha in 1985

He died on 21st May 2005,he was suffering from Blood cancer.

Song of Munimjee 1955

Song of Paying Guest 1957

Song of Love Mariage1959

Song of Junglee 1961

Song of Shagird 1967

Song of Abhinetri 1970

Song of Sharmilee 1971

















Wednesday 19 May 2021

Nainital and ils Bollywood Connection



Nainital, the most favorite hill station of the North Indians has been a favorite location for Bollywood Filmmakers. The first Bollywood film shot in Nainital and nearby places was Madhumati released in 1958. But before that Guru Dutt and Zohra Sehgal, who were disciples of Uday Shankar, established the 'Uday Shankar India Cultural Centre', at Simtola, near Nainital.

 In the 1950s, three future Bollywood stars were studying in Nainital: Amitabh Bachchan at Sherwood College.  Danny Denzongpa at Birla Vidyamandir, Naseeruddin Shah at St Joseph’s College, and Film director Karan Johar’s mother was a hosteller at St Mary’s Convent.

B R Chopra's Gumrah (1963) starring Ashok Kumar, Sunil Dutt, and Mala Sinha was a super hit movie, Its song “In Hawao Mein, Inhi Fijazo Mein” was shot in Nainital.

Song of Gumrah 1963

The next song is from the 1964 film Shagun starring Waheeda Rehman and Kamaljeet. The film was shot at Mehboob Studios in Bombay and Nainital.This song was shot in Nainital
Song of Shagun 1964

Song of Waqt 1965

Song of Bheegi Raat 1965

Song of Anita 1967



Song of EK KALI MUSKAYEE 1968



This song made Nainital more popular among tourists
Song of Kati Patang 1971

Song of Masoom 1983




Song of Sirf Tum 1999


Song of  Abhi Toh Jee Le 1977 



Song of Koi Mil Gaya 2003


                                       


Saturday 15 May 2021

Aaja Nachle with Madhuri Dixit

 


Madhuri Dixit is one of those few actresses who is aging so gracefully that with every passing year, she only ends up looking even more beautiful. She has given us some iconic songs like, Ek Do Teen, Tamma Tamma Loge, Kay Sera Sera that are definitely going to stay with us forever. she is blessed by the Gods of dance and in the industry that heavily relies on its culture of song and dance, she became a goddess.

Madhuri Dixit gave Bollywood some of its biggest hits in the 90s. From Choli Ke Piche Kya Hai To Dhak Dhak to Dola Re Dola, Bollywood's dancing diva had many hits to her name. Today, we take a look at some of her dance hit songs in a career spanning over three decades.

In this blog, I have selected 15 dance songs by Madhuri Dixit.

Song of Tezab (1988)


Song of  Kishen Kanhaiya (1990)

Song of  Sailaab (1990)

Song of  Thanedar (1990)



Song of  Beta (1992)

Song of  Khalnayak (1993)

Song of  Anjam (1994)

Song of Hum Apke hain Kaun (1994)

Song of Raja(1995)

Song of Yarana (1995)


Song of Dil Toh Pagal hai (1997)

Song of Pukar (2000)

Song of Lazza (2001)

Song of Devdas (2002)

Song of Aaja Nachle (2007)




































Friday 14 May 2021

The Great Muslim Socials of the Golden Era of Bollywood

 


Muslim Social is one of the genres of Bollywood. Many films were made in this genre and many of them were great hits too. The 1950s to ’70s were the decades when the popularity of the Muslim social opened a window to a world both exotic and familiar at the same time. 

Pukar released in 1939 was made by Sohrab Modi was based on  Mughal emperor Jahangir, the Muslim social drama genre reached its peak with Mehboob Khan’s Najma (1943) starring Ashok Kumar and Sitara. After the success of this film, many films on Mughals were made including Humayun (1945) by Mehboob KhanShahjehan (1946) by A R Kardar.

in the 50s the  Social drama of Nawabs and other top-class people of the society was made. In 1960 Guru Dutt produced and acted in Chaudhvin Ka Chand which became a hit opening the window for more such films. Here is the list of few such films.

Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960)- One of the top-grossing films of 1960, produced by Guru Dutt, directed by Mohammed Sadiq, starring Guru Dutt, Waheeda Rehman and Rehman.The setting is the city of Lucknow in UP, Aslam (Guru Dutt) and Nawab (Rehman) are the two friends caught in a love triangle with Jameela (Waheeda Rehman). 

Song of Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960)

Mere Mehboob is a 1963 Indian film directed by H. S Rawail and starring Ashok KumarRajendra KumarSadhanaNimmi. The film became a blockbuster and took the number one position at the box office in 1963.  It drew a background from Aligarh Muslim UniversityAligarh and traditional Lucknow. The famous song "Mere Mehboob Tujhe Mere" was shot in the University Hall and in a couple of places, one gets to see the University. 

Song of Mere Mehboob  1963


Benazir (1964)- The film is a Bimal Roy production.Starring Ashok KumarMeena KumariShashi Kapoor and Tanuja. Directed by S.Khalil and music by Sachin Dev BurmanBenazir, a Muslim family drama, revolves around the film's key characters, Nawab, Anwar, Sahida and Benazir, among others. Nawab and Anwar are brothers who live in an upper-class neighborhood. Nawab is married and has a child. A bachelor, Anwar on seeing Sahida falls in love with her and proposes marriage to her. Although married, Nawab has an affair with Benazir, and keeps her as his mistress.

Song of Benazir (1964)


Bahu Begum is a 1967 Hindi film directed by M. Sadiq, and starring Pradeep KumarMeena Kumari and Ashok Kumar. The film has music by Roshan and lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi. This film is known for songs, "Hum Intezaar Karenge Tera Qayamat Tak", sung by Mohammad Rafi and Asha Bhosle and "Duniya Kare Sawaal" by Lata Mangeshkar. The film is a Moslem period drama set in the erstwhile Era of Lucknow woven around a mythical story of Bahut Begum's manor.

Song of Bahu Begum 1967


Mere Huzoor is a 1968 film starring Raaj KumarMala Sinha, and JeetendraAkhtar Hussain (Jeetendra) saves the life of Nawab Salim (Raj Kumar) and earns his gratitude. Salim invites Akhtar to come to his palatial home, On the way on a train journey, he meets beautiful Sultanat (Mala Sinha) and falls in love with her. On arrival at Salim's house, Akhtar is treated with the utmost respect, provided employment, and a place to live. Akhtar meets with Saltanat and both plan to get married. Unknown to them, Salim also loves Saltanat, but Saltanat rejects his advances, and proposal, leaving him heartbroken. Soon Saltanat and Akhtar get married and settle down.

Song of Mere Huzoor 1968


Mehboob Ki Mehndi is a 1971 romantic musical film produced and directed by H. S. Rawail. The film stars Rajesh Khanna and Leena ChandavarkarShabana, the heroine is able to save herself, and her family, only by educating herself and doing the job of a tutor. 

Song of Mehboob Ki Mehndi 1971 


 Pakeezah is a 1972 film, written, produced and directed by Kamal Amrohi  starring Meena Kumari, Raj Kumar and Ashok Kumar .Meena Kumari's performance as a gold-hearted Lucknow nautch-girl drew major praise. However, this was to be Meena Kumari's last great performance. Set in the Muslim Quarter of Lucknow at the turn of the 20th century, the movie centers on the mental plight of a tawaif and her longing to be loved, accepted and respected by society.

Song of Pakeezah 1972