"YAHOO" The Yell that Shook the Nation

This iconic foot-tapping song from film Junglee introduced a freestyle dancing by Shammi Kapoor. His sky-breaking scream ‘Yahoo!’ depicts a freedom-seeking soul. This song became a cult song.  The idea of "Yahoo" itself was Shammi Kapoor's who had used it earlier in "Tumsa Nahin Dekha" (1957) and "Dil Deke Dekho" (1959).
You would be surprised to know that the iconic yell "Yahoo!!" in this song was not rendered by Mohammad Rafi. In fact, Jaikishan the music director of this film had planned on using his voice for the scream but when he couldn't pull it off, he asked the writer Prayag Raj who happened to be in the. studio and gave that memorable shout. Shammi Kapoor once said it was only Rafi saheb who could sing on such a high scale.
Shammi Kapoor hurt himself while picturizing this song. He badly bruised his knees when he came hurtling down a snow-covered hill while shouting his signature call -- "yahoo" - This song was picturized at Pahalgam in Kashmir.
 It is this musical number alone that solidified Kapoor's reputation as an untamed screen presence (in the style of Dean and Presley) and set the tone for his future movies. 
After picturizing this song, when Rafi saheb saw the song, he hugged Shammi Kapoor and said that he thought of him while singing this song and you have exactly done that. After this song Rafi became his voice in films. 
Junglee was 1961 film which was in color, it was an attraction to those days. Shammi Kapoor was not sure that this film would be such a hit, especially this song. This song became a craze and Shammi Kapoor became a Superstar after this film. Kapoor steadily amassed a huge following that reached its zenith with this film.
This movie was first offered to Jagdeep before played by Shammi Kapoor. Jag deep 'Surma Bhopali' from Sholay fame famous for the comic role did some serious role in his early movies

Song of Junglee 1961

Subodh Mukharjee - A Filmmaker of Golden Era of Bollywood

The younger brother of the doyen of Hindi films Shashdhar Mukherjee of Filmistan Studio. The studio that gave us Shaheed (1948), Shabnam (1949), Anarkali (1953), and Nagin(1954). Jagriti(1954),  
Munimji 1955, Paying Guest 1957, Tumsa Nahin Dekha 1957 
He directed Dev Anand in Munimji and Paying Guest and later started his own production house with Love Marriage. He introduced Saira Bano and made Shammi Kapoor a superstar with the 1961 film Junglee.
Subodh Mukharjee ( April 14, 1921- 21 May 2005) was a freedom fighter, he was in jail for 3 months. His elder brother Shashdhar pulled him away from the nationalist movement and engaged him film making.He was given the first film as an independent director Munimji The script was written by Nasir Hussain and the music was composed by S D Burman. The film was a hit. The song "Jeevan Ke Safar Mein Rahi," sung by Kishore Kumar, became a super hit. This team of Subodh Mukherjee, Nasir Hussain, Dev Anand, and music director S.D. Burman later got together to make another movie, Paying Guest, in 1957. In the same year,. Looking to this the Filmalaya decided to make another film Tumsa Nahin Dekho was released which was directed by Nasir Hussain, it was also successful so Filmalya gave Nasir Hussain another film to direct, this upset Subodh, e decided to start his own production house, the 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 the three films were hit.
The next film under his direction and production house was Junglee with Shammi Kapoor. The film was a super hit. after Junglee he made April Fool in 1964 and Saaj Aur Awaz in 1966, both the films were average in Box Office.
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,
Abhinetri released in 1970 was directed by him and Sharmilee directed by Samir Ganguli was a hit. his was the last hit from SMP. 
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. The last 2 films were Teesri Aankh 1982 and Ulta Seedha in 1985.

Song of Munimji 1955

Song of Paying Guest 1957

Song of Love Marriage 1959

Song of Junglee1961

Song of Shagird 1967

Song of Sharmilee 1971

The Story Behind the Song "Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Haseen Sitam"

This iconic song from India's first Cinemascope film Kagaz Ke Phool is now 60 years old. This song was picturized on Waheeda Rehman and Guru Dutt. Geeta Dutt giving voice to Waheeda Rehman. We can feel The"Dard" (Pain) in the voice of Geeta Dutt. What a composition by great S D Burman and penned by another great Kaifi Azmi.
A song bringing forth the tragedy in romance, a song telling us about the inevitability of life in general!.The amazing camera frame by the legendry cinematographer V K Murthy, shadows and light are combined beautifully to create the situation and sad mood of the scene where Guru Dutt and Waheeda meet in an unexpected situation.
The situation of this song was not there in the original script. There were 5 songs for the script, those were already composed and recorded by Burman Da and everybody was relaxed. Suddenly Burman Da started humming a new tune which was light and with a glimpse of sorrow. Guru Dutt, who was sitting next to Burman Da liked this new tune and was deeply touched by this tune, he suggested Burman Da that let's have a song with this tune.
Kaifi Azmi, who was also sitting with them was asked to write for this tune. Kaifi Azmi who seldom write for the pre-composed tunes agreed. He immediately wrote the Mukhda of this song, initially, Guru Dutt was not happy with the Mukhda but Burman Da was very much impressed with the words, he insisted Gutu Dutt think once again, he felt that these lines were enough to bring tears in his eyes.
In the meantime, Burman Da asked Kaifi Azmi to write the two antra of this song. He then beautifully tuned these antra, he thought immediately that Geeta Dutt would give full emotions to this song.

Burman Da called Geeta Dutt and asked her to sing this song in front of Guru Dutt. Guru Dutt liked the song and insisted on Burman Da to get it to record it for this film. The situation for this song was created and then picturized on Waheeda and himself.
When this song was shot, the relation between Waheeda and Guru Dutt were a hot topic. Kaifi Azmi wrote the lyrics with this in mind which later denied that he ever kept in mind about their relationship. However, this song became the highlight of the film.

The booming bass guitar, the soft piano, the tinkling triangle, the flowing strings – the orchestration of that song was mesmerizing. On-screen, a stunningly beautiful Waheeda and a somber, graceful Guru Dutt appearing in an exquisite light and shadow play of haunting black and white images then completed that masterpiece.

In 2018, after 59 years, there is a reference to this song in '102 Not Out'. Amitabh Bachchan who plays a 102-year-old man in the film recorded the track in his characteristic deep and booming voice. The song was arranged by Rohan Utpat and Vinayak K Salvi. 

Song of Kagaz Ke Phool 1959

Song of 102 Not Out 2018

Lata Mangeshkar's Tribute To Geeta Dutt by singing Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Haseen Sitam 

           

Talat Mahmood- The Singer, who gave us many Immortal Songs.

Talat Mahmood, the legendry singer of the Golden Era died on 8th May 1998 has given many Immortal songs to us. Although his peak barely spanned a decade, he has produced some of Bollywood's most treasured songs.  This accomplishment has earned him a place in our hearts and souls for all time to come.
Talat’s impeccable command over Urdu was the flavor of the films. Top music directors of that time were giving him songs. The first song he sang for Dilip Kumar was "Milte Hi Ankhe Dil Hua Deewana Kisi Ka" a duet from Babul 1950. He gave playback to all the big stars of that era such as Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, and Sunil Dutt 
 His big break came with the song Ae dil mujhe aisi jagha le chal jahan koi na ho composed by music director Anil Biswas for the soundtrack of the movie Arzoo. The song proved to be extremely popular.
After Babul, he sang for Dilip Kumar in the 1951 film Tarana, the song "Seene Mei Sulagte Hai Arman" became super hit. The same year another song from Madhosh " Meri Yaad Mein Na Tum Aanso Bahana" also became hit.His voice was now being appreciated by all, most of the music directors were now giving him a chance. In 1952 he sang in 26 films, the songs of Daag and Anhonee became super hit. He sang for the first time for Raj Kapoor, this song" Mein Dil Hoon Ek Arman Bhara" is an immortal song.
Though he sang for Dev Anand in 1951 film Nadaan,"Aa Teri Tasvir Bana Loon"but the 1953 song "Andhe Jahan Ke Hum Hain" became hit. The same year "Sham-E-Gham ki qassam" for Footpath and "Zindagi dene wale sun" for Dil E Nadaan were a massive hit.
In 1954 he again sang for Dev Anand in Taxi Driver, the song  "Jayen to jayen kahan" became immortal and one of his greatest hits.
Talat sang approximately 800 songs spread over 4 decades spanning between the 40s and 80s Here I am posting a few of his immortal songs

Song of Arzoo 1950

Song of Baabul 1950

Song of Taraana 1951

Song of Madhosh 1951

Song of Daag 1952

Song of Anhonee 1952

Song of Foothpath 1953

Song of Dil-e-Nadaan  1953

Song of Taxi Driver  1954

Song of Baradari  1955

Song of Yasmeen  1955

Song of Dekh Kabira Roya 1957

Song of Sujata  1959

Song of Chhaya 1961

Song of Jahan Aara 1964

Naushad- The Classical Genius

Naushad (25 December 1919 – 5 May 2006 ) started as an independent music director from the 1940 film Prem Nagar. He made the Hindi songs popular by mixing UP and Bihar folk music with Indian classical music. It was in 1946 he got the superstar status with the two immortal songs from the film Anmol Ghadi.
The simple melody in Raag Pahari in the voice of Noorjehan " Jawan Hai Mohabbat" and the duet of Noorjehan and Surendra"Awaz Do Kahan Ho" mesmerized the music lovers. In the same year, K L Saigal gave one of his immortal songs "Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya" under his composition in Shahjehan (1946) in Raag Bhairavi.

His classical genius was the 1952 film Baiju Bawra in which he used the voices if the great Ustad Amir Khan and D V Palusjar. The climactic contest between Tansen and Baiju Bawra in the royal court of Mughal emperor Akbar demanded music of the highest finesse to exemplify the capabilities of these historical legends. Naushad introduced classical music with deft handling, making it melodious for mass appeal and yet retaining enough artistry as the situation demanded. 
There could not have been a better composer than Naushad Ali to make this film an unforgettable feature of Indian cinema. The music in “Baiju Bawra” is divine! It is, in fact, the soul of the film.
There are many moments in “Baiju Bawra” when the contribution of Naushad emerges the strongest point of the movie. Mohammad Rafi, lyricist Shakeel Badayuni and Naushad leave you in a trance with the all-time great number “Man tarpat hari darshan ko aaj”. Rafi had reportedly confessed to this being one of the toughest songs of his career as a demanding Naushad sought perfection from the legendary singer.

Raag Pahari, Raag Darbari, Raag Yaman, and Bhairvi were few of his favorite ragas. Many immortal songs in this raga were composed by him. Right from composing Rimjhim barse badarwa in raga Pahadi in film Rattan effortlessly rendered by Zohrabai Amabalewali, Naushad emphasized the durable value of classical mores.
His most durable composition Suhani raat dhal chuki was shaped in Pahadi and was from film Dulari made in 1949 that became legendary and is still considered an integral part of any singer’s repertoire in any musical gathering. 
His other popular number in Pahadi was Tod diya dil mera composed for film Andaz in 1949 and rendered by Lata Mangeshkar. Naushad also utilised Pahadi to create an amazingly profound tune Marna teri gali mein for film Shabab in 1954 sung by Lata 
Naushad was very mich fascinated with Bhairavi He tuned his very fine number Jab dil hee toot gaya in raga Bhairavi in a manner that this raga became his signature tune as Naushadian Bhairavi.
The quality of Naushadian Bhairvi is that it is immediately recognizable. It is amply reflected in his beautiful compositions such as Tu Ganga ki mauj mein for film Baiju Bawrarendered by Rafi that became the standard-bearer for flowing rendition based on classical ragas. Another of his hit songs was Toote na dil toote na picturised on Dilip Kumar in Andaz in 1949 and sung by Mukesh,
In Raag Yaman he composed Jaane wale se mulaqat na hone payee sung by Lata and composed for Mehboob Khan’s powerful drama Amar released in 1954 and later in Mughal-e-Azam, the song once again sung by Lata Mangeshkar "Humein kash tum se mohabbat na woti, "

A Great Trio. of Naushad, Rafi, and Shakeel Badayuni

Two immortal songs in Raag Darbari were created "Beech bhanwar mein aan phasaa hai dil ka safeena, Shah-e-Madina, for film Dard in 1947 for Surraya to render it and another by Mohammad Rafi "O dunya ke rakhwale" for 1952 film Baiju Bawra .
Naushad composed two sequentially modulating numbers in rather unconventional raga Jaijaiwanti This song"Hum aaj kahin dil kho bethe poignantly sung by Mukesh for the 1949 film Andaz and the other great song Mohabbat ki rahon mein chalna sambhal ke composed in 1955 for film Uran Khatol a that was playfully performed by Rafi.
One of the exceptionally brilliant compositions of Naushad, Madhuban mein radhika naache re, famous for an excellent Sitar sequence, for film Kohinoor in 1960 was laid out in raga Hameer, which is very rarely used for light music.
These are a few Raag based songs that made Naushad the Classical Genius but in the end, I must mention the song that made Mohammad Rafi a great "Man tarpat hari darshan ko aaj, a complicated semi-classical composition based on raga Malkauns for film Baiju Bawra released in 1952. 

Song of Rattan 1944

Song of Anmol Ghadi 1946

Song of Anmol Ghadi 1946

Song of Shajehan 1946

Song of Shajehan 1946

Song of Dard 1947

Song of Dulari 1949

Song of Dulari 1949

Song of Andaz 1949

Song of Baiju Bawra 1952

Song of Baiju Bawra 1952

Song of Baiju Bawra 1952

Song of Uran Khatola 1955

Song of Mother India 1957

Song of Kohinoor 1960

Song of Mughal e Azam 1960

Rare or Forgotten Songs of Nargis

NARGIS(1 June 1929 – 3 May 1981),  one of the greatest actresses in the history of Hindi cinema. She starred in many popular Hindi films of the late 1940s and 1950s. Many of the iconic and immortal songs were picturized on her including Pyat Hua Ikrar Hua or Aaja Re Ab Mera Dil Pukara and many more.
She appeared as a heroine opposite Motilal in the 1943 film Taqdeer. She was only 14 years of age at that time. The song ".O Jaanewale Aaja" sung by Shamshad Begum was her first song as a heroine, Many such unheard songs are collected by me in this blog.

Song of Taqdeer (1943) 

Song of Taqdeer (1943) 

Song of Anban 1944   (Audio only)

Song of Humayun 1945

Song of Romeo Juliet 1947  Audio

Song of Anokha Pyar 1948

Song of Mela 1948

Song of Aag 1948

Song of Lahore 1949

Song of Daroga Ji 1949

Song of Birha Ki Raat 1950

Song of Halchal 1951

Song of Miss India 1957

Manna Dey Songs for Dev Anand

When we think of Dev Anand songs, what we get in mind is S D Burman as Music director and Rafi or Kishore Kumar as Playback singers. But, he has lip-synced with all the great singers of the Golden Era.
One of the great singers of Bollywood was Manna Dey. He started working as an assistant music director first under Krishna Chandra Dey, and then under Sachin Dev Burman. He composed music for a few films also, one of these movies was 1948 film Hum Bhi Hain Insaan starring Dev Anand. In this film, he sang for Dev Anand for the first time.
In this Blog, I have rare songs Of Manna Dey sung for Dev Anand.
Dev Anand became a star after the release of Ziddi in 1948. Kishore and Mohammad Rafi became his screen voice. Hemant Kumar and Talat Mahmood also sang for Dev Anand in the 50s. Manna Dey sang for him after 10 years in the 1958 film Amardeep.
SD Burman took Manna Dey for Dev Anand in Manzil 1960, in this film Burman Da experimented three different singers for the same hero. Manna Dey sang one solo and one duet with Asha Bhosle.Rafi and Hemant Kumar also sang in this film for Dev Anand.
The next film was Kala Bazar in 1960 having a duet with Asha Bhosle"SAANJH DHALI DIL KI LAGI ". In the same year, Bombai Ka Babu released, in this film also the song Tak Dhoom Tak Dhoom was sung by Manna Dey.
Dev Anand – Manna Dey were brought together, once again. for one of the all-time classics Chale Jaa Rahein Hai Kinare Kinare (Kinare Kinare, 1964; Lyrics: Nyay Sharma) by Jaidev.

Song of Hum Bhi Insaan Hain 1948

Song of Amardeep 1958

Song of Bombai Ka Babu 1960

Song of Kala Bazar 1960

Song of Manzil 1960

Song of Manzil 1960

Song of Kinare Kinare 1964

The Story Behind the Song" Lag Ja Gale"

This iconic song from the 1964 film "Woh Kaun Thi" was almost not recorded. Madan Mohan had composed the song with great care for a haunting romantic situation in the film but the  Director of the film Raj Khosla didn't like the tune, so he rejected it.
Madan Mohan, who was very sure that this song could be one of his immortal songs approached Manoj Kumar, the hero of the film to request Raj Khosla to listen to the tune once again. Manoj Kumar Kumar, who appreciated the tune too felt that this could be a memorable song.
When the second time this tune was played, Raj Khosla got bowled over by the composition. He immediately approved it. He wondered, how could he reject this song. 
This song was written by Raja Mehdi Ali Khan sung by Lata Mangeshkar was recorded in 1963. When the film released, this song was not as popular as today. You would be surprised to note that this song was not among the top 32 songs of the 1964 Binaca Geet Mala final. Two other songs(Naina Barse and. Jo Hamne Daastan )of this film were on that list, not this one.
There are many songs who are liked and become popular with the passing of time. This song is one such exceptional and inimitable. This song remains one of the favorite songs of Lata Mangeshkar.
The song has not only stood the test of time but has time and again been used by Bollywood and other to accentuate an emotional note in several films, in 1966 the tune of this song was kept in a Tamil film Yaar Nee, a remake of Woh Kaun This, this song was picturized on Jatyalalitha sung by Sushila.In the same year the Telugu movie Aame Evaru, it is rendered as "Andala ee reyi". Even contemporary ones like Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil to the new Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3.this song is used, sung by different singers, the tune remains the same.
There are many versions of this song now available on Youtube. Very recently a video of this song sung by e years old toddler went Viral over social media,I present all the versions here including the original.

Song of Woh Kaun Thi 1964

                             Lag Ja Gale | Tamil Version 

Lag Ja Gale by 2 years child

Lag Ja Gale  (Acoustic) Sanam

                          

Lag Jaa Gale from Sahib Bibi Aur Gangster 3

                                        

Lag Jaa Gale from Ai Dil Hai Mushkil

Lag Jaa Gale  by Various Artists (Who Sang It Better?)

                                           

Lag Ja Gale by Anuradha Paudwal

Lag Ja Gale by Shreya Ghoshal

Shamshad Begum- Unique voice and style

Her unique voice and style of singing set her apart from contemporaries such as Geeta Bai, Amirbai Karnataki, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle. She sang some of Hindi cinema's best-loved numbers between the 1940s and 1950s.
She was one of the first playback singers in the Hindi film industry and voice behind hit songs like 'Mere Piya Gaye Rangoon', "Meri jaan...Sunday ke Sunday" 'Kabhi Aar Kabhi Paar ' and 'Kajra Mohabbat Wala '. She captivated the hearts of her listeners with the enchanting depth of her voice.
 Shamshad Begum( 14 April 1919 – 23 April 2013 ) was at the peak of her career right from 1941 to 1955 and was the most in-demand female singer and highest-paid female playback singer. It was the composer Ghulam Haider who took her to Bombay in 1944 for singing in the Hindi films. Before this, she sang for Punjabi film Yamla Jatt in 1940. Haider used her voice skilfully in some of his earlier films such as Khazanchi (1941) and Khandan (1942). After partition, Haider moved to Pakistan but Shamshad Beghhum stayed in Bombay. She sang for other music directors like  Naushad Ali, O. P. Nayyar, C Ramchandra and S. D. Burman who were emerging. It was Begum's solo and duet songs sung for Naushad in the late 1940s and early 1950s which made Naushad famous.
In this blog, I am taking some of her hit songs under the music direction of Naushad.
The first song under Naushad was from the 1946 film Shahjehan 

Song of Shahjehan 1946

Song of Mela (1948)

Song of Anokhi Ada (1948)

Song of Chaandni Raat (1949)

Song of  Dulaari (1949)

Song of  Baabul (1950)

Song of  Deedar (1951)

Song of  Jadoo (1951)

Song of  Aan (1952)

Song of  Mother India (1957)

Her last song for Naushad was the iconic qawwali-muqaabala – Teri mehfil mein kismet aazma kar hum bhi dekhenge (Mughal-e-Azam , 1960).

Song of Mughal-e-Azam , 1960