This BLOG is about the Past of Hindi Films Specially Black and White Cinema We will refresh your memories by bringing out forgotten or unseen songs and clippings of film scenes We will try to give you as much information as we gather from our research.
This Blog was started as a one-man’s passion for film history but has now become an addiction for many music lovers who are equally passionate about Hindi films
Parichay is a 1972 film released on 20th October.The film was partially inspired by the 1965 movie The Sound of Music.It is directed by Gulzar who changed the looks ans screen image of Jeetendra who by that time was called the Jumping Jack.
It is a feel-good film unlike other 70s Masala Movies with a hero who bashes people. It stars Jeetendra, Jaya Bhaduri and Pran in the lead role, Sanjeev Kumar and Vinod Khanna are as guest and special appearance
The story is about a misunderstanding between a father Rai Saheb and son Sanjeev Kumar who wants to pursue a career in singing and also marry the girl of his choice but his father was not agreeble so Sanjeev Kumar leaves the home and maries the girl of his choice.
Unfortunately, his wife dies and soon he also is diagnosed terminally ill. After he dies, his father Rai Saheb(Pran) brings home the grandchildren to his palatial home but the children are quite rebel and against their grandfather. The eldest child is Jaya Bhaduri,the children refuse to obey him and constantly flout his rules. Rai Sahab is desperately seeking a tutor for them, but no teacher lasts for more than a few weeks.
Ultimately (Jeetendra) who is jobless takes up the offer to become their teacher. He not only reforms them but Rama and Ravi fall in love. He also mould the displinary attitude of Rai Saheb and the film ends with his consent to Ravi and Rama’s alliance.
The highlight of the film is its music which was composed by R D Burman, it was the first time Gulzar and R D Burman worked together, This lethal combination later gave Hindi cinema priceless gems over the Seventies and the Eighties
I think that there has been no great ghazal singer who hasn’t sung Ghalib’s work, be it, Mehdi Hasan or Jagjit Singh, most of them have sung his ghazals. He is said to have written his first poem at the age of 11, and by 19, was writing verses that became increasingly incomprehensible to even his contemporaries.
Ghalib's life was the subject of hundreds of plays regularly performed in Northern India and Pakistan. These plays were based on his life and his personal and professional relationships starting from the Parsi Theatre and Hindustani Theatre days. He remains the topmost poet whose poems are used as songs in Hindi films but he was not shown much on screen. The first time a full feature film was made in 1954 by V Shantaram named Mirza Ghalib (1954) in which Bharat Bhushan plays Ghalib and Suraiya plays his courtesan lover, Chaudvin.
Mirza Ghalib (1954) made by Sohrab Modi won the President's Gold Medal for the All India Best Feature Film and the President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi in the 2nd National Film Awards for 1954. Suraiya's singing (of Mirza Ghalib's ghazals) and her acting was especially applauded by the Prime Minister, Jawahar Lal Nehru, who remarked to her " You have brought back Ghalib to life", in a special screening of the film in Rashtrapati Bhawan.
Gulzar's Mirza Ghalib produced by Doordarshan TV was a masterpiece.Naseeruddin Shah, who played the role of the poet in the TV show Mirza Ghalib, considers it his finest performance at par with movies.
Gulzar, who almost seems to consider Ghalib his guru, often using his lines or concepts in his own work, penned a brilliant poem in his honour to begin the show — Ballimaran ke mohalle ki wo pecheeda daleelon ki si galiyaan.
The 2015 film Masaan contains various examples of poetry and Shayari by Ghalib,
Song of Mirza Ghalib(1954)
Song of Mirza Ghalib(1954)
Song of Mirza Ghalib T V Serial by Gulzar
Song of Mirza Ghalib T V Serial by Gulzar
A Scene from Mirza Ghalib
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This song from Mausam(1976) was written by Gulzar, composed by Madan Mohan, and sung by Bhupinder. The song has two versions, one a solo by Bhupinder and a duet of Lata Mangeshkar with Bhupinder. The solo was used during the titles of the film and the duet was picturized on the young Sanjeev Kumar and Sharmila Tagore.
The solo version happens to be Gulzar's favorite, is by far the soberer and serene. The duet has a faster tempo. Both versions have three stanzas with different interludes. The Mukhada was taken from a Ghalib ghazal with a slight change. In the ghazal, it is 'Jee Dhoondta Hai', Madan Mohan changed it to Dil Dhoondta Hai., since it worked better for the metre.
This wasn’t the only time Gulzar was inspired by Ghalib. He went a step further in the song Satrangi Re, (Dil Se, 1998), in which he wove Ghalib’s couplet into his lyrics, crediting the source by its name.
This song is the pivot around which the film revolves. It connects the characters in time. the first time when the Doctor(Sanjeev Kumar) is traveling from Calcutta to Darjiling by road where he met Chanda decades ago.
Gulzar in a book told that while composing the interludes of the song Madan Mohan was strolling between his music room and his kitchen. He(Gulzar) had gone to his house for dinner. Madan Mohan was a good cook, he was cooking mutton at that time. During that duration, he composed the tune of this song.
Gulzar was one of the contenders for the National Award for that year. Unfortunately, no award was given to any lyricist that yeat. Similarly, he was nominated for Filmfare's Best lyricist award but lost out to lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi for Kabhie Kabhie.
Madan Mohan had a habit of making 5-6 tunes of one song, he then selects the best out of them. For this song too he made 6 tunes one of which was later used in Veer Zara (2004). Here a clipping is given below, you could see his versatility
Dil Dhoondhta Hai - Madan Mohan sings many tunes for one song
In an interview, Gulzar Saheb said that songwriting is my profession while writing poetry is my statement of life. Since his childhood, he was writing poems, He was also writing when he worked as a mechanic in a car garage in Bombay. It was during his interactions in the PWA Sunday meetings that lyricist Shailendra and Bimal Roy encouraged him to join films. Initially, he joined Bimal Ray as his assistant and later got a chance to write a song in Bandini (1963)under the composer S D Burman, the song that brought him to notice was 'Mera Gora Rung Le Le' from Bandini.
Gulzar’s first venture as a filmmaker was Mere Apne (1971), It was produced by N C Sippy and directed by him. The film stars Meena Kumari, Vinod Khanna and Shatrughan Sinha in lead roles, In fact, it was the first film of Vinod Khanna as a hero. Before ventured into the direction he wrote dialogues for Biwi Aur Makan(1966), Aashirwad(1968), Khamoshi, and Anand(1969) all directed by Hrishikesh Mukharjee. He also wrote the story, dialogue and screenplay of Guddi, once again directed by Hrishikesh Mukharjee.
His second venture as director was Parichay in 1972.It stars Jeetendra, Jaya Bhaduri; while Sanjeev Kumar, Vinod Khanna, has given special appearances and the music was composed by Rahul Dev Burman. The film was reported to be based on the Bengali novel Rangeen Uttarain by Raj Kumar Maitra and partially inspired by the 1965 movie The Sound of Music.
His third film was Koshish released in Dec 1972. It was inspired by the 1961 Japanese film Happiness of Us Alone. The film was highly acclaimed. he got a National Award for its screenplay and nominated the Filmfare Best Director Award.
The next film he directed was Achanak in 1973, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, and starring Vinod Khanna. Gulzar received a Filmfare nomination as Best Director for this film. Even though Gulzar is an accomplished lyricist, this film did not have any songs in it.The entire film production was completed in 28 days
In 1975, three films under his directions were released. the first released was Aandhi in Feb 1975. The film was an Indian political drama film starring Sanjeev Kumar and Suchitra Sen and directed by Gulzar. At the time it was alleged that the film was based on the life of the then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her relationship with her estranged husband, The film got the Filmfare Award of Best Film and Best Actor award to Sanjeev Kumar.
Khushboo was the next film released in March 1975.it was produced by Prasan Kapoor under the Tirupati Pictures banner, presented by Jeetendra and directed by Gulzar. It stars Jeetendra, Hema Malini, and music composed by R. D. Burman. It was praised as a beautiful film with good acting by Sharmila Tagore, Hema Malini, Asrani and Jeetendra
Mausam was the third film of that year released on 29th Dec 1975. The film starring Sanjeev Kumar and Sharmila Tagore, and directed by Gulzar. It is loosely based on the novel, The Judas Tree, by A.J. Cronin. Sharmila Tagore for her acting received The Silver Lotus Award at the 23rd National Film Festival and the movie was honored by presenting an award for 2nd Best Feature Film. The film received two of eight nominations at the 24th Filmfare Awards. The film also won many other accolades as well.
In 1977 he entered into production also, two films Kitaab and Kinara both produced and directed by him were released, Meera was the third film under his direction released in 1977, all the films couldn't receive well in Box office. Though Meera received critical acclaim.
Angoor was the film released in 1982, in between two insignificant films released under his direction in 1980. Angoor was based on Shakespeare's play The Comedy of Errors. The film starring Sanjeev Kumar and Deven Verma in dual roles, and directed by Gulzar. The film was appreciated by all. Deven Verma got the Filmfare Best Comedian Award.
Machis(1996) was an important film of Gulzar, after the death of R D Burman he made the film with Vishal Bhardwaj as music director for the first time. The film was produced by R. V. Pandit. It stars Chandrachur Singh, Om Puri, Tabu and Jimmy Sheirgill in the lead roles. The film portrays the circumstances surrounding the rise of the Sikh insurgency in PunjabMaachis was a critical and commercial success. Gulzar's direction and the music of Vishal Bhardwaj were strong points.
This song from 1998 film 'Dil Se' is written by Gulzar, composed by A R Rehman and sung by Lata Mangeshkar. This is the first song Lata Mangeshkar sang for A R Rehman'This song was recorded in Chennai in the recording studio of Rehman. It was the first time Lara Di was recording outside Mumbai. Gulzar in his book has mentioned this song. He said that Lata Ji had not met Rehman before and also not familiar with his style, she asked Gulzar saheb to be present there at the time of recording. He was not only present there but also accompanied her to Chennai. Rehman received her at the airport and took her and Gulzar saheb to the studio. Reman has many studios in Chennai, this was his first studio. Rehman explained the tune to Lata Ji and asked her to sing. Nowadays composers ask singers to sing one line and record it but Lata Ji told him that she will sing the full song in one take but before that she wants a rehearsal. Rehman agreed and took her to the singer's cabin The cabin had a glass on the front side and no glass on the side walls. Unfortunately, Lata Ji could not see the mixing desk from there, nor could she see the musicians. That was a big problem for her, as she was used to having eye contact with the composer. After one rehearsal, Lataji called Gulzar saheb to her side and said ‘Gulzarji, it feels as though I am blind.’ You kindly sit in front of me.so he sat on a stool outside the cabin’s glass door from where he could see both Lataji and Rahman. Despite the fact she recorded the whole song in one session, the song itself was not finalized. Rahman then worked on it for about ten days. He usually works out the instrumentation etc., and so the song evolves slowly into its final form. The next day returned back to Mumbai. After a week Rehman made a call to Gulzar saheb and said ‘Gulzar Saab, I have recorded a male and female chorus and inserted it in between the antaras. The words are in Malayalam, will you translate them into Hindi? He played the song to him over the phone. It sounded very beautiful, so I suggested we keep the chorus in Malayalam. It’s the impact of the overall sound that matters. Malayalam has its own sound and folk songs have their own kind of music. Lataji and the chorus sounded wonderful. Another interesting thing about the song was its lyrics. The song is about the description of a wedding night, Lata Ji usually not sing a song that has anything to do with sex or includes vulgar words or expressions. So it was decided that it will not be picturized as a typical wedding night. This song was picturized on Pritty Zinta and Shahrukh Khan on an outdoor location.
Song of Dil Se 1997
Watch this Video on Gulzar for his work in Bollywood
Gulzar (Born on 18th August 1934) became popular as a lyricist in the unusually worded song from Khamoshi in 1969 "Humne dekhi hai un aankhon ki mehakti khushboo/Haath sey chhoo ke ise rishtoon ka koi naam na do". .Though he penned his first film song "Mora gora ang laiy ley mohe shaam rang daiye dey/chhup jaoongi raat he mein mohe pee ka sang daiye dey." from Bimal Roy's Bandini released in 1961. Gulzar, who began as an apprentice with Bimal Roy, joined Hrishikesh Mukherjee after his death. He wrote for Kabuliwala, Sannaata, Do Dooni Chaar Biwi Aur Makan etc. With Mere Apne (1971), he turned director.The success of his Mere Apne encouraged Gulzar to experiment with novel subjects. Next in the line came films like Koshish, Parichay, Achanak, Kinara and Aandhi. In Aandhi, Gulzar wove a story of estrangement between a couple (Sanjeev Kumar and Suchitra Sen) against the backdrop of politics. Gulzar is at his sublime best in the song "Tere bina zindagi se shiqwa to nahin."The lyrics 3 the agony and regret of the choices made. However, Gulzar's most successful songs as a lyricist were to come out later, of his association with Rahul Dev Burman who he described later as an anchor in his life.Few of his songs with R D Burman are Beeti Na Bitai Raina, Parichay (1972), Tere Bina Zindagi Se, Aandhi (1975), Aaj Kal Paaon, Ghar (1978), Do Naina Aur Ek Kahani, Masoom (1983), Mera Kuch Samaan, Ijaazat (1988).
Gulzar, originally Sampoorna Singh Kalra started to work as a garage mechanic in Worli while writing poetry in his spare time. Gulzar, as any other dreamer who comes to Bombay for the first time, was bitten by the film bug. It is said that Gulzar's first song was Mora Gora Rang Le Le from 1963 film Bandini. that's not a true the first song written by him was from Kabuliwala 1961, "Ganga Aye Kahan Se" the Hindi translation of a Bengali song.sung by Hemant Kumar. After that Bimal Roy asked him to write songs for Prem Patra 1962 film. He then began writing for films for directors like Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Asit Sen. Some of the films that Gulzar has written include Anand (1970), Guddi (1971), Bawarchi (1972) and Namak Haram (1973) for Hrishida and Do Dooni Char (1968), Khamoshi (1969) and Safar (1970) for Asit Sen. With Mere Apne in 1971, he donned the role of a filmmaker. Gulzar went on to make Parichay (1972) and Koshish (1972). With Sanjeev Kumar, he made Aandhi (1975), Mausam (1975), Angoor (1981) and Namkeen (1982) He also made film with Jeetendra (Parichay, Khushboo (1975), Kinara (1977), with Vinod Khanna: Achanak (1973), Meera (1979) and Lekin (1990) and Hema Malini: Khushboo (1975), Kinara (1977), Meera (1979) As a lyricist, Gulzar had a close association with the music director Rahul Dev Burman. Both of them gave some gems of the songs. Later he is associated with Vishal Bhardwaj in Maachis (1996), Omkara (2006) and Kaminey (2009); A. R. Rahman in Dil Se.. (1998), Guru (2007), Slumdog Millionaire (2008) and Raavan (2010) Rahman and Gulzar won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Jai Ho" at the 81st Academy Awards. The song received international acclaim and won him a Grammy Award (shared with Rahman) in the category of Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media. Gulzar has written lyrics and dialogues for several Doordarshan TV series including Jungle Book, Alice in Wonderland, Hello Zindagi, Guchche and Potli Baba Ki with Vishal Bhardwaj. Gulzar is married to actress Raakhee. The couple has a daughter, Meghna Gulzar (Bosky). Meghna Gulzar grew up with her mother and father and, after completing her graduation in filmmaking from New York University, went on to become a director of films such as Filhaal, Just Married,Dus Kahaniyaan and Raazi He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2004 and the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2002. He has won a number of National Film Awards and 20 Filmfare Awards. He was also given Baba Saheb Phalke Award.
