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

Shakeel Badayuni- The Lyricist who gave us many Immortal Songs

Shakeel Badayuni started his film career with the 1947 film "Dard". The first song was written by him "Afsana Likh Rahi Hoon" sung by Uma Devi (TUN TUN) became super hit. 
The music of the film was given by Naushad. 
Together, he and Naushad became one of the most sought after composer/lyricist duos. They created many immortal songs of Bollywood. Kindly recall the songs of Deedar (1951), Baiju Bawra (1952), Mother India (1957), and Mughal-e-Azam (1960), Ganga Jamuna (1961), and Mere Mehboob (1963) that stand out. 
Naushad used Shakeel as the lyricist for his tunes for most of his films for a period of 24 years. Baiju Bawra, which was a milestone in both of their careers,
He also collaborated with Ravi and Hemant Kumar as well. His lyrics for the song Husnwale Tera Jawab Nahin and Ravi's music score both won Filmfare Awards for the hit film Gharana. His other notable film with Ravi is Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960), while Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) is his biggest hit with Hemant Kumar. The title song from Chaudhvin Ka Chand, rendered by Mohammed Rafi, won Badayuni the Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist in 1961.
He penned songs for around 89 films. In addition, he wrote many popular ghazals sung by Begum Akhtar, and which are still sung by vocalists like Pankaj Udhas and others
Shakeel Badayuni succumbed to diabetes complications at the age of fifty-three, on 20 April 1970 at Bombay Hospital 

Song of Dard 1947

Song of Dulari (1949),

Song of Deedar 1951

Song of Baiju Bawra 1952

Song of Mother India (1957)

Song of Kohinoor 1960

Song of Chaudvi ka Chand 1960

Song of Mughal e Azam 1960

Song of  Gharana (1961)

Song of  Bees Saal Baad (1962)

Song of Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) 

Song of Mere Mehboob  (1963)

Song of Leader 1964

The Golden Combination of Naushad and Rafi

Naushad (26 December 1919 – 5 May 2006 ) began his career in 1940 with Prem Nagar, but took off in 1944 with Ratan, where he created his own style. His greatest contribution was to bring Indian classical music into the film medium. Many of his compositions were inspired by ragas. His association with Mohammad Rafi had marked the most golden combination which galvanized the outstanding music composed during the golden age in Indian music, the 50s and 60s.
 His composition in the film Dulari, 1947, for Mohammad Rafi titled “Suhani Raat Dhal Chuki” makes a music lover addicted and it has an appeal even after 60 years of its composition. This combination was at its peak in 1952 with the release of Baiju Bawra.
 Naushad’s composition in Son of India, “dil torneewale”, a duet for Rafi and Lata, shows the effective use of instruments in that age when the recording was not developed to that extent. In Dilip Kumar’s Kohinoor, 1960, Rafi’s songs “Madhuban Mei Radhika Nachere”, “Do Sitaron Ka Zameen par hai Milan Aaj Ki Raat” marks Naushad’s control over bhajans and songs with chorus effects. In Rajender Kumar’s Mere Mehboob, 1963, Naushad had explained the transformation of nasams into ghazals. His songs “Mere Mehboob Tujhe meri Mohabbat ki Kasam”, “tumse izhaar-e-haal kar baithe”, “ai husn zara jag tujhe isq dikhaye” enchanted the listeners. Naushad’s compositions were as outstanding as Shakeel Badayani’s lyrics and Rafi’s golden voice.
 Naushad had used folk songs to a great extent where the subjects in the films required them. For example, in the film, Ganga Jumna, 1961, his composition for Rafi including “nain lar jaihe” was created with Bhojpuri effect, and Rafi had succeeded in pronouncing it in the manner expected from him. Rafi’s songs in Rajender Kumar’s Palki, Ganwar, composed by Naushad were also outstanding.
It is tragic that the film industry, could not utilise Naushad’s talent in the 1970s and 80s, 
He gave  35 silver jubilee hits, 12 golden jubilees and 3 diamond jubilee mega-successes. Naushad was conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award and the Padma Bhushan in 1982 and 1992 respectively for his contribution to the Bollywood film industry.
Some of the Immortal songs of Naushad and Rafi 

                                                              Song from Dulari, 1947

Song from Deedar 1951

Song from Baiju Bawra 1952

Song from  Uran Khatola 1955

Song of Kohinoor 1960

Song from  Mughal-e-Azam 1960

Song from Gunga Jumna 1961

Song of Son of India 1962

Song from Mere Mehboob 1963

Shakeel Badayuni - The Creator of Immortal Love,Romance and Dejection Songs

Shakeel was Naushad’s discovery; it was the composer who got the struggling poet a break in Kardar’s Dard, ending days of poverty for young Shakeel’s large family.He used his experiences of deprivation with painful intensity in his early lyrics.
He confined all his creativity to love, romance and dejection, resisting all temptation to write about social causes. 
Shakeel reached his zenith as lyricist in Mughal e Azam, with each song a lyrical cosmos in itself, the line ‘pyar kiya toh darna kya’ easily the most popular. Another great creation was penning a bhajan as authentic as ‘Man tarpat Hari darshan ko aaj’ from Baiju Bawra.
As the name suggest Shakeel Badayuni was born at Badayun U P on 3rd August 1916.When he joined Aligarh Muslim University in 1936, he started participating in inter-college, inter-university mushairas and won frequently. After completing his BA, he moved to Delhi as a supply officer, but continued participating in mushairas, earning fame nationwide. He was interested in to write songs for films so he moved to Bombay in 1944 where he was introduced in films as lyricist from the film Dard in 1947.
 The songs of Dard proved to be very successful, especially Uma Devi (Tun Tun)'s Afsana Likh Rahi Hoon. Only a few are so lucky that they attain success in their first film, but Shakeel deserved success which started with Dard and continued on over the years. He formed a lasting partnership with Naushad. Together, they would give many hits over the next 25-odd years.
 Among the scores they churned out together, are those of Deedar (1951), Baiju Bawra (1952), Mother India (1957), and Mughal-e-Azam (1960), that stand out. Other films they scored together include Dulari (1949), Shabab (1954), Ganga Jamuna (1961), and Mere Mehboob (1963). Although Shakeel Badayuni worked most extensively with Naushad, he also collaborated with Ravi and Hemant Kumar as well. His lyrics for the song Husnwale Tera Jawab Nahin and Ravi's music score both won Filmfare Awards for the hit film Gharana. His other notable film with Ravi is Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960), while Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) is his biggest hit with Hemant Kumar. The title song from Chaudhvin Ka Chand, rendered by Mohammed Rafi, won Badayuni the Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist in 1961.He received 3 Filmfare Awards in 1962 for the song husnwale tera jawab nahin in the film Gharana and in 1963 for the song kahin deep jale kahin dil in the film Bees Saal Baad
Shakeel also wrote a substantial chunk of his songs for music director Ravi Sharma. Prominent amongst those were Gharana (1961), Ghunghat,Grahasti (1963), Nartaki (1963), as well as Phool Aur Patthar and Do Badan.
Shakeel Badayuni succumbed to diabetes complications at the age of fifty-three, died on 20 April 1970, at Bombay Hospital.

Song from Dard 1947

Song from Dulari (1949)

Song from Babul (1950)

Song from Deedar (1951)

Song from Baiju Bawra (1952)

Song from Dil - E - Nadan (1953)

Song from Shabab (1954)

Song from Mother India (1957)

Song from Mughal-e-Azam (1960)

Song from Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960)

Song from Ganga Jamuna (1961)

Song from Sahib  Gharana 1961

Song from Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) 

Song from Bees Saal Baad 1962

Song from Mere Mehboob (1963).

Song from Leader (1964)

Song from Ram Aur Shyam (1967)

NAUSHAD-Once All of India was crazy about his Melodies.

Naushad(26 December 1919 – 5 May 2006 )began his career in 1940 with Prem Nagar, but took off in 1944 with Ratan, where he created his own style. All of India was crazy about him. His music had that simplicity. Songs like Jab dil hi toot gaya and Gham diye mustaqil from Shahjehan touch you.
He was one of the first to introduce sound mixing and the separate recording of voice and music tracks in playback singing. He was the first to combine the flute and the clarinet, the sitar and mandolin. He also introduced the accordion to Hindi film music and was among the first to concentrate on background music to extend characters' moods and dialogue through music. 
He was the first composer to have developed the system of western notation in India. The notation for the music of the film 'Aan' was published in book form in London.He was the first to use a 100-piece orchestra.for Aan in 1952.

 His greatest contribution was to bring Indian classical music into the film medium. Many of his compositions were inspired by ragas and he even used distinguished classical artistes like Amir Khan and D.V. Paluskar in Baiju Bawra (1952) and Bade Ghulam Ali Khan in Mughal-e-Azam (1960). Baiju Bawra (1952) demonstrated Naushad's grasp of classical music and his ability to bring it to the masses, for which he won the first Filmfare Best Music Director Award in 1954.

He was very innovative,in Uran Khatola (1955), he recorded an entire song without the use of orchestra, having replaced the sound of musical instruments with choral sound of humming..For Mughal-e-Azam (1960) song Ae Mohabbat Zindabad, he used a chorus of 100 persons. He asked Lata Mangeshkar to render a part of the song "Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya" in a bathroom that had glazed tiles and then recorded the music to get the echo effect.
Naushad made Suraiya stand on a stool for the 12-year-old schoolgirl's voice to be able to reach the microphone on her debut, Boot karoon main paalish baaboo (from A R Kardar's Nai Duniya in 1942). It was under him, likewise, in another A R Kardar songathon, Dastan (1950), that Suraiya vocally peaked with Mohabbat badhakar jooda ho gaye.
 This master composer first made both Mukesh (Andaz) and Talat Mahmood (Babul) sound surpassingly individualistic on Dilip Kumar He was, near clandestinely, getting Mohammed Rafi ready for the big leap. From his first Anmol Ghadi solo, Tera khilauna toota baalak (1946), to O door ke musafir on Dilip Kumar in Uran Khatola (1955), Rafi came a long, long way, once the Baiju Bawra (above) miracle happened in 1952..

His association with Mohammad Rafi had marked the most golden combination which galvanized the outstanding music composed during the golden age in Indian music, the 50s and 60s. His composition in the film Dulari, 1947, for Mohammad Rafi titled “suhani raat dhal chuki” makes a music lover addicted and it has an appeal even after 60 years of its composition.
 Naushad’s composition in Son of India, “dil torneewale”, duet for Rafi and Lata, shows the effective use of instruments in that age when recording was not developed to that extent. In Dilip Kumar’s Kohinoor, 1960, Rafi’s songs “madhuban me radhika nachere”, “do sitaron ka zamee par hai Milan aaj ki raat” marks Naushad’s control over bhajans and songs with chorus effects. In Rajender Kumar’s Mere Mehboob, 1963, Naushad had explained the transformation of nasams into ghazals. His songs “mere mehboob tujhe meri mohabbat ki kasam”, “tumse izhaar-e-haal kar baithe”, “ai husn zara jag tujhe isq dikhaye” enchanted the listeners. Naushad’s compositions were as outstanding as Shakeel Badayani’s lyrics and Rafi’s golden voice.
 Naushad had used folk songs to a great extent where the subjects in the films required them. For example in the film Ganga Jumna, 1961, his composition for Rafi including “nain lar jaihe” was created with bhojpuri effect, and Rafi had succeeded in pronouncing it in the manner expected from him. Rafi’s songs in Rajender Kumar’s Palki, Ganwar, composed by Naushad were also outstanding.
It is tragic that the film industry, could not utilise Naushad’s talent in 1970s and 80s, 
He gave  35 silver jubilee hits, 12 golden jubilee and 3 diamond jubilee mega successes. Naushad was conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award and the Padma Bhushan in 1982 and 1992 respectively for his contribution to the Bollywood film industry.
Some of the Immortal songs of Naushad

Song from Rattan 1944

Song from Anmol Ghadi 1946

Song from Shahjehan 1946

Song from Shahjehan 1946

Song from Dard 1947

Song from Mela 1948

Song from Andaz 1949

Song from Babul 1950

Song from Deedar 1951

Song from Baiju Bawra 1952

Song from  Uran Khatola 1955

Song from  Mughal-e-Azam 1960

Song from Gunga Jumna 1961

Song from Mere Mehboob 1963

Great Songs by Forgotten Composers

KHEMCHAND PRAKASH-The Composer that  gave us 2 Gems,LATA and KISHORE KUMAR

Khemchand Prakash was born in Jaipur 0n 12th Dec 1907 where his father Goverdhan Das was a Dhrupad singer & Kathak dancer in the royal court of Madho Singh II, and the boy, Khemchand got his first training in music & dance from his father. Soon he became a popular for his Kathak dancing talent and for his unmatched skills in drawing animal sketches with gulaal on the floor using his feet while dancing!

Khemchand prakash singing in Street Singer

In his teens, he joined Bikaner Royal court as a singer performer and later moved to the royal court ofNepal. But the destiny landed him in Kolkata and he joined the legendary New Theaters. He was assistant to composer Timir Baran in Devdas (1935 film), and he sang a comedy song 'lo kha lo madam khaanaa' in Street Singer (1938). 
His debut as music director in 1939 with Supreme Pictures' films Meri Aankhein and Gazi Salauddin, and was soon signed up by Ranjit Movietone Film Studio.

Song from Meri Aankhen 1939

In the movie Gazi Salauddin his assistant was Naushad.in an interview Naushad said that because of him he became the great Music Composer.Daan Singh another forgotten Music Composer was also his assistant.Balu C Rani was another Music composer who was given to this industry.Manna Dey was also his gift to industry.

Song from Pardesi 1941

His initial years had a few more significant films like Pardesi, Holi and Fariyaad. Khursheed was his leading singer and both of them gave a lot of hits of the early 40s. 1941’s Pardesi turned out to be a big hit and made Khursheed a big star.
In 1943 the film Tansen released the songs of that film sung by K L Sehgal became very popular,even now these songs are being listrned by the real music lovers.

Song from Tansen K L Sehgal

 Songs like "Diya jalaao jagmag jagmag", "Rumjhum rumjhum chal tihari", "More balpan ke saathi", "Sapt suran teen gram", "Hath sine pe jo rakh do to karara aa jaaye" were big hits.
1948 marked yet another significant film of his career, Bombay Talkies’s Ziddi. He gave first major break to Kishore Kumar as a singer for the song “Marne ki duaaen kyun maangu”.^[1] Ziddi featured a beautiful song of Lata Mangeshkar "Chanda re ja re ja re".

But what followed Ziddi was another hit film Mahal (1949 film). Mahal made Lata Mangeshkar a popular name. Prior to Mahal, the records used to feature only the character name on the record. Hence the first lot of records had “Aayega aane wala” credited to Kamini. The first time when the song was played on All India Radio many calls were received by AIR to know the singers name. AIR had to in turn ask the record company and announce Lata Mangeshkar's name on air.

Though Lata was singing before Mahal but the song Aayega Aane Wala made her LATA,the film Mahal was  a landmark for Rajkumari, too. Ghabra ke jo hum sar ko takraayein to achchha ho became one of her most recognisable songs that gave her a long lease of life on music reality shows on TV, many years after her singing-career had come to a halt.
Another famous singer of 30s and 40s Khursheed once said that Khemchand Prakash was the most important composer in her career with films like Pardesi, Shadi (1941) andTansen (1943). And Tansen, of course, is regarded as KL Saigal’s most importantmusical film, with his Diya jalaao in Deepak, and Sapt suran teen graam in Dhrupad ang.

Its very unfortunate for Hindi Film Industry that Khemchand Prakash died at a young age of 43 on 10th Aug 1950.He composed music for about 45 films in a career of 11 years. 

He shaped and defined Hindi film music when it was still in its nascent stages. In a short career spanning just about a decade, he left behind a legacy that exceeded his output as a music director.