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

The Bollywood Films Based on Cricket.

Cricket is the most popular sport in India. Cricket fans treat it as a religion and cricketers are treated as God. Despite the craze in cricket, the number of cricket-based movies in Bollywood has been quite limited. In fact, till 1983 there had been virtually no cricket-based Hindi movie except the Subodh Mukherji’s Love Marriage released in 1959, where Dev Anand played the role of a cricketer. It was an unconventional love story in which the heroine Mala Sinha falls in love with the hero Dev Anand during the cricket match. 
There have been cricketers who have worked — often as lead actors — in Bollywood movies. Salim Durrani, the popular allrounder of the 60s was the first cricketer who did the film "Charitra" as a hero opposite Praveen Babi (her debut film) in 1973.

                                                                  Allrounder 

After Love Marriage, it took 25 years when another film ( Allrounder 1984) on this subject came that is only to encash the popularity of Indian cricket due to winning the World Cup in 1983. The hero of the film was Kumar Gaurav and heroine was Rati Agnihotri. 


                                                            Awwal Number

The third cricket movie from Bollywood also involved Dev Anand (Awwal Number in 1994)— this time as the director, as well as an actor who played Vikram Singh aka Vicky —– an ex-Test cricketer, the National Chairman of Selectors, and also the Deputy Inspector General of the Police. Amir Khan who plays Sunny is selected by Dev Anand in the Indian Test team replacing his own brother Ranvir Singh aka Ronny (Aditya Pancholi) Ronny plots revenge against Sunny. This is where the movie just starts. Later there is a terrorist angle in it.

                                                                 Lagaan

Still from Lagaan

The 2001 film Lagaan was another film where a cricket match was organized between villagers and British officers to decide Lagaan to be collected or not.
There was everything a cricket movie needs, including cricket practice by floodlights, match-fixing, a cripple bowling leg-breaks, and even AK Hangal.

                                                                 Stumped 

Stumped is a 2003 Bollywood sport/drama film written and directed by Gaurav Pandey and produced by Raveena Tandon. On the backdrop of the World Cup, the movie displays the emotional turmoil the Major’s wife Reena (Raveena Tandon) goes through, and her lonely helplessness as the other residents of the Society concentrate on the cricket. The movie also features Kapil Dev, Sachin Tendulkar, and Yuvraj Singh sending out a social message.


                                                                     Iqbal

Iqbal is 2005 produced by Subhash Ghai, written and directed by Nagesh Kukunoor. A very well made film.The film received the National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues. The story follows a cricket-obsessed deaf and mute boy from a remote Indian village as he aims to overcome difficulties to become a cricketer and fulfill his dream of playing for the Indian national cricket team.


                                                                   Hattrick

Hattrick is a 2007 Indian Hindi sport-drama film directed by Milan Luthria, starring Paresh Rawal, Rimi Sen, Kunal Kapoor, Nana Patekar, Danny Denzongpa.It is a tale of three sets o  is a 2007 Indian Hindi sport-drama film directed by Milan Luthria, starring Paresh Rawal, Rimi Sen, Kunal Kapoor, Nana Patekar, Danny Denzongpa.It is a tale of three sets of people — the first involving an ex-cricketer David Abraham (Danny Denzongpa) and the cynic Dr Satyajit Chavan, who opposes the idea of people watching cricket; Hemu Patel (Paresh Rawal), a wannabe English immigrant, Besides these there is a young  f people — the first involving an ex-cricketer David Abraham (Danny Denzongpa) and the cynic Dr Satyajit Chavan, who opposes the idea of people watching cricket; Hemu Patel (Paresh Rawal), a wannabe English immigrant, Besides these there is a young couple,Sarbajeet "Saby" Singh and Kashmira Singh they are about to marry.Sarabjeet Singh (Kunal Kapoor), an avid cricket-lover, and his wife Kashmira (Rimi Sen), who thinks cricket is a waste of time. Cricket eventually solves the problems in all these cases.

                                                                  Patiala House i

Patiala House is a 2011 sports drama film directed by Nikkhil Advani and starring Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Akshay Kumar and Anushka Sharma in the lead roles. The movie featured cricket stars like Shaun Tait, Kieron Pollard, Herschelle Gibbs, and Nasser Hussain, but the longest and the most important role was played by Andrew Symonds. Sanjay Manjrekar and Nikhil Chopra also acted as commentators, and for some reason, often commented in Hindi for an Australia-England ODI at Lord’s.


                                                        Ferrari ki Sawari 

Ferrari ki Sawari (2012), written and directed by Rajesh Mapuskar, and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. It stars Sharman Joshi, Boman Irani and Ritvik Sahore in the lead roles. The story says the young Kayo (Ritwik Sahore) gets selected for a camp at Lord’s,  but his father Rusy doesn't have enough money. To fulfill his son's dream of playing at the Lord's Cricket Ground,Rusi (Sharman Joshi) is coaxed into a unique plan — to steal Sachin Tendulkar’s Ferrari and get the required one-and-a-half lakh rupees. Rusi’s father Debu (Boman Irani), an ex-cricketer, also joins in the mission

                                                                    Azhar

Azhar is a 2016 Indian Hindi biographical sports drama film directed by Tony D'Souza. The story is written by Rajat Arora and is inspired by the life of Indian cricketer and former national team captain Mohammad Azharuddin. The film is produced by Shobha Kapoor and Ekta Kapoor

                                                M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story 

M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story is 2016, biographical sports film written and directed by Neeraj Pandey. It is based on the life of former Test, ODI and T20I captain of the Indian national cricket team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The film stars Sushant Singh Rajput as Dhoni, along with Disha Patani, Kiara Advani, and Anupam Kher. 

Sachin: A Billion Dreams  2017, The film is a documentary on the life of Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. It captures Tendulkar's cricket and personal life in substantial detail. The movie had "everything" to make its audience "nostalgic".The music is composed by A. R. Rahman, with lyrics written by Irshad Kamil,

Cricket Songs of Bollywood

Song of Love Marriage 1959

Song of Awwal Number 1990

Song of Stumped 2003

Song of  Iqbal 2005

Song of Hattrick (2007) 

Song of  Patiala House 2011

Song of  Ferrari ki Sawari 2012

Song of M.S. Dhoni the untold story 2016

Song of  Azhar 2016

Song of Sachin: A Billion Dreams 2017 

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

Kumkum - Many Popular Songs were Picrurized on her

Kumkum was discovered by Guru Dutt. Guru Dutt was to picturise the song "Kabhi Aar Kabhi Paar Laaga Teere Nazar" for his movie Aar Paar (1954). The famous song "Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan" from C.I.D was picturized on her. She showed her dancing talents in the film Kohinoor (1960) with Dilip Kumar. "Madhuban Mein Radhika Nache Re" and "Haye Jaadugar Qaatil, Haazir Hai Mera Dil", sung by Asha Bhosle (1956), sung by Geeta Dutt was picturized on her.
She was paired opposite Kishore Kumar in many films. The songs like "Khoobsurat Haseena" from Mr. X in Bombay, "Sultana Sultana" from Shreeman Funtoosh and "Machalti Hui" from Ganga Ki Lahren, which were picturized on the pair Kishore-Kumkum.
Kumkum(born on 22nd April 1934) born Zaibunnissa, is from Bihar. Her father was Nabab of Hussainabad and belonged to a highly reputed family. She paired with many film heroes of her era and was popular in roles alongside Kishore Kumar. She was the heroine of Dharmendra's debut film"Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere"  She was also paired alongside Shammi Kapoor in a side role in Mem Saheb (1956) and also in lead opposite Shammi Kapoor in Char Dil Char Raahein (1959).
 She has been a favorite choice for writer-director Ramanand Sagar. Ramanand Sagar decided to cast Kumkum as Dharmendra's sister in Ankhen, a super hit film of 1968. In 1970, for Geet, Kumkum was Ramanand Sagar's choice for a small role. But in Lalkar (1972), she was paired with Dharmendra, while Rajendra Kumar was paired with Mala Sinha. Kumkum was paired with Kiran Kumar in Jalte Badan (1973), produced, directed and written by Ramanand Sagar. She was paired opposite Vinod Khanna in Dhamkee in 1973 and the duet song "Chand Kya Hai Roop Ka Darpan" became hugely popular. She was paired opposite Pran in the comedy film Ek Kuwara Ek Kuwari, directed by Prakash Mehra, which was a blockbuster.
She acted in nearly 115 films in her career.Some of her best known for her roles in Mother India (1957), Naya Daur (1957), Ujala (1959), Kali Topi Lal Rumal (1959), Kohinoor (1960), Son Of India (1962), Ganga Ki Lahren (1964), Shreeman Funtoosh (1965), Ek Sapera Ek Lutera (1965), Raja Aur Runk (1968), Ankhen (1968), Geet (1970) and Lalkar (1972).
Kumkum also acted in Bhojpuri films. Her first film in Bhojpuri cinema was Ganga Maiyya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo (1963). She left films after her marriage and shifted to Saudi Arab.  

Song of Aar Paar (1954)

Song of Mirza Ghalib (1954)

Song of C I D (1956)

Song of Mem Sahib (1956)

Song of Mother India (1957)

Song of Char Dil Char Rahen (1959)

Song of Ujala (1959)

Song of Kohinoor 1960

Song of Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere 1960

Song of  Son of India 1962

Song of  Ganga Ki Laharen 1964

Song of  Mr. X in Bombay 1964

Song of Shreeman Funtoosh  1965

Song of Ek Sapera Ek Lutera 1965

Song of Raja Aur Rank 1968

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