Bhagwan Dada- The Original Dancing Star of Bollywood

When we talk of male dancing stars the name of Hrithik Roshan, Govinda and Shammi Kapoor comes to our mind but the original dancing star was Bhagwan Dada.
He was perhaps the first to introduce Ramba, Samba, Disco, rock-n-roll and other dance forms to Hindi cinema, the first male star to do so in the industry ruled by female dancers. Bhagwan Dada as he was popularly called, created a new grammar of comedy, through the unique style of acting and dancing, which inspired a whole generation of comedians in Hindi cinema.
Bhagwan Abhaji Palav popularly known as Bhagwan Dada was born on 1st Aug 1913 and died on 4th February 2002 was a popular comedian of Bollywood of the Golden Era. He is best known for his social film Albela (1951) and the song "Shola Jo Bhadke".A veteran actor of about 600 films in the course of more than five decades, 
 He was a wide-eyed admirer of the silent cinema and worshipped Master Vithal who was the star of the day. He used to dream of emulating his stunt and fight scenes.
He started his Film Career in the Silent Film Era, in 1930, he got a break. Producer Siraj Ali Hakim gave him a comedian’s role in the silent film "Bewafa Aashiq," based on "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". The film was a hit, but he was without offers for eight months because it was believed that he was really a hunchback!
In 1934 he made his first talkie "Himmat-e-Mardan". After that, he joined another company and directed a film called "Bahadur Kisan", with Hansa Wadkar as the heroine. The movie again was a big hit. During the shooting of the film, he had taken a lanky young man, Chitilkar Ramachandra, as his assistant. He gave him a break as a music director in the three. Tamil films he directed in Madras. He used to call him Anna and there began their long association during which C. Ramachandra, out of gratitude, gave him Hindi film industry’s all-time favourite songs for "Albela," including one of the loveliest loris Dhire se aaja ri, ankhiyan mein.
He produced many films after ALBELA but most of his films flopped, His film "Sahme Hue Sapney" didn’t survive beyond the first show. Then he suffered a heavy loss while making "Hanste Rehna" with Kishore Kumar. He had invested his own money, pawned his wife’s jewellery and withdrawn all his life’s savings. But halfway through, Kishore started dilly-dallying and "behaving crazily" and the project had to be shelved.

His sea-facing Juhu bungalow with 25 rooms along with his fleet of seven cars (one for each day of the week) had to be sold. The family moved to a two-room set in a chawl at Dadar. In his last days, he was being looked after by his unmarried daughter and the family of his youngest son, who is a sound recordist. Bhagwan died of a massive heart attack at his residence in Dadar on 4 February 2002

Song from Albela 1951

Song from Albela 1951

Song of  Bhagam Bhag  1956.

Comedy Clip from Mein Bhi Ek Ladki Hoon 1964

Song from Badlaa 1974

Waheeda Rehman- A Journey from Kamini(C I D) to Nurse Radha of Khamoshi

Her first appearance in a Hindi film was in CID (1956) as Kamini then came Gulabo of Pyaasa, Shanti of Kagaz Ke Phool, Rosie of Guide, Hira Bai of Teesri Kasam to Nurse Radha of Khamoshi gave Hindi Film Industry many immortal characters.
In her acting journey, Waheeda Rehman established a great working relationship with Dev Anand, and together as a pair had a number of successful films to their credit. The box office hits of the pair include CID (1956), Solva Saal (1958), Kala Bazar (1960), Baat Ek Raat Ki (1962) and Guide (1965); box office duds were Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1961) and Prem Pujari (1970). She reached her peak with Guide (1965) and was much in demand. Rehman was cast as Gulabi in Satyajit Ray's Bengali film Abhijan in 1962.
She has played all type of characters in her journey. She worked in the comedy film Girl Friend in 1960 with Kishore Kumar. She worked in two psychological thriller films Bees Saal Baad and Kohra opposite Biswajeet.

Her career continued throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. She won the Filmfare Best Actress Award for her roles in Guide (1965), where she hit the peak of her career, and Neel Kamal (1968), but despite excellent offbeat roles in subsequent films, including a National Award winning performance in Reshma Aur Shera (1971), some of the films failed at the box office. Seeing her films being successful, Waheeda decided to experiment with roles at this stage of career. She accepted Reshma Aur Shera, opposite her old co-star Sunil Dutt, with whom she had previously in the sixties had hits such as Ek Phool Char Kaante, Mujhe Jeene Do, Meri Bhabhi and Darpan. Her performance was appreciated by critics, but the film failed at the box office. But Waheeda continued to experiment with roles and accepted the offer to play a mother to Jaya Bhaduri in Phagun (1973). 
She played pivotal roles include Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Trishul (1978), Jwalamukhi (1980), Namkeen and Namak Halaal (1982), Mashaal(1984), Chandni(1989) and Rang De Basanti(2006). She played the central character in the Mahesh Bhatt directed film Swayam that starred Akash Khurana and Anupam Kher. She also appeared in a tele-series being directed by Gulzar.
In recent years she made a comeback playing elderly mother and grandmother roles in Om Jai Jagadish (2002), Water (2005), Rang De Basanti (2006), 15, Park Avenue and Delhi 6 (2009) which were all critically acclaimed.

Song of C I D (1956)

Song of Pyasa (1957)

Song of Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam 1962

Song of Bees Saal Baad  1962

Song of Mujhe Jeene Do  1963

Song of Guide  1965

Song of  Teesri Kasam 1966

S D Burman was the Soul of Navketan Films

Dev Anand in an interview said "Burman Da was not only a composer to me but also a fatherly figure to Navketan. I depended on him for all aspects of the film, not just the music. I would consult him on the script and ask him whether it is okay to make a film on this theme.
When Dev was starting Hare Rama Hare Krishna, Dada was not convinced with the theme on Hippies. It was S D Burman who proposed R D Burman's name for the music of the film.
Dev Anand' liking for Dada started with the film Shikari, he liked its music. This was Dada's first Hindi film, he was the joint composer along with Anil Chand Sengupta. It was his film Vidya in which he gave the music for the first time, after that he decided it will be Dada who would give music for his Banner.

The first film of the banner was Afsar and Dada gave the music for that film. The music of that film was not very popular but Dev Anand retained him for his next film Baazi. The songs of the film became popular, The song"Tadbeer Se Bigdi Hui Taqdeer Bana Le" sung by Geeta Dutt is an immortal song.
Dev Anand had the liking for Bengali Music. In Dada's music, he found a blend of the Rabindra Sangeet and very modern rhythm. His music was very innovative and modern. It was full of hope.
With the success of their second film Baazi (1951), he made it to the top and a long association with Navketan and Dev Anand was on its way. The next film he gave music was Jaal in 1951, a ghazal that was occidentalise into a seductive song. The "Jaal" song "Yeh raat yeh chandni" by Hemant Kumar is an all-time great classic. 
After Taxi driver in 1954 he gave music in all the Navketan films except Hum Dono, it was given by Jaidev who was his assistant and was recommended by himself. This banner is known for great music and modern films. Taxi Driver released in 1954, it gave Dada the first Filmfare Award. Talat Mehmood version of the song- "Jayen To Jayen Kahan" became the most popular song of the year.
 The Dev Anand-S D Burman partnership, under Navketan banner, continued to churn out musical hits like Funtoosh(1956), Kala Pani(1958),Kala Bazar(1960),Bombai Ka Baboo (1960), Tere Ghar Ke Samne (1963), Teen Devian (1965), Guide (1965) and Jewel Thief (1967). Tere Mere Sapne and Prem Pujari (1970)

Song of Afsar 1950

Song of Baazi 1951

Song of Taxi Driver 1954

Song of House No. 44 (1955)

Song of Funtoosh(1956)

Song of Kala Pani 1958

Song of Kala Bazar 1960

Song of Tere Ghar Ke Samne 1963

Song of Guide 1965

Song of Jewel Thief 1967

Song of Prem Pujari 1970

Song of Tere Mere Sapne1971

Suraiya - A Great Singing Star of the 1940s

 She was the heart-throb of the nation in the 40s and early 50s. In a career spanning over 20 years, Suraiya acted in about 65 films and sang close to 350 songs. She lived like a star all her life. She did not turn to playback singing past her prime age nor she switched to character roles. Her beauty coupled with melodious voice captivated the hearts of generations of movie and music lovers.
There was a time when traffic jams at Marine Drive (Mumbai) were caused not due to a long line of cars, but because of a young charismatic actress - Suraiya.
During the mid-forties, the two faces which dominated the film world with their music were Suraiya and Noor Jehan. 
Noorjehan left India after Partition so she became the Top Leading Singing Star of Bollywood.
She was born on 15 June 1929. She was the only child of her parents. She received basic training in music when her mother used to take her to a Hindustani music teacher or 'Masterji' for training. She first sang for a children's program for All India Radio in 1937. Later on, Naushad gave her on the job 'training', while recording. She went on to become one of the most successful singing film stars of Bollywood.  
She made her debut as a child artist in Madam Fashion in 1936 as Miss Suraiya, along with Nargis as Baby Rani. The film was directed by Jaddan Bai, mother of Nargis, with Jaddan Bai herself as heroin

,Her first song as a child-singer was "Boot karun main polish babu" (as a playback singer) in the film Nai Duniya (1942), composed by Naushad. Suraiya sang as a child playback singer for actress Mehtab in Sharda (1942), Kanoon (1943) and Sanjog (1943), with Naushad as the music director. 
As a child artist, she acted and also sang in Tamanna (1942), Station Master (1942), and Hamari Baat (1943). As an adult, Suraiya initially played as a heroine in K. Asif's Phool as Shama, with Prithviraj Kapoor as hero,and as a co-star in Mehboob Khan's Anmol Ghadi (1946), (which was written by Aghajani Kashmeri, also known as Kashmiri) and Dard (1947).
She acted as a heroine in the film Tadbir (1945) on the recommendation of K. L. Saigal, who liked her voice during a rehearsal of a song for Jayant Desai's film Samrat Chandragupt (1945) in which she was acting. He recommended her to Desai, opposite himself in Tadbir (1945). She went on to co-star with K. L. Saigal in Omar Khayyam (1946) and Parwana (1947 film). Suraiya appeared in scores of films, including at least 25 between 1946 and 1950, and at her peak was one of Bollywood’s highest-paid stars. She worked only a few films after 1952 and retired in 1963 at the age of 34.
 Her swan song is supposed to be “Yeh kaisi ajab dastaan ho gayi hai” composed by Sajjad Husain for the film Rustom Sohrab (1963).
 Rustom Sohrab (1963) was her last film.
The film Anmol Ghadi was a major milestone in Suraiya’s career as she got to work with another mega singing star Noor Jehan in this film.The film was musical hit and still remembered for its music by Naushad.She played the second lead and had three solos to her credit.All the three songs became popular,the two songs Main dil mein and Mann leta hain angdaai are happy songs and the third song"Sochaa thaa kya, kyaa ho gayaa" was a sad song.

She played the leading role with almost every famous star of her time and also sang with the leading playback singers like Mohammad Rafi, Talat Mehmood and Mukesh
After her mother's death in 1987, Suraiya started feeling lonely in her rented apartment (owned by Aswin Shah) in Krishna Mahal, Marine Drive in Mumbai, where she lived from the early 1940s until her death in 2004 at the age of 74.

The first recorded song of Manna De and Child Suraiya

Song from Tamanna (1942)

Song from Tadbir (1945)

Song from Anmol Ghadi 1946

Song from Anmol Ghadi 1946

Song from Dard 1947

Song from Pyar Ki Jeet 1948

Song from Vidya 1948

Song from Dillagi 1949

Song from Mirza Ghalib (1954)

Song from Waris 1954

Song from Rustom Sohrab (1963).

Second Look - Cha Cha Cha 1964

There are films which are Popular, commercially successful, some are critically acclaimed but not successful at the Box office. Many of such films are forgotten.; In this Blog, I wish to refresh your memory by bringing back these films. This would also help the new generation who are not familiar with these films
This film was written, produced, directed and acted by Chandrashekhar. The film was a Box office success. The film has Helen as its Heroine for the first time and the last time. The highlight of the film is its music by Iqbal Qureshi. This was also the first film of the Poet, lyricist Neeraj.

Two memorable songs are written by Neeraj. Sung by Rafi "Woh Hum Na The, Woh Tum Na The"and "Subah Na Aayi, Sham Na Aayi". Another outstanding song is "Ek Chameli Ke Mandve Tale"

This is a story of a girl Lali played by Helen who returns from abroad. She adjusts to life in India along with her devout Hindu mother, Laxmi; an easy-going father, Dinanath; two sisters, Kalpana and Geeta, and spends most of her time dancing along with her sisters and friends. On her way to the Mandir, she assumes a singer, Puranchand, is teasing her and she slaps him but ends up apologizing when she is told that he is blind. Guilt-ridden, she makes arrangements for him to be taken to Bombay, has his vision restored, and both fall in love with each other. Dinanath takes a liking to Puranchand and not only gets him a job but also wants him to wed Lali. About to inform his parents, Puranchand does not know that Dinanath has actually instructed Lali not to see him anymore as he is a Harijan (Lower-Caste).

The unique thing in this film a twenty minute non-stop songless sequences of dance like Twist, waltz, foxtrot and Cha Cha Cha 

Song of Cha Cha Cha 1964

Song of Cha Cha Cha 1964

Song of Cha Cha Cha 1964

Dance Competition of Cha Cha Cha 1964

Song of Cha Cha Cha 1964

O P Nayyar-Jaadu Nagagri Se Aaya Yeh Jadugar

O. P. Nayyar (16 January 1926 – 28 January 2007  ) started his career as a movie music composer by composing the background score for the movies, Kaneez (1949) and Aasmaan (1952). He became famous with the music of Aar Paar released in 1954 and CID released in 1956. All the songs of CID were super hit especially "Leke Pehla Pehla Pyar" and "Aye Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahaan"
O P Nayyar was a genius and multitalented. He was not only a great Composer but also singer-songwriter, music producer, and musician. He wrote, "Yeh Desh Hai Veer Jawaanonkaa" (featuring Dilip Kumar and Ajit) for Naya Daur (1957). 
 He won the 1958 Filmfare Award for Best Music Director(for Naya Da ur). Nayyar worked extensively with singers Geeta Dutt, Asha Bhosle and Mohammed Rafi later Mahendra Kapoor gave us many memorable songs.

OP Nayyar was among the Top 5 Composers of the Golden Era. Some of the great films were Tumsa Nahin Dekha (1957), Howrah Bridge (1958), Jaali Note (1960), Ek Musafir Ek Hasina (1962), Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon (1963), Kashmir Ki Kali (1964), Mere Sanam (1965), Baharen Phir Bhi Aayegi (1966), Kismat (1968) and Pran Jaye Par Vachan Na Jaye (1973)
His songs had a unique freshness, a rare robust beat, a flowing style similar to what you feel when you dip your hand in a running stream, blending Punjabi folk music with a rare Western-style orchestration, never heard before or since. His variety of rhythm patterns baffles the film industry, even today.

Song of Aar Paar 1954

Song of Mr. & Mrs. '55 (1955)

Song of C I D(1956)

Song of Naya Daur (1957)

Song of Tumsa Nahin Dekha (1957)

Song of Howrah Bridge (1958)

Song of Jaali Note (1960)

Song of Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon (1963)

Song of Kashmir Ki Kali (1964)

Song of Mere Sanam (1965)

The Patriotic Songs Before Independence

Patriotism has always been an important theme in Hindi films. There were many films and songs which were banned or censored during British rule. It was this censor board that had forced V. Shantaram to change the name of his 1935 film from “Mahatma” to “Dharmatma”.  After Independence, many Films and songs were created in this theme. I talk about 10 songs that made exhortations for a free India before 1947.
The first song in my list is the song Chal Chal Re Naujawan from the film Bandhan released in 1940. It was in 1939 that the film studio Bombay Talkies hired a young and energetic Hindi poet, Pradeep, to pen lyrics of the songs. “Bandhan”,  

Song of Bandhan 1940

The next song in this list, sung by Ashok Kumar and Renuka Devi, is by a poet who would go on to be called Rashtrakavi – Kavi Pradeep for the film Naya Sansar in 1941

Song of Naya Sansar 1941

 In 1941, Sohrab Modi’s ‘Sikandar’ hit the screens. Pandit Sudarshan penned the lyrics for the movie while Mir Sahab and Rafiq Ghaznavi composed the music. The soundtrack has a song “Jeete desh humara, Bharat hai ghar baar humara, Bharat hai sansar humara” 

Song of Sikandar  1941

Kavi Pradeep wrote this song for the film Kismet during the Quit India movement. “Door Hato” was quite literally a demand for the British to quit India. To avoid objections by the censor board, Pradeep used the line “Tum Na Kise Ke Aage Jhukna German Ho Ya Japani” to make it appear that the song was against the Axis powers of World War II. 

Song of Kismet 1943

Here is one such pre-independence patriotic song. This song is from “Koshish”(1943). This obscure movie was directed by Rafiq Rizvi for Deen Pictures, Bombay. This song is sung by G M Durrani. Bashir Dehalwi is the music director. Lyricist of this song is not known.

Song of Koshish 1943

This song is from the film  Pehle Aap released in 1944. This was the first song of Mohammad Rafi.written by D N Madhok composed by Naushad.

Song of  Pehle Aap 1944

Now you would be surprised to find our National Anthem Jana Gana Man which was used before independence in a film called Hamrahi released in 1945. The song was recorded by the film’s music director R.C. Boral and rendered by a choir. While the original Rabindranath Tagore hymn had five stanzas, the first of which became the national anthem, the film recorded only four stanzas.

Song of Hamrahi 1945

This song is from the film Humjoli released in 1946. The song was Composed by Hafeez Khan and written by Anjum Pilibhiti, the song is sung by Noor Jehan,

Song of Humjoli 1946

This song was written for the film Paro during the turmoil of Independence of India. By early 1947, it was clear that India would be divided and a new nation, based on religion, would be carved out by bifurcating United India. The name Pakistan was also known to everyone. This film was released in 1947

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https://vimeo.com/276694523

It was Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay who wrote the lyrics for the powerful “Vande Maataram”. It was Sanyasi Rebellion (1763-1800) that inspired Bankim to write the historical novel ‘Ananda Matth’.This song is from film ‘Andolan’. It is not a film song actually, but our National Song, suitably woven into the film story. “Vande Mataram” could have been our National Anthem, but things were manoeuvred in such a way that it did not get that place of honour. Let us see a brief history of Vande Mataram through the years.

Song of Aandolan 1951