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
Holi is a festival of colours. It is an inseparable part of Indian culture, Bollywood never misses a chance to infuse the ‘Holi factor’ in the form of dance numbers with stars going footloose and crazy.The first song of Holi was from the 1931 film ‘Ghar Ki Laxmi’. The Mukhdaa of the song goes like – “Mo Pe Daar Gayo Saari Rang Rang Ki Gaagar, Kaisa Dhokha Diya. . .”. This and many other songs of that era are now lost.
In this blog, I have selected the great Holi Songs of Bollywood starting from the 1940s to the 2020s. This year we might be stuck indoors due to Covid 19, we can enjoy this year's Holi with the song of every decade.
.I present a song from this very first decade of Hindi films – a song from the film ‘Aurat’ from 1940. ‘Aurat’ is a magnum opus by producer-director Mehboob, a much-celebrated film of its era.
The saxophone is a wind instrument but it was a very versatile instrument excessively used in Hindi Songs of the 60s and 70s. Composers of that era have used it effectively to convey many moods with Saxophone. Before it came on the scene, other wind instruments like Trumpet or Clarinet were in use. These instruments could convey the primary emotion in the song but the Saxophone could convey many moods of a song.
Manohari Singh is known as the first Saxophone player of Bollywood, but as per him Ram Singh was the first Saxophonist who played a few songs in the early 50s but after his death in the early 50s, composers stopped using Saxophone in their songs. It was in the late 50s when Manohari Singh arrived in Bombay from Kolkatta.
In this blog, I have selected a few songs in which Saxophone played beautifully. These songs are mostly from the 60s and early 70s. The first song that gave him popularity was from the 1959 film Satta Bazar composed by Kalyanji Anandji
Sharmilee was released on 23rd March 1971. The film was a hit with hit music given by S D Burman and lyrics by Neeraj. Shashi Kapoor was the hero and Rakhi was in a double role, one a shy mellow young woman, and the other a spontaneous extrovert.
The film was based on a novel of Gulshan Nanda, who was a very popular Hindi novelist of that time, almost all the films based on his novels were successful. The film was produced by Subodh Mukherjee and directed by Sameer Ganguly
It's the story of twin sisters - Kanchan and Kaamini, Kaamini is an extrovert, and the ultramodern girl whom any boy may fall for whereas, on the contrary, Kanchan is a shy girl who speaks very less and is hesitant to interact with strangers.
Shashi Kapoor, the prospective groom and his family members come to see Kanchan decide on a matrimonial alliance, Shashi Kapoor who met Kamini once misunderstood Kanchan as Kamini , he agreed to the proposal.
When he came to know of the fact it's Kaamini whom he had met and got smitten by, he refuses to marry Kanchan. Kaamini who was earlier ready to marry Shashi Kapoor who was an army officer flees away from her house on the D-Day and it is known after some time that her car met with an accident. Though her dead body is not found, there's enough evidence that she is no more. Now to save the prestige of the family, the parents of the sisters marry Kanchan to Ajit. Though Kanchan tells this fact to Ajit in a letter prior to the marriage, Ajit remains unaware of it because that letter is not allowed to reach him. He marries Kanchan mistaking her for Kaamini and comes to know the truth on their first conjugal night. Feeling betrayed and heartbroken, he returns to the army base, leaving a weeping Kanchan behind.
One fine day Ajit ( Shashi Kapoor) was assigned the responsibility by his superior to catch some traitors spying for the enemy country. These traitors include a young female also and Ajit is shocked like anything to find that her face is the same as that of his sweetheart. Who is she - Kanchan or Kaamini ?
Shashi Kapoor and Raakhee have done brilliantly in lead roles. Raakhee deserves special mention for her superb performance in the twin roles which are polar apart from each other.
The highlight of the film is its music The film has 7 songs, Khilte Hain Gul Yahaan is the most popular song sung separately by both Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar for Shashi Kapoor and Raakhee respectively. Megha Chhaye Aadhi Raat (Lata singing beautifully in the classical Raag - Madhuranjani), Aaj Madhosh Hua Jaaye Re Mera Mann (Lata-Kishore), Reshmi Ujaala Hai Makhmali Andhera Hai (Asha Bhosle), Kaise Kahen Hum Pyar Ne Humko Kya Kya Khel Dikhaaye (Kishore) and the title track (O Meri Sharmilee) sung again by Kishore Da; all are quality songs
Today on 14th March 1931, India's first Talkie Film 'Alam Ara' was released. It was released in one cinema theatre' Majestic'in Mumbai. The first show was started at 3 PM was a house full. The theatre was mobbed, people started collecting to buy tickets from 9 in the morning. The tickets which were costing 4 Annas(a Fourth of a Rupee) that time was sold for Rs 5 in the black market. That was the craze for this film
If you see the publicity poster of this film, it says 'All Living, Breathing, 100 % Talking' , 'All Talking Singing and Dancing' and ' 70 Murda Insaan Zinda Ho Gaye, Unko Bolte Dekho'
The film ran the full house for 8 weeks in Majestic Cinema, later the full unit visited all over the country along with the print, the projector and sound equipment. The film drew a crowd all over the cities of India.
Since Alam Ara was a talkie, the casting was of utmost importance. As it was imperative for actors to know the language, Zubeida got the nod to play the title role instead of the studio’s top star, Sulochana. The reason being not taking Sulochna as the heroine was that she was not proficient in Urdu or Hindustani and thus lost out on the opportunity to be the first talkie heroine of Indian cinema.
Similarly, for the role of hero, Ardeshir Irani first signed Mehboob Khan( the producer, director of Mother India)as the hero but then decided to go for a more commercially viable name. As Alam Ara was a tale that also involved stunts and fight sequences, Irani thought of casting the biggest stunt star of silent cinema, Master Vithal.
A total of 70 actors were part of this film, Prithviraj Kapoor was also one of the actors in this film. He played the role of General Adil Khan. The film was a love story between a prince and a gypsy girl, based on a traditional Parsi play. The film had music by Ferozshah M. Mistri and B. Irani, and had seven songs. The songs were in the Hindustani language, primarily the Urdu dialect. It was the first filmiHindi songs soundtrack, and the first in the filmi-ghazal style,
Nasir Hussain (16 November 1926 – 13 March 2002), started his career as a story writer in 1948. He remained there till he started his own Nasir Hussain Films and turned producer-director. He made musical hits like Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai (1961),
