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
Theme music is a piece that is often played during the intro, opening credits and/or ending credits.This music is a Signature Music of a Film.In the early years of radio and television, celebrities often had a signature song associated with them that became their theme music.In Bollywood the Theme Music of Sholay became very popular and still liked by today's generation.Another evergreen Theme music is from the film Karz.In this Blog I have selected some of my favorite themes.
Sholay Theme Music
Theme music from movie Karz
Black(2005) - Michelle's Theme
Silsila Santoor Theme Music
Theme from the film Sur
Title Music - Alap - Lata Mangeshkar - Pakeezah [1972]
Every parent wants their children to walk on their footsteps and follow the legacy.Bollywood stars too want their children to make a career in acting and rule the industry the way they did.Bollywood is a piece of cake for star kids. But there are few who enjoy success in the industry and make their own identity. Here are some of the ‘flop sons’ of Bollywood’s ‘hit father’.
Let's start with Dev Anand,whose son Suneil Anand was introduced from the film Anand aur Anand (1984).could not succeed.Similarly Raj Kapoor's Son Rajeev Kapoor(Chimpu Kapoor) who was introduced in 1983 with Ek Jaan Hain Hum couldn't succeed in films.
Parikshit Sahni- Son of great Balraj Sahni started with 1968 film Anokhi Raat along with Sanjeev Kumar. got an independent film as Hero in 1970 Pavitra Paapi opposite Tanuja as his heroine could not make it big in Bollywood.Though he worked as Character actor in many films but he was not as successful as his father.He has also appeared in three of Rajkumar Hirani's blockbuster films Lage Raho Munna Bhai, 3 Idiots, and PK.
Puru Rajkumar- the son of veteran actor Raj Kumar. He was launched in the 1996 film Bal Bramhachari, which was released only a few months after his father’s death, but unfortunately flopped. After a three-year gap, Puru returned with a negative role in Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai, which was a hit. He also had a cameo in Mission Kashmir in the same year (2000). But his career went downhill after that .
Kumar Gaurav-Rajendra Kumar's son who made his debut with a super hit film Love Story in 1981.After that he came as hero in many films like Star (1982) Lovers,Romance in 1983,Hum Hain Lajawab,All Rounderand Divorce in 1984.None of his films clicked at Box Office.He has been successfully paired with almost all young ladies of ’80s – Poonam Dillon, Rati Agnihotri, Neelam, Vijeyta Pandit, Madhuri Dixit and Padmini Kolhapure. Yet his pairing with Vijeyta Pandit in their debut movie is still remembered most. His revival project, Phool with the top actress Madhuri Dixit, couldn’t give success though its melodious songs were noticed.He produced his earlier films Janam and Naam, his father tried to revive his career with the 1993 film Phool which also had his father and father-in-law Sunil Dutt in supporting roles. However, it didn't bring him any luck either.
Kunal Kapoor-Son of the late actors Shashi Kapoor and Jennifer Kendal,Made his debut with Ahista Ahista (1981 film) opposite Padmini Kolhapure as well as Vijeta (1982 film).He could not succeed,In 1985, he stopped acting after Trikal to set up his own company, Adfilm-Valas, to producing and direct television commercials. His younger brother Karan Kapoor who got fame from modeling also came in Bollywood with Sultanat (1986) opposite Juhi Chawla as well as later in Loha (1987 film)with Dharmendra but he too could not make it big in bollywood. Karan now runs a photography company in UK.
Kunal Goswami-Made his film debut as a child star in Kranti (1981) which was directed by his father Manoj Kumar. He acted in B-grade movies such as Ghungroo, Kalakaar and Paap Ki Kamee. His acting didn't take off as well as he would have liked, so he went in to the catering business in Delhi. He decided to give acting a second shot, and his father directed him again in Jai Hind (1999).
Fardeen Khan-Son of famous actor Firoz Khan, Fardeen Khan debuted in Bollywood in 1998 with his movie ‘Prem Agan’. In his 12 years career of Bollywood, he did movies like ‘Jungle’, ‘Pyar Tune Kya Kiya’, ‘Fida’, ‘Dev’, and ‘All the Best’, but most of his movies couldn’t impress audience much.His cousin brother Zayed Khan son of Sanjay Khan made his screen debut in 2003 in the film Chura Liyaa Hai Tumne,He is known for his performance as Lakshman a.k.a. Lucky in Main Hoon Na (2004), Aditya Singh in Dus (2005), Vikky Khanna in Fight Club - Members Only (2006), Danny Yuvvraaj in Yuvvraaj (2008), and as Sam/Aditya in Blue (2009).
Rahul Khanna-He is the son of actor Vinod Khanna.He made his feature film debut in Deepa Mehta's 1947 Earth (1999), alongside Aamir Khan. His performance earned him several awards including the Filmfare Best Male Debut Award. His younger brother is Akshay Khanna made his acting debut in Bollywood in 1997 with the movie Himalay Putra, which was produced by his father and went without much success at box office.After that a string of unsuccessful films followed such as Mohabbat (1997), Kudrat (1998), Laawaris (1999), Love You Hamesha (1999) and Dahek (1999).followed.In 1999, he starred in Rishi Kapoor's Aa Ab Laut Chalen; though the film did average business, he was praised for his acting. He next starred in Subhash Ghai's Taal opposite Aishwarya Rai.In 2001, Khanna appeared in Farhan Akhtar's cult classic Dil Chahta Hai. This marked a turning point in his career: the film was a commercial and critical success and Khanna's performance was particularly applauded, later validated by Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor in 2002.
Mimoh Chakraborty- the son of original disco dancer of Bollywood, Mithun Chakraborty. Leave alone not matching up to his father’s renowned dancing skills, Mimoh’s acting career took a downward spiral after his debut film Jimmy in 2008. The 2013 release Enemmy with father also tanked.
Pratik Babbar -The son of late actress Smita Patil and Raj Babbar, he began his career as a production assistant before pursuing an acting career.He made his screen debut with the 2008 film Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na, and was praised for his performance in the film.Babbar played a variety of roles in 2011, appearing in commercially viable projects such as the crime thriller Dum Maro Dum and the political drama Aarakshan, while drawing the attention of critics for his performances in independent films, including the drama Dhobi Ghat and the romantic comedy My Friend Pinto.
Born on 8th Feb 1941 to simple parents in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, Jagjit Singh was initially named, Jagmohan at birth, by his devout Sikh father. At the age of 24 without the knowledge of his family,Singh moved to Bombay to try his luck as playback singer in Bollywood.
Initially he started as a singer of advertising jingles and later progressed to playback singing.However, what is little known about Singh's connection to Gujarati songs is that he sung his first Gujarati song in 1968, at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan for Avinash Vyas's composition. This song was sung for Bhavan's 'Song of the Month' produced by Purshottam Upadhyay who paid Singh a sum of Rs250. 'Laagi Ram bhajan ni lagani, ke Ramna... ke Ramna thayi gayi che rag rag ni re bhu…'. This Gujarati song marked ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh's entry into the playback singing world. It was featured in producer Suresh Amin's film Bahuroopi and composer Ajit Merchant gave Jagjit Singh this first break in 1969.The success of this song,Jagjit Singh is said to have sung many songs in Gujarati, so much so that during his performances in Ahmedabad or any other city of Gujarat, tears were found rolling down women's cheeks. He was known to bring words to life as he sang, but when he sang Gujarati bhajans, he was known for connecting people of Gujarat to the Almighty. In 1969 he married Chitra Dutta and both started singing together.The Unforgettable, which was the couple's first LP, was an unconventional recording and it turned them into stars. The song "Baat Niklegi" from the album achieved great popularity for the Singhs.It was the first time Western Instruments were used in Ghazals.Thereafter, the couple worked both on solo and joint musical projects and performed concerts worldwide. The popularity of the couple attracted Hindi film Industry.The couple sang for the first time in the 1973 film Awishkar bkar do:ut Jagjit Singh got famous among Hindi Film Audience with the song Hontho se chhoo lo tum mera geet amar from the 1981 film Prem Geet in which he gave the music also.In 1982 he sang in 2 films,Saath Saath and Arth.The song "Tum Ko Dekha To Yeh Khayal Aaya" and"Tum Itna Jo Muskura Rahe Ho" were very popular.His compositions for the TV serial Mirza Ghalib (based on the life of the poet Mirza Ghalib), remain extremely popular among ghazal aficionados. Besides ghazals, Jagjit Singh has also sung Bhajans and Gurbani(Hindu and Sikh devotional hymns respectively). Albums such as Maa, Hare Krishna, Hey Ram...Hey Ram, Ichhabal and also Man Jeetai Jagjeet in Punjabi, put him in the league of Bhajan singers such as Mukesh, Hari Om Sharan, Yesudas, Anup Jalota and Purushottam Das Jalota. With a career spanning five decades and a repertoire comprising over 90 albums, "The Latest" by Sudarshan Faakir was the best selling album with his lifetime hit "Woh Kagaz ki Kashti...Woh Baarish ka Paani". It was the first album by the duo with poetry of only one Poet. In 1990 their son died in a road accident. Chitra felt unable to sing following this event. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the government of India in 2003. In February 2014, Government of India released a postal stamp in his honour.He was regarded as one of India's most influential artists. With sitar legend Ravi Shankar and other leading figures of Indian classical music and literature, in 2011 he was due to perform with Ghulam Ali in Mumbai[5] but suffered a brain haemorrhage on 23 September 2011. He was in a coma for over two weeks and died on 10 October at Lilavati Hospital, in Mumbai. Most Popular Ghazals from Hindi Films
Kavi Pradeep, who was born on 6th Feb 1915 as Ramchandra Narayanji Dwivedi, penned 1,700 songs for more than 85 Hindi films, most of them embellished with a patriotic fervour, including Chal chal re naujawaan and Door hato aye duniyawalon Hindustan hamara hai (both from Kismet, India's first golden jubilee hit), which stirred the souls of the people during the 1942 Quit India Movement. His first recognition came for his patriotic lyrics for the film Bandhan (1940) with the song Chal Chal Re Naujawanwhich made waves since the Indian freedom movement was at a crucial juncture.He worked on five more movies for Bombay Talkies which included Punar Milan (1940), Jhoola (1941), Naya Sansar (1941), Anjan (1943) and Kismet (1943). Kismet is known for its patriotic song "Aaj Himalay Ki Choti Se Phir Hum Ne Lalkara Hai, Door Hato Ae Duniyawalon Hindustan Hamara Hai" Pradeep also penned a large number of non-film songs that inspired freedom-fighters during the independence movement. After Independence, he wrote several more to promote national integration, bringing him a wealth of honours and the title, Rashtra Kavi. Kavi Pradeep was at his peak of creativity when he wrote for the films Nastik (1954) and Jagriti (1954). He even lent his voice for the evergreen song "Dekh Tere Sansar Ki Halat Kya Ho Gayi Bhagwaan, Kitna Badal Gaya Insaan" (Look at your world, O God. How the man has changed!) from the film Nastik (1954). Jagriti is considered to be among his best work for one movie as it includes hit songs such as Aao Bachcho Tumhein Dikhayen Jhanki Hindustan Ki, Is Mitti Se Tilak Karo, Yeh Dharti Hai Balidan Ki" (sung by himself), "Hum Laye Hain Toofan Se Kishti Nikal Ke, Is Desh Ko Rakhna Mere Bachcho Sambhal Ke" and "De Dee Humein Azadi Bina Khadag Bina Dhal, Sabarmati Ke Sant Tu Ne Kar Diya Kamaal". Beside writing patriotic songs he wrote all kind of songs.His songs on love specially between a mother and her children, between a father and his children, between a bhakt (devotee) and his deity,In fact the songs of 1975 film Jai Santoshi Ma became very popular.Ladies would perform poojas when the immortal song "Main To Aarti Utaroon Re Santoshi Mata Ki" was played in the theatres. He also sang one of the songs "Yahan Wahan" from the film for which he received the award as Best Male Playback Singer from the Bengal Film Journalists' Association in 1975. S. Mukerji's Sambandh (1969) starring Pradeep Kumar was a movie that ran on the popularity of songs such as "Chal Akela Chal Akela, Tera Mela Peechhe Chhoota Raahi Chal Akela", "Jo Diya Tha Tum Ne Ek Din, Mujhe Phir Wohi Pyar De Do, Ek Karz Mangta Hoon, Bachpan Udhar De Do" were written by Kavi Pradeep. In 1997, he was honoured by India's highest award in Cinema, the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for Lifetime Achievement.He died at the age of 83 on 11 December 1998. The Great Songs By Kavi Pradeep
