Survey of musical trends

New Theatres’ romance with Prem

Thumbnail image for New Theatres’ romance with Prem May 29, 2011

Best love songs of Vintage Era I have been in the New Theatres mood since I wrote my last post on Pankaj Mullick. BN Sircar established New Theatres in Calcutta in 1931, i.e. the same year the first talkie Alam Ara was released in Bombay. Music has been an integral part and a defining feature […]

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Mohammad Rafi versus Kishore Kumar

Thumbnail image for Mohammad Rafi versus Kishore Kumar November 14, 2010

An era changes with Aradhana (1969) When Aradhana unfolded in 1969 with the heroine sitting by the window of the hill train, tentatively browsing a book, and the hero being driven in a jonga by his friend on the hilly road alongside the toy train, with an innocent smile, a wink in his eyes and […]

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Lata Mangeshkar vs Noorjehan

Thumbnail image for Lata Mangeshkar vs Noorjehan September 14, 2010

Would Noorjehan have survived the 1949 Lata tornado? Noorjehan’s migration to Pakistan in 1947 left behind the enduring question – if she had stayed back in India, would Lata still have reached the commanding heights as she did in the following three decades? As Lata’s early songs had a distinct Noorjehan tinge, the suggestion is […]

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Twin songs: A front runner and a laggard

July 31, 2010

We all remember the following evergreen songs: Song Singer Film Music director Ae mere dil kahin aur chal Talat Mahmood Daag (1952) Shankar Jaikishan Dil matwala lakh sambhala Talat Mahmood Bewafa (1952) AR Qureshi Chali Radhe rani Manna Dey Parineeta (1953) Arun Kumar Mukherji Mera qaraar le ja Talat Mahmood Ashiana (1952) Madan Mohan Na […]

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Door Papiha Bola

Thumbnail image for Door Papiha Bola June 18, 2010

Your relationship with songs that moved you, that brought tears to your eyes the first time you heard them and every time you hear them, is deeply personal.  How can others relate to your experience?  And no matter how well you write it would be less than what you felt. Nida Fazli famously said: Yun […]

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