A tribute to Talat Mahmood on his 90th birth anniversary
Anil Biswas was not the first composer for whom Talat Mahmood sang in films. He debuted as an actor-singer in Calcutta in Raj Laxmi (1945). While in Calcutta, he also sang (and acted) in Tum Aur Main (1947), Samapti and Swayansiddha (1949). During this period he sang some 40-50 songs (film and non-film) under the name Tapan Kumar. But well before he came to films, he had acquired great fame because of his non-film geets and ghazals. His singing debut was in 1941 with his first non-film geet Sab din ek samaan nahi. A few years later his another non-film song Tasweer teri dil mera bahlaa na sakegi became a national rage.
With all that why is Anil Biswas regarded as the Mentor of Talat Mahmood and why is he (erroneously) regarded as having introduced the latter as a playback singer? Some people try to explain it by labouring on the distinction between ‘playback’ as opposed to ‘singing’ per se. I am not 100% sure that all his film songs before this were picturised on him. My explanation is simple. You just listen to Ae dil mujhe aisi jagah le chal jahaan koi na ho (Arzoo, 1950), and that says it all. His first song after he shifted to Bombay from Calcutta (?), composed by Anil Biswas, is on a different plane. His velvety voice with a unique tremolo immediately put him on a special pedestal. Anil Biswas’s role was not only in composing this all time great song, but also in putting confidence in Talat Mahmood that the कम्पन in his voice was his strength and that he did not need to get rid of it to copy his rivals. This is also his first recognizable film song, and hence the wide misconception that this was his debut song in films.
Thus it was that while Anil Biswas was not the most prolific either with Talat Mahmood compared to C Ramchandra, Ghulam Mohammad and Madan Mohan, he remains the most important composer for him, so much so that you mention Talat Mahmood and Anil Biswas comes to mind. Had Talat Mahmood been alive, he would have been 90 today (b. 24 February 1924; d. 9 May 1998). Continuing my tribute to Anil Biswas in his Centenary Year, let me pay this tribute to Talat Mahmood with his songs by the Bhishma Pitamah of film music on his birth anniversary.
1. Ae dil mujhe aisi jagah le chal jahan koi na ho from Arzoo (1950), lyris Majrooh Sutanpuri
An iconic song of the singer with the velvety voice on the tragedy king Dilip Kumar. This would start a short rein of Talat Mahmood as the voice of Dilip Kumar until he was displaced by the more versatile Rafi. But Talat created a passionate following regardless of the number of songs he sang (which would be a fraction of Rafi).
2. Shukriya ae pyar tera shukriya from Aaraam (1951), lyrics Rajendra Krishna
The Maestro composes a velvety tune for Talat Mahmood, picturised on Talat himself on the harmonium, obviously in a special appearance, as Dev Anand and Madhubala were the lead actors in the film.
3. Nain miley nain hue baawre chain kahan mohe sajan saanwre (with Lata Mangeshkar) from Taraana (1951), lyrics Prem Dhawan
This Dilip Kumar-Madhubala starrer tragedy was a great showcase for Anil Biswas-Talat Mahmood magic. Among the best duets of Talat-Lata Mangeshkar.
4. Seene mein sulagate hain armaan (with Lata Mangeshkar) from Taraana
Matching the mood of the film, a deeply poignant duet with Lata Mangeshkar, again among their all time greats.
5. Ek main hun ek meri bekasi ki sham hai from Taraana, lyrics Kaif Irfani
Now we come to the Talat solo from the film. Anil Biswas is recognizable by the deeply sombre mood he creates and by the absence of any frills in the composition.
6. Mohabbat turk ki maine garebaan see liya maine from Doraha (1952), lyrics Sahir Ludhiyanvi
Doraha had three dulcet solos by Talat Mahmood. The best known and my great favourite is Mohabbat turk ki maine garebaan see liya maine. But this link also gives the other two solos Dil mein basa ke meet bana ke (lyrics Prem Dhawan) and Tera khayal dil se mitaya nahi abhi (lyrics Josh Malihabadi). A treat for Talat-Anil Biswas fans.
7. Mukh se na bolun ankhiyan na kholun (with Lata Mangeshkar) from Jaliyanwala Bagh Ki Jyoti (1953), lyrics Uddhav Kumar
Normally I credit duets to the male singers, but this one clearly belongs to Lata Mangeshkar, Talat playing a secondary role. But this is an absolutely charming song and has that special magic of Anil Biswas.
8. Mili man ki dagar se teri gali (with Suraiya) from Waaris (1954),
Talat Mahmood, carried away by his handsome looks, also forayed into acting, which was not a very successful diversion. Suraiya had been a top actor-singer in the late 1940s. Under the baton of Anil Biswas, the film had some great songs, Raahi matwaaley (a three-version song) being extremely popular. Here is somewhat less well known, but no less melodious, duet by the two silky singers.
9. Door hote nahi jo dil mein raha karte hain (duet with Suraiya) from Waaris (1954)
Another less known but a beautiful duet with Suraiya, bearing a clear stamp of Anil Biswas.
10. Kabhi hain gham kabhi khushiyan from Waaris, lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi
I end this post with this solitary solo from the same film. Even though Anil Biswas continued for another decade in films, and Talat Mahmood too was around for a number of years, this seems to be their last song together. Which is kind of sad because their decline could be directly attributed to the market forces. Alas, in film songs art has to marry commerce, and we can only rue the fact that their association was so short-lived.
{ 41 comments… read them below or add one }
AK ji,
Thanks. (The posts are more predictable now).
No words to describe the great lyrics and the pathos with which Talat saab has sung “Mohabbat turk ki maine garebaan see liya maine.”
Talat saab’s solo from Jasoos ” jeevan hai madhuban” can be a good inclusion.
Regarding the title, I personally wonder if it would have been more apt for Mukesh. But, I am sure you will come up with only the best on July 22.
Mahesh,
Thanks for your appreciation. I do not know if being predictable is good or bad. But, since it is the year of Anil Biswas, I cannot really help it. Can you suggest an appropriate tittle for Anil Biswas-Mukesh?
Talat Mahmood could elevate any lyric with his voice. I agree, Jeevan hai madhuban is a very good song. One advantage of having knowledgeable music lovers is that they make up for any omissions in their comments.
What a fine collection of songs, AK. I was under the impression that Talat Mehmood only sang a handful of songs for Anil Biswas. No?
What is important is that each one of those songs was a beautiful combination of melody and voice. In an interview once, Lata Mangeshkar had once mentioned how she had heard Talat Mehmood singing ghazals and geets on the radio before he had come to Bombay, and how she had already been a fan. She said his voice had jadoo.
This is another song from Doraha; one of the ‘full of angst’ songs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnw6E6CA0oE
Anu,
The total number of songs of Talat Mahmood-Anil Biswas would not be more than 20, which is still a handful. While 5 or 6 may be on top of recall, others need a careful search. Surprising, that Anil Biswas was so sparse even with his ‘favourite’ singers. I guess with his other favourite singer, Mukesh too, it might be about the same number. Was it because he was too good for the industry?
Talat Mahmood had indeed jadoo in his voice, which cast a spell on people. That kind of voice was probably not destined to last for long.
Tera khayal dil se mitaya nahi abhi is indeed quintessential Talat. The link of Mohabbat turk ki maine from Doraha (#6) includes this song as well as the third solo from the film.
Both in 2012 and 2013, on the occasion of Talt Mahmood’s birthday, SoY paid tributes to Talat Mahmood. Last year the post was on Asha-Talat duets and in 2012 the post was on duets of Talat. So this post was, I would say, very much awaited. Even in 2011 (3rd February), there was an article on voices of Raj Kapoor, where we had six of his songs. Talat Mahmood always had a significant presence in other posts of SoY too, especially in the Best songs of 1955 and 1953.
Thanks Akji for another good post. Talat Mahmood-Anil Biswas combination was mesmerising. Ae dil mujhe aisi jagah le chal jahan koi na ho based on Raag Darbari was soothing. The song from Aaraam was good. Although Devanand was the hero in this film, no songs were filmed on him. Talat and Manmohan Krishna sang for themselves and Mukesh sang for Premnath. All the three songs from Taraana made good listening. The three-in-one song from Do Raha was a bonanza. As per My- swar the three Talat Mahmood solos in this film were initially recorded in Mohd Rafi’s voice. Anil Biswas then changed his mind and used Talat instead for these songs. Can somebody confirm the authenticity of this information? Mukh se na bolun ankhiyan na kholun is a wonderful song and you have rightly said it is Lata song. But Talat’s secondry role was also good. Anil Biswas’s composition stands out. Songs from Waaris reiterates the quality of Anil Biswas-Talat mahmood’s team effort.
As far as I know, Talat Mahmood and Anil Biswas worked together in 7 films between 1950 and 1955 – 8 solos, 3 duets with Lata Mangeshkar and 4 duets with Suraiya. Besides one more non-film song was rendered by Talat Mehmood for Anil Biswas. 16 in all
You have presented all the three duets with Lata Mangeshkar, two more with Suraiya. The other duet (Rahi matwale) with Suraiya, which is in two parts, was posted in the 2012 article. The solo song mentioned by Maheshji, Jeevan hai madhuban, is indeed a good song. This song was discussed and posted in the comments section of the post. Wrap-up 1 of 1955 (#14, #16 and #17).You have posted 7 solos here. That leaves us with the non film song, which I am presenting here.
Sitaaro tum gavaah rahanaa, mai un ko kyaa kabhi bhulaa , lyric: Sajan Dehlvi
http://hindigeetmala.net/song/bhale_tum_ruth_jaao_sitaaro.htm
Venkataramnji,
With your comprehensive comment, the Anil Biswas-Talat Mahmood journey is complete. Sitaro tum gawah rahna is an outstanding song. I did not know it was composed by Anil Biswas. Even Talat Mahmood’s official web site, maintained by his son, is blank about its lyricist and composer. Thanks a lot.
Talat Mahmood has been a very major presence on SoY, but there is still a lot of him left. That is just an indication how with a relatively very small number of songs he etched a very special place for himself in the hearts of music lovers.
Singermukesh website cites 24 songs of Mukesh-Anilda combo in 12 films. A couple of duets from Anokha Pyar with Menna Kapoor were replaced by Lata. Still Mukesh leads for Anilda and I wonder if Anilda was the only MD with highest number of songs with Mukesh in the male category.
I am not sure about Roshan, Salilda, KA. (the other MD’s who gave songs to Mukesh aplenty.) SJ, I suppose had more of Rafi than Mukesh.
I am sorry that all this is more of my guesswork.
Mahesh,
I guessed Mukesh songs by Anil Biswas be of this order. Whether this was more than any other male singer: Have you checked up Surendra songs and Anil Biswas’s own songs composed by him?
One forgotten (and a minor one – in numbers) composer, I would guess, for whom Mukesh might have sung more than any other male singer is Daan Singh. Among the composers you have mentioned, KA might have more Mukesh than Rafi. I am sure Venkataramanji would give all the numbers.
Among the male singers of the golden era, Manna Dey must have rendered the maximum songs for Anil Biswas. Mukesh comes a distant second. Md Rafi and Kishore Kumar must have rendered around a dozen songs each for Anil Biswas. Hemant Kumar’s songs will be in single digit. Other than Mukesh and Manna Dey, all the other male singers’ association with Anil Biswas started much later, sometime in the fifties, when Anil Biswas must have completed 50% or more of his 87 films. Even Anil Biswas’s association with Manna Dey and Mukesh must have stated sometime in late forties when Anil Biswas must have completed almost 10 years of his career and about 40 odd films. I hope I am not very much off the mark. Still I need to check. But the exciting revelation is that a huge treasure remains to be unearthed from the vintage era.
Surendra must have rendered a few songs more than Manna Dey. Around 40-45. Anil Biswas must have a part in 50 of his own composition as a singer. But the name of the singers, for many songs composed in the vintage period, are not available.
Venkataraman ji,
Thanks for the clarification about Manna Dey, Surendra and Anilda himself. I was completely wrong in my guess work.
Regarding the total films of Anilda as composer, Hindi Film Song: Music Beyond Boundaries By Ashok Da. Ranade on Page 184 says its more than 100. You have firmly asserted it to be 87.
Please clarify.
Maheshji,
Ashok Da Ranade is a respected figure in music research. I also hold him in high esteem and I cannot say that his information is wrong. Since you have sought a clarification, I am obliged to do some explaining!!!!
There is a lot of confusion regarding information on films of vintage era. Dharam ki Devi (1935) is acknowledged as the first film, where Anil Biswas gave music direction. There is a difference of opinion as to who was the MD for the films Baal Hatya (1935) and Bharat ki Beti (1935). Some consider that Anil Biswas gave music in collaboration with Madhulal Damodar Master and Jhande Khan respectively. But others believe that both were independent films of Damodar Master and Jhande Khan. Similarly, two of the songs of Manmohan (1936) were supposed to be composed by Anil Biswas and the rest by Ashok Ghosh. Some dispute this claim. Besides these three films I am giving below a list of films, which are not part of my list of 87 films.
1. Baal Hatya (1935) – clarification provided
2. Bharat ki Beti (1935) – clarification provided
3. Manmohan (1936) – clarification provided
4. Ali Baba (1940) – Hindi version included in my list. It seems Anil Biswas also gave music for the Punjabi version.
5. Darbaan (1946) – not part of my list. It seems it was a collaborative effort of Gulshan Sufi and Anil Biswas.
6. Milan (1946) – Hindi version was part of my list. It seems there was a Bengali version too. I was not aware that Anil Biswas gave music for any Bengali film.
7. Vishwas – A Children’s Society film – Year not known.
8. Vidyasagar – A Children’s Society film – Year not known.
9. Chaand – unreleased film of the 1950’s.
10. Shikwaa – unreleased film of the 1950’s.
11. Kamadhenu (1939) – A Tamil Film for which Anil Biswas gave background music.
12. Dujone – A Bengali film for which Anil Biswas composed music. Year not known. I was not aware that Anil Biswas gave music for any Bengali film.
13. Villwamangal – A south Indian film. Year not known.
14. Lalaaji (1942) – Anil Biswas sang two songs in this film. Some believe that Anil Biswas composed both the songs. Actually Vasanth Kumar Naidu was the Music director.
15. Hanso Hanso Ai Duniyaa Waalo (1942) – It seems Anil Biswas had said in one of his interviews that he did most of the work for this film, but the credits were given to C Ramchand.
16. Beesveen Sadhi (1945) – It seems Anil Biswas had said in one of his interviews that he did most of the work for this film, but the credits were given to Panna Lal Ghosh.
Besides Anil Biswas had done background music for few documentaries for the film division.
That adds upto 103+. I hope I have successfully managed to do some mathematical jugglery to justify my number! But, earlier we have found that even the information emanating from the horses’ mouth was found to be wrong. In one place Ashok Ranade states that his main singers were Talat and Lata. If we reflect on the quality of singing then the statement seems correct. But, statistically Lata is Ok, not Talat. In another place he says ‘ …surprisingly, he composed very rarely for Rafi and Asha.’ Again Rafi may be correct, but Asha rendered roughly 30 songs for Anil Biswas. Even the experts can have difference over figures and opinion. Main kis khet ki muli (or be-gun) hoon?
Venkataraman ji,
Many Many Thanks.
It was quite impressive, convincing and elaborate.
Actually it was more than enough for me to digest.
Now I know, whose door to knock for info which I always crave.
I am listening to ‘Mohabbat tarq ki maine’ as I write this comment. It would have been a fitting addition to my post on Darbari, had I been aware of this song.
Listening to all these songs confirms the relationship of mentor and protégé. Talat has been shaped by Anil Biswas and his subsequent career has been built upon that foundation.
Looking forward to a lot more in the centenary year of Anil Biswas. This is SoY’s way of undoing the injustice of not recognizing his contribution by the government.
Venkataramanji, Mahesh
Referring to comments #9 through #13, the ‘official’ website of Anil Biswas gives a filmography of 93 Hindi films, including films where he partnered with other composers. This is apparently based on HFGK. This includes Baal Hatya, Bharat Ki Beti, Manmohan, Ali Baba and Darbaan. This reconciles the difference with Venkataramanji, with a difference of one which can be ignored. In the footnotes, the list makes a mention of all the films which Venkataramanji has discussed. We can now safely say, Anil Biswas composed music for about 90 Hindi films, without fear of any contradiction.
The footnotes makes a mention of two solos sung by Anil Biswas in Lalaji (1942) under the MD, Vasant Kumar Naidu, and also says that this was probably the only occasion when he sang for another composer. With this information, Surendra and Anil Biswas himself were probably the male singers who sang the most number of songs for him.
I would expand the point made by Venkataramanji about Vintage Era films. My impression is that out of the 93 films, at least for about 20 films, any info about their songs, singers etc. would have completely vanished, either because their records were not made, or whatever reason. It is as if they never existed, whether you rummage through YT, kabadis, collectors, or archives.
About Ashok Ranade’s book, it is of a very high quality. But, the data and statistics are prone to error, because the book came many years before HFGK volumes were published, which has brought a great degree of precision in our information. Prior to this, many numbers were bandied based on hunches. For example, it was quite common in our college days to talk of 25000 songs by Lata Mangeshkar, 16000 by Rafi and so on. Today, we know these numbers are absurd, and overstate the actual number by 300-500%. In 1974 Guineness Book of World Records carried an entry on Lata Mangeshkar as the most recorded singer in the world with 25000 songs. This had to be later removed in 1991, when actual numbers were known.
Thanks AKji. Thus we can conclude the matter to everybody’s satisfaction!!
AK,
Thanks for one more mesmerizing experience.
Dil mein basa ke meet bana ke from Doraha is a very interesting tune. For one the range covered by Talat Mehmood is more than his normal comfort zone (of course this is true of all three songs in Doraha) and the musical interludes are quite striking, The strings play a very interesting role there are some dissonant quirks and there is a very interestingly played tenor or alto saxophone throughout the interludes and partially harmonising with Talat’s voice. The second interlude has lovely strings passages where there are changes to a very rapid temp and you can hear the saxophone behind throughout after that till the end of the song. The recording is not good enough to make out which instrument it is very close to a mellow tenor saz. Mohabbat turk ki maine always reminds me of Hansraj Behl’s beautiful composition from Changez Khan Muhabbat zinda rehti hain.
AK ji,
Thanks for this post,which has comments-informative comments by the experts.
As per the filmography of Anil Biswas and list of songs published on Dr.Surjit singh ji’s site(based on HFGK details),Mukesh has 18 songs from 10 films,Talat has 14 songs from 6 films,Manna Dey has 34 songs from 14 films and Surendra ,till 1947 had a tally of 46 songs.(E.& O.E.)
Talat has always been my favourite singer.I have written several times on Talat and his songs on Atul ji’s Blog. The combination of Anil Biswas and Talat is like adding sugar to Milk. And again,quality is more important than quantity,I aver.
Your Blog is becoming a pilgrim centre for melody and melody makers.
Thanks.
-AD
SSW,
Here is a very interesting article titled “The Heritage of the Old Hindi Film Song”, which is primarily about instruments, and the role of musicians and arrangers.
http://hindi-films-songs.com/books/The%20ghosts%20of%20the%20old%20Hindi%20Film%20Song.pdf
It makes a special mention of Talat Mahmood songs:
“Listen closely to the songs of that era, for example the songs made famous by Talat. The music is rich with a variety of instruments playing counterpoint. The fills in the space between the lines of an antara and the stanzas are engaging. And the strings in the background serve as velvet backing to Talat’s voice.”
Arunji,
Thanks a lot for your kind words. I am a close follower of your write-ups on Atul’s site, as well as his blog in general. Great work you people are doing.
I have seen you often refer to Sutjit Singh’s site. But I find navigation there somewhat difficult. The site seems to be always under construction. Its Anil Biswas filmography, again said to be based on HFGK, gives a list of 86 films, Venkataramanji’s original number less one. It boils down to interpretation of some films, which were credited to some other composer, but some of whose songs are claimed to be composed by Anil Biswas. One outcome of accepting the 86/87 number is that Tere pujan ko bhagwan band man mandir alishaan would have to be taken out of Anil Biswas.
Surendra would turn out to be the most prolific singer, which was my impression.
The list of songs gives blank with respect to a large number of songs, and sometimes all the songs of a film. That confirms my hunch that while the total number of films may be of academic interest, for all practical practices, the actual number of films, whose any song is available in any form, would be very small, probably of the order of 60.
This is one post where coming in (almost) last makes all the sense, since the article itself is complete that there was hardly anything to ‘comment’ upon. Hence, it was prudent enough to enjoy the post and its discussions.
Any words to complement the article would not be able to do any justice, hence I rest at this point itself.
Agree 100% with Ashokji and hope Ak will pardon me for a brief
appreciation.
Ashokji, Mumbaikar 8
It is said that often silence is more powerful than words. I am grateful for your kind words
I have no doubts this is one of the best music blog sites. Love to read each and every comment. So much to learn from all of you. I am trying to collect all songs (Hindi) composed by Anil Biswas. Thanks to N Venkataraman, I found the private song and atleast my Talat Mahmood-Anil Biswas collection is now complete. Such gems. Hope some day I will complete the entire collection. Thanks to such wonderful blogs and Youtube uploaders. I salute you all. : -).. Warm Regards
Thank you, Sonal for your profuse appreciation.
There is one masterpiece private Ghazal from Talat-Anil Biswas combo and that is: Sitaron Tum Gawah Rahna.It was perhaps penned by Sajjan and Talat lent his voice in 1957.
Rakesh Srivastava,
You are right, indeed a masterpiece. This was mentioned by Venkataramanji in Comment #5.
AK ji,
Sorry for the profuse delay to respond to your comment #2.
It was never my intention to belittle the posts with the predictability note.
As I said earlier, your beautifully carved introductions encompassing the whole subject will always be a surprise.
Today, incidentally is the death anniversary of Amirbai Karnataki and who can forget those immortal iconic songs in Kismat. (The bhajan and the diwali song are yet to feature in any of the posts of Anilda this year.) I was in fact expecting a post on her too with Anilda’s compositions.
Regarding Mukesh, it is said that Anilda on hearing Mukesh’s demise is said to have said that he has lost a son. Such was the association between the two even after the “slap” during Pheli Nazar.
I feel the title as well as a full post on Mukesh-Anilda by Shikha ji would only be befitting.
Mahesh,
You are embarrassing me, there is nothing to apologise. You are one of the big admirers of SoY.
I had in mind to do a post on Anil Biswas-Amirbai Karnataki. I had thought she must be his most prolific female singer from the vintage era. But when I looked up his filmography, outside Kismat, her songs are hard to come by. She is far outnumbered by not only his sister Parul Ghosh, but probably also by Sardar Akhtar, Maya Banerjee, Bibbo and Jyoti. There are Waheedan Bai and Sitara Devi – I would not be surprised if they sang more than Amirbai Karnataki for Anil Biswas. That would only make the discovery of Anil Biswas with vintage era female singers more exciting. In some manner we should be able to have glimpses of all of them as we go further during the year.
Decade 1920-29 was greatest for bollywood ever….it produced countless (only Arunji or Venkataramanji can count 🙂 ) legendary figures to hindi film industry…
Some i can list at the moment r..
Raj kapoor, Dilip kumar, Dev anand , Lata mangeshkar, Mohd. Rafi, Talat mehmood, Mukesh , Kishoreda, Shankar, Jaikishan, Madan mohan, Opnayyar , Salilda, Shailendra, Saahir ludhiyanvi, Hasrat jaipuri, Nargis, Ravi, Suraiya, Noorjehan…and many more to be counted.
Alongwith this golden crop, a simply superior brain also came in music field and lifted the hfm to an ultra height with his poetic prowess, yes he is Saahir Ludhiyanvi. This post is not related to Saahir but songs of ‘Doraha’ in this post definitely call him.
He penned exactly to the point what one can feel inside but cant express in words.
”Muhabbat tark ki maine, garebaan see liya maine
Zamaane ab to khush ho, zahar yeh bhi pee liya maine” !!
”A malignant amoropathic lump was growing inside my chest compressing my heart, i made a painful incision and removed it out of my chest and stitched it up” wow !
”Abhi zinda hun lekin sochta rehta hun yeh dil mein
Ke ab tak kis tamanna ke sahaare jee liya maine”
”I have done nothing satisfactory in my life, destiny has deprived me of every good thing, an alleviating glimpse of you is also not available for me now…… still i m alive and have been pulling heavily loaded cart like a poor camel .. in which hope ?!!”
Akji, i missed to comment in this post earlier but now sending u many thanx for a compilation of the sweetest combination.
Jignesh
I know you had taken a break and you will take time to catch up. You are most welcome.
1920-29: You mean the period during which they were born?
yes, Akji, they all giants Born in that Decade (1920-1929). And If u add 1919 in it , the tally wudbe more accomplished with Naushad, Mannada, Majrooh, Shamshad begum, Sajjad etc.
sorry, Sajjad born in 1917.
Ok, look at again the tally of the greats born between 1919-1929. All were the no. 1 of their fields.
Naushad_25-12-19
Manna dey_1-5-19
Majrooh_1-10-19
Shamshad begum_14-4-19
Ustad AllahRakha_29-4-19
Pran sikand_12-2-20
Pt. Ravishankar_7-4-20
Hemant kumar_16-6-20
Juthika roy_20-4-20
Bulochand chandiramani_?-?-20
Saahir_8-3-21
Dilip kumar_11-12-22
Shankar_15-10-22
Hasrat_15-4-22
Vinod_28-5-22
Pt. Bhimsen joshi_4-2-22
Dev anand_26-9-23
Mukesh_22-7-23
Salilda_19-11-23
Shailendra_30-8-23
Raj kapoor_14-12-24
Rafi_24-12-24
Talat_24-2-24
Madan mohan_25-6-24
Rajkumari_?-?-24
Guru dutt_9-7-25
O P Nayyar_16-1-26
Ravi_3-3-26
Noorjehan_21-9-26
Nalini Jaywant_18-2-26
Lataji_28-7-29
Kishoreda_4-8-29
Jaikishan_4-11-29
Nargis_1-6-29
Suraiya_15-6-29
Rajendra kumar_20-7-29
Sir,
Why not songs of Sajjad Hussain music Director not included in Music Directors List Pl Include and send the songs
Arvind (2),
Welcome to SoY. There is an earlier regular, Arvind. Therefore, (2) – hope you don’t mind.
If you browse through the blog, coincidentally Sajjad Husain has come in for a great deal of respectful discussion in the post on the Best songs of 1951. There are a large number of music directors, whom I like a lot, still to be covered by a separate post. However, there is no major composer whose song has not appeared by now somewhere or the other.
STRANGE ” EK MAIN HOON”/TARANA/ANIL/TALAT
has the the same tune as “dekhli teri khudayi” /KINARE(2)/JAIDEV!
Tarana (1951) preceded Kinare Kinare (1964) by more than a decade. Conclusion is obvious. Talat Mahmood sang both the songs.
Awards are awarded on many considerations beside merit. Government should be the last institution to look for awards. It is just one of the minor activities relegated to second or third tier Ministers. If you examine the history of awards of Filmfare, there also many were denied. Outstanding example is Naushad for Mughale Azam. In Madras, Music Academy awards also are subject to pulls and pressures. It is not the sine quo non for artists. Anilda worked in AIR for nearly a decade and with the right approach could have managed an award. That he did not do so shows the disdain he had for it.
G N Balasubramanian besides being a gifted artist was also a composer. He never sang any of his compositions. He was of the opinion if they were thought worthwhile by other musicians they were welcome to sing it in concerts.
AK ji ;
Posted a song yesterday on ‘ open house’ as birthday greetings to Dilip Sahib . Today I was looking for a song which I rate as one of the best , not only song but best picturised too . Thought of sharing with all of you . The songs appear in this article also . Just revisiting as a remembrence of Anil da’s beautiful composition .
Nain mile nain huye baware……Talat , Lata…..Tarana
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR762mTsXS8
KS Bhatiaji,
I join in paying my birthday greetings to the thespian. He is not keeping good health these days. I also wish him well.