Best songs of 1948: And the winners are?

22 March 2017

Mela-Nadiya Ke Paar-Shaheed-Aag-Anokha Pyar-Anokhi AdaOn our journey back in time to review the best songs of the year, as we reach 1948 we are entering the Vintage Era characterised by a great variety of full-throated female singers. Lata Mangeshkar did sing over 40 songs of which you can count about ten memorable and a couple of all-time great songs, yet she was not the sole pole star, as she became from 1949 onwards. Therefore, dividing the female playback singers as Lata Mangehkar and ‘others’ as I have done for 1949, 1950 and 1951 would not be a true reflection of realty. Secondly, the Vintage Era also means entering a period of more unknown than known, therefore, the year-wise review would now be more a discovery trip.

Besides the courtesan-style female playback singing, the orchestration was also very different, giving the music of this period a distinct identity. Some music lovers found it charming, some felt a barrier in relating to this music – thus marking a clear watershed between the two eras which I describe as the Vintage (1931-1949) and the Golden Era (1949/50 – 1969). Male playback singing did not present such mosaic of colours. KL Saigal had passed away a year earlier. Talat Mahmood would appear in a big way later. Manna Dey and Hemant Kumar had been around for some time, but they would make big impact a couple of years down the road. Kishore Kumar just debuted in 1948. Thus, among the great playback singers, only Rafi and Mukesh had a significant presence. From the actor-singer era, Surendra had some of his best songs in the year. He would face a sharp phase-out from 1949 onwards. Khan Mastana and GM Durrani, too, had some very good songs in the year.

The year after the independence had already seen departure of Noorjehan. Other artistes and music personalities like Khursheed Anwar, Rashid Atre and Firoz Nizami had also left or were in the process of packing their bags. Thus, this was also a year of churning and settling down. Beginning of the year also saw the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, casting a large shadow over the national psyche. The film world, too, couldn’t remain untouched by these events, resulting in a number of films based on Gandhiji, as well as a number of nationalist songs invoking his name. A non-film song Suno suno ae duniyawalo Bapuji ki amar kahani, sung by Rafi, written by Rajendra Krishna and music by Husnlal-Bhagatram, became a roaring hit which is still a perennial favourite.

Musical landmarks

With a golden jubilee (Dilip Kumar-starrer Mela) and a silver jubilee (Anokhi Ada), Naushad was the monarch of all he surveyed. His most potent rival was C Ramchandra with great music in Nadiya Ke Paar – also a Dilip Kumar-starrer – and Khidki. The doyen of the Punjabi School of music, Ghulam Haider, was also about to pack up for Pakistan, but not before scoring some everlasting music in Dilip Kumar-starrer, Shaheed. This was the film for which Masterji had taken Lata Mangeshkar to Filmistan’s S Mukherjee, who rejected her voice as being too thin, upon which he made a prophetic statement that one day the girl would rule over the film music. RK’s first film Aag, too, had some excellent music by Ram Ganguly. Now you would have also realised why I specially mention female playback singers in the Vintage Era – in none of these films Lata Mangeshkar had any worthwhile presence, which would be routine in the later years. The music of these films is remembered for Shamshad Begum, Lalita Deulkar and Surinder Kaur.

Other important musical compositions

The earlier-era stalwart Anil Biswas gave some of his best music in Anokha Pyar, Gajre and Veena. The songs of these films have appeared on SoY earlier. The first duo of Hindi films, Husnlal-Bhagatram, were riding high in the year with some career-best songs of Suraiya in Pyar Ki Jeet, such as Tere naino ne chori kiya and O door janewale. Khemchand Prakash gave break to Kishore Kumar in Ziddi, and also composed one of the greatest songs of Lata Mangeshkar, Chanda re ja re ja re. But Ghulam Mohammad, though not counted among the stalwarts, always deserves special mention. He gave some absolutely melodious music in Grihasthi and Pugree. Dev Anand-starrer Vidya by SD Burman, too, deserves mention for some excellent music. Lata Mangeshkar is absent here, too, the lead singer being Suraiya.

Debut

Asha Bhosle debuted in a chorus in Chunariya, composed by Hansraj Bahal. She sang only the line Bahna khush hoke sangam manaye in the song Sawan aya re. Kishore Kumar had his famous debut with Marne ki duayen kyun maangun in Ziddi, in KL Saigal style, composed by Khemchand Prakash. He also had his first duet with Lata Mangeshkar, Ye kaun aya re, in this film. They would go on to sing 320 duets together. Prem Dhavan debuted as a lyricist with Chanda ja re ja re ja in Ziddi.

Raj Kapoor made the first film under his RK banner (Aag). This film was also the debut for the story writer Inder Raj Anand. The first Lata Mangeshkar-Geeta Dutt duet Har shai pe jawani hai appeared in Majboor, composed by Ghulam Haider. The first Mukesh-Lata Mangeshkar duet also came in this year in this film and Anokha Pyar. This was the debut year of Khayyam, who gave music of Heer Ranjha with Vermaji and Aziz Khan.

Lata Mangeshkar sang for the first time with Shamshad Begum and Mohantara in Khidki, composed by C Ramchandra, Khushiyan manayein kyun na hum. The first song of Surinder Kaur in Hindi films Itane door hain huzoor kaise was in Pyar Ki Jeet. Padmini debuted with Kalpana of Uday Shankar. A landmark film for choreography, it was said to be a model for the dream sequence of Awara and many later films.

S Mohinder debuted as a music director with Sehra. He also sang a song in the film, Ae dil uda ke. It featured actor-singer pair Arun Ahuja and his wife Nirmala (parents of Govinda). Nirmala Devi later became a well-known classical singer after retirement from films in 1959. Nirmala Devi had debuted in Savera (1942)

Jaan Nisar Akhtar (Javed Akhtar’s father) wrote lyrics for films for the first time in Shikaayat. Sahir Ludhiyanavi’s debut was also in the year with Badal rahi hai zindagi in Azadi Ki Raah Par. Snehal Bhatkar debuted in Suhagraat as music director. This film also marked the debut of Bharat Bhushan and Geeta Bali.

Trivia

Five songs of Meena Kapoor in Anokha Pyar were recorded in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar, as Meena Kapoor became ill during recording. This gave a tremendous break for the former, giving rise to controversy whether Lata Mangeshkar should be given credit for these songs.

Leela Chitnis played mother for the first time in Shaheed. Rafi appeared in the song Watan ki raah mein watan ke naujawan shaheed ho as a flag bearer.

Amribai Karnataki gave music in Shahnaz, in which she sand at least nine songs, including duets.

Vidya Nath Seth, who was mentioned by Rafi as one of the three singers who inspired him, sang five songs in the film Rooplekha, his only film songs. SoY’s sixth anniversary post was dedicated to him. MDs were Robi Roychowdhury, Pt Amarnath and SD Batish. Seth himself composed one of the songs.

MEMORABLE SONGS

Aag: Music Ram Ganguly
1. Kahin ka deepak kahin ki baati – Shalesh & Shamshad Begum (lyrics Saraswati Kumar ‘Deepak’)
2. Zinda hun is tarah ki gham-e-zindagi nahi – Mukesh (lyrics Bahzad Lakhanavi)
3. Raat ko ji chamke taare – Mukesh & Shamshad Begum (lyrics Majrooh Sultanpuri)
4. Na aankhon mein aansoo na hotho pe haye – Shamshad Begum (lyrics Bahzad Lakhanavi)
5. Kaahe koel shor machaye re – Shamshad Begum (lyrics Bahzad Lakhanavi)
6. Dil toot gaya ji chhoot gaya – Shamshad Begum (lyrics Bahzad Lakhanavi)
Aaj Ki Raat: Lyrics Rajendra Krishna; Music Husnlal-Bhagatram
7. Saath tumhara choot gaya dil toot gaya jiyun kiske sahaare – Suraiya
8. Pyar ki shama ko taqder bujhati kyun hai – GM Durrani
Actress: Music Shyam Sundar
9. Hello Hello Gentleman, Milaate kyun nahi humse nain – Lata Mangeshkar & Shamshad Begum (lyrics Raja Mehdi Ali Khan)
10. Hum apne dil ka fasana unhein suna na sake – Rafi (lyrics Nakhshab)
11. Ae dil meri aahon mein itna to asar aye – Rafi (lyrics Nakhshab)
Adalat: Music Datta Davjekar
12. Do vida do pran mujhko – Rafi (lyrics Mahipal)
Anjangarh: Music RC Boral
13. Sansar ke adhar daya hum pe dikhao – Pankaj Mullick & Utpala Sen
Anjuman: Lyrics Majrooh Sultanpuri; Music Bulo C Rani
14. Kaise bataaun unse dil ko pyar kyun hai – Mukesh and Shamshad Begum
Anokha Pyar: Music Anil Biswas
15. Mere phoolon mein chhipi hai jawani – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Bahzad Lakhanavi)
16. Yaad rakhna chaand taaro is suhani raat ko – Lata Mangeshkar (lyric Zia Sarhadi)
17. Mere liye wo gham-e-intezaar chhod gaye – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Bahzad Lakhanavi)
18. Jeevan sapna toot tagya – Lata Mangeshkar/Mukesh (lyrics Zia Sarhadi)
19. Bhola bhala ri balam mora balma na mane – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Zia Sarhadi)
20. Ab yaad na kar bhool ja ae dil wo fasana – Mukesh & Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Sams Lakhanavi)
Anokhi Ada: Lyrics Shakeel Badayuni; Music Naushad
21. Manzil ki dhun mein jhoomte gaate chale chalo – Mukesh
22. Nazar mil gayi jaane kiski nazar se – Shamshad Begum
23. Ye pyar ki baatein ye safar bhool na jana – Mukesh
24. Bhool gaye kyon de ke sahara – Mukesh & Lata Mangeshkar
25. Kyun unhe dil diya – Surendra & Shamshad Begum
26. Kaahe jiya dole ho kaha nahi jaaye – Uma Devi
27. Jale na kyun parwana – Surendra (Lyrics Anjum Pilibhiti)
28. Ho aaj kahin ja ke nazar takrayi – Shamshad Begum
29. Kabhi dil di se takrata to hoga – Mukesh
30. Dil ko laga ke humne kuchh bi na paya – Uma Devi
31. Bhoolnewale yaad na aa – Mukesh
Chaand Sitaare: Lyrics IC Kapoor; Music Premnath
32. Kaali ghataayein hain, thandi hawaayein, mast fizayein – Mukesh
Chandralekha: Lyrics Pt Indra, Bharat Vyas; Music S Rajeshwar Rao
33. Maai ri main to Madhuban mein nirakh liyo Nandla – Uma Devi
34. Nadiya kinaare Ram bagiya mein – Bharat Vyas (lyrics Pt Indra)
35. Chaand mera kyun door khada sharmaaye – Uma Devi (lyrics Pt Indra)
36. Sajna aa ja re, O sajna ye kya kiya – Uma Devi (lyrics Pt Indra)
Chunariya: Lyrics Mulkraj Bhakhri; Music Hansraj Bahal
37. Dil-e-nashad ko jeene ki hasrat ho gayi tumse – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics BR Sharma)
Dukhiyari: Lyrics FM Qaiser; Music Gyan Dutt
38. Jab dil na pahlu mein to jeene ka maza kya – Surendra
Gajre: Lyrics Gopal Singh ‘Nepali’; Music Anil Biswas
39. Door papia bola – Suraiya
40. Baras baras badli bhi bikhar gayi – Lata Mangeshkar
41. Ghar yahan basane aye the – Lata Mangeshkar
Ghar Ki Izzat: Lyircs Ishwar Chandra Kapoor; Music Pt Govind Ram
42. Bahut betakalluf huye ja rahe hain, jo mehman ban kar aye hain – Shamshad Begum & GM Durrani (lyrics IC Kapoor)
43. Ae dard zara dum le karwat to badalne de – Amirbai Karnataki (played on radio, originally from Zamana 1938)
44. Taaron ki toliyo pe hai kaisa ye nikhar – GM Durrani & Shamshad Begum
Gopinath: Music Neenu Mazumdar
45. Ayi gori Radhika Brij mein bal khati – Meena Kapoor & Neenu Mazumdar
Grihasthi: Lyrics Wahid Qureshi, Shakeel Badayuni; Music Ghulam Mohammad
46. Wah ri duniya wah re zamaane – Shamshad Begum (lyrics Wahid Qureshi)
47. Tere naaz uthane ko ji chahta hai – Mukesh & Shamshad Begum
Kajal: Lyrics DN Madhok, Shakeel Badayuni; Music Ghulam Mohammad
48. Din pe din beete jayein, jaanewale na ayein main kya karun – Suraiya
49. Dil ke chaman par aa hi gayi bahar – Ram Kamlani, Hamida Bano & Uma Devi
Khidki: Lyirics PL Santoshi; Music C Ramchandra
50. Aji khushiyan manaayein kyun na hum jalnewale jala karein – Chitalkar, Rafi & GM Sajan/ Shamshad Begum, Mohantara, Lata Mangeshkar
51. Badi badi paati likhwaiya – Shamshad Begum
52. Ae ho sanwariya jo jao bakjariya..jai bolo Mahtama Gandhi ki – Lalita Deulkar
Lakhpati: Lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi, Music
53. Kisko haal sunaaun tuk rooth gaye Giridhari – Meena Kapoor
Majboor: Lyrics Nazim Panipatu; Music Ghulam Haider
54. Ab darne ki koi baat nahi angrezi chhora chala gaya – Mukesh & Lata Mangeshkar
55. Dil mera toda mujhe kahin ka na chhoda tere pyar ne – Lata Mangeshkar
Mela: Lyrics Shakeel Badayuni; Music Naushad
56. Dharti ko akash pukare – Mukesh & Shamshad Begum
57. Ye zindagi ke mele – Rafi
58. Ayi sawan ritu ayi – Mukesh & Shamshad Begum
59. Main bhanwra tu hai phool – Mukesh & Shamshad Begum
60. Pardes balam tum jaaoge – Shamshad Begum
61. Gharibon par jo hoti hai…Gham ka fasana kisko sunaaun – Shamshad Begum
62. Mohan ki muraliya baaje – Shamshad Begum
63. Gaaye ja geet milan ke – Mukesh
64. Phir aah dil se nikali tapka lahu jigar se – Zohrabai Ambalewali
65. Mera dil todnewale – Mukesh & Shamshad Begum
66. Taqdeer bani banker bigadi – Shamshad Begum
67. Dharti ko akash pukare – Shamshad Begum
Mera Munna: Lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi; Music C Ramchandra
68. Na na na, Tum humpe hanso na piya hum pe hanso na – Mukesh & Lata Mangeshkar
Meri Kahani: Music Data Korgaanvkar
69. Dil ki duniya mein chupke chupke dekho dekho sajan tum na ana – Surendra & Geeta Dutt (lyrics Zia Sarhadi)
70. Dil ko tuumhari yaad ne aakar hila diya – Surendra (lyrics Anjum Pilibhiti)
Naao: Lyrics DN Madhok; Music Ryan Dutt
71. Ek nazar wo yaad hai unki jisne dil par waar kiya– Surinder Kaur
Nadiya Ke Paar: Lyrics Moti BA.; Music C Ramchandra
72. Kathwa ke naiya banaihe re malahwa – Chitalkar, Lalita Deulkar, P Chandar, SL Puri
73. Nanhi si jaan mein haijawani ka sitam kyon…Is liye ki zindagi mein pyar kiya jaye – Rafi & Shamshad Begum
74. Bajariya mein ayiho dagariya mein ayiho – Chitalkar & Lalita Deulkar
75. More raja ho le chal nadiya ke paar – Rafi & Lalita Deulkar
76. Dil kahu ko deo na, aankh karo na chaar..maar gayo re more dil pe katari – Chitalkar & Shamshad Begum
77. O gori O chhori kahan chali – Chitalkar & Lata Mangeshkar
78. Ankhiyan mila ke ankhiyan rowein din ratiyan – Surinder Kaur
Pugree: Lyrics Shakeel Badayuni, Rajendra Krishna; Music Ghulam Mohammad
79. Ek teer chalanewale ne dil loot liya – Mukesh & Sitara (Kanpuri)
80. Ayi Diwali deep jala ja O matwale sajna – Sitara Kanpuri & Shamshad Begum
81. O pardesi yaad mein tori pal pal manwa roye – Shamshad Begum
Pyar Ki Jeet: Lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi, Rajendra Krishna; music Husnlal-Bhagatram
82. Tere naino ne chori kiya – Suraiya
83. O door janewle wada na bhool jana – Suraiya
84. Ek dil ke tukde hazar huye koi yahan gira koi wahan gira – Rafi
Roop Rekha: Music Ravi Roychaudhary, Pt Amranath, Vidyanath Seth & SD Batish
85. O gori kaahe preet kare – Vidyanatah Seth
Shaheed: Music Ghulam Haider
86. Bachpan ki yaad dheere dheere pyar ban gayi – Laita Deulkar (lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi)
87. Taqdeer ki aandhi..Hum kahna aur tum kahan – Surinder Kaur (lyrics Raja Mehdi Ali Khan)
88. Watan ki raah mein wata ke naujawan shahed ho – Rafi & Khan Mastana (Raja Mehdi Ali Khan)
89. Ana hai to aa jaao, gar ab bhi na aaoge – Surinder Kaur (lyrics J Nakhshab)
90. Badnam na ho jaye mohabbat ka fasana – Surinder Kaur (lyrics Qamar Jalabadi)
Shahnaz: Music Amirbai Karnataki
91. Kuchh kah na sake kuchh kah bhi gaye – Amirbai Karnataki (lyrics Akhtar Pilibhiti)
92. Ae dil tujhi ko neend na ayi tamam raat – Rafi (lyrics Akhtar Pilibhiti)
Shakti: lyrics Asad Zafri, Music Ram Prasad & Azam Beg
93. Kaali ghatao aao – Suraiya
94. Meri haweli hai paas raja chale ayiye – Mohantara & Lalita Deulkar
Shikayat: Music Rashid Atre
95. Wo jo hummein tum me qaraar that tumhein yaad ho ki a yaad ho – Kalyani, Manik Dadarkar (lyrics ‘Momin’)
Shri Rambhakt Hanuman: Music SN Tripathi
96. Beet chali barkha ritu Seete sudhi na mili tumhari – Mukesh (lyrics BD Mishra)
Suhagraat: Lyrics Kidar Sharma; Music Snehal
Lakhi babul more kaahe ko dini bides – Mukesh (lyrics Amir Khusro)
Tigress: Lyrics MS Hunar; Music Chitragupta
97. Prem ke taange pe ud jaaun – Unknown female singer & Unknown male singer
Toote Taare: Music Nashad
98. Raja Mohe le chal tu Dilli ki sair ko – Mukesh & Geeta Dutt
Veena: Music Anil Biswas
99. Wo teekhi nazron se mere dil par – Mukesh (lyrics Prem Dehalvi)
100. Mere sapnon ki rani re – Mukesh (lyrics Pt Narendra Sharma)
101. Dardmandon ka jahan mein aasra koi nahi – Amirbai Karnataki (lyrics Swami Ramanand)
102. Koi Shyam rang koi gori – Chitalkar (lyrics Pt Narendra Sharma)
Vidya: Music SD Burman
103. Pyar ban ke mujh pe chha gaya koi chha gaya re – Lalita Deulkar (lyricsRaja Mehdi Ali Khan)
104. Meri muniyan ki ankhiyan mein tu aa ja – Amirbai Karnataki (lyrics YN Joshi)
105. Laayi khushi ki duniya – Mukesh & Suraiya (Anjum Pilibhiti)
106. Jhoom rahi jhoom rahi khushiyon ki naav aaj – Suraiya (YN Joshi)
107. Kise maaloom tha do din mein sawan beet jayega – Suraiya (Shanti Swaroop ‘Madhukar’)
108. Bahe na kabhi nain se neer – Mukesh (YN Joshi)
109. Kinare kinare chale jayenge – Suraiya (YN Joshi)
Ziddi: Music Khemchand Prakash
110. Jadoo kar gaye kisi ke naina – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Prem Dhavan)
Ye kaun aya re ye kar ke solah singaar – Kishore Kumar & Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Prem Dhawan)
111. Chanda re ja re ja re – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Prem Dhawan)
112. Tujhe O bewafa hum zindagi ka aasra samjhe – Lata Mangeshkar (lyrics Raja Mehdi Ali Khan)
113. Marne ki duaayein kyun maangun jeene ki tamanna kaun kare – Kishore Kumar (lyrics Prof. Jazbi)
114. Chali pi ko milan ban than ke dulhan – Shamshad Begum (lyrics Prem Dhawan)

Special songs

One major gain of doing the yearwise review is discovery of some very unique songs which do not fit in any category. Since the Vintage Era would show up more unknowns than knowns, I would be presenting such special songs in each category, too. Here are the ‘Special songs’ with a personality.

1. Ayi gori Radhika Brij mein balkhate Neenu Mazumdar and Meena Kapoor from Gopinath, lyrics Surdas, music Neenu Mazumdar

Satyam Shivam Sundaram was a blockbuster of its time, with music by Laxmikant-Pyarelal earning high praise.   This affirmed Shankar-Jaikishan’s dethronement from RK camp, which had started from Bobby. A superhit song from the film was Yashomati maiya se bole Nandlala. Here is the song it was ‘inspired’ from.

2. Drum dance from Chandralekha

Gemini Pictures’ Chandralekha directed by SS Vasan was a bi-lingual blockbuster (Hindi and Tamil).  It was awesome for its epic scale and lavish sets, earning Vasan the epithet of Cecille B. DeMille of India.  A very famous scene was the drum-dance mounted on a huge scale.  The drums were like Trojan Horses, disgorging soldiers as the dance ended, to overthrow the villainous usurper of the throne.

3. Suno suno ae duniyawalo Bapu ki ye amar kahani (NFS) by Rafi, lyrics Rajendra Krishna, music Husnlal-Bhagatram

It is always a good time to remember Gandhiji.  We are aware of biographical  novels and films. Here is a tribute which gives a comprehensive capsule of his life history.  The song starts with a joyous beat, but it becomes sombre as it reaches the end towards his assassination. Some sites mention it as a film song from a film called, Bapu Ki Ye Amar Kahani, but probably that is not correct.

4. Ae ho sanwariya jo jaao bajariya laiho chunariya khadi ki, Jai bolo Mahatma Gandhi ki by Lailta Deulkar from Khidki, lyrics PL Santoshi, music C Ramchandra

While on Gandhi, here is a fun song composed by the master of the genre, C Ramchandra.  The lady asks her man that he should bring for her khadi chunri from the market, and, in the spirit of the times, she also invokes Jai bolo Mahtama Gandhi ki.  There is also an uncredited  male voice speaking a few words, which could very well be C Ramchnadra himself.

5. Taqdeer ne hansa ke humein phir rula diya by Amirbai Karnataki from Shahnaz (1948), lyrics Dukhi Premnagri, music Amirbai Karnataki

In perhaps the only instance of Amirbai Karnataki giving music in a film, she also sang a good number of songs in it. She was one of the leading vintage era singers.  Let us see how she fares as a music director.

6. Ae dil uda ke le chal makhmool fizaaon mein by S Mohinder from Sehra (1948), lyrics Surjeet Sethi, music S Mohinder

We now have reverse of the above: music director singing a song.  S Mohinder is of Guzra hua zamana hafiz khuda tumhara fame.  He sings this tuneful song in his debut film as a music director.

7. Nadiya kinare Ram bagiya mein by Bharat Vyas from Chandralekha (1948), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music R Rajeshwar Rao and MD Parthasarathy

The year seems to have had a large number of role-changing. After singer becoming a music director and a music director turning a singer, here is the lyricist Bharat Vyas singing one of the best ever bullock-cart songs.

8. Wo jo hum mei tum mein qaraar that tumhe yaad ho na yaad ho by Kalyani and Manik Dadarkar from Shikayat (1948), lyrics Momin, music Rashid Atre

We know it as an iconic Begum Akhtar ghazal. This one is in qawwali style. Extremely enjoyable, it takes us back to the iconic qawwali Aahein na bharin shikawe na kiye.

9. Di ke chaman mein aa hi gayi bahar..Taqdeer ne to mujhko tumhara bana diya by Ram Kamlani, Uma Devi & Hamida Bano from Kajal, lyrics Shakeel Badayuni, music Ghulam Mohammad

Continuing in the qawwali mood, let us enjoy this unheard qawwali, and celebrate the joy of discovering the vintage era.

10. Prem ke taange pe main ud jaaun by unknown singers from Tigress, lyrics MC Hunar, music Chitragupta

I end this discovery trip with a wonderful parody song, composed by one of the underrated, but highly talented composers, Chitragupta. You would do parody of something which is important. We chuckle at the harmles mauling of our favourites, and also marvel at the creativity. Just because the underlying tune is good, it is not necessary that its parody would also gain acceptance. The underlying songs parodied are Udankhatole par ud jaaun, Yahan badla wafa ka bewafaai ke siwa kya hai, Aana meri jaan meri jaan Sunday ke Sunday, Ankhiyan mila ke jiya bharma ke chale nahi jana and Jawani ki rail chali jaaye re. That makes two by Naushad and two by C Ramchandra (and one by Firoz Nzami), establishing who the two titans during that period were.

There are endless such gems in the year, some of which I would cover in category-wise wrap ups.  Now is the time to present it before the learned readers for their comments and nominations for:

And the winners are?

Best male playback singer
Best female playback singer
Best duets
Best music director

Acknowledgements:
1. Surjit Singh’s site has some very useful information in 3-part articles.

http://films.hindi-movies-songs.com/articles/1948-1.html

http://films.hindi-movies-songs.com/articles/1948-2.html

http://films.hindi-movies-songs.com/articles/1948-3.html

2. Atul Song A Day is now a one-stop place for getting most of the songs with convenient navigation year-wise (as also music director-wise etc.).
3. Hindi Film Geet Kosh: This monumental work by a single individual Har Mandir Singh ‘Hamraz’ has converted speculation into data.  The knowledge about film music can be divided into pre-HFGK and post-HFGK era.
4. YouTube: We can’t thank the nameless Good Samaritans enough for bringing hidden gems in the public domain.

{ 69 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Arunkumar Deshmukh March 22, 2017 at 5:08 am

No 57 song- Ye zindgi ke Mele- is by Rafi, not Mukesh.

2 D P Rangan March 22, 2017 at 5:55 am

AKji
Once again you have unfurled another battle ground for people to clash. I expect many more additions to what you have proposed above. Let me begin the proceedings with a song of Lata Mangeshkar from the film Hamari Kahani (1948). This is the only song available in you tube and no further details.

Pritam se jake kahate (lyrist Banwasi)
https://youtu.be/i7hctmLcrZs

3 AK March 22, 2017 at 7:03 am

Arunji,
Thanks a lot for the correction.

DP Rangan,
I had not heard Preetam se ja ke kahte before. Nice song, but Lata Mangeshkar seems to be tentative.

4 N Venkataraman March 22, 2017 at 9:18 am

Congratulations AKji for presenting an exhaustive and excellent curtain raiser, for the 6th SoY Awards. This annual review commenced by you, in response to suggestions by Vaishampayan and AM in 2012, has become very popular over the years. Vaishampayan and AM have dropped off, but you have pursued this series with great passion and vigour.

Gave a quick reading. Once again you have done a great job. I would largely depend on your list for my final selection. Would listen to the songs at leisure and respond. It seems the number of songs are less in comparison to the previous three years. The reason may be that we are into the vintage era or is it due to the Lata Mangeshkar’s reduced presence!

5 AK March 22, 2017 at 9:28 am

Venkataramanji,
Thanks a lot for your initial remarks and compliments. The year 1949 is the watershed year which heralded the Lata Mangeshkar era. Therefore, as we go back her reduced presence becomes an important factor. Besides, vintage era itself indicates some lack of familiarity. As I have mentioned several of great male playback singers made their presence felt in later years. We would see progressively less number of songs as we go back.

P.S. KR Vaishmpayan did write to me off and on saying that he was following the blog, but was too busy in his prefessional work. AM seems to have truly gone off, unless he too is seeing from somewhere the fruits of his seed.

6 Mahesh March 22, 2017 at 10:12 am

AK ji,

Since last couple of days , I had been listening to this song repeatedly and now comes this post. Many thanks .

https://youtu.be/vAbELw18VJg

I am very fond of this solo of Rafi saab as well.

https://youtu.be/p02W5u0w2H4

Will come back with more.

7 AK March 22, 2017 at 10:57 am

Mahesh,
Thanks a lot for these additions, which were missesd by me, though I have included other songs from these films. I especially liked the Mukesh song from Anjuman.

8 Arunkumar Deshmukh March 22, 2017 at 11:07 am

Very difficult to choose from so many Gems.
My choices are:

1. Best Male Playback singer- a. Mohd. Rafi
song- Ye zindagi ke mele
Film- Mela-48
MD- Naushad

b. Mukesh
song- Zinda hoon iss tarah
Film- Aag-48
MD- Ram Ganguli
2. Best Female Playback singer
Lata Mangeshkar
a. song-Chanda re ja re ja re
Film- Ziddi-48
MD- Khemchand Prakash
b. Song-Yaad rakhna chaand taaron
Film- Anokha Pyar-48
MD- Anil Biswas
3.Best Duet- Kyun unhe dil diya
Surendra-Shamshad begum
Film-Anokhi Adaa-48
MD- Naushad
4.Best MD- Naushad (Mela/Anokhi Adaa)

-AD

9 Keshav March 22, 2017 at 12:14 pm

Superb compilation bravo for your great detailed efforts the results shows
thank you again

10 AK March 22, 2017 at 2:12 pm

Arunji,
You are as usual first off the block with unambiguous choices. Your choice would surely get strong endorsement.

11 AK March 22, 2017 at 2:13 pm

Keshav,
Welcome to SoY and thanks a lot for your appreciation.

12 ksbhatia March 22, 2017 at 7:33 pm

AK ji ,

My salute to your beautiful article . Its like a semester paper for me and I love to go thru at my own pace ; loving each song and moment of my personal history thru them. With best of songs already listed it will not be difficult to choose the better among the best.

Inclusion of the great drum dance number from Chandralekha is a welcome addition . At least I do like such situations in movies which are part of the story telling . Of course it is most enjoyed when the composition and chrorography takes the lead as good as the dancers. Here I will recall a beautiful dance number by Khemchand Prakash in Mahal which is a treat for listeners .

Naushad perfected such dance numbers and gave many such numbers as per demand of the script or situation ; sometime using them as symbolic representation . In the current scenerio I am recalling a dance number from the film Mela 1948 , which is my as fav.as all other songs . Watch the dance number from 45.20 to 48.55 and enjoy the melody.

Dance number……Mela……Naushad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dxKcz96qrc

quit

13 AK March 22, 2017 at 11:39 pm

KS Bhatiaji,
Thanks a lot for your generous words. I find almost all MDs composed great dance numbers. Even the less-heralded Chitragupt composed as good as any stalwart.

14 Ashok M Vaishnav March 23, 2017 at 12:06 pm

We indeed enter more of an unknown terrain as we keep up our journey backwards.

Apart for the very meticulous Film Historians, it is the crowd-funding efforts of netizens that have made the Vintage Era of Hindi Films so much accessible to us. “Best songs of year” has become a most dependable platform to bring all these works on one page in a structured way.

This curtain raiser has provided so much fodder, that absorbing so much itself will take some before we I commence my micro-review journey for the year.

15 Ashwin Bhandarkar March 26, 2017 at 4:50 am

Manik Dadarkar (Song # 9) was the maiden name of Manik Varma, the famous exponent of Hindustani classical music, Marathi bhavgeet and natyasangeet., before she married the poet, Amar Varma. Thanks to this post, I now know that she sang for Hindi films as well. Some Googling yielded the following page, which shows that she sang for 3 Hindi films, other than ‘Shikayat’, in 1948:

http://www.hindigeetmala.net/singer/manik_dadarkar.php

For those who do not know this, the actresses, Bharati Acharekar and Vandana Gupte, and the singer, Rani Varma, are her daughters.

16 Ashwin Bhandarkar March 26, 2017 at 4:51 am

Please read ‘#8’ in place of ‘#9’ in my comment above.

17 peddadu March 26, 2017 at 10:02 am

AKji,
A small correction regarding song no.86.
The song given is from Roop Rekha (1948), and not Roop Lekha(1949) as mentioned. Roop Lekha had music by Sajjad, Khan Mastana and Nisar Bazmi, with beautiful songs sung by Rafi, Uma Devi, Surender Kaur, Sulochana Kadam ad Nisar Bazmi himself.

18 Arunkumar Deshmukh March 27, 2017 at 1:42 pm

AK ji,

Peddadu ji talking about song No. 85, I suppose.

-AD

19 Ashok Kumar Tyagi March 27, 2017 at 2:06 pm

AK ji,
A lovely article.
Vintage era songs carry a special fascination. This cannot be easily fathomed by people born after, say, 1960.
I was born in 1951 and my memory of childhood tells that the ladies in the household often sang Lata/Suraiya/Shamshad songs which were popular in late ninteen-forties.
Thanks

20 Mahesh March 28, 2017 at 7:27 am

Tributes to S N Tripathi on his death anniversary today 28th March.

Here is one more song from Shri Ram Bhakat Hanuman in which the composer SNP also played the role of Hanuman.

https://youtu.be/FZw-6ZVzXVA

A song not commonly heard, but then what a gem it is.

21 AK March 28, 2017 at 5:12 pm

Ashwin,
I did not these details about Manik Verma. Thanks a lot. Interestingly, all the three films she sang for came in 1948.

Peddadu, Arunji
Thanks for the correction.

Tyagiji,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation.
Mahesh,
Hey kahg mrig hey madhuakar shreni is a beautiful song. I have included another Mukesh song from Shri Rambhakta Hanuman: Beet chali barkha ritu Seete, but Hey khag mrig too is equally good. Thanks a lot for adding it.

22 ksbhatia March 28, 2017 at 6:58 pm

AK ji ;

Choosing best among the listed 1948 songs initially appeared simpler ; but it takes much time as we go deeper in analysis . To cover the wide variety of songs of the singers one has to look at them in a way …..

[A] when you were young and heard the songs over radio for quite a number of times , not knowing the quality of songs in store beyond 1948 …..and…
[B] viewing them , as of now , as retrospective ; considering the melodies missed during our youth days .

For Best Singer …Male…my choice is among….

For [A]……1. Kabhi dil dil se takrayaa to hota……Mukesh…..Anokhi Ada
2.Yeh zindgi ke mele……Rafi…..Mela
For [B]……1. Bhul ne wale yaad na aa….Mukesh…Anokhi Ada
2.Gaaye ja geet milan ke……Mukesh….Mela
3.Ek dil ke tukre hazar huye…..Rafi….Pyar ki Jeet
4. Jaale na kyun parwana….Surendra….Anokhi Ada

My vote goes to Rafi for ….Yeh zindgi ke mele .

…..will continue for the rest of the catagories.

23 Arunkumar Deshmukh March 29, 2017 at 8:33 am

Ashwin ji (#15) and AK ji (# 21),

Manik Verma sang 17 songs in 13 Hindi films- Hum ek hain-46,Gokul-46,Seedha Raasta-47,Aage Badho-47,Shikayat-48,Seeta Swayamvar-48,Sant Tukaram-48,Anjana-48,Maya Bazar-49,Shrikrishna Satyabhama-51,Shiv Leela-52,Sandesh-52 and kavi Sammelan-72.
Poet Amar Verma was also an actor,Director and film Lyricist.

-AD

24 AK March 29, 2017 at 11:28 am

Arunji,
This is awesome. I sometimes doubt if Arunkumar Deshmukh is a real person or a Phantom like a 1 TB hard disk programmed to produce/retrieve information on press of a button.

25 Ashwin Bhandarkar March 29, 2017 at 5:36 pm

Thanks for the info, Arunji!

26 ksbhatia March 29, 2017 at 6:20 pm

Thanks Arunkumar Deshmukh ji for the very useful information . We surely will listen to Manik Verma ‘s songs to know the hidden talented singers.

AK ji , I have a feeling that the Male singer of the funny duet song from Tigress ……prem ke taange pe….is by Ram Kamlani who also sang a funny song in Ghar ki Izzat. The song is…..Bane hain hum to ghar zawai…..picturised on Gope.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5DdqPVVhx8

27 D P Rangan March 30, 2017 at 2:41 am

AKji

How about conferring a title as under for Arunkumarji.

Encyclopaedia Songofyorica

28 AK March 30, 2017 at 4:42 am

Any title would be less than him

29 gaddeswarup March 30, 2017 at 9:57 am

More by what I remember than by examining the whole collection:
Best male playback singer: Mukesh, Gayeja geet , Mela
Best female playback singer: Greta Dutt, O..O Ban Ke Azad Panchhi, Hua Savera
Best duets:45. Ayi gori Radhika Brij mein bal khati – Meena Kapoor & Neenu Mazumdar
Best music director: Naushad, Mela

30 Shalan Lal March 30, 2017 at 10:13 am

AK

AK
Sheer hard work and intelligent conclusions are the hall marks of this article!

At first I wondered why in thefirst place AK wanted to put floodlight on the year 1948 that came in between 1947 and 1949 which most of us agreed was a turning point in the history of filmy music?

In a way I thought and still think the year 1948 is a year musically mutes and not moving.

But then there are certain films caused AK tomake us notice the year 1948. The two films “Aag and Mela” otherwise would not have important suddenly became musically noticeable.

“Aag” failed at the Box office and was going to be oblivion and Mela was not a very original story of a young girl married off by a wicked person. This kind of story line was handled by Shantram previously and he was good at it. This time Naushad was thinking of making quick buck and leave for Pakistan.

But almost all songs from Mela became very famous and Dilip K did very good acting and sang out good songs. The song “Yeh Zindagi Ke Mele” thoughnot sung by DK became a runaway success.

In “Aag” Jhinda Huwe Is Tarah..” became very popular and to date is very popular.

So drawing attentions on other songs and films and ethos becem interesting and AK’s labour if not the 12 Labours of Hercules was well paid off.

This is a very neat and polished article after oog research.

Shalan Lal

31 AK March 30, 2017 at 2:10 pm

Shalan Lal,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. We all agree that the year 1949 has been a major turning point in the history of Hindi film music. Since I am proceeding chronologically backwards, 1948 came next. You seem to suggest that this year is not musically noteworthy. I would wait till we have further discussions. As you are aware, I have been writing a number of categorywise Wrap Ups, and a final Wrap Up. I would hold my judgment till then.

32 Manoj March 31, 2017 at 2:00 am

Rafiji sang ” Suno suno ay duniyawalon….” from his heart and made it immortal. Even in 1948 this song gave me some soothing effect to my sad heart.

33 Shalan Lal March 31, 2017 at 9:59 am

My Choice for the Winners:

Best male playback singer is Kishore Kumar for the film Ziddi and in particular for the song “Marane Duaen Quen Mangu?

Best female playback singer is Samshad Beghum for over all performances in various songs and in particular for the song in Mela “Gharibon par jo hoti hai…Gham ka fasana kisko sunaaun ” and also for thesong in thefilm Aag “Kaahe koel shor machaye re ”

Best duets: “Taaron ki toliyo pe hai kaisa ye nikhar – GM Durrani & Shamshad Begum” From Ghar Ki Izzat

Shalan Lal

Best music director C.Ramchandra for the film “Khidki”

34 Shalan Lal March 31, 2017 at 10:06 am

KSB @ 26

Trivia

Ram Kamlani was the younger brother of Gop (Kamlani). He sang songs fro his brother in thefilm Arzoo and other as well.

Shalan

35 ksbhatia March 31, 2017 at 5:52 pm

Ms. Shalan Lal ;

Thanks for the information on Ram Kamlani. As a curious listeners I was just listening to his other comedy song of the 50s …..suno bajurgon ka kahena , beta single single rehna ……from Maya Bazar .

36 ksbhatia March 31, 2017 at 6:24 pm

AK ji ;

My list for Best Female Singer of the 1948 movie songs is as follows ….

1. Kahe koyal shor macchhaiye……Shamshad…..Aag

2.Mohan ki bansooriya baaje…..Shamshad……Mela

3.Phir aha dil se nikli tapka lahu zigar se…..Zohrabai…..Mela

4. Tere nainon ne chori kiya…..Suraiya…..Pyar ki Jeet

5.Chanda re ja re ja re……Lata….Ziddi

My vote for best female singer is ….Zohrabai….for its unique redention complementing symbolically to the demand of the story and screenplay . In her personal achievements , I think this was her last hit song ; as we all know the musical style and journey got a top gear acceleration in 1949 onwards.

37 ksbhatia March 31, 2017 at 6:49 pm

AK ji ;

In continuation to above , here are some duets which I have liked during my childhood, youth days and of now as well…..

1.Kyun unhe dil diya…..Surendra , Shamshad….Anokhi Ada

2. Main Bhanwara tu hai phool…..Mukesh, Shamshad….Mela

3.Laayi khushi ki duniya……Mukesh, Suraiya……Vidya

Out of these three duets my vote goes to Mukesh and Shamshad for ….Main bhanwara tu hai phool……from Mela.

My selection for Best Music Director goes to Naushad for Mela and Anokhi Ada .

My analysis comes to an end for 1948 songs . Looking forward to the choices of my friends .

38 AK April 1, 2017 at 12:21 am

Shalan,
Shamshad Begum indeed had many excellent songs in the year. But your other choices are very off beat.

39 Ahalan Lal April 2, 2017 at 12:59 pm

AK @ 38

Yes they seemd to be “off beat”.

But others like Rafi, Lata etc have proved themsleves just by appearing that they are made of gold.

So what is the use of chasing them?

Durnai proved himself in Prabhat’s ” Meri Kahani” and did the apperance as well like Talat Muhammad in many films. he was also a music director

Khidki was unique comically and musically and created a big roit all through the year. So C.Ramchandra deserved his honour.

Well that is my theory.

Shalan

40 AK April 2, 2017 at 1:20 pm

Shalan,
I won’t enter into argument on this now. Just to observe that you have changed your name, so do we call you ‘Shalan’ or ‘Ahalan’?

41 Shalan Lal April 4, 2017 at 10:34 am

“Dyslexia”! is showing off its funny side.

But the theory is why walk the trodden road. I like to take the one which is not much trodden or never thought of.

Shalan

42 mumbaikar8 April 4, 2017 at 12:43 pm

AK,
1948 has more unknowns than known. Will need some time to comprehend.
But one category did not take more time therefore I begin with that one.
Music Director.
One the biggest flop of the year 1948 Aag but its music after 69 years is still as refreshing and popular. The other movie that I can recollect is Kagaz ke phool. MD was great SDB.
What would have happened if Aag was hit?
“वक़्त से पहले किस्मत से ज़्यादा किसी को मिला है न किसी को मिलेंगे” it did not happen.
My music director of the year is Ram Ganguly for Aag.

43 AK April 5, 2017 at 12:29 am

Mumbaikar8,
I am waiting for your detailed comments. But your choice too of MD is off beat.

44 Shalan Lal April 6, 2017 at 11:05 am

ksbhatia @ 35

Your eye for catching comic songs in that period is very welcoming. There are so many comic songs- in lyrics, words, sounds and songs- constructions. The comic songs have been done by hereos, heroins, comic actors and many others.

Somebody should take this mamoth work and create a monumental post on it.

Shalan

45 mumbaikar8 April 7, 2017 at 12:04 pm

AK,
Year 1948 has few versions songs and twin songs while you have chosen both the songs in Lata/Mukesh Jeevan sapna toot gaya , for yaad rakhna chand taaron instead of Lata/Meena Kapoor it only Lata.

Version songs: You have picked version songs over original.
Fortunately we have videos so that there should no confusion about it.
Aag Kahin Ka Deepak Kahin Ki Baati Sailesh and Suraiya
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSax5EsKoUk&list=PL22343D5B95B1E789&index=5
In these two songs even the uploader has AK syndrome:)
Anokha Pyaar Mere Liye Wo Gham E Intezaar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8asMsJiFU9U
Ab Yaad Na Kar Bhool Ja
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMCYTE5iAPg

46 Arunkumar Deshmukh April 7, 2017 at 4:10 pm

mumbaikar8 / AK

Film Aag-48 the song ” Kahin ka deepak, kahin ki baati” ….

This film version was sung by Meena Kapoor and Sailesh mukherjee and NOT by Suraiya,as you say, as far as I know.
The record version was sung by Sailesh and Shamshad Begum.

-AD

47 AK April 7, 2017 at 4:28 pm

Mumbaikar8,
Your point is simple – that I should acknowledge Meena Kapoor as the singer of songs of Anokha Pyar. I have mentioned in my write-up that the songs were sung by Meena Kapoor in the film, but were recorded in Lata Mangeshakr’s voice. Our film songs have dual personality: one as part of the narrative embedded in the film, the other as independent popular songs disseminated through records and radio. Most of us experienced the film songs as stand alone items heard through the radio, and it was the record version that became our dominant aural experience. In that sense I regard Lata Mangeshkar as the singer of songs of Anokha Pyar. I don’t know if the uploader was suffering from ‘AK syndrome’. That is not to say that I am accepting your charge at least in this case.

48 mumbaikar8 April 7, 2017 at 5:19 pm

Arunji,
Thanks for correcting my error, sorry about it.

49 mumbaikar8 April 7, 2017 at 7:39 pm

AK,
As Venkataramanji said most of us depend upon your list for final selection.
Pre you tube era songs were associated with record and radios but now with videos available Nargis is singing the song, that makes it original and other cover version, include cover version song but why exclude original?
Meena is excluded in twin version yaad rakhana chand taron too.

I find Meena’s singing original, Lata (seems to me like Andaz) was asked to sing like Noor Jahan in version songs and like K L Saigal in Jeevan sapna toot gaya

50 mumbaikar8 April 7, 2017 at 7:42 pm

BTW AK syndrome was a joke!

51 AK April 8, 2017 at 4:28 am

Mumbaikar8,
The point is if you think Meena Kapoor’s version is better I respect it as your choice.

I knew ‘..’ was a joke. No need for smileys or clarification.

52 mumbaikar8 April 8, 2017 at 12:13 pm

AK,
“I respect it as your choice”. I am sorry, I could not say the same thing about your regard (in this post).
Your regards or choices guide our choices.

53 Mahesh April 9, 2017 at 8:25 am

@29.
gaye ja geet milan ke from Mela is a very special song.

Its the ONLY solo of the combination of Dilip Kumar, Naushad, Mukesh and Shakeel Badayuni.

PS: The words “solo” and the lyricist are important in the above assertion.

54 AK April 9, 2017 at 10:17 am

Mahesh,
If your emphasis is on lyricist and MD, songs of Anokhi Ada qualify, besides the fact that these are exceptionally good.

55 Mahesh April 9, 2017 at 10:24 am

AK ji,
I think you missed my point. I was referring to all 4 artists in unison and said its their only solo as a combo.

56 N Venkataraman May 4, 2017 at 9:20 am

Akji,
I agree with Bhatiaji. Even while confining within your list of 54 female solo songs, the selection of best 10 was not that easy. Here is my list of best female solos for the year1948.

1. Kaahe koel shor machaye re by Shamshad Begum, film Aag, lyrics Bahzad Lakhnavi, music Ram Ganguly
2. Mohan ki muraliya baaje by Shamshad Begum, film Mela, lyrics Shakeel Badayuni, music Naushad
3. Kinare kinare chale jayenge by Suraiya, film Vidya, lyrics Y N Joshi, music S D Burman
4. Tere naino ne chori kiya by Suraiya, film Pyar ki Jeet, lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi(?), music Husnlal-Bhagatram
5. Bachpan ki yaad dheere dheere pyar ban gayi by Lalita Deulkar, film Shaheed, lyrics Qamar Jalalabadi, music Ghulam Haider
6. Dardmandon ka jahan mein aasra koi nahi by Amirbai Karnataki, film Veena, lyrics Swami Ramanand, music Anil Biswas
7. Ae dard zara dum le karwat to badalne de by Amirbai Karnataki, film Ghar Ki Izzat,
8. Phir aah dil se nikali tapka lahu jigar se by Zohrabai Ambalewali, film Mela, lyrics Shakeel Badayuni, music Naushad
9. Jeevan sapna toot tagya by Lata Mangeshkar, film Anokha Pyar, lyrics Zia Sarhadi, music Anil Biswas
10. Dil-e-nashad ko jeene ki hasrat ho gayi tumse by Lata Mangeshkar, film Chunariya, lyrics B R Sharma, music Hansraj Bahal
11. Yaad rakhna chaand taaro is suhani raat ko by Lata Mangeshkar, film Anokha Pyar, lyrics Zia Sarhadi, music Anil Biswas
12. Chanda re ja re ja re by Lata Mangeshkar, film Ziddi, lyrics PremDhawan, music Khemchand Prakash

I have selected 12 songs. Song no.11, Yaad rakhna chaand taaro, sung by Meena Kapoor for the film version and song no. 7, Ae dard zara dum le karwat to badalne de originally sung for a 1938 film, may be red flagged by some readers.

And my choice for the best female singer for the year 1948 is Lata Mangeshkar for the song Chanda re ja re ja re.

57 AK May 4, 2017 at 11:55 am

Venkataramanji,
Thanks a lot for your detailed choice. This post seems to have been overtaken by subsequent posts which got more traction. Hope other readers would get back and give their choices.

58 Mahesh August 15, 2017 at 8:15 pm

https://youtu.be/hvT3r4zEsF4

Mukesh and Chorus in Jalsa 1948 under Ram Ganguly.

59 mumbaikar8 September 23, 2017 at 3:54 am

Bhatiaji,
Please do not apologize, शर्मिंदा मत करें
Sometimes comments get skipped.
I wanted to make sure you knew how I felt about this song.
I skipped your upload of Ai dil tuje neend na aayi. Later saw it when Sharmaji seconded it.
Thanks for uploading Shaheed song too.
“Ai dil tuje neend na aayi” led me to another Rafi song from Shanaaz
Listen , Venkataramanji and Arvinder Sharmaji गौर करें
How Rafi has sung अपनी differently.
I leave the adjective to you’ll
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmkiEGrKGZU

60 ksbhatia September 23, 2017 at 11:30 pm

Ms. Mumbaikar8;

Wow ! what a song . I wonder how these songs escaped from our scrutiny ; so also this movie which is less heard .

The song @ 2.00 sounds like Deedar ‘s song ….naseeb dar pe tere…..which came around 1950 i.e. two years later than Shahnaz . Nice melodies made by Amir bai . I wish she should have continued as MD for much more time .

61 mumbaikar8 September 24, 2017 at 5:54 am

Ksbhatiaji,
I had exactly the same feeling when I first heard this song, then on “loop” I heard it for half an hour that’s whenI realized how he well he has sung “apni .
In excitement I uploaded it twice!
This brilliant concept of AK motivates us to look for the hidden gems.

62 Jignesh Kotadia September 24, 2017 at 1:39 pm

Mumbaikar8ji,
muhabbat men khudaya of Rafi is outstanding song..what a darling song this is… the beauty of song really lies at the word “apni” at which Rafi makes different melodious murkis.

63 mumbaikar8 September 24, 2017 at 5:07 pm

Jignesh,
Thanks! I was expecting this reaction from you!

64 arvindersharma September 24, 2017 at 10:34 pm

Mumbaikar8,
Many many thanks for your addition from Shahnaz. Jignesh has expressed whatever I’ve felt for the lovely song. And a Great addition to my kitty of Rafi vintage songs. It seems that Rafi’s weightage has increased in the ’48 male solos.
And salutes to Amir Bai Karnataki for the excellent work. It seems that 1949 was a real game changer year, as the bygone era MD’s and singers had to bid their goodbyes, howsoever good they were.
AK Ji,
I fully agree with your observation that Ek dil ke tukde doesn’t match the other Rafi solos, despite it’s huge popularity.
Awaiting your next surprise post
Regards All

65 mumbaikar8 September 25, 2017 at 7:02 am

Arvindersharmaji,
Thanks! Unearthing lovely Rafi song is indeed all my pleasure!
I totally agree with you and bhatiaji that Amirbai has done a great job with the music direction.and it is a pity that she faded away.

66 ksbhatia September 25, 2017 at 11:18 pm

A few of 1948 movie songs rarely visited but carries a class touch.

Doobi Naiya Aake Kinare…..Rafi…Jeene Do …..MD [?]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3c6BvIgdDmY

Bujh gaya deepak gira ….Rafi….Mere Lal…..Purushotam …Lyrics..Mahipal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egwXo3qCaQI

67 mumbaikar8 September 26, 2017 at 2:03 am

ksbhaitaji,
Doobi Naiyaa Aake Kinare is a very nice son.g Rafi has sung it with great “ठहराव” I was to upload it. You beat me to it! The MD to my knowledge is Nashad.

68 Jignesh Kotadia September 28, 2017 at 10:04 pm

Happy Birthday to sweetest lady on earth.

posting some of her wonderful teenage scores still not included.

1. Preetam tera mera pyar gupchup kya jaane sansaar
https://youtu.be/yJ2XGWJVHWU

2. Jaadu kar gaye kisi ke naina ye man more bas men nahi
https://youtu.be/T7CTpCGVQp8

3. Nanhi nanhi bundiya jiya lehraye baadal ghir aaye
https://youtu.be/ezBds9DKG7g

4. Ek dil ka lagana baki tha so dil bhi lagaakar dekh liya
taqdeer ka rona kam na hua aansu bhi bahaakar dekh liya
https://youtu.be/UdMwj-p7Ais

69 AK September 28, 2017 at 10:20 pm

Jignesh,
Ek dil ka lagana baaki tha is too good. It figures in my list. Preetam tera mera pyar is an excellent song. Khemchand Prakash and Anil Biswas gave best songs for Lata Mangeshkar in 1948.

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