Guest Authors

Film Songs Based on Classical Ragas (9) – Pilu

Guest article by Subodh Agrawal

(Pilu is one of the most popular Ragas in Hindi film music.  Naturally, many songs based on Pilu have appeared on SoY, and some interesting discussion has taken place about KL Saigal being mesmerised by SD Burman’s ‘Ami chhinu eka’, and speculating which of his song it was similar to.  Now, our expert Subodh writes a formal article on the Raga, in which he discusses the best film songs based on this Raga and some fine classical pieces.  It comes after a long wait, which I can ascribe to Writer’s Block.  Let us hope that 2015 would see more from him.  – AK)

Raga_PiluI have been rather lazy about writing this article. The list of songs was ready months back, but I just couldn’t get down to writing. What spurred me into action is the realization that it is nearly a year since the last article of this series. My apologies to AK and to the amiable readers of SoY whose comments are something I always treasure.

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Multiple Versions Songs (20): Male Solo and Duet or Chorus

Guest article by Ashok M Vaishnav

(Ashokji is the originator of the mega series ‘Multiple Version Songs’, when he expanded the straight ‘Twin’ (male solo and its twin female solo) songs to other varieties of multiple versions. This caught on and, with the help of other guest contributors, expanded into similar version songs in Hindi and other languages, covering all the South Indian languages and Marathi and Bengali. You can view the entire series here. Now the Master resumes the series with a set of articles exploring a variety of multiple versions not covered so far. – AK)

[Songs of Yore is now on Facebook]

Multiple version songsWe have travelled a long distance in our tour of multiple versions of Hindi films songs across several other Indian languages and moods. We revert back to some hard core listing of the songs in this series. We now take a look at one more variant of multiple versions of a song – one version of the song is either a male or a female solo or a duet and the other version is either a duet or a chorus.

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Down the memory lane with ‘Anil Da’

Wishing Merry Christmas to all with guest article by Sharad Dutt concluding Anil Biswas Centenary Celebrations

(SoY celebrated 2014 as the Centenary Year of Anil Biswas with a guest article by his daughter, Shikha Biswas Vohra on the New Year Day, remembering him as a father and a maestro. This was followed by singer-specific posts on his songs for Lata Mangehskar, Suraiya and Parul Ghosh, and Talat Mahmood, Mukesh, Surendra and Anil Biswas himself as a singer. One might think that Anil Biswas has been discussed enough. And some readers speculated last month whether there would be some more in the series during the rest of the year. Anil Biswas Centenary Series deserves a befitting finale, and I conclude the year, wishing Merry Christmas to all with this guest article by Sharad Dutt, an eminent radio/TV personality for nearly 50 years, who was among the closest persons to Anil Biswas during his Delhi years, which resulted in a 4-part short film on him and his biography ‘ऋतु आये ऋतु जाये’ – the only so far.

Anyone who followed old film music during the Golden Era of AIR and Doordarshan cannot but be familiar with the large body of work by Sharadji. He is the one who made all those short films on music personalities you would have seen on DD: KL Saigal, Pankaj Mullick, Khemchand Prakash, Surendranath, Zohrabai Ambalewali, Naushad, Noorjehan, Roshan, Mukesh, Salil Chaudhary, and many more, besides Anil Biswas I mentioned earlier. He has produced about 100 documentaries on literary, political and film personalities. He has written a biography of KL Saigal too, besides Anil Biswas – both earning prestigious awards.

After retirement as Deputy Director General of Doordarshan, Sharadji is busier than ever in his second innings as Director of P-7 News. He is presently working on video documentation of Hindi film music since its beginning, and biography of poet-lyricist Shailendra. I am grateful that in spite of being neck-deep in work, he accepted my request to write this piece, with special emphasis on Anil Biswas’s association with the artistes of 30s and 40s. – AK)

Anil Biswas with Sharad DuttI was barely ten, when I first heard the song Seene mein sulagte hain armaan, ankhon mein udaasi chhayi hai. At that age I could not comprehend the meaning of the song, nor had I the courage to ask somebody. In those days, it was not becoming for a middle class kid to have undue interest in movie songs. I did not know then how the songs were composed, who were the music directors and what their role was in the making of the song, but I found the music so enchanting that I would croon it every day. There was one more song which I found really captivating. It was Jeevan hai madhuban, tu isme phool khila.

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The revolutionary music genius: Salil Chaudhary

A tribute to Salil Chaudhry on his birth anniversary (November 19) by guest author Sadanand Warrier

(SoY regulars are familiar with a more famous Warrier – Anuradha or Anu. Her husband, Sadanand, prefers to keep his immense knowledge hidden under the Nom de plume “SSW”. Now that the cover is blown, readers are familiar with his ability to traverse seamlessly from music to literature to science to history to economics, from English to Hindi to Malayalam to Tamil to Telugu, from komal gaandhar to F Major to teevra madhyam, and from Western Classical to pop to Hindustani to Carnatic to ghazal to opera to film songs.

Acknowledged as a revolutionary genius from his very first score in “Do Bigha Zameen” (1953), Salil Chaudhary was a multifaceted talent, earning renown as a short story writer, lyricist, music scholar and left-wing activist, besides music director. He was also probably the most multi-lingual composer. I envisage a series of articles to do full justice to him by more than one guest author. There can’t be a more befitting person than SSW to set off the series on Salil Chaudhary – I am grateful that he accepted my request to write this guest article as a tribute on his birth anniversary (b. 19 November 1925, d. 5 September 1995). He informs me that Anu has helped him a lot in doing this article, I thank her too. Enjoy this learned article, laced with SSW’s characteristic humour – AK)

Salil ChaudharyI am a relatively new visitor to the Songs of Yore website. I started reading articles on it more frequently during the last year, but I do not get to spend as much time as I would like to on it. I have commented on some topics where I could contribute something, but I have relatively little of value to say on most of the articles. On the other hand, I have learnt a lot from reading those articles that I have visited, and time permitting, I shall be reading more. But my few comments seemed to have piqued AK enough to ask me to contribute an article on the use of instruments in Hindi film music of the era that the website is dedicated to. I have not yet done so, primarily because while I know of some of the instrumentalists, I am not in any position to be accurate about them. So when AK asked us (my wife and me, possibly because he had no idea whether I could write more than one paragraph coherently) to contribute an article on Salil Chowdhury, I did think seriously about it. My wife has already written an article on Salilda on her blog, so she offered to look over my shoulder while watching me work. So, thanks to AK, this is my article on Salilda, a composer who I admire the most in the realm of Indian popular song. In some ways, I feel that his influence is felt more in my native state of Kerala because, even today, I see his influence amongst the younger composers. That is perhaps because I am not as familiar with modern Bengali composers; I am quite sure he has influenced them too.

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Multiple Version Songs (18): Hindi-Telugu exchange

Guest article by Arunkumar Deshmukh

(The Living Encyclopaedia, Arunji, needs no introduction to the readers of SoY or other music related blogs.  His first guest article in the series on Multiple Version Songs was on Hindi-Marathi, naturally.  When I was struggling to look for someone to write on Hindi-Kannada, Arunji surprised me by doing the favour.  Telugu is one of the many languages he is proficient in.  So it was only a matter of time that he would write on it. With this, all the four South Indian languages are covered – Venkataramanji and Anuradha Warrier having already done guest articles on Tamil and Malayalam respectively.   The series conceptualised by Mr Ashok M Vaishnav has grown way beyond what he may have thought initially.  Arunji is known for the depth of his research and capacity for great detail. I thank him, as also Priya Laxmiji, Ambrish Sundaramji and Sudhirji, who have helped him in his endeavour.  – AK)

Bhakta Prahlad 1931I had the advantage of being born in a multi-language state like Hyderabad. It was a composite state of 8 Telugu speaking districts (which have now become Telangana state), 5 districts of Marathi speakers and 3 districts of Kannadigas. Hyderabad being the Capital city, people from all sectors had settled here. I had many Telugu and Kannada friends. I picked up these two languages easily as a child. Urdu was the medium of instruction till the 5th standard and Marathi was my mother tongue, while Hindi was the language of communication. No wonder I became a multi-language person, with English (and now Gujarati) to boot!

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Multiple Versions Songs (17): Haunting Melodies in Different Moods And Settings

Guest article by Ashok M Vaishnav

(As the SoY regulars are aware, the series on  Multiple Version Songs has grown in dimension well beyond what was originally envisaged by Ashokji, about a year and half back.   Fortunately, SoY family has some tremendously talented and knowledgeable people, and they chipped in with guest articles, on my request, to cover various aspects of this theme. 

Following close on the heels of the last post on Rabindrasangeet-Pankaj Mullick, written by Venkaramanji, which was 16th in the series on the Multiple Version Songs, this post on Haunting Melodies in Spooky Films  just shows the enormous range of MVS.  The haunting melodies are meant to be repeated a number of times in the movie to create an effect of suspense, mystery, fear and eeriness.  It takes an analytical mind with sharp observation, like Ashokji’s, to decipher the varied moods and settings of the different versions of  such songs.  I am happy to present this article by him which widens the exploration of MVS. – AK)

Haunting MelodiesThe journey exploring a definite genre of Hindi film songs – Multiple Versions of A Song – has had several streams till now.

‘Haunting Melodies’ is a genre in itself in the film songs. These types of songs are normally the cornerstone of a thriller or a suspense drama. Typically, the song either precedes ‘that’ event in the narrative which builds the suspense or helps build aura of suspense around a character or a set of events in the film. In that sense, quite a few of the haunting melodies simply repeat in relation to the flow of the story. But there are quite a few which have major, or sometimes subtle, variations in lyrics, rhythm or orchestration – to amplify the differing events / situations in the film narrative.

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Multiple Version Songs (16): Rabindra Sangeet and Pankaj Mullick

Hridaya Pankaje Rabi Viraje

A tribute to Gurudev Rabindranath Thakur (7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) and Pankaj Mullick (10 May 1905 – 19 February 1978) by guest author N Venkataraman

(The appeal of Rabindranath Thakur’s poetry and songs of love, nature and worship transcends the boundaries of language and culture. Pankaj Mullick, one of the titans of music and films, has a historical place in bringing Rabindra Sangeet mass popularity through his singing, and using it in films for the first time. I was looking for a knowledgeable Bengali to write on Rabindra Sangeet-Pankaj Mullick-films songs, as a part of the series on Multiple Version Songs. SoY readers are familiar with Venkataramanji’s breadth and depth of knowledge, and he is as pucca a Bengali as anyone could be. I am grateful that he accepted my request to write this double tribute to the two great souls of India on the occasion of Gurudev’s 153rd and Pankaj Mullick’s 109th birth anniversaries. – AK)

Rabindrnath Tagore-Pankaj MullickSometime during May last year, AKji had wished to bring out two articles, under the Multiple-Version-Songs series. The first one, on ‘SD Burman’s Bengali songs and their Hindi versions’, was done by AKji in October 2013. The post on ‘Rabindra Sangeet tunes used in Hindi films’ was generously offered to me, but with a rider – I must accommodate a tribute to Pankaj Mullick, whose birthday follows a couple of days after Gurudev’s. The topic, Rabindra Sangeet tunes used in Hindi films, has been covered earlier on some other sites, and I believe most of our knowledgeable readers and our Bengali friends must be aware of these songs and related facts. But that did not prove to be a deterrent. On the contrary, it gave me an opportunity to explore uncharted areas and approach the subject a bit differently. The experience was not futile. Although I could use only a fraction of my acquisition in this post, it helped me to enhance my knowledge and listen to many wonderful songs.

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Film songs based on classical ragas (8) – In the royal presence of Darbari

Guest article by Subodh Agrawal

(It has now become routine for Subodh to surpass the outstanding.  He is coming back after a long gap.  But if the outcome is this superb piece, we don’t mind his prolonged preparations.  It is interesting to note that while the raga itself has gravitas, the word ‘Darbari’ meaning a ‘courtier’ lends itself to some pejorative connotation, giving rise to some interesting trivia and anecdotes.  Subodh’s explanation of its difference with ragas in close proximity, such as Adana, is scholarly.  Continuing a great beginning to 2014, I present this guest article by Subodh, his 7th in the series on the film songs based on classical ragas.  –  AK)

DarbariDarbari – along with Bhairavi, Yaman and Pahadi – is one of the most commonly used ragas for film music. Having written about Yaman and Pahadi earlier and having enjoyed the experience, I was looking forward to doing this post on Darbari, but my enthusiasm waned considerably after I compiled a list of songs in Darbari in preparation for this article. The songs are good, some of them are great, but few of them really do justice to Darbari. Let me cite just three examples: O duniya ke rakhwale from Baiju Bawra, Dil jalta hai to jalne de from Pehli Nazar and Teri duniya mein dil lagta nahin from Baawre Nain – all three are very good songs but the mood they depict is not what Darbari is meant for. As the name suggests, Darbari has a royal aura about it. There has to be a certain gravitas about it. In my humble opinion it is not meant for the kind of wailing and whining these three songs represent. Composers would be better off using a raga like Todi for such songs.

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Anil Biswas: The Maestro and My Father

SoY heralds 2014 as the Year of Anil Biswas with guest article by Shikha Biswas Vohra

(Anil Biswas is described as the ‘Bhishm Pitamah’ of Hindi film music, though he used to describe RC Boral as the Father, and himself, somewhat jocularly, as the Uncle (Chacha) of film music. Yet, did he get his due, and does the country remember his legacy adequately? In one of the most hyped programmes on our cinema’s centenary last year, ‘Bollywood@100’, presented by Karan Johar on the venerable History channel, in the episode on the best music directors, Anil Biswas’s name was missing in the list of about two dozen composers! This was blasphemy, and I decided that I would recompense for it adequately on Songs of Yore in his Centenary Year, 2014 (b. 7 July 1914, d. 31 May 2003). Fortuitously, around that time Mrs Shikha Biswas Vohra came across SoY for the first time, and posted a very generous comment on one of my articles. I was familiar with her name having seen her in a TV programme. She very kindly agreed to write the Inaugural Article in the series – we cannot have a better placed person than his daughter, who has seen him as father, as a maestro, and has also seen the industry as an insider, to do the honour. I am delighted to wish the readers a Very Happy Centenary Year of Anil Biswas with this lyrical tribute by Shikhaji to the great man. – AK)

ANIL BISWAS….The Maestro

Anil BiswasMany years ago, when Indian cinema was in a nascent stage, there came into its stream a clutch of fine dedicated men. They came to shape its history and define its metaphors. These men were dreamers and seekers, who had run the gamut of struggle, the looking at hunger in the face, the sleeping on pavements. They sought to contribute their knowledge and skills to shape this new exciting medium to an established art form. Each contributed a style distinctive and individualistic. They gave freely of their time, inspiration and talent without expectation of rewards and returns. They worked with honesty, principles and earnestness, a reflection of their time.

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Multiple Version Songs (15): In the ‘Realm of Remakes’ – Hindi to Tamil

Guest article by N Venkataraman

(In my introduction to Venkataramanji’s last article, I had traced how he had originally planned to write three articles on Tamil-Hindi version songs, which he later decided to expand to five. This is his fourth, which looks at similar songs from Tamil films remade from Hindi films. Its converse, i.e. remakes from Tamil to Hindi, would be his last, but surely not the last of the mega series on Multiple Version Songs. For new visitors to Songs of Yore, this mega project is the brainchild of an SoY regular, Mr Ashok M Vaishnav. Without repeating what I have said earlier, the best way to understand how it came about is to browse through old articles in the series, which are all placed here.  – AK)

Woh Kaun Thi_Yaar NeeWinter has heralded its arrival and I am out of my ‘monsoon hibernation’. Hibernation is only a state of mind and it takes very little time and, of course, effort to wake up. Incessant monsoon rains can make one sleepy and at time depressed. Autumn followed by winter brings in clear sky and hope. With gentle breeze blowing and clear blue sky, it is time to set the sail once again.

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