Vasant Desai Part 3 (post-50s): His best songs for Lata Mangeshkar

28 September 2022

Continuing the series on Vasant Desai, his best songs for Lata Mangeshkar as a tribute to her on her 93rd birthday (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022)

Vasant Desai-Lata MangeshkarLata Mangeshkar would have been 93 today. This is her first birthday after she left this mortal world and this calls for a tribute to her. Coincidentally SOY is paying a series of tributes to Vasant Desai who was a class composer but was not counted among the top by the conventional pecking order. His songs for Lata Mangeshkar were exceptionally melodious. Vasant Desai Part 1 was devoted to his multifaceted talent in the vintage era (pre-50s) as an actor, singer and music director. The part 2 onwards are devoted to the post-50s era with which we are all more familiar. Vasant Desai Part 2 was devoted to his male singers in which I also included MF duets. Lata Mangeshkar is by far his most preferred female singer (no surprise there), and quite a good number are unforgettable. It became appropriate to post a tribute to her on her 93rd birthday with her best songs by the maestro in Vasant Desai Part 3. This would also include her duets with a female singer.

Even though their association started in 1946 itself (Jeewan Yatra; Subhadra) and he used her as the main singer in her Tsunami year 1949 in Narsinh Avatar (creating an absolutely melodious Hari ko bisaaro na, Hari na bisaarenge) and gave gems after gems post-50s, it appears Lata Mangeshkar was lukewarm in mentioning Vasant Desai as one the music directors who composed some of her all-time great songs. This was surprising because they shared a common cultural legacy: Actor-singer in Marathi theatre and films, and solid training in classical music. Vasant Desai, on his part, did not boast about doing something special for Lata Mangeshkar unlike the other greats – someone taught her Urdu talaffuz, someone taught her voice control and some groomed her in mike training etc. This must be due to Vasant Desai’s modesty.

Many people attribute this chill to Vasant Desai giving a spectacular break to Vani Jairam in the film Guddi (1971). But this came quite late for Lata Mangeshkar to hold any grudge. She has been quite public on Silver Jubilee of her singing career (1967, counting from her first Marathi song in 1942), and coming out with her best 10 or 20 songs, or other public occasions when there was no mention of Vasant Desai. But music lovers do not care for artistes’ personal biases. Let us enjoy some of the best songs of Vasant Desai-Lata Mangeshkar combination as our continuing tribute to him and a tribute to Lata Mangeshkar on what would have been her 93rd birthday.

By 1950-51 Lata Mangeshkar was the Female Playback Singer, but Vasant Desai used vintage-era singers in his films in these years. Lata Mangeshkar became a regular fixture in his work from Hyderabad Ki Nazneen.

1. Kya kya na log chal base shauq-e-jamaal-e-yaar mein by Lata Mangeshkar from Hyderabad Ki Naazneen (1952), lyrics Noor Lakhanavi, music Vasant Desai

Here is a less-known but gorgeous ghazal, composed by the maestro and sung by the nightingale. This ghazal has the same meter, therefore, has close similarity to Parul Ghosh’s Aye bhi wo gaye bhi wo ab to fasana ho gaya (Namaste 1943, Naushad). Another Lata Mangeshkar song in the film, Jaao chamka subah ka sitara is also quite melodious.

2. Ye dil ki dhadkanon se khabar pa rahi hun main/ Shayad ki unhein yaad aa rahi hun main by Lata Mangeshkar from Aanand Bhavan (1953), lyrics Noor Lakhanavi, music Vasant Desai

There are a number of unknown songs of this combination which sound great even on first listening.

3. Sainya jao jao mose na bolo ab na mohe satao by Lata Mangeshkar from Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje (1955), lyrics Hasrat Jaipuri, Vasant Desai

JJPB was a landmark film in the career of Vasant Desai. Among many gems by Lata Mangeshkar, here is my favourite.

4. Piya te kahan gayo nehra lagaye by Lata Mangeshkar from Toofan Aur Diya (1956), lyrics Meerabai, music Vasant Desai

There are three Meerabai songs in the film; this one set in Raag Asavari and Jaunpuri has to be one of the most melodious.

5. Meri chhoti si bahen dekho gahne pahan asural chali re by Lata Mangeshkar and Geeta Dutt from Toofan Aur Diya (1956), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

This brother-sister teasing song from the same film is a delightful composition. Geeta Dutt sings for the little brother and Lata Mangeshkar for the sister, Nanda.

6. Sainya jhoothon ka bada sardar nikla by Lata Mangeshkar from Do Aankhen Baarah Haath (1957), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

Do Aankhen Barah Haath was the next landmark in the career of Vasant Desai. Based on the theme of reforming twelve hardened and convicted criminals by keeping them in an open jail, the toy-seller Sandhya enters with this folksy song, creating ripples in the all-men’s facility. The toy cart with its unique sound provides the beat and the folk string instrument completes the beautiful instrumental music.

7. Ae maalik tere bande hum by Lata Mangeshkar from Do Aankhen Baarah Haath (1957), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

V Shantaram used to lead the criminals in his voice with this prayer. I have used his version in Part 1 of my tribute. When he himself is seriously injured, the convicts ask the sole woman Sandhya to lead the same prayer. This became known as the quintessential school prayer song until it was displaced by Humko man ki shakti dena.

8. Roothi jaye re gujaria by Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle from Do Phool (1958), lyrics Hasrat Jaipuri, music Vasant Desai

We have this gem next year picturised on Master Romi (singing in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar) and Baby Naaz (in Asha Bhosle’s voice), as childhood lovers.

9. Door andhera hua mast savera hua, main naachun ri by Lata Mangeshkar from Do Phool (1958), lyrics Hasrat Jaipuri, music Vasant Desai

From the same film here is an excellent Lata Mangeshkar solo I heard for the first time.

10. Apne sainya se naina ladaibe hamaar koi ka karihain by Lata Mangeshkar from Ardhaangini (1959), lyrics Majrooh Sultanpuri

As the song ends the sainya Rajkumar who is an airline pilot returns from his duty.

11. Ja main baaz ayi sainya tere pyar se by Lata Mangeshkar from Do Behnen (1959), lyrics Pradeep, music Vasant Desai

Except Kavi Pradeep’s solo Mukhada dekh le prani, Lata Mangeshkar is there in all the remaining six songs. Here is a perfect mujra song which starts with a recital:

किसकी अँखियों से ली मैंने अँखियाँ लड़ा
ये तो सौदा मुझको मँहगा पड़ा
आज कहती हूँ मैं करके दिल को कड़ा
जा रे जा जालिमा तू है चिकना घड़ा
Ja main baaz ayi sainya tere pyar se

12. Dil ka khilauna haye toot gaya by Lata Mangeshkar from Goonj Uthi Shehnai (1959), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

Goonj Uthi Shehnai became famous for Ustad Bismillah Khan’s shehnai. He single-handedly lifted the shehnai to the level of an instrument for solo performance in classical concerts. He did not look down upon the ‘popular’ and was willing to play this tune on the demand of the audience.

13. Mere angana mein ujiyala meri godi mein Gopala by Lata Mangeshkar and Geeta Dutt from Pyar Ki Pyas (1961), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

Skipping Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan and School Master (best known for Talat-Lata Mangeshkar duet, O dildar bolo ek baar) of 1959, we come to a special song Mere angana mein ujiyala, meri godi mein Gopala from Pyar Ki Pyas (1961). There was another Meri godi mein Gopala, a Lata Mangeshkar solo in the film Mausi (1958), but I find this far more melodious.

14. Bharat ki sitaaon ke dukhde jab tak honge choorna nahin, hey Ram tumhari Ramayan tab tak hogi sampoorna nahin by Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle from Sampoorna Ramayan (1961), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

In the same year a mythological blockbuster, Sampoorna Ramayan was released which became a must for family viewing for families which looked down upon films as a bad influence. This had a memorable Lata Mangeshkar solo, Baadalo barso nayan ki kore se. But my memory is of Lav-Kush song in the court of Ram’s Ayodhya who is unaware that these kids are his sons. They sing the ballad of Ram taught to them by Valmiki in his Ashram in the forest. The song makes Ram restless as it charges him with being unfair to Sita. This is common to all Ramayan stories. Ram Rajya (1943) had Bharat ki ek sannari ki hum katha sunaate hain. And the DD National’s eponymous serial had Hum katha sunaate Ram sakal gundhaam ki (by Kavita Krishnamoorthy, Hemlata and Ravindra Jain) which in the end shames all the people of Ayodhya for Sita’s banishment due to a washerman maligning her for her abduction by Ravan..

15. Dar laage garje badariya, saawan ki ritu kajraari kaari chamke matwari bijuriya by Lata Mangeshkar from Ram Rajya (1967), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Vasant Desai

Thereafter Lata Mangeshkar had some in the films Amar Jyoti and Bharat Milap (1965). But the next superlative Lata Mangeshkar song is in Ram Rajya (1967).

16. Jhir jhir barse saawani ankhiyan by Lata Mangeshkar from Aashirwad (1968), lyrics Gulzar, music Vasant Desai

This is probably the last memorable song of Lata Mangeshkar composed by Vasant Desai.

Acknowledgements and Disclaimer:
The YT links of songs have been embedded only for the listening pleasure of the music lovers. This blog claims no copyright over the songs, which belongs to the respective owners.

{ 28 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Arunkumar Deshmukh September 28, 2022 at 11:38 am

AK ji,
Vasant Desai is one of my favourite composers. I reproduce here an extract from my article on Vasant Desai, pertaining to today’s theme….

“….Vasant Desai was one of those,who,in spite of talent, never got his dues. Though Lata Mangeshkar didn’t acknowledge any of Desai’s creations in her top 20 personal favourites nor praised his vast repertoire, it is a fact that some of her finest renditions were under Desai. Allegedly, Lata had a grudge against him for promoting other singers, especially Vani Jairam, and hence ignored his contribution in her career even when most of her songs under Desai’s baton have been unsurpassed till this day. Go down the memory lane and you can’t ignore sublime creations like “Jo Tum Todo Piya” (“Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje”), “Tere Sur aur Mere Geet” (“Goonj Uthi Shehnai”), “Main Gaoon Tu Chup Hoja” (“Do Aankhen Barah Haath”), “Piya Te Kahan” (“Toofan aur Diya”) or “Ik Tha Bachpan” (“Aashirwad”). Even though Desai made her “Ae Malik Tere Bande Hum” (“Do Aankhen Barah Haath”) into a memorable secular prayer, Lata hardly ever commended the composition. May be she was unhappy that Desai created an equally powerful bhajan “Humko Man Ki Shakti Dena” into a nationwide school prayer through Vani’s vocals.

Devoted to V. Shantaram from his Prabhat days, Desai went along with the maestro when he broke away from Prabhat to form his own Rajkamal Studios. Scoring music for a majority of Shantaram’s films, Vasant’s career suffered a major blow when their relations soured in the late 1950s. Yet it is to his credit that even though they split after recording of “Aadha Hai Chandrama” (later re-done by C. Ramchandra), he never ever spoke ill about “Anna” till his dying day.

Film director Vikas Desai says, “even family members never came to know the reasons for leaving Shantaram though he went back to score the background music of ‘Geet Gaya Patharon Ne’ on Anna’s request”.

His proficiency was the reason why he was greatly admired by maestros like Bismillah Khan (who made the shehnai famous with his recitals in “Goonj Uthi Shehnai”, Amir Khan, Bhimsen Joshi, and M. S. Subbulakshmi even got a song composed from Desai for her recital at the UNO headquarters. It was Desai’s virtuosity that made Dada Muni (Ashok Kumar) render an all-time favourite children’s song “Rail Gadi” (“Aashirwad”) with minimal instrumentals. Nowadays when Cannes Film Festival is a place of photo opportunity rather than exploration of artistry, it is overwhelming to know that decades ago Desai’s versatility made “Amar Bhoopali ”- 1951, the only Indian film to win a Grand Prix award for original musical score at Cannes! Obviously, lyricist Gulzar isn’t wrong to hail Desai as a “music composer extraordinaire” especially when he catapulted his “Bole Re Papiha” to Himalayan heights of popularity. ”
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2 AK September 28, 2022 at 1:22 pm

Arunji,
Thanks a lot for your detailed comments and extracts from your article. On several thing I find I am on the same page as you are: 1. That Vasant Desai composed some of the all-time best songs for Lata Mangeshkar. 2. That Lata Mangeshkar did not acknowledge enough Vasant Desai’s contribution in his career. I have added my perspective that by the time Vani Jairam came on the scene, Lata Mangeshkar had already been at the peak for at least two decades, and she had no reason to be cold towards a new singer on the horizon.

3 KB September 28, 2022 at 1:36 pm

In the fifties from Vasant Desai there were quite a few songs to remember:
Some of my favorites include Nain se Nain from Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1955) followed by Pyar Ki Pyas (title song ) and Tim Tim Tim from Mausi (1958) and the duet from Ardhangani (1959) duet Pyar Mein Milna Sanam. One set back I feel was his non usage of some singers like Mukesh and Kishore Kumar. But as I could see he used Mahendra Kapoor more effectively than many of the other composers (like C Ramachandra ) to produce some good songs !

4 Sivanandam September 28, 2022 at 3:02 pm

AK Ji,
A fitting tribute to the nightingale on her birth anniversary. Vasant Deasi’s compositions were always unique and also must be difficult to sing. The alaap in the beginning of Jeevan mein piya tera saath rahe from Goonj Uthi Shehnai is just out of the world.
In my very humble opinion both the sisters were selective in their recognition ( or should we say ,rather not recognizing!!) certain key composers in their career.
I have never heard Asha talking much about Ravi, although he had composed great songs for her.
I would have added Ek tha bachpan from Ashirwad–my personal fav. Lata’s typical pitch in which she always maintains the melody -very few singers have that ability .

5 AK September 28, 2022 at 9:26 pm

KB @3,
It is confirmed that Mukesh did not sing any song for Vasant Desai. Perhaps Kishore Kumar did sing for him, but it may not be a well-known song.

6 AK September 28, 2022 at 9:34 pm

Mr Sivanandam @4,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. I am happy that you are equally impressed by Jeevan mein piya tera saath rahe.

Selective memories of celebrities: I think we can grant the celebrities this privilege. It is quite endemic. I have included a song from Aashirwad which is my favourite.

7 Manoj September 29, 2022 at 6:34 am

Thanks for some beautiful songs on the Lataji’s first birth anniversary without her physical presence. My regret is she could not wait to see completion of Shri Ram Mandir at Ayodhya.
Vasant Desai was a great gentleman music composer.
The child artist in song number five (Meri chhotisi bahen….) above is Child Artist Satish Vyas (1940 – 2021).

8 AK September 29, 2022 at 10:22 am

Manoj,
They have named the main chowk in Ayodhya after Lata Mangeshkar. Someone must be aware of the importance of our old film music. Befitting tribute to her.

Thanks for the name of the child artist in Meri chhoti si bahen. His dance movements in the prelude and faux shehnai playing are wonderful.

9 Dr Pradeep Kumar Shetty September 30, 2022 at 5:26 pm

I adore the divine AMAR BHUPALI duet with Pandit Rao Nagarkar..
Ghanashyama Sundara.

The double version ( shorter by Geeta Dutt ) lullaby
Chanda dhale pankha jhale..
is beautiful.
PYAR KI PYAS.

The duet with Geeta Dutt in
GOONJ UTHI SHEHNAI..
Akhiyan bhool gaye hain sona..
is cute.

10 Dr Pradeep Kumar Shetty September 30, 2022 at 5:39 pm

I should have called
Ghana Shyama Sundara..
a chorus.

It always reminds me of the later
Jyothi kalasha chalke..

11 AK October 1, 2022 at 5:28 pm

Dr Shetty @9, 10,
I know Ghanashyam sundara has a very important place in Marathi culture. I have mentioned it very prominently at #2 in my Part 2 of the tribute.
https://www.songsofyore.com/vasant-desai-part-2-post-1950s-his-male-singers/

The lorie in Pyar Ki Pyas (1961), Chnda dhale pankha jhale is a beautiful song. Not much heard. Thanks a lot.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5zxAjTFRqc

12 Dr. Rajesh Deshpande October 1, 2022 at 10:29 pm

AKji,
An excellent tribute to the maestro Vasant Desai and Lata Didi on her first birth anniversary post-demise.
The best songs of the duo are here.

Interestingly, whenever any association of Vasant Desai with mentor V. Shantaram in the 60s is talked about, it is about the background score of Geet Gaya Patharone. There is no mention of the
Marathi -Hindi bilingual movie they did together – Ladki Sahyadri ki / इये मराठीचिये नागरी, which came later in 1966. The Marathi version had some excellent songs, though Lata did not sing for either version.
Wondering if they would have worked together again, had the movie or its score clicked.

13 AK October 1, 2022 at 11:24 pm

Dr Deshpande,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. I realise no discussion of Vasant Desai-Lata Mangeshkar is complete without discussing their Marathi songs. Fortunately, there is a strong representation of Maharashtra on this blog and we get to learn of many wonderful songs.

14 Anita October 2, 2022 at 8:22 pm

AKji,
I found this song from an unreleased movie – Kaamdev – sung by Lata and the music director is Vasant Desai. It is called Kholo Man Ka Dwaar. It seems to be based on Raag Hamir(?). The lyrics are by Bharat Vyas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmMg8nNazJI

15 AK October 2, 2022 at 11:00 pm

Anita,
Nice discovery.

16 KB October 3, 2022 at 12:51 pm

At the end of three discussions on Vasant Desai a question that has crept in me is that how he as a composer compares with other celebrity composers of the time such as SDB, OPN, SJ , Salil Choudhary , Chitragupt, C Ramachandra and so on with all the melodies listed over the decades and some hit films also discussed . There were also debates on his other talents. Similar discussions were recently on Khayyam also and may be some time back on other composers of the time. Generally, even at that time also it was seen that hit films made the songs also hit and several films with wonderful compositions by lesser known composers went un noticed! So I suggest that similar discussions can be initiated on lesser known composers who produced hit music although the films did not click !

17 Rahul Muli October 3, 2022 at 1:12 pm

AK ji
A wonderful sequel
As you have said no discussion on the duo would be complete without the mention of Marathi songs.
Amar bhoopali was a veritable feast delivered by Vasant Desai. He used a very uncommon voice of Panditrao Nagarkar with Lata ji.
However Ghanashyam Sundara and Latpat Latpat stole all the limelight . Here are two more gems from the film in which Lata ji sounds so very different.
1 Tujhya pritiche
This is a duet version. More popular was Lata ji’s solo . May be this version was in the film only. But both the versions are very melodious
https://youtu.be/2DRjzIyEmYA

2 Nako dur deshi Jau Sajana
https://youtu.be/mLgOoofysGI

18 Ashwin Bhandarkar October 3, 2022 at 11:25 pm

Had time only to casually browse through the post. Will get back to it at leisure.

Would like to point out that ‘Dar laage garaje badariya’ is in Raag Sur Malhar.

19 D P Rangan October 4, 2022 at 12:44 am

A very informative post on the music director well presented by AKji with his usual clarity of ideas and expression. I just came across a raga malika duet by Khansaheb Salamat Ali and Surshree Lata Mangeshkar in an unreleased film ‘Amar Samaadhi’. Music set by Vasant Desai.
https://youtu.be/Qi65MXIDPHc

20 AK October 4, 2022 at 10:12 am

KB @16,
You have raised at least four interesting questions, none of which is easy to answer.

1. Inter-se position of Vasant Desai vis-a-vis SDB, OPN, SJ, Salil Chaudhury, Chitragupta, C Ramchandra: You have to include the Great Mughal Naushad in this list. I count the top five as Naushad, C Ramchandra, SD Burman, Shankar-Jaikishan, and OP Nayyar. They were great talents, they got associated with big banners, their music became timeless, many of their movies became super duper hits.

2. This started the debate whether their good music made the the films hits, or whether the big banner films became hits and also pulled their music. To my mind there is no straight correlation. Mehboob Khan’s Amar had the biggest stars – Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, Nimmi – and had Naushad’s superb music. But I understand the film failed but its songs are eternal. The film Afsar failed, but SD Burman’s music stays on. Lamikant-Pyarelal’s debut film Parasmani (1963) was a B-grade fantasy film. But its music was a roaring success. Navketan’s Vijay Anand-directed Tere Mere Sapne starring Dev Anand-Hema Malini-Mumtaz had excellent music by SD Burman. This is as big as it can get. It was a very good movie, but it failed. Kidar Sharma’s original Chitralekha (1941) was a supper success. But when he remade it in 1964, the film failed despite outstanding music by Roshan.

3. Our old film music had independent existence outside the films. We enjoyed songs without having seen most of the films in which they appeared. I would not venture to make any connection or say that the exception proves the rule. There is a limited capacity at the peak. Dubner & Levitt in their book Freakonomics make a very perceptive observation about sports and entertainment business. The difference in the talent between the few superstars and the next rung of stars may be very minimal, but their income, endorsements may be hugely different. It is talent, it is luck, it is “you are successful because you are successful.”

4. Vasant Desai and Khayyam composed their immortal songs. If they were not in the rat race, they do not become lesser. Let us not try to place them in the conventional pecking order.

5. Lessor-known composers: I wrote a series titled Forgotten Composers Unforgettable Melodies. This broadly covers what you are hinting at. You must have seen it.

21 AK October 4, 2022 at 10:25 am

Mr Muli @17,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. Using Pandit Nagarkar’s voice was a stroke of genius. In Ghanshyam sundara his voice makes the song divine. When I think of Raag Bhopali, I think of this song. I understand it has become a Marathi household favourite as a morning devotional song which the ladies sing while doing their chores. I liked Tujhya pritche too. It is an excellent song. Yaman?

22 AK October 4, 2022 at 10:34 am

Ashwin @18,
Hope you come back. Thanks for mentioning the raag of Dar laage garaje badariya. Now I know why I liked this song so much! After Pt Bhimsen Joshi’s Sur Malhar, my current favourite is Pt. Venkatesh Kumar.

Pandit Venkatesh Kumar: Raag Sur Malhar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YUO34WHNcc

23 AK October 4, 2022 at 10:40 am

Mr Rangan @19,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. My scheme of the series was Part 1 devoted to Vasant Desai’s career pre-1949 when he was also an actor singer and music director. Rest was post-50s. Part 2 was devoted to his male singers in which MF duets were also included. This Raagmalika I have included in Part 2.

24 Dr. Rajesh Deshpande October 7, 2022 at 10:55 pm

Ye Re Majhya Maglya (1955) was a Marathi movie in which Lata sang all the songs composed by Vasant Desai.
It was one of the few Marathi films in which Shashikala played the leading lady.

It had one Hindi song – Baso more mainan mein nandlal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHRxtRnPYE8

25 Dr. Rajesh Deshpande October 7, 2022 at 11:13 pm

Missed out mentioning that the song @24 is actually a traditional Meera Bhajan- Baso more nainan mein nandlal

Two marathi songs that I like from Ye Re Majhya Maglya:
1. Dongar mathyavari aapli
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wxsswm1ytjg
2. Badalti nabhache rang kase
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a-8QXgQmnM

26 AK October 8, 2022 at 7:07 am

Dr Deshpande,
Among the two Marathi and a Hindi (Meera bhajan) you have presented I especially liked the Halley version of Badalti nabhache rang kase. It is interesting how regional films incorporate Hindi songs. In the reverse we now see Punjabi pops making entry in Hindi films in a big way. They have made it mainstream. There is something unique about the Punjabi way which has impacted in different aspects of cultural practices in large parts of the country.

27 Hans October 12, 2022 at 9:27 pm

AK,
I am very late. Very nice tribute to Lata Mangeshkar through songs composed by Vasant Desai for her. You have very rightly summed up their relationship that she was his main singer after the vintage era. I would give some stats in this regard. As for songs you have provided the variety sans the well known songs which are mostly known to music lovers.

I think Lata Mangeshkar was from the start very high in esteem of Vasant Desai. Despite Shantaram not using her in his films of 40s, he gave Lata 14 solos, one FF duet and one triad. In the next decade from 1952 to 1959 he composed 39 solos out of total of 55 female solos, for Lata. From 1961 upto 1968 film Aashirwaad he gave her 16 out of the 25 he composed for females. In MF category he gave her 26 out of 50 from 51 to 68.

I am posting here three songs which leave a great impact on you, especially in relation to the situation. All the three are at a very high pedestal so far as this combo goes. Another common thing is that Bharat Vyas wrote all of them. Bharat Vyas due to his deep knowledge of Ved-shashtras and history became natural choice for devotional and historical songs. He combined in the most films with SN Tripathi(18), Vasant Desai(12), Avinash Vyas(18) and Chitragupta(12). The first three mostly composed for this category of films and Chitragupta too did a number of such films alongwith some mainstream films.

The first song is from Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan filmed on Anita Guha. A great impactful song is ‘na na barso re badal’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmpREt4ePOQ

The next one ‘badalo barso nayan ki kor se’ from Sampoorna Ramayan finds Sita in the Valmiki Ashram after being ousted. Lyrics in both these songs present individual excellence and a contrast too. Perhaps I posted them in contra songs post too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8-P5hqFAqA

Another film on the story of Ramayan was made in 1967. In Ram Rajya Beena Rai performed the role of Sita. The situation is the night before Sita was sent to the jungle and Bharat Vyas again came up trumps with perfect lyrics for the situation. The song opens with mukhda ‘rain bhayi so ja re panchhi’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvirTlk9UH4

28 AK October 12, 2022 at 10:15 pm

Hans,
Thanks a lot for your appreciation and thanks for your detailed comments. Your statistics would be useful for many readers.

Among the songs you have added, Badalo barso nayan ki kor se we have discussed in detail. I think it was in ‘व्याकरण….’ Na na barso re baadal is an excellent song.

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