Intoxicated by Music

Truly, the legend of the legend of the legends - the magical voice, the guru of versatility - Rafi sahab, you can never be forgotten. You are the forever burning flame of our music's golden era, the soul of the melodies that many of us have grown up on. Mohammad Rafi's heart was set on singing at a tender age of 10. The young lad would listen to fakirs and saints singing to their Gods and he was enchanted by these songs. His family realized that God had bestowed a special talent of singing on him. After listening to this young boy's voice, a fakir once blessed him ' तुम्हारी आवाज़ क़ायनात पर हुक़ूमत करेगी ' - translated as 'Your voice will rule the world'. In devout muslim families, singing was then considered taboo and his father could not allow or encourage him to pursue his passion. His brother though decided to do everything to help this child prodigy and there started Rafi sahab's training under stalwarts such as Barkat Ali Khan, Chote G...

'वो जिसकी जुबां उर्दू की तरह, मेरी शाम रात मेरी क़ायनात , वो यार मेरा सैयां सैयां ' The magician behind these words is the timeless Gulzar Sahab. His art of putting together abstract imagery in words  to give us gems such as 'tu hi tu satrangi re', 'mohe shaam rang dai de' is unparalleled. He is the name of a silken thought, the fragrance of the flower Champa, the colours of rainbow, the touch of soft breeze... His contribution to Hindi Cinema as a film director, dialogue writer, lyricist is exemplary. If we attempt to identify those personalities who made Hindi cinema a relevant medium to reflect either the political climate or web of relationships, Gulzar Sa'ab would be at the top. Movies such as 'Mere Apne', 'Ijaazat', 'Maachis', 'Aandhi' are some examples of his craft. And what can one say about the songs that have his grace? The sensitivity with which he outlines the complexities of relationships is magical. He has k...

It was Aug 15, 2008, my first year in Toronto, away from India. I was traveling in a cab and the radio channel was playing an India Independence Day special program. The mellifluous voice of Manna Dey in 'aye mere pyaare watan, aye mere bichde chaman, tujhpe dil kurbaan' reminded me of the fragrance of Delhi mornings and I found myself crying like never before. Before this, I must have had heard this song a 1000 times, but that day, the words 'tere daaman se jo aaye, un hawaon ko salaam' had taken on a completely different dimension for me. I then realized that no matter how much I wanted to travel and explore the world, my country, my home is where my heart and soul belonged. Our nation has gone through innumerable invasions, upheavals and continues to face challenges both internally and externally. Those who gave up their lives protecting this beautiful country, how do we privileged citizens, thank them enough! Today, as India celebrates 76 years of independence, I am...

One can, to some extent, define the voice quality of exemplary singers such as Asha Bhonsle, Lata ji,  however it is not easy to classify the voice of the supremely talented Geeta Dutt. Her voice - as sweet as honey and yet the depths of her voice carried the pain of broken heart like none other. Her voice has the quality of taking the listener through the same emotion that the song represented. When she sang 'Thandi Hawa Kali ghata', one can feel the playful breeze or in the song - 'Koi door se aawaz de', the listeners can feel the haunting sadness of a woman. It was the amazing 'Mera Sundar Sapna Beet Gaya' in 1947 that made Geeta Dutt a household name. While she sang for many composers, her songs with Dada Burman, O.P.Nayyar and Hemant Kumar continue to be the immortal flame, filling my world with their glow. Her voice was breezy and fresh, filled with love and pensiveness.  It is said that her singing style was highly influenced by her tumultuous relati...

Rahul Dev Burman popularly known as Pancham da needs no introduction. He is known to both the older generations and the millenials thanks to the versatility of his music. June 27th is his birth anniversary and being an ardent follower of his music I wanted to share a drop from the ocean of his music with you. Music was in his genes - he was born to Sachin Dev Burman (also referred to as Dada Burman) who was a maestro himself and Meera Dev Burman who was a lyricist in Bengali films and assistant to Dada Burman. He dominated the music industry in 70's and 80's- music of most popular movies from these years like Sholay, Hum Kisise Kum Nahi, Love Story, Yaadon ki Baarat, was composed by him. Some of his most popular songs include Chura Liya hai, Do Lafzon ki hai, Mehbooba Mehbooba, Dum Maro Dum. The very popular and infamous remix Kaanta Laga was originally a sweet composition of Pancham da that was later remixed and unfortunately given a sleazy feel. Many of the remixes that w...

The legendary artist Salil Chowdhury once said - 'If God could sing, he would have a voice like Hemant Kumar'. Hemant Kumar needs no introduction. His is the voice of devotion and it touches those depths inside your heart that perhaps you were never even aware of. Lovingly referred to as Hemant Da, he was not just an exceptional singer but also a highly gifted composer. While he was studying Engineering at Jadavpur University, he was always lost in music and quit midway to pursue his passion. He got his first break in 1940 with a Bangla song and in 1942 for a Hindi song. Musical success though continued to elude him until 1947 when his composition in Bengali film 'Purba Rang' got the attention of S.Mukherjee, owner of the very popular Filmistan Studios in Bombay (Mumbai). This association gave music lovers the gift of 'Anand Math' in 1952, the album that also has the rousing 'Vande Mataram'.  The real fame came with the 1954 movie 'Nagin' and he ...