Ajab Prem ki Ghazab Kahani (2009)

‘Tu Jaane Na’

Singer: Atif Aslam

Album – Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (2009)

Composer: Pritam Chakraborty

This song opens with a chorus eerily similar to ‘Khwaja Mere Khwaja’ from the soundtrack of Jodhaa Akbar (by A.R. Rahman). That sing-along, deep throated chorus leads to a tabla infused beat over which Atif sings about love, and the not-so-literal distance between two lovers. The chorus repeats during the song with Atif’s characteristic alaaps, and the song tends to grow on you.

Verdict: A cue from A.R. Rahman or the classical influence of Coke Studio? Either way, good on Atif for having two songs in the same film.

- by Saba Imtiaz

London Dreams (2009)

Singers: Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Shankar Mahadevan

Album – London Dreams (2009)

Composers: Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy

Off the soundtrack of the grandiose film London Dreams, which promises to be a cross between all the music-themed films Bollywood has produced lately with the grandeur of Sanjay Leela Bhansali films, ‘Khwab Jo’ redeems Rahat to a certain extent. A duet with composer/singer Shankar Mahadevan and Rahat, ‘Khwab Jo’ is a soaring combination that builds on the strengths of both singers. It’s a song that one would love to hear being performed live to see how the camaraderie between the two is, but the optimistic lyrics may not be everyone’s cup of tea.

Verdict: Imagine yourself in an opera house while listening to this.

- by Saba Imtiaz

Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (2009)

‘Tera Hone Laga Hoon’

Singers: Atif Aslam and Alisha Chinoy

Album – Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani

Composer: Pritam Chakraborty

‘Tera Hone Laga Hoon’ will undoubtedly be this season’s most popular love song. In a year where soundtracks as brilliant as Kaminey or as fun as Wake Up Sid have been released, the Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani soundtrack can’t possibly match up, but it does have gems such as this one. Atif’s raw (the common complaint is ‘OUT OF TUNE!’) voice is an interesting contrast to Alisha’s melodious one but this is a combination that works. (Even though Atif’s voice seems odd on Ranbir Kapoor, but so did Shafqat Amanat Ali for Shah Rukh Khan on ‘Mitwa’). This romantic ballad is sweet. But can we please get a respite from the trend of including English lyrics in a Hindi song? The English verses are ridiculous:

‘Shining in the setting sun / like a pearl upon the ocean / come and feel me / oh feel me / Thinking about the love we’re making and the life we’re sharing / come and feel me’.

Surprisingly, even those cringe-worthy lines don’t distract from the song. Kudos to Pritam for the excellent production on this song and to Atif on upping the ante after the hits he has delivered with ‘Pehli Nazar’ and ‘Tere Bin’. This has hit written all over it, and given the heavy airplay the saccharine video featuring the film’s stars Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif has received, it’ll probably go down as one of the high points in Atif’s Bollywood portfolio.

Verdict: A cheesy, happy love song.

- by Saba Imtiaz

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan

‘Rabba’

Singer: Rahat Fateh Ali Khan

Album – Main Aurr Mrs Khanna

Composers: Sajid-Wajid

‘Rabba’ is one of the more disappointing songs that Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has done for Bollywood. It is sadly, entirely forgettable. Despite the fact that Rahat is reported to have broken down while recording this song, it doesn’t have any emotional depth. Instead, ‘Rabba’ just passes off as an average love song that even Rahat’s great vocals can do nothing for. I thought Rahat’s weakest song this year had to be ‘Ajj Din Chadheya’ from the Love Aaj Kal soundtrack, but ‘Rabba’ makes the former sound like a stroke of genius.

Verdict: Forgettable. Can we have another ‘Mann Ki Lagan’ please?

- by Saba Imtiaz

Atif Aslam

Pakistani singers crossing the border to lend their voice for a song or two in India isn’t a new story at all. Back in the day Nazia Hassan and Zohaib made the music of Disco Deewane rocking success and since then this has become a trend. In 2004, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan made his debut in Bollywood with the music of Paap and it wasn’t long ago when the Bhatts welcomed Atif Aslam to Bollywood with open arms and made him sing for their production. And it wasn’t just Atif who made it there, from Rahat Fateh Ali khan to Shafqat Amanat Ali, Ali Zafar, Mustafa Zahid, Ali Azmat, Call, Annie, Adeel Chaudhry and Shehzad Roy all crossed the border for a singing stint. Here’s a look at the five singers who actually made it big in Bollywood in the past few years!

Atif Aslam
Pakistani artists and singers are known for making music of different genres whereas in India most of the music made is the typical filmy sort. And the audience demands variety, so when the need for diversity arose the directors and producers had no choice but to look across the border for fresh talent. And when they did so, their eyes fell directly on Atif Aslam! This was back in 2005 when Atif Aslam crossed the border for the first time to sing for Bollywood and the Bhatts in particular. After ‘Woh Lamhe’ for Zeher, there was no looking back and also I might add, every single song he gave voice to was a hit to say the least. ‘Tere Bin’ topped charts in 2006, ‘Pehli Nazar Main’ did the same in 2008 and ‘Tera Honay Laga Hoon’ and ‘Tu Jaane Na’ were the biggest hits of last year among others. So much so that Atif got nominated for his music in literally every award function last year. Clearly, Atif has made it big in Bollywood with the magic of his voice.

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has sung the most for Bollywood among all other Pakistani singers. He has contributed in 30 different movies in the past 6 years and all of these movies have been big budget films starring the best that Indian cinema has to offer. His music has been a part of Om Shanti Om, Singh is King, Namaste London, Aaja Nachle, Billu Barber, Love Aajkal, My Name Is Khan, I Hate Luv Stories, We Are Family, Dabangg and many others. Now if a big budget movie comes out without Rahat’s voice in it, it seems incomplete! These days Rahat is the co-judge of a music show with Sonu Nigam which airs in both India and Pakistan. With all these achievements up his sleeve, one can only wonder if even the sky is the limit for Rahat.

Shafqat Amanat Ali
Shafqat Amanat Ali made his debut in Bollywood with the famous ‘Mitwa’ from Karan Johar’s Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna, which turned out to be a super hit! It continued to top charts for weeks and was probably the best track of the movie. That’s when Shafqat made his place in the hearts of many Indian music lovers and what better start could Shafqat have hoped for than to sing for Karan Johar’s production? But that wasn’t it for him. He went on to sing ‘Yeh Hosla’ for Dor, which turned out to be an extremely beautiful track that got lots of critical acclaim. Along with giving his voice to movies like Hello, Mumbai Cuttings and Aashayen, he recently sang ‘Bin Tere’ for I Hate Luv Storys and the song was nothing less than a chartbuster! Shafqat may not have sung as much as other Pakistani singers for Bollywood, but whatever that he has sung has been phenomenal!

Ali Zafar
When most other Pakistani singers crossed the border to sing, one couldn’t figure out why Ali Zafar wasn’t doing the same? Maybe he was waiting for the right time, maybe he had other plans or maybe he wanted to do something different – at that point in time we didn’t know what it was. Today we certainly do. He wanted to do border crossing like it was never done before and he did it eventually. Ali Zafar’s ticket to Bollywood has definitely been the much talked about Tere Bin Laden but don’t just forget that not only has Ali acted in the movie as the lead but also sung four songs of Tere Bin Laden. ‘I Love Amreeka’, ‘Ullu Da Patha’ and ‘Welcome To Amreeka’ are tracks composed by the superb trio Shankar Ehsan Loy and sung by Ali himself while ‘Bus Ek Soch’ is truly Ali’s own composition! Ali has made us all very proud.

Shehzad Roy
The latest singer to cross the border and join the Bollywood bandwagon is Shehzad Roy. Sure, he took time to make his singing debut there but something tells us there’s going to be no looking back. Shehzad Roy’s song, ‘Bullshit’ was featured in Akshay Kumar’s latest movie, Khatta Meetha. The best thing about Shehzad’s debut is that the song is his own composition. It might seem familiar to Pakistanis because it’s a mixture of ‘Laga Reh’ and ‘Qismat Apnay Haath Main’ but hopefully will be fresh enough for Bollywood directors. Here’s wishing Shehzad Roy all the best for his future projects – Hafsah Sarfraz

Dabang (2010)

There’s music buffs, and then there’s Salman Khan buffs. The latter relish the ‘masala’ quotient featured in all of composer-duo Sajid-Wajid’s offerings ['Sohni De Nakhre' from Partner - the song featured in so many mehndis I wanted to strangle myself with a patka; 'Karle Baby Dance' from Hello; 'Happening' - Mai aur Mrs. Khanna; practically the entire soundtrack of Wanted, to name a few]; Mozart this is not, but the music serves its purpose, especially to front-benchers. That’s not to say that Sajid-Wajid aren’t capable of the – err – ‘cultured’; some tracks from their first 2010 release Veer were more class than mass, but whatever chance that soundtrack had was effectively ruined by laughable production/costume design [Pindari warrior channels Conan the Barbarian couture] and outrageous choreography by – aha – Lolly Pop – ahahahahaha.

No, seriously, that’s the choreographer’s name.
Right, where was I. Ah, of course: Dabangg Salman Khan returns to his Wanted roots; the action-hero avatar brought him box office glory galore in 2009, and he’s all set to repeat that as Chulbul Pandey [or 'Bad-Ass Robin Hood', as the trailers claim. But - wait, he's a police-officer, not an outlaw, that doesn't make sen...- dang it! What part of Bollywood crime pulp fiction do I not get: everything goes, including shout-outs to Kevin Costner.] Won’t post the entire plot here, but certain keywords should do: Corrupt police-officer/desi Samurai alternating between death army of one and roadside Romeo, check. Evil stepfather [Vinod Khanna], check. Mother [Dimple Kapadia] destined for the deathbed before interval, check. Sati savitri [Sonakshi Sinha, daughter of Shatrughan Sinha, in her debut], check. Her alcoholic, abusive father, played by Mahesh Manjrekar, duh. Twat of a half-brother [Arbaaz Khan] who has to ruin everything – check. Antagonist [Sonu Sood, of Jodhaa Akbar/Singh is King fame] that pits brother against brother, check. Malaika Arora in item-girl avatar as Munni, mmmm. I mean check.

Going through the soundtrack of Dabangg, one thing’s pretty obvious: the composers seem ‘inspired’ by Vishal Bhardwaj’s compositions, particularly Omkara and Kaminey. There’s two sides to the Dabangg OST: one’s folksy, rustic, and unabashedly commercial [vintage Sajid-Wajid], the other attempts to be sophisticated [re: earnest love-ballad and Sufi-qawwali-cash-cow] but comes off as pretentious.

The breakdown: A lot’s been said about Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s ‘Tere Mast Mast Do Nain’; the words ‘chartbuster’ and ‘perennial composition’ have been tossed around, and RFAK’s been praised to the hilt, some even calling it one of his most accomplished renditions.

I don’t see it. Have people forgotten the Rahat Fateh Ali Khan of old ['Mann Ki Lagan' - Paap, 'Jiya Dhadak Dhadak' - Kalyug, 'Naina' - Omkara, 'O Re Piya' - Aaja Nachle, and the like]? Feels to me like recently we’re hearing a more ‘commercial’ RFAK: ‘Sajda’ from MNIK, ‘Bahara’ from I Hate Luv Storys and ‘Aankhon Mai Neendein’ from We Are Family were to me, painfully average and don’t hold a candle to, say a ‘Dil to Bachcha Hai Ji’. Sure, the song is easy on the ears [and how could it not; the dhin-chak-dhin beat is uncomplicated and unchanging], and the chorus is… rhapsodic, but the song overstays its welcome: 6 minutes of Bollywood, The Sufi Side Of, 101. I’d recommend revisiting Mann Ki Lagan for Sufi-qawalli sublimity; the simplicity of the musical arrangement worked there, not so much in this song. The verdict: it’s quintessential RFAK, but two shades paler than his finest works. The duet version with saccharine Shreya Ghoshal works better; at least there’s some variation. The last we see of this song is in an insipid, unnecessary remix version that’s bound to Baby Doll remix obscurity. I mean, why even go there with tracks like these? Do you see yourself rocking out at a rave to ‘Teri Ore’? Didn’t think so.

Guest composer and lyricist Lalit Pandit gives us a poor man’s ‘Beedi’ [Omkara] with ‘Munni Badnaam’; a deliciously crass concoction that’s bound to send front-benchers into rabid fits of ecstasy [re: Malaika Arora, queen of the item-song.] With lyrics like: ‘Munni Badnaam Hui/Le Zandu Balm Hui/Amiya Se Aam Hui Darling Tere Liye’ it’s obvious this isn’t a Gulzar sonnet [more out of the pages of a Naseebo Lal ditty], but for its sheer infectious mood, spirited folksy flavor and OTT lyrics, the song works. Oh, come on, it has Malaika and Salman Khan grooving it out, UP-Bihar style: it was always going to play for visual impact rather than musical content. Though Sallu calling his real-life sister-in-law ‘Item-Bomb’ as she prances around in practically a backless choli is just a wee bit disturbing. There’s also a remix version that’s set to be all the rage at mehndis, but it dilutes the charming folksy flair of the original.

Up next is ‘Chori Kiya Re Jiya’, a Sonu Nigam/Shreya Ghoshal duet, straight out of the pages of a KJo/Sooraj Barjatya flick. Breezy, romantic, a tad blah towards the end [what's with 4 minute-plus songs?!], it’s standard Bollywood ballad, but surprisingly tender, given the violent theme of the film.

Oh hello, ‘Omkara’! Sajid-Wajid directly lift the chorus from Vishal Bhardwaj’s title track and conveniently add it to ‘Hud Hud Dabangg’, but plagiarism aside, with an intoxicating rendition by, oh hello, Sukhwinder Singh, the raucous rustic track [reminiscent in vocal energy as 'Tashan'], suffused with ethnic beats, is gritty and a surefire hit.

‘Humka Peena Hai’ again treads ‘masala’ territory with use of traditional elements, a catchy hook and an energetic rendition; couple that with Salman Khan’s histrionics onscreen [a drunk Sallu makes for great crowd-pleaser], and you’ve got another great ‘commercial’ track; think crude, rural irreverent rendition of ‘Chalak Chalak’ from Devdas [you've got all your basics: hichkis, kaari aankhen, mehkhane, et al]

The soundtrack ends with ‘The Dabangg Theme’, the music of which is reminiscent of Kaminey’s background score, but that’s not even the half of it. It’s like the makers ripped the audio off of the theatrical trailer [dialogues, gunshots, dhishum-dhishum all included], and presented it as a score. The dialoguebaazi is entertaining, granted, but why not just – watch the trailer? Can you say bizarre?

The Verdict: Sajid-Wajid deliver on what they promise: a hardcore ‘dhinchak’ mass entertainer that’s bound to have even more impact once the film releases. The only dull moments [though RFAK fans will disagree] are ‘Tere Mast Mast Do Nain’ & ‘Chori Kiya Re Jiya’ – that being said, it’s far superior than the KJo-on-a-bad-day We Are Family soundtrack – Osman Khalid Butt

Music Bands

It’s heartening to see that slowly but surely musicians are climbing out of their self-created bubble. They accommodate reality in their songs and videos. Whether it’s Shehzad Roy or more recently Strings, the idea is to open doors to the world that surrounds us.

Strings’ recent video, ‘Ab Khud Kuch Karna Parega’ which also features pop favourite Atif Aslam is not a fluffy video by any stretch of the imagination. It is a conflicting video, much like the issues that continue to haunt us. The video includes dark imagery whether its violence in the streets or corruption in uniform, Strings haven’t made any attempts to beautify the reality but rather take a close look at it. They have been criticized for being vague. But the fact remains that Strings played out reality in their music and video which is hugely important in today’s times.

Now with the devastating floods which have destroyed homes, families, crops, land, infrastructure and left 20 million people displaced, the time is ripe for musicians to take notice. Atif Aslam, Shehzad Roy, Ali Azmat, Zeeshan Parwez are just some of the names who have been helping.

Musicians like Noori, Jal, Ali Azmat, Call and a few others gathered at the Mall of Lahore for a celebrity camp and managed to raise half a million rupees.

Others are participating in a telethon ala Strings to raise funds. Faakhir has teamed up with Pakistan Navy while Haroon has raised funds via concerts.

And more needs to be done. Pakistani-American musician Salman Ahmed is planning a song for the floods victims through which he plans to raise funds.

And more music needs to come out with a focus on our tremulous surroundings, if for nothing else than just to prove that in these difficult times, the music industry is not detached from reality. The only other band to have done a song about the floods have been Laal, whose poignant ‘Doob Gaya Hai’ is out as a reminder about the greatest natural catastrophe in recent history. One wishes others come out with songs related to the disaster that has affected 20 million people and needs to be kept in the news so the relief effort gains momentum.

Music can no longer be about bubblegum fluffy stuff. Or even if it is then it needs to be hardhitting in the vein of Shehzad Roy’s epic ‘Qismat Apnay Haat Mein’ and ‘Laga Reh’ or Laal who so profoundly brought Habib Jalib back to such powerful effect.

Patriotic spirit, introspection, soul stirring statements, questioning society is what’s needed at this hour and that doesn’t exclude the entertainment industry. After all, a society is never complete without the arts. And the arts should be signs of the time – Maheen Sabeeh

Ghazal is thus the characteristic form of vocal music for singing Urdu poetry. It has great appeal and the manner of performance is sometimes classical or semi-classical.

The ghazals are usually sung solo or at the most in duet form unlike the qawwali which is performed by a choral group. In the text the ghazal singers usually confine themselves to the poetry of the well established Urdu poets like Mohammad Shah Zafar, Mir, Ghalib, Sauda, Zauq, Dagh, Momin, and modern poets like Firaq Gorakhpuri, Sahir Ludhianvi and Hafiz Jalandhari – Satyendra K. Sen Chib

Tina Sani

Talking into Tina Sani’s beautifully decorated residence, her musical instruments which are propped up in one corner, give an indication that one is in a singer’s home rather than an interior designer’s. Halfway through the interview, she turns out to be the typical caring and attentive mother, cleaning up after her feverish son who has been throwing up. One and also discover that she has none of the nonsensical airs that you would expect of a highly sought-after artist.

Tina Sani entered the professional world of singing in 1980, when producer Ishrat Ansari introduced her on TV in a youth programme hosted by Alamgir.

“It was the first programme of its kind, with live recording. I had taken up singing only six months prior to that, more for kicks than anything else, and my appearing on television was a culmination of that short period of practice. Considering that I had never been in the public eye, it was a luxury to have such a captive audience before me. I got a huge bounce from this programme, which marked the beginning of an unknown journey for me.”

However, while Tina began to make appearances on television, she also made sure that they were not too frequent in number. She confesses, “I knew I had to work hard and didn’t want to burn myself out right at the beginning of my career. I had to go through a process of learning and wanted to mature as a singer before allowing people to make up their minds about me. So I pretty much kept to myself and performed for just a few good producers.” Meanwhile, Tina Sani kept herself occupied with a number of other things including teaching at the American School. Then came an offer that was just up her sleeve — she was asked to do Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s ghazal, Aai meray dil meray musafir.

“That opened avenues for me. I received a lot of support from my listeners, family and everyone around me, but the pressure was to do good work rather than a lot of it. My father always wanted me to go into classical singing and once I understood its methodology I began to enjoy it too.”

For Sani, as with most singers, the ultimate pleasure is to perform live. But she concedes that in the initial years she used to be very apprehensive about performing publicly.

“Maybe because of the lack of experience, confidence and practice. I could never dream of sitting on the same platform as Farida Khanum or Mehdi Hassan and sing alongside them.”

In fact, even to this date she takes her music very seriously and says, “You can’t play around with an audience that has been used to hearing Farida Khanum, simply because you’ve now become a known name and your tickets sell.”

Sani is one of those rare breed of people readily accepting that she has been blessed. She is also willing to accept all the “good and bad things” in life and puts it down to experience. “I strongly believe that no one can force you to do anything against your wishes and in the final analysis, I feel you are the better judge of making and then learning from your mistakes.”

Over the years Tina Sani has maintained a relatively low profile. She claims that her family life and the need to be ‘isolated’ keep her from taking too many programmes.

“If I ever have to do three concerts in a month, which I have occasionally done, I feel the verve disappears. I need time to myself, to think in isolation and to do my ‘riaz’.” She likes to appear before an audience only when she has something special to offer. Her repertoire is always prepared well in advance and is never haphazard.

“I know exactly what I am going to sing at the concert, other than entertaining requests, and I never underestimate the audience. The best part is that my audience includes a lot of young people nowadays. My message to them is that if I can understand this kind of music, so can they. I grew up, away from Pakistan and had little practice in spoken Urdu and no formal training in music, but I made up my mind to do what I wanted to do 20 years ago. And that is exactly what I am doing right now. I feel it is my duty to bring to them works of people like Mukhtar Begum.”

Tina Sani has acquired almost a philosophical angle to her personality. She feels that what satisfies her the most about her current situation is the fact that with every ‘riaz’ her knowledge is constantly growing and she is learning more about herself. “I make it a point to take out time for ‘riaz’ — in fact I am very strict with myself about practice because I know I can’t get anywhere without it. You can be born with talent but that’s where it ends. Practice teaches you about life at a micro level. It’s like growing a seed — you have to germinate it in your mind before you can see results. I sit and listen to music of the maestros in an ‘alpha state’, which is when I am listening not with an intent to learn, but for the sheer pleasure of it. I know I’ll never get there myself, but it all plays back to me when I perform — not the techniques of what the great artists did, but how they did it.”

According to Sani, she gives her musicians full leverage to play as they please. “We work within a scale, and once the scale is determined, it is easy to do things in it and still remain within the scale. I tell them to just follow the raaga of the scale and communicate whatever they want to on their instrument. My problem has never been a desire to hog all the limelight. My only hang-up is that I cannot endure singing where Urdu is not understood. At least a basic knowledge should be there, for I love to communicate with my audience.”

The singer feels that ‘fusion’ is a loosely used term, which needs to be redefined. She opines that mixing of instruments, eastern with the western, is not fusion. Rather fusion is about working with completely different cultures — it is more about the players than the instruments they are using. She recalls an interesting experience some years ago in Greenwich Village, New York.

“There was a Spaniard singing a ballad which had been used by Raj Kapoor in one of his movies and I spontaneously started singing it in Urdu. He came up to me and started playing the chords for me and then I sang Meray Hamdam, Meray Dost and just by hearing the melody, he played it for me. Before we knew it, we had gathered an audience that was applauding us madly. That was true fusion.”

Other than music, Sani’s passion is reading. She claims to read four books at a time and finds that reading opens one’s mind. On the other hand, television bores her and she watches very few “great” movies. An eternal optimist, she feels that our people should have a more positive attitude towards things, for enough good things are happening in the country.

“We should stop this self-bashing. Criticism is healthy, but cynicism is detrimental and infectious. You have to have dreams — otherwise you simply stop dreaming.”

True, and one can’t help but feel that Tina Sani’s optimism is just as infectious.

Note:- This interview was conducted in 2001

Mubarak Begum

She has worked with most composers of her time, yet never had the chance to make it to her zenith. Today, she remains a distant memory Mubarak Begum didn’t get many opportunities to get her voice heard. Today, as she looks back at a career which didn’t quite take off in the real sense of the term, she says, “I’ve done only 25 per cent of the work I could have. My wings were cut before I even began to fly. And I’ve never been able to understand why – since I was a niche singer, there was no question of treading on anyone else’s toes. But just as I was getting popular, composers stopped calling me for work. Finally, I reached a stage when I had no work at all.”

Now, as she waits for some miracle to release her from what has become a life of drudgery, Mubarak Begum looks back fondly on her days of struggle – when life still held out that most tempting bait, hope.

FILMS WERE A PASSION

“As a child, I loved watching movies. Though originally from Rajasthan, we lived in Sahrangpur Darwaza (Ahmedabad). I remember, whenever I knew somebody was going to watch a film, I’d throw a tantrum – I wanted to go, too! So, my ‘taya’ (paternal uncle) would take me, even though once the lights went off and the film began, I’d promptly fall asleep! When my family moved to Mumbai, Suraiya was very popular. I’d see her films, imitate her voice and sing all her numbers to perfection.”

“Then I started learning music from Abdul Karim Khan’s (a well known classical singer of the time) nephew, Riyazuddin Khan. I learnt just enough of classical music to be able to do ‘riyaz’ – I was told that too much classical training made one’s voice unfit for light music.”

“Around this time, I started singing on All India Radio (AIR) and, apparently, had a large audience. Among them was Rafique Ghaznavi Khan saab, remembered as the man who said the famous words (that accompany the logo of Mehboob Khan Films) – ‘Muddayi lakh bura chahe to kya hota hai, wohi hota hai jo manzoore khuda hota hai’. He is the music composer of ‘Taqdeer’, Nargis’s debut film.”

MIKE FRIGHT STRIKES!

“Anyway, Khan saab liked my voice and asked me to sing for him. I was very raw then, and was made to rehearse at a recording studio at Tardeo (Mumbai). But when I stood before the mike, I just couldn’t sing! Agajani Kashmiri, the well known writer, was also present and kept saying, ‘Go for another take.’ The others asked him, ‘What take? She can’t sing!’ We (my father and I) returned home. But, at the time, I felt no regret. I was too naive to really understand the importance of it all.”

“My father was very keen that I enter the music world, and constantly did the rounds of producers’ offices. That’s how I met Shyamsunder – a popular composer in those days – who introduced me to Ram Daryani. He was making ‘Badi Bahen’ at the time and promised to give me two songs in the film. But history repeated itself – I was made to rehearse (this time in Shree Sound Studios); and I got so frightened, I couldn’t sing!”

OVERCOMING MY FEAR

“This struggle continued till I met Yakub, who was making ‘Aayiye’, the music of which was composed by Shaukat Dehlvi, who did the popular ‘Nagma’. I remember going to Eastern Studios at Worli (Mumbai), where Allaudin, Yakub’s brother, was the recordist. And there, for the first time, we recorded without a hitch! The song was a solo, ‘Mohe aane lagi angrayi… aaja aaja balam’. I also sang a duet (with Lata Mangeshkar) for the same film, ‘Aao chalein, chalein sakhi wahan’.”

“Meanwhile, I continued meeting composers, hoping to get work. But some of them refused to hear me. When I went to meet S. D. Burman, he said, ‘Polish your voice, polish your voice’ without listening to my voice.”

“My next film was ‘Phoolon Ke Haar’, for which I sang eight songs. Composed by Hasraj Behl to the lyrics of D. N. Madhok, Verma Malik and Indivar, the film had Geeta Bali and Nigar Sultana in the lead roles. A few small films followed, for which I got paid as little as Rs. 150.”

MY BIGGEST PROJECT

“Then, I landed my biggest project, ‘Daayra’, thanks to Harishchandra Rao, its composer. I’d just finished recording a song for Jamaal Sen, a relative of today’s composers Dilip and Sameer Sen. I believe Harishchandra Rao had tried to get other singers, but they’d stood him up. So, he took me to meet Kamal Amrohi.” “Busy recording with Meenu Katrak, Kamal saab sent along a representative to decide on my voice. That’s how I got to sing for ‘Daayra’. The theme song, ‘Devta tum ho mera sahara, maine thamma hai daaman tumhara’ was a duet between (Mohammad) Rafi and me. I sang other numbers too – ‘Jali jo shama, deep ke sang jaloon’, for example. I had about seven songs in the film, which had Meena Kumari and Nasir Khan in the lead. Unfortunately for me, ‘Daayra’ was an utter flop. I was extremely disappointed.”

SONGS WERE WRITTEN FOR ME!

“Around this time, I was called to sing for Naushad saabs film ‘Shabab’. When I got there, I found all I had to sing was a few lines in a child’s chorus. The song was Rafi’s ‘Mehelon mein rehne wale, hamein tere dar se’

“I was upset – it was such a big production and all I was getting to sing was a few lines! Then, they offered to give me a full song if I sang this one. I agreed.”

“After which, S. D. Burman ‘da’ suddenly called me over to visit him at Dev Anand’s office in Juhu (Mumbai). He was composing for the film ‘Devdas’ and wanted me to sing the number ‘Woh na aayenge palatkar, unhein lakh hum bulaayein…’. The song had just about two lines, which had to be repeated over and over again.”

“Sahir Ludhianvi, the lyricist, who was sitting there, heard me and said, ‘I’ll give you a full song.’ That’s how the song finally had an ‘antara’ and ‘asthayi’. Burman ‘da’ was very pleased and praised me. All I could remember at the time was how he’d refused to even listen to me when I’d approached him earlier.”

“I had the opportunity of singing in every film made by Bimal Roy. ‘Hale dil sunayenge…’ (‘Madhumati’) became very popular. Initially, even this song was just one stanza long, till Shailendra saab told me he’d write the full lyrics and the song grew in length.”

“That song was recorded with only three musicians – a sarangi player (Pt. Ram Narain), a ‘tabalchi’ and a harmonium player. Composer Salil Choudhry heard it, as he was entering the room, and was very thrilled!”

MY MOST POPULAR NUMBER

“I’ve sung in practically all of Kidar Sharma’s films too. For one, whose production composer was Snehal Bhatkar, I sang ‘Kabhi tanhayiyon mein yoon, hamari yaad aayegi…’ At the recording, Kidar Sharma sat with his eyes closed till the song was done, and then got up and gave me some money. When I hesitated, Snehal Bhatkar told me, ‘Take it. Whoever he gives money to makes a name.’ The film was ‘Hamari Yaad Aayegi’, with Tanuja.”

“At the time, I was told the song was a background number (those days background numbers didn’t figure on records). But on a visit to Pakistan, I found people talking about this song. Then, I realized that Kidar saab had got a record made after all. This song has been one of my most popular numbers. It still is.”

MY REPERTOIRE GREW

“Composers Shankar-Jaikishen were becoming very popular around this time, and I’ve always been a very ardent fan of theirs. I’ve always respected them for their originality – they were like no one else. I sang for ‘Hamrahi’ with them – the song was a duet with Rafi saab, ‘Mujhko apne gale lagalo ai mere hamrahi…’ I worked with them in ‘Around The World’ (a duet with Sharda, ‘Yeh muh aur masoor ki dal…’) and again in ‘Arzoo’ (‘Jab ishk kahin ho jaata hai…’ – a ‘quwaali’). “I worked with Kalyanji-Anandji in ‘Juari’ (‘Neend ud jaye teri chainse sone wale…’) and in ‘Yeh Dil Kisko Doon’. A song that scaled the heights of popularity was ‘Hume dum daike souten ghar jaana…’, which I sang with Asha Bhosle. Madan Mohan had me sing in ‘Neend Humari Khwab Tumhare’ (‘Sakiya ek bhi to de…’). In ‘Saraswati Chandra’, I sang the number ‘Vada humse kiya dil kisiko diya…’ and in ‘Kajal’ – ‘Agar tum na miloge to main yeh samjoongi…’. I had begun getting more and more work.”

SUDDENLY THERE WAS NO WORK!

“Then my life did an about turn. For no reason, my songs would be recorded and then cut off from the film, like in the film ‘Jab Jab Phool Khile’, and again, in a number I recorded with Shobha Gurtu for Bappi Lahiri. Slowly, I realized that I was being edged out of the industry.”

By this time, Mubarak Begum had sung with almost every composer and singer – she’d had duets with Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Geeta Dutt, Rafi, Mukesh, Talat Mehmood, Manna Dey… She’d sung for regional language films like in Sindhi (“It was ever so difficult,” she laughs, today , “to get the pronunciation right AND concentrate on the singing! But watching my co-singer, Talat Mahmood, struggling too made me do my best”). Now, she sings for stage shows – “I have to survive,” she says.

TODAY…

But listeners will never forget what she has sung, even if her repertoire hasn’t been very large. She has some memorable numbers to her credit – Jan Nissar Akhtar’s number for ‘Susheela’ with Talat Mahmood, ‘Kuch ajnabi se aap hain, kuch ajnabi se hum…’ or the one from ‘Daakbabu’, ‘Ghir ghir aaye badarva kare, rang bhare ras bhare pyare pyare…’

This industry where awards are two a penny, Mubarak Begum has received no recognition whatsoever for her work… “Forget appreciating talent with an award, we’re not even invited for the functions any more. So completely have we been forgotten,” says she, sadly – As told to Lata Khubchandani few years ago