And to think I had lost my trail of thought and the will to write! Well here I am...back and hopefully wid a bang! I guess I was suffering from a critical case of 'writer's block' where mind wanted to write but heart did not have words. Sometimes there is so much happening and so much to deal with, that expression in its purest form becomes difficult. I just did not know what to pen down as I had much bitterness and anger seething inside me then. Mom was partly responsible to encourage me to write again and I guess I needed something as interesting as last evening to induce me to write!
After a super hectic day at work, I was dragged to a musical concert which celebrated Madan Mohan classics. Madan who? I said when I was first told about him. Pat came a reply from mom - one of the finest music directors of the black & white era. I am a fan of B&W classics so decided to give it a shot. If not anything else, the melodious evening would drift me into sleep which was evading me since a long time. Turns out - I was in for a surprise!
Madan Mohan was indeed a treasure island who unfortunately composed the HIT songs of FLOP movies and was given the misunderstood title of Ghazal King which confined him in a niche whereas he was much more than just that. Surprisingly the emotional artist and spectacular composer never received his due of recognition and prestige while he lived. He had the best talents of the industry like Lata Mangeshkar, Talat Mehmood, Mohd. Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Asha Bhosle, etc. singing timeless and ageless songs for him for his career span of more than a quarter of a century until his death in 1975.
For the conossieurs of old Hindi music the evening was a treat with resounding melodies from movies like Anadi, Mera Saaya, Heer Ranjha, Bawarchi, Haste Zakham, Adalat, Haqueeqat, etc. Interestingly, my post title is also based on one of his well known song - 'Phir Wohi Shaam...' dedicated to a memorable evening. And for the ones belonging to my generation, remember the tunes of SRK and Preity Zinta starrer Veer Zaara? True to its reputation - a forgettable movie with unforgettable songs! 30 years after his death, Madan Mohan lent his music to the movie which resulted in delightful compositions like - 'Tere liye...hum hain jiye...honton ko siye, Tere liye...,.hum hain jiye....har aansoo piye. Dil mein magar...Jalte rahe...Chahat ke diye...Tere liye...Tere liye...!' This was indeed a tribute to the man he was and the music he made!
The 3 hour concert was quite mesmerizing...well most of it was...there were some ghazals which I had never heard and was difficult to relate to them. But overall a very pleasant evening. The writer in me, almost always judges the song by its lyrics. I normally get very impressed with the words and the meaning that they convey. Rarely has music come to the fore and lyrics dissolved in the background the way it happened for me last evening. Its unusual and enticing to see how Madan Mohan ji has utilized different instruments to suit different moods of songs - sitar being his favourite, drums, flutes, pianos and side rhythms! An amateur like me was not even aware about the ornamental section of a song which was contributed by 20 different types of side rhythms! The tinkling of the glass, the stomping of the wood, the breeze in a boat or the jingle of the ghungroo were never so pronouced as they came alive in front of us in the form of splendid side rhythms of a well coordinated orchestra!
My personal favourite was a Madan Mohan song penned by Rajendra Singh from the 1958 movie Adalat sung by Mohd. Rafi and Asha Bhosle - 'Zameen se humein aasamaan par bithaa ke gira to na doge? Agar hum yeh poochein ke dil men basa ke bhula to na doge? ' The song displays insecurity and love as twin concepts and the lyrics are wonderfully interwoven and attired with soothing music. The song and its lyrics show strength and character because of the entralling music that supports it!
Anyway, to wind up the unusual evening, I would like to say that coming from a Javed Akhtar and A R Rehman generation, I totally adore the catchy soulful songs that they dish out whereas at the same time I chuckle at suicide bombers of the constipated 'uuuuuuuuuuuuuuu' genre! But its nice to be transported sometimes in the time that was - when life was simple, problems were fewer, time was abundant and feelings more vivid and deep. Songs of music directors like Madan Mohan provide a glimpse back into the stories of the GOLDEN ERA! Like a well wisher of the Madan Mohan family put it - ' Yaadon ke ujalo ka saath na chodo...Naa Jaane kis mod par Zindagi ki shaam ho jaye...Usi shaam ke andhere mein yaadon ke diye timtimate hue aasmaan ko roshan kar jaye...! ' :)
After a super hectic day at work, I was dragged to a musical concert which celebrated Madan Mohan classics. Madan who? I said when I was first told about him. Pat came a reply from mom - one of the finest music directors of the black & white era. I am a fan of B&W classics so decided to give it a shot. If not anything else, the melodious evening would drift me into sleep which was evading me since a long time. Turns out - I was in for a surprise!
Madan Mohan was indeed a treasure island who unfortunately composed the HIT songs of FLOP movies and was given the misunderstood title of Ghazal King which confined him in a niche whereas he was much more than just that. Surprisingly the emotional artist and spectacular composer never received his due of recognition and prestige while he lived. He had the best talents of the industry like Lata Mangeshkar, Talat Mehmood, Mohd. Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Asha Bhosle, etc. singing timeless and ageless songs for him for his career span of more than a quarter of a century until his death in 1975.
For the conossieurs of old Hindi music the evening was a treat with resounding melodies from movies like Anadi, Mera Saaya, Heer Ranjha, Bawarchi, Haste Zakham, Adalat, Haqueeqat, etc. Interestingly, my post title is also based on one of his well known song - 'Phir Wohi Shaam...' dedicated to a memorable evening. And for the ones belonging to my generation, remember the tunes of SRK and Preity Zinta starrer Veer Zaara? True to its reputation - a forgettable movie with unforgettable songs! 30 years after his death, Madan Mohan lent his music to the movie which resulted in delightful compositions like - 'Tere liye...hum hain jiye...honton ko siye, Tere liye...,.hum hain jiye....har aansoo piye. Dil mein magar...Jalte rahe...Chahat ke diye...Tere liye...Tere liye...!' This was indeed a tribute to the man he was and the music he made!
The 3 hour concert was quite mesmerizing...well most of it was...there were some ghazals which I had never heard and was difficult to relate to them. But overall a very pleasant evening. The writer in me, almost always judges the song by its lyrics. I normally get very impressed with the words and the meaning that they convey. Rarely has music come to the fore and lyrics dissolved in the background the way it happened for me last evening. Its unusual and enticing to see how Madan Mohan ji has utilized different instruments to suit different moods of songs - sitar being his favourite, drums, flutes, pianos and side rhythms! An amateur like me was not even aware about the ornamental section of a song which was contributed by 20 different types of side rhythms! The tinkling of the glass, the stomping of the wood, the breeze in a boat or the jingle of the ghungroo were never so pronouced as they came alive in front of us in the form of splendid side rhythms of a well coordinated orchestra!
My personal favourite was a Madan Mohan song penned by Rajendra Singh from the 1958 movie Adalat sung by Mohd. Rafi and Asha Bhosle - 'Zameen se humein aasamaan par bithaa ke gira to na doge? Agar hum yeh poochein ke dil men basa ke bhula to na doge? ' The song displays insecurity and love as twin concepts and the lyrics are wonderfully interwoven and attired with soothing music. The song and its lyrics show strength and character because of the entralling music that supports it!
Anyway, to wind up the unusual evening, I would like to say that coming from a Javed Akhtar and A R Rehman generation, I totally adore the catchy soulful songs that they dish out whereas at the same time I chuckle at suicide bombers of the constipated 'uuuuuuuuuuuuuuu' genre! But its nice to be transported sometimes in the time that was - when life was simple, problems were fewer, time was abundant and feelings more vivid and deep. Songs of music directors like Madan Mohan provide a glimpse back into the stories of the GOLDEN ERA! Like a well wisher of the Madan Mohan family put it - ' Yaadon ke ujalo ka saath na chodo...Naa Jaane kis mod par Zindagi ki shaam ho jaye...Usi shaam ke andhere mein yaadon ke diye timtimate hue aasmaan ko roshan kar jaye...! ' :)
2 comments:
WOW - I don't listen to hindi music much....but when I do, its almost always the GOLDEN ERA songs!
And you echoed my sentiments - when you wrote that you always judge the song by its lyrics. I am a huge fan of lyrics....they touch me to the core.
Thank you sooo much...its exciting to know someone thinks like me when it comes to lyrics! :)
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