BAAG MEIN KALI KHILI

Song 15: 28 Mar 2013

Life comes full circle. I remember as a kid, this time of the year used to be a particularly exciting time. What with exams about to get over and results out, one would look forward to holidays and the long summer. Summer also meant spending long hours at the pool, getting rejuvenated and refreshed from the long, sultry afternoons. A little before my last exam I would take out my swimming costume or go get a new one, try it out in front of all mirrors in the house, from all angles. Then I would pack my swimming bag well in advance. Even the smell of that lime n lemony soap called Liril is so vivid in my mind. That soap always had models in a fluorescent green bikini bathing under a waterfall, creating a splash, Karen Lunel being the flavour of that season, the first girl I ever saw having a whale of a time under a waterfall, and how! There would be this bated nervousness mixed with anticipation. Who would be at the pool this year? Any new faces, any new show-offs and any new ace swimmers and divers. I could barely sit through my last exam, often even leaving one or two questions in the giddiness.Those Olympics Greg Louganis had made a clean sweep of most diving medals and I had his cut outs in my scrap books(of course he hadn't declared until then that he was gay!). 

This song by Asha Bhosle brings all that back like no other song. And Tanuja more than lives up to the energising song written by Shailendra and composed by the maestro Salil Choudhury(Gawd these Bongs, I tell you!). When you see Tanuja, India's very own Audrey Hepburn, you understand where Kajol got her special spark from. Of course her mom. Now I see my daughter super excited on her result day for pool to start while I cannot enjoy swimming per se without worrying about the tan, the chlorine, the hair damage etc. Oh to be able to have pure fun with no worries! This song will always be special for it is closest I can get to doing that. Coz it takes me back to when I was 15!:)   

NA YEH CHAND HOGA

 

Song 14: 27 Mar 2013

Geeta Dutt too could pack a pensive number with a certain punch. She could essay many moods with ease and spontaneity. When you listen to Geeta Dutt's club crooner numbers, it is almost difficult to fathom that she was once essentially a singer of spiritual Bengali songs or bhajans and hymns! It was a genius such as S D Burman who saw an undefined potential in her and coaxed her to try her hand at playback singing and particularly seductive songs. The rest was history.

Similarly once you tune yourself to her peppy numbers, it is unbelievable that she could also sing these sombre, serious numbers with the stability or what is called 'Thehrav' in musical lingo, the ability to hold a note with all your conviction and to convey unwavering sentiment to be expressed through that song. Today is a beautiful full moon night and for us loony crabs it is a special night always. It influences us in mysterious ways. Sometimes it could mean a crazy, cranky, wild time going slightly eccentric ot hysterical. Or it could be an equally serious and introspective time, when the mighty moon rays penetrate our souls and express all that has been curbed. And what better moon song than this Geeta Dutt number, composed by Hemant Kumar who also sang this song in his pleasingly nasal but melodious style. His tunes were memorable for their inherent simplicity and fluidity, with simple instrumentation that brought out the tonal quality of the singer to the fore. And needless to say Geeta Dutt's voice shines through. Now this is a passionate song, written by S H Bihari within the norms of decency. It transcends the span of time and age and still strikes a chord.

JAB CHALI THANDI HAWA

Song 13: 27 Mar 2013

But 'Thandi Hawa and Kali Ghata' were a matter of perspective. Dancing diva was human after all, given to human frailties and foibles. She could be in the midst of a beauteous spring time, the most salubrious weather ever, and yet feel incomplete. This was not showtime. This was not pretence. The dancing diva did take time off after all. These were times when she did not feel the need to please  and appease all around. These were the times she was her true self. Her heart knew what she wanted, who she was missing, who she wanted to be with. So in the middle of great celebrations could be a yearning to be with someone far away. On these days she sang songs of such naked longing and transparency, that even the plaintive cries of the cuckoo bird would be put to shame. This song by Ravi and Shakeel Badayuni tells it like it is and Asha Parekh does full justice to it. Dancing diva was a woman after all. And whatever adjectives you use to describe a woman- impulsive, illogical, emotional, instinctive, impetuous, fickle, restless, committed, loyal, pure or senseless. She was what she was and unabashedly so. She had to be true to her sentiments. She did not owe an explanation to anybody!  

THANDI HAWA KALI GHATA

Song 12:  26 Mar 2013
 

The female form has always and will always inspire poets, artists, painters, creative people to wax eloquent on beauty. And that too bathing beauties always add a fluid resonance across a screen or a canvas. While these maestros used the female form in all it's mystique and allure giving slight peeks to such advantage that one was curious to find out more. Dress and demeanour today leaves nothing to the imagination. Everything is stark, uncovered and staring in the face when all you can do is flinch, squirm and run for cover. Pretty girls and shapely legs by the poolside, always a yes. But getting to know about their lingerie and zandu balms and manjans and all toiletries possible! Big NO!!

Love this Geeta Dutt-Shamshad Begum song conceptualised by Majrooh Sultanpuri and O P Nayyar, with the porcelain beauty Madhubala covered from head to mid calf but more beautiful than any semi nude heroine today. This is that time of the year when the festival of Holi makes us all splash some water and colour and welcome the onset of summers. It is all about letting go of those woolly winter clothings and step into something breezy and comfortable and later perhaps enjoy a splash in the pool. Love the styling of this song with these sailor dresses and Burberry inspired umbrellas. The song sets just the right pace for a fun-filled and frolic-some Holi!! Yeah!

MUD MUD KE NA DEKH

Song 11: 25 Mar 2013

And then ever once in a while someone came along who shook up your being with a new found energy and verve. You were filled with hope and anticipation. You wanted to forget the past and move on to a better tomorrow. A mere brush of such people was enough to charge each pore in your body with optimism and courage and thrill. The dusty layers of complacence and self-pity were wiped away in a few moments of abandon. You found your lost bounce and bouyancy. You found a new direction, a new meaning in life. The club crooner was the mistress of make-believe. The seductress of celluloid dreams. Everything around her was larger than life. Everything glittered and swayed in perfect rhythm and synchronicity.

The hero forgot the simpering, sobbing heroine for a while with ease. He spent a few moments of forgetful weightlessness in the club crooner’s arms. He was under a spell, in a trance. He danced and sang as if there was no tomorrow. But little did he know that he was as much of a comfort to her, as she to him. Asha Bhosle pumps that enchanting quality into this song written by Shailendra and composed by Shankar Jaikishan that almost defined Nadira, the very westernised Jewish beauty who never forgave Raj Kapoor for typecasting her in a so called ‘negative’ role. If only she knew how the lines have blurred and any leading lady today would love to play the shades of grey she portrayed. And what would these classic waltzes be without the posse of pretty Anglo-Indian girls who provided such a beautiful flavour and ambience to the ethereal setting.

KYA HO PHIR JO DIN RANGEELA HO

Song 10: 24 Mar 2013

 

But come night and the dancing diva/club crooner had to get back to what she knew best. She had a reputation to live up to, she had an audience waiting, she had dreamscapes to conjure. She had to transport people away from the sordid realities of life to a world of unlimited revelry and instant gratification. She was a heady dose of hypnotic hysteria, a gail of gamboling gaiety, an optically pleasing optimism prism.

A whiff of her bouncy tresses and all you could think of were sunny beaches, frothy surf, tropical climes and chilled sangrias. Club crooner would puff perfect little smoke whirls and there you would go suspended on a wishing cloud to heaven, on a streetcar named desire. And two club crooners together! You had to be a lucky bloke. Check out this fabulous Asha-Geeta Dutt duet where they match chord to chord, nuance to nuance and create a double decker of joyous singing, youthful liveliness and sparkling attitude. Played on screen by two whoppers, heart-stoppers too!!

BABUJI DHEERE CHALNA

 Song 9:  23 Mar 2013

The only voice that came close and perhaps exceeded Asha in sultriness was of course Geeta Dutt. I am thoroughly enjoying exploring and discovering one whopper of a number after the other by these two extra-ordinary singers. As far as Geeta Dutt songs go, this is perhaps the first song of hers I ever noticed, memorised and tried to sing. It is just so easy on the senses. I remember distinctly that I was hooked on to it from the word go. And Shakila what an under-rated beauty! Noone really names her as their favourite actress from that era, maybe because she was surrounded by great talent. But I always found her very, very attractive. I mean just look at that waist. Could give the Malaika Aroras of today a run for their money. She moves like a whirlwind across the smokey joint, throwing caution to the winds. Wild tresses, mysterious glances, sassy full smile. Simply awesome and all you needed to complete the picture was a very innocent looking Guru Dutt, seemingly oblivious to her charms. Well, well, this competition is getting hotter than I thought. I am sure I'll have to stop at some point because Asha's numbers far outnumber Geeta Dutt whose life was sadly cut short due to various personal tragedies and early liver cirrhosis. So many geniuses just went the early burn out, early 'been there done that' way. So the key anywhere is to tread softly, slowly and comfortably. Babuji Dheere Chalna indeed!!! Geeta Dutt, O P Nayyar, Majrooh, Shakila and Guru Dutt-couldn't go very wrong with that combo.:-))

ZINDAGI ITTEFAQ HAI-DUET

Song 8, version II: 21 Mar 2013

Asha Bhosle sings the same song this time as a duet with Mahendra Kapoor, that clarion call of a voice we remember from our childhood Mahabharat days when every Sunday all streets would be totally empty and traffic would come to a standstill as Mahendra Kapoor bellowed, "MAAAHAAAABHAAAAARAT" and woke us up. His voice is definitely the voice of a farmer from Punjab or a soldier making merry with peers on some frontier with a drink in his white enamelware mug!

But Asha balances his rustic timbre with her infectious charm. The mood is somewhat sombre here. This time there is another pretty, mysterious damsel who graces the scene-of course there has to be. The club crooner is sporting enough to not even ask the hunk as to who is she, where is she, what the plot is at the other end. She is expected to give explanations for every alliance-fake or real- of hers but she gracefully accepts that the hero might after all have a love of his life too, a love that nurtures him or one that bothers him. The club crooner selflessly lends him a shoulder to cry on, sympathising, counselling, offering succour and advice as to how to make it work. Even if it breaks her own heart completely to know that he belongs to someone else, she smiles through the evening, spreading sunshine and cheer. The tears of course would be for a private moment alone, far from the limelight of glitzy events and sparkling champagne moments.....

ZINDAGI ITTEFAQ HAI

Song 8: 20 Mar 2013



The club crooner was a fun girl. She was the life of the party and knew how to raise a storm on the floor. She could double up as a stunning bar-tender without worrying about the Manu Sharmas of the world. She had two gorgeous hunks for company, chivalrous and chic. She cavorted and cajoled, oozing oomph and schmoozing big time. One of Asha Bhonsle's most memorable songs, her voice is almost lightening sharp in places and full of mirth and mischief. After all these were the siren songs, not the staid, sedate Pacific Ocean charm of a Lata, but a river in spate, a waterfall unbound and unleashed. Music by Ravi and lyrics by Sahir, a luscious Mumtaz, in a timeless LBD(Little Black Dress) that one would love wearing even today and two of the most handsome hunks to ever grace Hindi film screen- the most suave and dashing Khan ever, Feroz and the devastatingly delicious Desi Dharmendra. I am sure Mumu had a tough call there. Yet I would grant it to the Khan, for not only was he a stylish and naturally charming actor, but also the producer of some memorable movies and therefore a more complete entertainer and showman. The song I would say was pretty ahead of it's times. These avant garde touches by Yash and B R Chopra make this club crooner song a classic!  

 
 

MERA NAAM CHIN CHIN CHU

Song 7: 17 Mar 2013


At other times she could enthrall dancing gazelle like, mesmerising with that pixie like grin and crinkly eyes. She was exotica served in a sarong, a ditty from faraway places that had miraculously fallen in your kitty, a thrill to take the chill pill with, a steamy dream boat with delicious mysterious dimsums to discover. Geeta Dutt's rendition of this song triggered the imagination like never before, exposing Indian audiences to pleasures beyond the seven seas, of dangerous silk routes and the delectable treasures beyond. The name "Chin Chin Chu" is probably taken from Chu Chin Chow, a popular British musical comedy from 1916. This song by O P Nayyar and Qamar Jalalabadi became a raging hit, paving way for many songs with phoren flavours. Helen who was a such an incredible talent, one of Burma’s best imports into India took Indian movies by a veritable storm with her stunning dance performances. She morphed into many seductive avatars later, bringing costumes right from Lido to Moulin Rouge into Indian movies. Here though she is simply a boost of forbidden flavours, fresh, youthful and lively. The effect, to say the least was addictive!:-))

DEKH KE TERI NAZAR

Song 6: 16 Mar 2013

So even if her own face could launch a thousand ships, it was a mere glance of his face that made the club crooner go into raptures. It was in his presence that her song developed a heart and mind and a character of its own. She danced the night away with an ensemble team but one look from him made her heart dance to his tunes. She had a captive audience but she was captivated by his silent charms. This lesser known song from Howrah Bridge by Asha is yet again composed by O P Nayyar- turns out this is becoming an O P Nayyar tribute more than anything else, but yes this was the man who gave us such lively tunes much before R D had even surfaced anywhere. And who else but Madhubala to perform, a heroine O P Nayyar confessed did the maximum justice to his songs!:-)

TADBEER SE BIGDI HUI TAQDEER BANA LE

Song 5: 10 Mar 2013

They even gave sound business advice, these curvy crooners.They made the hero aware of his inner strengths and goaded him on to make the right moves. Their own life had made them street smart and they used that know-how to let the hero know when was the time to be a bull or a bear. They wished them luck with their ensuing deals and ventures. Too bad that many Indian men did not like being advised by their lady love, at least not on money or business matters. Or they did not like mixing business with pleasure. However that did not deter the club crooners. They belted out sound advice with solid guitar strumming and elegant eye rolling. The result, they were both an enviable team both on and off the smoky casinos. I simply adore Geeta Bali. Just see how she says 'daav lagale' everytime. A true natural talent, just like Geeta Dutt's singing was, and S D Burman's music and Sahir's lyrics. And Dev Anand, well he is simply being Dev Anand. There will be no other. No wonder this is one of my all time favourite club crooner songs!!

YEH HAI RESHMI ZULFON

Song 4: 8 Mar 2013


Yet another O P Nayyar number to showcase the seductive charm of Asha's voice and who better to compliment it on screen but Mumu herself. Now Mumtaz was a cutie and hottie rolled into one and yet seemed totally unaware of her own charisma. I also admire the way Asha had perfected the art of those champagne laughs and giggles in between which I am sure are not that easy to record impromptu. The lyrics written by Majrooh went with the norm those days where even a night club dancer used very formal and refined expressions such as aaiye, dikhlaiye, farmaiye. Too bad these so called bad girls never got the guy in the end but usually would get eliminated half way through so that he could go back to his sati savitri heroine. Infact I marvel at these guys too who had perfected the art of looking totally detached, no-nonsense and sullen through all the heave- hoing the poor club dancer was upto with a lot of effort and sincerity!!!;-))

JAATA KAHAN HAI DEEWANE

Song 3: 7 Mar 2013


It was the dancing girl/club crooner after all who loved the hero rather selflessly, could be a buddy and a tease at the same time. She could stop him when he was going wayward and really miss him when he was gone. She could shake a leg like noone's business and could even pull his leg and smirk and taunt. She could strut her stuff and flaunt. She could disappear at times and haunt. But she was his need and want. So sizzling were some of these dancing girls that they often had to be censored and thought not fit for public consumption. This song with Arabic inspired interludes, for example was picturised on Waheeda Rehman but the rushes were too hot to handle and consequently it was deleted from the original movie. A pity that video or even stills are not available anywhere. Can just imagine Waheeda doing full justice to it. So listen to this song and visualise this song for yourself. Out of sight is not always out of mind!:-))

AAIIYE MEHERBAAN

Song 2 : 6 Mar 2013


If Geeta Dutt had that delicious Bengali lilt, Asha Bhosle had an inborn sizzle. These were the voices of the quintessential club crooner. Between the two of them, they belted out quite a few kick-ass club crooner numbers. So how about an Asha-Geeta face-off, what say? I will give you one dazzling song after the other alternately and you decide who was the hotter voice. It is indeed difficult to decide. To start with Asha Bhonsle club crooner/dancing diva songs, what better song to kick start the process than this whopper of a number. I am sure there isn't any person who hasn't been stirred by this one ever. Madhubala at her vivacious, sultry best. And Asha Bhonsle was just the voice for those sirens, those with the satiny sensuality, come hither smiles and darting glances. The music is by O P Nayyar who was responsible for giving Asha that individuality in terms of singing style, and lyrics are by Qamar Jalalabadi. We see a lot of pretty young girls vie for the numero uno position but must say rare to see this grace and charm anywhere today....

JAANE KYA TUUNE KAHI

 Song 1: 5 Mar 2013

Lata is the prima donna and there is no denying that. But the two voices that come closest to my heart are those of Asha Bhosle and Geeta Dutt. I have always enjoyed listening to and singing their songs. One reason is that I am an untrained voice and couldn't even handle Lata songs. But I get by Asha and Geeta ones, who were the voices of the sirens and the nymphs. If Lata was the conventional, dignified, solid voice of a heroine, Geeta Dutt's voice was the first choice when unconventional or quirky characters were supposed to be portrayed. Here for instance Waheeda plays a street walker with a heart of gold, but oh so graceful and bewitching even in that form. The silent chemistry between Guru Dutt and her is so evident and all encompassing. Waheeda's enigmatic face, her hypnotic eyes, the subtle interplay of light and shadow, Sahir's minimalistic lyrics that say nothing yet say a lot and S D Burman's evocative music that again uses that unique instrument that sounds like the wild song of crickets on a monsoon soaked night, giving allusions to a natural, unmasked mating dance of the senses, give this song a special allure and make it a classic.

 

A translation of this rather minimalistic but brilliant song by Sahir. Talk about economy of words!

Dunno what you said
Dunno what I heard
But something transpired.

There was a sensation
There was a shiver
Many dreams awoke
Something transpired

My eyes lowered and rose
My feet tread gingerly and froze
Now I had a new gait
Something transpired

My tresses curled at the shoulders
A fragrance emanated
Many secrets were set free
Something transpired....