JAANE KAHAN MERA JIGAR

Song 96:

Its election season in full swing and the rhetoric has reached a strange cat-and-mouse fight levels. Someone's losing his jigar, someone's losing her mind, someone's losing his temper and someone's losing any rational thinking while the chaotic country is losing any semblance of order.

Some people are losing their memory selectively, others are losing allies. People are hunting through each other's past offices and associates to hunt out some piece of information they could use against them somehow or the other. There's a lot of political wooing going on. Some are making a quick buck doing in-your-face propaganda, making complete asses of themselves, some are losing track of what they said last night on national television and rolling back their statements. Not a day goes by without a new explosive video being leaked (yup of the eyeball-grabbing kind) or a hilarious photo-op gone awry being propelled into Twitterverse with punitive condescension.

In this election jamboree new definitions are being coined, of age-old words such as 'secular' and 'communal'. Meanings are being distorted and twisted to suit one's narratives, Principals of colleges are giving political advisories en-masse to students via email, religious gurus are holding fort in their holier than thou garb, betis and bahus in hibernation have ironed their cotton handloom sarees and pulled out their Kolhapuri chappals and hit the campaign trail.

In all of this, a much needed fun song that might help you unwind and take it easy. Geeta Dutt and Rafi are funny and jovial in this song that sounds almost like light hearted office watercooler banter. Johny Walker was perhaps the first comedian for whom songs were conceptualised and sung by A-list singers such as Rafi. His co-star who is probably someone called Yasmin is rather cute and easy on the eye, albeit a one-song wonder.

The song is from Mr and Mrs 55 in which the lead actor Guru Dutt played a cartoonist. All the cartoons depicted in the movie were actually done by the stalwart of the art in India, R K Laxman whose 'common man' is perhaps the most recognisable cartoon character in India. Well let's hope these elections don't yet again make a cartoon of the common man of India. In a strange twisted manner the song  and the mannerisms of the actors are symptomatic of the political scenario today, very little sense but entertaining nevertheless. 

SACH HUE SAPNE TERE

Song 95:

One thing you could not take away from the singing dancing diva was her ability to find many reasons to smile and rejoice about. She could be thrilled to see waves crashing on a sea shore, she could go into raptures over a glorious sunrise, she could giggle away cooking biryani for loved ones.

She was a grateful soul who appreciated the good things in life. Nothing was worth fretting over forever. He was by her side, in spirit always. His one smile, one word of encouragement, one little gesture sparked a wild dance of joy and abandon in her soul.

Yes, he was given to sullenness, he could be pretty pessimistic at times. She too could be a bundle of nerves and low-energy on some days. But together they almost always managed to complement each other. They filled each other's gaps. They finished each other's sentences. They caught a mood, a hint, a nuance miles away.

They did not have to agree on every philosophy in the world. But they came home to the same warmth. After fighting their individual battles all day, they could share a cup of tea watching a pink sunset, tie and renew their bond and melt into each other's horizons. The dawn next day was always memorable....  

NA MAIN DHAN CHAHUN

Song 94:

Geeta Dutt too could be the voice of pristine purity and austerity. In this duet from Kala Bazar written by Shailendra and composed by S D Burman, accompanied by Sudha Malhotra, Geeta Dutt essays a rare tranquillity and peace.

It was in moments of turmoil that one could turn to ones faith. As long as your faith was peaceful and non-intrusive, guiding and correcting, it always showed you the right path. The song depicts the inner conflict of Dev Anand who is set on a path of dishonesty and worshipping money above all. How different is petty thuggery from working for covert organisations to spread false agendas and narratives today. Vitiating the atmosphere with falsehoods and divisive politics is today's biggest mafia.  

Such money brings no happiness or prosperity. At the end of the day you realise that health is the greatest wealth, and two square meals of honesty are better than wrongly acquired riches. The riches dazzle but they eventually frazzle. The riches compete but eventually deplete. The moolah lures but rarely endures. The gold shines but unduly entwines. The feasts fatten but eventually flatten.

If one could be happy with just enough. Two words of love, a glorious sky over your head, cool breeze, enduring music, clothes that don't weigh you down, friends who love and pick up your calls at 2 am or answer those mundane I-wanna-connect DMs, peace of mind, time to work and plenty to rest and recoup, read a book, go for a walk, smell a rose, talk to your kid and not at her, there's enough to be thankful for.

The conflict was gone, the path was clear. If every day some ethereal song could show us the right way, we didn't even need to name that religion, we didn't need religion. 

WOH HANS KE MILE HUM SE

Song 93:

Asha and Geeta were fun-filled voices, frolicksome and full of verve. But there are times when the most fun-filled heart goes through a low ebb. Nothing seems to work. Everything is dark and gloomy. Asha Bhosle could very well carry a pensive song convincingly too.

The movie has one of the rare roles with the hero playing a reporter, Jitendra (Dharmendra) who exposes dangerous working conditions in a mine owned by one of his employer's crooked creditors. He loses his job. When disaster strikes at the mine, Amita (Mala Sinha), daughter of the paper's deceased founder re-employs him. Her interest in him is more than just journalism. Unknown to her, her younger sister (Tanuja) is romantically linked to the reporter. The resultant conflict and anguish culminate in the sisters attempting to sacrifice their future happiness for the sake of the other.

This song composed by O P Nayyar  and written by Sheven Rizvi and Aziz Kashmiri is almost in the ghazal genre, expressing unrequited love and the remorse that comes with it. There were times when no matter how close the singing-dancing diva was to her loved one, there seemed an unfathomable chasm between the two. Call it different ideologies or circumstances. Two hearts were left in the lurch. There were no clear answers.

It all seemed like a big figment of her imagination. Maybe he was just entertaining himself. Maybe this is how he was with everyone, oozing life and laughter wherever he went. Maybe to know him was to love him. But he loved the world, he loved humanity. She was a teeny weeny part of that huge world that he loved. While she felt she was fortunate to have been showered with the warmth of his seamless heart once, could she live by a vague, distant promise? No, maybe not.

She was selfish when it came to love, like all humans are. She wanted to own him, to always have him by her side, come ecstasy or illness. She wallowed in self pity. She shed a few lonesome tears. The night was long and endless and there was no light to be seen anywhere, for now....

MERI JAAN MUJHE JAAN NA KAHO

Song 92:

After having taked a warm shower and washed off all the colours of Holi, they were purged of all the dirt and sins of the world. They receded into their tranquil, squeaky clean world with not a trace of artifice. He in his comfy, pure white kurta pajama, she in a soft saree, the shade of love. It was time to unburden the heart. It was time to let go of pretenses. It was time to let him know why she feared being so close to him.
She was almost scared of being loved by him the way he did. She knew the intensity of his love would scorch her.

What they had shared was a fleeting shower of awesomeness. It had left her replenished for life. But she did not know whether she could let him call her his jaan, his 'life'. Could life last forever? How far could she be his life? She loved him immensely and that was the precise reason why she distanced herself (or tried to, in vain). When their twin lips had met, it was like two worlds coming together, two destinies and two lives. And today after he had soiled her in his urgent love, and later after he had warmly soaped her bare back, she had suddenly felt like the luckiest woman on earth. She didn't want to blink in that dream-like night. As the rain trickled outside, she sang deep into the night, keeping herself awake, for she feared when she woke up, they might not be together.

JAB JAB TUMHEIN BHULAYA

Song 91:

You know I always thought Asha and Lata did not sing many songs together. There were always these stories of an intense rivalry between the two sisters. It was surmised that Lata was the manipulator and did not tolerate any music director playing favourites with any other singer. Many brilliant singers such as Suman Kalyanpur and other singers from the South were sidelined as there was an unwritten code of always offering the best songs to Lata. Now I don't know how much truth there is to these conjectures. It happens in every field, I suppose.

But as I go on this journey to explore more songs, I find Lata and Asha did sing many diverse songs together. You have to just scroll back a few past entries to see what a range of duets they have sung. This is a beautiful one from the ghazal genre, composed by Madan Mohan and written by Rajendra Krishan. Both Lata and Asha display depth and hold over this classical tune, with some nice kathak by Minu Mumtaz and a very young looking Aruna Irani. Well, I can't help imagining what level this song could have reached had it been performed by a more accomplished actor. It certainly deserved perhaps a Meena Kumari or a Madhubala or Vyjayanthimala even in terms of cinematic presence.

But art needs to be appreciated for what it is. Each character has a certain place in the film. All I am saying is this song could have been elevated to another level. It's great to listen to still, recreating a golden era, when both kathak and the ghazal flourished in Mughal courts, giving a popular expression to the often over-exaggerated palace intrigues and royal stresses and strains that made for engaging period dramas.  

CHHAP TILAK SAB CHHINI RE

Song 90:

At other times, the two sisters, Lata and Asha, sang together in a spiritual Sufi flavour, singing to Khusro's legendary poetry, Chhap Tilak Sab Chhini from the 13th century, in the rather forgettable movie 'Main Tulsi Tere Angan Ki'. The lyrics are somewhat altered from the original and the video is truly ghastly. It totally escapes me how this spiritual and mystical poetry could have the kind of interpretation it had in the movie or how did it find it's way there in the first place. I will spare you the video. I certainly do not find any cognisance with Raj Khosla School of Film-making. 

Yet nothing can take away from the beauty of the tune, the song composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal and the way the two sisters do justice to the sweet, sublime lyrics. The song describes that state of love when you are somewhat bereft of the effect it has had on you. 

Love can be emboldening, boosting and edifying. It often pushes you to become the best you can be in any field, by giving your dreams wings and that much needed bouyancy.
At other times it may make you feel totally powerless and controlled. 

Here's the original poetry of Amir Khusro with a translation I found on the net, and then the song:

Chhap tilak sab cheeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Chhap tilak sab cheeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Prem bhatee ka madhva pilaikay
Matvali kar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Gori gori bayyan, hari hari churiyan
Bayyan pakar dhar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Bal bal jaaon mein toray rang rajwa
Apni see kar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Khusrau Nijaam kay bal bal jayyiye
Mohay Suhaagan keeni ray mosay naina milaikay
Chhap tilak sab cheeni ray mosay naina milaikay


Translation
You've taken away my identity, by just a glance.
By making me drink the wine of love-potion,
You've intoxicated me by just a glance;
My fair, delicate wrists with green bangles in them,
Have been held tightly by you with just a glance.
I give my life to you, Oh my cloth-dyer,
You've dyed me in yourself, by just a glance.
I give my whole life to you Oh, Nijam,
You've made me your bride, by just a glance.

A strong love can make you feel strong. But in some moments it can also make you feel incredibly weak. You feel like a mere shadow of your true self, as if this unseen, unknown figure came, consumed you, hollowed you from within and walked away. The anguish at knowing that you have no control over your own self, your thoughts and feelings is daunting. You almost want to undo the damage and escape it all. Go hide somewhere. Get your old self back. You're coloured in a different hue but some days you want to wash it all off and be your own pure self once again....