By Souvik Chatterji.

Mohd Rafi with Suman and Hasrat

Shankar Jaikishan in the 60s made immense number of experiments in bollywood film music. Right from westernized compositions to Indian classical songs to folk tunes, the compositions had a wide variety. Rafi was the automatic choice of the legendary musical duo, with his tremendous range and romantic appeal. Suman Kalyanpur sang landmark duet song with Rafi under the composition of giant composers during the 60s, including Naushad “dil-e-betaab ko sinese lagana hoga”, in Palki, Madanmohan “baad muddat ke yeh ghari aye”, Jahanara, Roshan “rahe na rahe hum”, in Mamta, Khayyam “parbaton ke pero par sham ka basera hai”, in Shagun, to name a few. Suman Kalyanpur sang many immortal duet songs with Rafi in the 60s and 70s under the composition of Shankar Jaikishan. (more…)

By Mr. Biman Baruah, Assam

Mohd Rafi with Sanjeev Kumar

APNE  LIYE  JIYE  TU  KIYA  JIYE
TU JI  YEH  DIL  ZAMANE  KE  LIYE
It is one of my beloved songs which depict the great personality of our beloved Rafi Sahab and the song was picturised on versatile actor Sanjeev Kumar in the film BADAL (1966). Long back in my school days, I had seen this song for first & last time in RANGOLI telecast by DD-1 at 07:00 AM. From that time, I was under presumption that it was being sung by Rafi Sahab. Since, I do not have collection of this song and recently with a plan to work on Rafi – Sanjeev Kumar combination; I searched the song details and disconsolately came to know that it is being sung by Manna Dey not by our beloved Rafi Sahab, though the song was composed by Rafi devotee composer Usha Khanna in the lyrics of Javed Anwar. (more…)

By Souvik Chatterji

Mohd Rafi with poet lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi and composer Khayyam

Mohammad Zahur Khayyam Hashmi, better known as Khayyam, was generally an off-beat composer whose level of excellence could be very well compared with Naushad or Shankar Jaikishan or Roshan, inspite of composing music in less number of films.

Born in 1927, Khayyam, learnt music from Baba Chisti, a renowned composer of Pakistan. He learnt music from also Hunslal Bhagatram and Pandit Amar Nath. He assisted composer G.A. Chisti in Lahore for some time. He returned back to Ludhiana in 1943. He went to Bombay to be an actor. He got a role in the Yeh Hai Zindagi in 1947. (more…)

By Mr. Souvik Chatterji

Mohd Rafi

Jeetender was one of the bollywood stars who maintained his stardom with successful films for over 30 years. Born in 1942, his success started in the 60s and continued till the 80s. Rafi had sung innumerable number of golden songs which had remained timeless gems.

Although he started his career with Geet Gaya Pattharon Ne in 1964, he created attention with his dancing skills in the film Farz in 1967. All the songs composed by LP and sung by Rafi became smashhit. The successful songs included “mast baharon ka mai aashiq”, “baar baar din yeh aye”, “tumse wo haseena”, to name a few.  The Rafi Jeetender combination continued in the film Jeene Ki Raah. All the songs of the film became successful including “aap mujhe acche lagne lage”, “ai mare humjoli aa” and “ek banjara gaye”. (more…)

By Souvik Chatterji

Mohd Rafi with Dharamender

Dharmender  had a grand combination with musical maestro Mohammad Rafi which contributed the most in the major part of his acting career which glorified bollywood films for more than 40 years. Dharmender and Rafi’s combination was unique for a number of reasons. Firstly Dharmender was not attached to any big banner in the early part of his career like Dilip Kumar with Bimal Roy or Shammi Kapoor with Shakti Shamanta. Secondly Dharmender played prominent roles opposite senior actors in many films in the early part of his career like Balraj Sahani in Haqeekat, Rajender Kumar in Ayee Milan Ki Bela, Raj Kumar in Kajal, to name a few. For those reasons, different composers composed music in the films of Dharmender and most of them were sung by great Rafi Sahab. (more…)

By: Sohail Butt. He is a ‘Rafi Bhagat’ of long standing and can be contacted at: sohail_butt@hotmail.com.

I am pleased to attach a copy of my article that I wrote in 2007 following my visit to Rafi Saheb’s house in Lahore and met his real brother Mohd Saddique and his nephew Mohd Ashfaq (Late Mohd Ibrahim’s son). I am also attaching some photos of a musical function in Lahore where Mohd Saddique sahab sang his late brother’s songs. The written article and photos can be related to each other.

Mohd Rafi with Hameed

Lahore ( founded by  prince Loh, son of Ram Chandra  in 1000BC)  has been described by  many during its long history   in so many different ways that it is extremely difficult to sum it all up in a word, sentence or even a book. However there are few sayings in Punjabi that I have heard and will like to quote them if I were to describe the city:

(1) ‘ Lohrre , Lohrre Aiye”  ( Lahore is Lahore).

(2)  “ Jinay Lohrre Nahin Waykhay, oh, nay kuj nahin waykhay” (If you have not seen   Lahore , you have not seen anything).

(3)   Nahin Reesan Shahar Lahore Deeyan ( The city of Lahore is incomparable and unmatchable). (more…)

By Achal Rangaswamy
Part 2 in continuation

Mohd Rafi

Kala Bazaar..Madras..a rainy evening..slick pavement was perhaps at a time when I hardly realized what was happening to me, I was too young to know most things.

But the first real taste of Bollywood in all its Eastmancolour clarity and beauty was- seeing Joy Mukherjee swing his guitar more like a cricket bat, wear a white sweater like a cricketer and croon ” Laakhon Hain Nigaahon Mein” in Phir Wohi dil laaya hoon. It was a Christmas afternoon and Regal Cinema in Delhi. I fell in love with voice of Joy Mukherjee, the singer’s voice I mean, and was completely bowled over by the tonga style rendition of Banda Parvar Tham Lo Jigar…the title song of the same movie. “paaon jahan rakh dogey adaa se dil ko wahin paaogey…” truly mesmerized me. (more…)

By H.V.Guru Murthy

Mohd Rafi

Which is your most favourite song in the history of Hindi film music during the past eighty years? If any body puts this question to me, I would rather not answer, as how can you choose just one song out of thousands of songs especially if you consider that versatile singers like Rafi Saab, Lataji, KK, Ashaji, Mannada, Mukeshji, Hemantda, Talatji, etc. etc. have sung so many wonderful wonderful songs.

But precisely a similar exercise was carried by the Magazine OUTLOOK in their 2006 June issue. Thirty prominent musicians of the Hindi Film Industry including Manandey, Mahendra Kapoor, Khayyam, Rajesh Roshan, Gulzar, Javid Akhtar, etc. were chosen to be in the Jury and were given the task to select the best songs. (more…)

By Achal Rangaswamy

Mohd Rafi

Circa 1959 I guess… Kala Bazaar .. Madras.. a rainy evening.. slick pavement.. as we got out of the theatre into semi darkness I slipped on the road and a lot of people had a great laugh… but all I could remember was… Khoya Khoya Chaand. I even forgot to cry after falling.

The hero fascinated me. But his voice fascinated me even more. Little did I know that it was the voice of a person I was going to worship over the years. Little did I know that the hero actually never sang.  My grandmother kept making fun of me as I tried singing the same song after we got home. I never got it right. I realized many many years later that I could never ever get it right. It was no use trying to be so perfect. Only God can be so perfect. (more…)

By Ramesh Narain Kurpad

Mohd Rafi and Kishore Kumar

During my life times, I have had the great pleasure of interacting with innumerable music fans – lovers of retro music – but today, I wish to bring forth and highlight a peculiar kind – un-matchable in its unique negativity. Bhakton, I wish to appear to have started off on a controversial note by saying Rafi Sahab – So What? – I wish to put down a few lines in support of the innumerable music fans of the legendary singer Kishore Kumar.

It may really sound as though I am here to sing pains on KK but all that I wish to do is to highlight the innermost feelings of a Kishore Kumar Fan who has it in abundance all against Rafi sahab. And he exults often – Rafi Sahab – So What??? (more…)