Mohammed Rafi – Mujhko Mere Baad Zamana Dhoondega
This article is written by Mr. Gaurav.D.Bijoor
Mohd Rafi
Who was Mohammed Rafi and what was his sheer magic and composition consist of:
- Many say he was the greatest ever singer the music industry has ever produced,
- Most of them say he was indeed the uncrowned King of Melody,
- A few lovingly say he was the most beloved King of Melody,
- Some say he was the Angel, others are of the opinion that he was a Gandharva,
- Innumerable fans are also of the opinion that he was a messenger of the Almighty and was destined to take birth on this Earth to render the much needed solace to the very common man like me and all of you friends,
Then who was Rafi in substance, how big was his heart, how was he in flesh & blood, and what was that sheer magic he possessed in his golden voice & silky throat and ultimately what was the equation of his beautiful composition, in which thy name Mohammed Rafi a Great human soul will reign Supreme as the King for many more centuries to come.
The above facts have deeply struck in my mind & soul like the strong rock of Gibraltar and have been desperately trying to linger out over the past so many years. In this attempt and to try & understand the Genius Mohammed Rafi in depth we a few of his fans & admirers had taken the liberty of interviewing certain personalities from the silver screen, but to our sheer surprise & dismay, we are yet to find a suitable answer and solution to the equation.
Volumes & volumes have been written & published day in & day out in various magazines, news papers, sites and innumerable discussions have been held in various forums in the loving memory of Mohammed Rafi Saab including this beautiful site, but still at the end of each & every day, we strongly believe there was something special missing for us to understand & know Mohammed Rafi – the true Genius he was & a simple human being par excellence.
Mohd Rafi
Today not much has changed since then, since the required basics are yet to be established and the hidden treasures are yet to be unearthed. “Kya kya na sahe humne sitam Aap ke khatir, Ye jaan bhee jayegi sanam Aap ki khatir“; “Kal raat zindagee se mulaqat ho gayee – lab thar thara rahe thhe magar baat hogayee“.
In this process of our eternal search, I always tried to approach very near to one of the greatest renditions of Mohammed Rafi which is in the form of a very simple worded poetry from the classic film Dosti (1962), with great music by Laxmikant Pyarelal and lyrics penned beautifully by Majrooh Sultanpuri and the recitation picturized on a fresh face of the debutant Sushil Kumar.
This beautiful poetry when sung reads as “Jaane waloon jara, mudke dekho mujhe, ek insaan hoon, main tumharee taraha, jisne sab ko racha, apne hee roop se, uskee pehchan hoon – jane   waloon jara mudke” ……. Dekho mujhe —— ek insaan hoon”
I am personally of the definite opinion that this little piece or poetry of song as one may call it by any name can in the true sense be considered as very near & dear to the heart & the soul of our dearest Mohammed Rafi since the very simple but touching words and equally the punching effect with which this is rendered by the greatest ever is indeed marvelous and beyond ones imagination.
We are still searching for you Mohammed Rafi Saab and this search we presume will stay for eternity with us probably until death embraces us apart – “phir bhee hum dhoondthe phirenge uss haseen rehnooma ko jisse dil aur khoon se yeh jahan Mohammed Rafi ke khubsoorat naam se jante aur pehchante hai”
“Mehel udhas aur galiyaan sunee chup chup hai deewarein, dil kya ujada duniya ujadee rhoot gayeen hai baharein – hum Jeevan kaise gujare RAFI SAAB”?
“Dil ka soona saaz tarana dhoondega – mujhako mere baad zamana Dhoondega”
“Hum dhoondthe hai unko jho milke nahee milte roothe hai naa jaane kyoon mehmaan woh mere dil ke”
Mohammed Rafi Sahab was the greatest singer India ever produced.
god represents nature, nature, that is cruel, nature whose style of justice is not yet understood by us,nature, that shows no mercy to the weak and favours only strong.
Mohammed rafi’s voice represents heroism,sainthood, love, faith, respect, and creates hopes of justice that we understand. Mohammed rafi’s voice always brings with it sense of comfort, pleasure and uprightness, all that we admire or like to admire.
I am convinced that Mohammed rafi is the real god, or was sent by god to make us realise that god stands for love, justice and truth.
In Rafi Sahab’s Voice from Film “SHAAYAD” . “Khushboo Hoon Main , Phool Nahin Hoon , Jo Murjhhaunga …… ” . Song picturised on actor Naseerudin Shah . Yes Rafi Sahab is the Khushboo (Scent) in this world which never dies .
from
Lalit Bhambhani ( Atlanta , Georgia USA )
Salaam to everyone
Gaurav, the article comes from your heart, so do the comments from all those who have commented. I cannot add anything of substance, just writing so that i can be a small part of the tumultuous crowd of admirers of this great singer. Do you know, I was driving the other day and wanting to listen to some music, i just picked up whatever came in my hand and put it on. It was an old one and the first song that came on was “Jab jab bahaar aaye, aur phool muskuraaye, mujhe tum yaad aaye” the sadness and pain and anguish in the way Rafi Saab sang this song made me feel….well friends, I cannot describe it. I nearly had an accident because I could not concentrate on the road. I had tears in my eyes which I am sure happens to all of us quite often when we hear Rafi Saab does it not?
I have mentioned somewhere before on this site that i am involved with a community radio station and we have programmes on sundays where we play old songs. I have decided to have a “Rafi special” programme on the 26th of this month as the anniversary of his passing is coming up. In an hour long programme, we usually fit in about 10 or maximum 11 songs. I am so excited that I have made a list and already have 20 songs in it. It is so difficult to choose!!
Dear Mr. Gaurav.D.Bijoor,
Very touchy title and article………..
Whenever Rafi Fans think about his departure they feel sad……. But what we can do except remembering and praising him…………..????
He had very loving personality and always smiling face force us to smile.
As per title………..we are still searching him in his songs…….
Regards,
-Imran-
Little addition genious Mr. Gaurav.D.Bijoor Ji,,what a feeling n balanced with excellent wordings,,really great write up Mr Gaurav!however ur last words
“””“Hum dhoondthe hai unko jho milke nahee milte roothe hai naa jaane kyoon mehmaan woh mere dil keâ€
†?””””
Rafi sahab answers,,,,,,,,,,
“Main saanson ke har taa`r me chhup raha hoon,,,main dhadkan ke har raag me bas raha hoon,zara dil ki jani`b nigahen jhukao,,,,,,mohabbat me na itna hamko satao…………………….”””
Post 16 : Santhosh ji:
yes. I am requesting the producer to do the same. Lets hope its done. good day to you.
binu nair, mumbai rafi foundation
Mohammed Rafi indeed had the sheer magic in him which others may not ever posess and the few of such facts are reproduced as follows
Rafi was associated both with father & son duo in many of the songs of the music directors as follows
1) In the film “Punam” Rafi Saab had sung the first song of Anu Mallick recorded on 06/07/1980 and Rafi was also associated with his father Sardar Mallick.
2) He was associated with Roshan Lal Nagrath & son Rajesh Roshan
3) S D Burman & R D Burman
4) Naushad and his son Sameeul Rehman
Rafi was also associated in the very first song of several music directors as follows
1) In the year 1949 Shankar Jaikishans first song in the film “Barsaat” was sung by Rafi titled “Main zindagee mein hardam rota hee rahan hoon”
2) In the year 1950 Madan Mohans first song in the film “Aankhen” was sung by Rafi titled “Hamse nain Milana”
3) In the year 1955 Ravi also recorded his first song from the film “Vachan” in the voice of Rafi titled “Babu ek paisa de”
4) In the year 1958 Kalyanji Anandji also recorded his first song in the voice of Rafi in the film “Samrat Chandragupt” titled “Chahe paas ho ya dhoor ho”
5) In the year 1959 Usha Khanna also recorded her first song in the voice of Rafi in the film “Dil deke Dekho” titled “Dil deke Dekho”
6) In the same year 1959 there was a film which had gone on the floors titled “Chaila Babu” which was not released for several years and this was in fact the first film of Laxmikant Pyarelal and in this film LP had recorded their first song in the voice of Rafi Saab
7) The film “Chote Nawab” though was the debut film of R D Burman as per the records still his first film was Guru Dutts “Raj” however this film was never completed but for this film also Rafi had sung R D Burmans first song
8) Though the film “Dil ne phir yaad kiya” was supposed to be the debut film of Sonic-Omi their actual first film was “Aansoo” however this film was never completed but for this film also Rafi had sung Sonic-Omis first song with Mukesh and Asha Bhosale
9) The film titled “Radheshyam” was the first film of Ravindra Jain and in this film a quawali was first recorded in the voice of Rafi Saab and Asha Bhosale
10) The film “Kunwara Baap” was the debut film of Rajesh Roshan and the first song in this film was also recorded in the voice of Rafi Saab.
Dear Gauravjee at the tender age of almost 28 years the words of your article seems to have flown directly from the core of your heart & soul. What an immaculate piece of beautiful thoughts on the beloved king of melody Mohammed Rafi Saab — Indeed superb & great quality.
Today I would like to bring forth a couple of facts in respect of dear Rafi Saab which have been a part and parcel of my small memory:
1) Whenever there was a recording scheduled with Lata Mangeshkar; Rafi Saab always used to say to his secretary “Zaheer aaj barabar ka muqabala hai aur iske liye aaj puree taiyaree karke jana chahiye” and the most important factor used to be — that Lata Mangeshkar always used to get or feel nervous when she used to record a duet with the greatest Rafi Saab. This proves his sheer greatness.
2) Whenever there used to be a recording scheduled with Kishore Kumar; Rafi Saab always used to say to his secretary “Zaheer aaj ka ye din khup mauj mastee ka din hai kyonke Kishore khub hasane wala hai aur mujhe iss andaz se aaj 200% perfect hona chahiye”
There are innumerable such beautiful anecdotes and facts which I will regularly post till the ugly hands of death puts me apart.
Thank You.
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Hridayattil+Rafi&search_type=&aq=f
Help
any one can tell us how we in UAE or in Gulf can see Hridayattil Rafiâ€
santosh ji,,,,few of episodes of the programe is available on some of websites,,,one of them is youtube,,,,search the program name n u`ll get couple of episodes,yet,program telecasted on malayalam channel appears to more syncronised n quite more entertaining with the sense of owe on tv,,,and on sited only a part of the program is uploaded depending on uploaders insight,,,,,,,,,,,however,its great experience to witnesss that Rafi sahab rules the heart in every part of India,,,really,,he lives in heart,,,,hridayathil rafi,,
Thanx binu nair sir for enriching all of us through ur informations always….as these information become our experience because of our cordial love for Rafi sahab…
Dear Binuji,
this is Santosh from Ahmedabad.I request on behalf of all rafisaab bhakts that can u please upload some of the episodes of the programme as the channel is not accessible at my place or in Ahmedabad.
It will be a great blessing for me and others.
Re : post 12 : i somehow forgot to mention the shooting done at mohd rafi mansion on 28th June with mr.pervez ahmed.
the director shot scenes of rafi saahebs music room, his record collections, trophies, the tanpura, the fiat car of rafi saaheb, the various awards, his telephone, the working table , etc and etc.
please do not miss the episodes presented by shrikant narayan on malayalam channel : kairali, every sunday morning from 9 am to 9.30 am.
the programme is titled “hridayathil rafi” ( dil me rafi )..
binu nair, rafi foundation, mumbai.
Hi Gaurav,
Beautiful write up !! Just goes to show that Rafi sab was heard at
the heart before the ears. that his music appealed to deeper emotional
layers than mere raag, taal or shabhd. You can say it was bhaav.
Keep writing more Gaurav and carry on the Rafi-ism to the nexgen.
Nagesh Sidhanti
i am greatest rafi fan of greatest singer everborn …mohd rafi….i possess about 1500 songs in all languages….enjoy his divine voice,it cures me when i am sick,it touches my heart so deeply n feels my soul has been awakened by great rafi soul…..i always hope for him to come back on this earth as billions of his fans long for him….
tere aane ki aas hai dost(rafi saab),yeh huseen pal kyon udaas hai dost,mehki mehki fiza yeh kehti hai,tuh kahi aas paas hai dost……..
with this hope i am living in n with his songs…
Post no 4 : Gurumurthy saaheb:
thanks. yes. the programme : hridayathil rafi is in malayalam. but the mumbai episodes will also have english and hindi sound bytes too. srikanth narayan and myself have given a try at this and some new facts about rafi saaheb is added to the episode.
composer ravi saaheb is also there, giving his great views on mohd rafi. ravi saaheb is known as “bombay ravi” in kerala and he has given some soul touching songs to malayalam films. the total works out to 17 films and they are unimaginable gems. please do not miss them.
also i have asked the director of the programme to keep english sub-titles to the programme which has been agreed.
good viewing on sundays on malayalam channel Kairali, from 9.00 am to 9.30 am.
it is the first channel doing a mohd rafi serial for the last six months.
binu nair, rafi foundation, mumbai
I suppose rafi sahab had a very affectionate, silky special voice as a gift of god. His continuous riyaaz and dedication helped to improve on his rendition. As we all know, lovely voice is gift of the Almighty, but, without riyaaz nothing is perfect. The kind of dedication he displayed, the bhaav he put into his songs, all made him a class apart. As they say… the feel in a song is very important. Regular riyaaz perfected his style and the rest is history. In my opinion, rafi sahab also displayed very affectionate body language. His was a million dollar smile. All this qualities made him a great soul. This is purely my opinion only.
Dear Bijoor Sahab,
Another close to heart article on our own Rafi Sahab. It is well said that everyday we talk about this man and everybody has more to talk about him everyday. Actually, all of us find ourselves closer to him by discussing about him and that give relief.
I was listening to a non filmy bhajan “Hari Ka Dhyan Laga Man Mere, Mit Jayenge Sab Dukh Tere….”. I could not stop myself by singing “Rafi Ka Dhyan Laga Man Mere……”.
I don’t know if it is a matter of making mockery of myself or actually getting closer to my unmet guru.
Rafi Foundation Memorial Society, Delhi (Delhi Chapter of Rafi foundation) will be organising its annual programme on 31-07-09 at Gandhi Memorial Hall (Peyarelal Bhawan), ITO, New Delhi. During the programme, the documentary on Rafi Sahab by Films Division will also be screened. As we started Mohd. Rafi Award for Excellence last year, the award this year will be given to Dr. Narottam Puri, the well known ENT specialist and socialist for his remarkable contribution to the field of arts.
I would invite all Rafi lovers for the concert.
Regards,
Zorawar
Gen. Secy
Rafi Foundation Memorial Society
To understand who was rafi and who is rafi, there is a simple equation which is given below-
pankaj mullick+ k.l.saigal+ mukesh+ kishore kumar+ manna de+ talat mahmood+ mahendra kapoor+ udit narayan+ kumar shanu+sonu nigam<<<<<< great Mohd. RAFI
these all together cant even touch him…
one more thing I would like to say and believe me this is practical-
you just close your eyes and imagine that GOD is saying something to you…the voice of GOD will be as same as RAFI’s voice. It will not of anyone described above.
All rafians shoud try this. This is 100% true.
Dear Mr Gaurav Bijoor
Nice article. It may not be possible for anyone to understand fully why Rafi sahab is adored by millions of us.This is something that may not be “logically analysed”-as per my personal opinion, his voice directly touches my soul and I feel so much at peace when I listen to his voice. This is one of the main reason as per me that make us love him so much. One more reason could be that even after reigning supreme for decades, Rafi sahab remained so humble which one would find very rarely in today’s world and more so in the film world. Another reason is that he used to help so many needy people around him without even any of them asking for it!
These factors are very unique to Rafi sahab which one would very very rarely.
Dear Bijoor ji,
A very well-written and well-composed article. Your beautiful thoughts are beautifully conveyed through your words. The choice from “Dosti” as very near to Rafi Sahab personality is itself an awesome selection by you.
You are absolutely correctly written “Mujh ko mere baad zemana dhoonde ga”. One more from my side:
“Tum mujhe yoon bhula na paao ge
Jab kabhi bhi suno ge geet mere
Sang Sang tum bhi gungunaao ge”
Indeed nobody can forget the one and only Rafi Sahab.
Thanks and best regards.
Anwar-ul-Haque
anwarhq25@yahoo.com
Dear Binu Nair Saheb,
It is very nice to hear that the programme is being organised in the loving memory of Rafi Saheb. Really a very nice efffort.
This is very nice of you all who are involving themselves for this cause.
Wishing a very grand success for the programme.
Thanks
Ranvir Singh
9730009951
Dear Bijoor,
Your article is well written. I share your feeling. Who was Mohd. Rafi? What was he in flesh and blood. I appreciate your meeting personalities of Bollywood to hear much abour Rafi. Indeed Rafi is a subject for research. I do not know whether any student of music is doing this research. We have missed a great singer. We also missed his long journey to the altitude. How he reached there. His Fans say that his voice is the gift of God. Our singer Jesudas has once remarked that God was partial to Mohd. Rafi. I think these remarks are belittling a great singer. We are simply closing our eyes to the great studies, efforts and home work Rafi had taken before he launched his career. You are correct. There is something for us to know and understand Rafi.
In this regard I would suggest you to meet any one of his child hood friend. Probably his peer in the music class in Sultan kotla village.
Regards,
Babu T
Binuji,
I am regular as for as “Hridayattil Rafi” in Kairali TV is concerned. The program is in Malayalam (unfortunately I do not know this langauge), but the half hour program from 9 to 9.30 AM on sundays consist of some video songs of Rafi, some Rafi’s stage programmes apart from comments of Rafi fans as well as some local singers singing Rafi songs. It is fairly interesting.
Bijoorji,
It is amazing that even after 29 years, we are talking and discussing a Singer who had a divine voice. True, he was a gift of God to us. He kept us enthralled with his songs and even now the day is not complete if we dont listen him. In fact, today morning I was thinking why not even one in Rafi’s family took up his profession. They would have been perhaps much better than all these Jokers who are singing today.
Dear Moderator: This is v.urgent…..
All unrelated and vicious responses to topics and unrelated matters – must be “posted” in another section which could be called as “unrelated subject”.
this will make the site a bit decent & better. with irrevelent portions being visited/read by such sections of visitors, genuine mohd rafi lovers will get a much needed respite.
binu nair. rafi foundation, mumbai….
the magic of the divine voice is unstoppable. well written words, bijoor saaheb.
in fact : “Mujhko mere baad zamana dhoondega” is the title of the musical to be held on 18-7-09 (saturday) at borivli West, mumbai by the rafi foundation.
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kairali tv is beaming a programme every sunday morning 9 am titled “hridayathil rafi”.
in yesterdays shoot at mumbai, composers pyarelal, ravindra jain, omi from sonik-omi team, srikanth narayan all spoke before the cameras. these episodes would be telecast on july sundays. this programme is on air for the last six months and is beamed to all parts of the globe.
mohd rafi’s music room is also featured herein. rafi lovers do not miss these episodes.
finally, there will be atleast 20 major rafi musicals in mumbai alone during the last two weeks of july.
truly said bijoor saaheb : “mujhko mere baad zamana doondhega”.
binu nair, rafi foundation, mumbai