Music Director Ravi and his special partnership with Rafi Saab
By Achal Rangaswamy
Sri Ravi Shankar Sharma
While I was driving back from work, and for some strange reason, only one song kept coming back to me. It was “ Na muh chhupa ke jiyo aur na sar jhukaake jiyo”. Little did I know at that time that music director Ravi was already gone.
As usual, it was my friend from Bangalore Nagesh Sidhanti who had informed us by mail, but I hadn’t checked the mail but had just posted a Holi Song of Rafi Saab- the very popular Holi Khelat Nandalal Biraj mein from Godaan. When I saw a response to that post of mine from Vasudha my other friend from Bangalore, I wondered why she mentioned Ravi in her reply. Upon scrolling down a mail or two I read this note from Nagesh. And I was dumb struck. What a coincidence. I had been thinking of many songs, and all of them were Ravi Saab’s songs.
It was then that I realized that there had indeed been a magical bonding between my singing hero and this soft spoken but very durable music director who had been around from the time I had come to understand that there was something called Hindi Film Music.
So many films come to mind, so many phenomenal songs rush into one’s thoughts. Big banners, large films, multi-starrers, each one of them had songs composed by Ravi. A small short name, but a giant of a composer who got all great singers to sing for him.
But I just can’t seem to be able to complete a compilation of songs that he composed for Rafi Saab. Neelkamal, Nai Roshni, Waqt, Khandaan, Godaan, Bharosa, Chaudvin ka Chaand, Girl’s Hostel, Door Ki Awaaz, Kaajal– oh the list could just go on and on. We all remember the signature songs like Chaudvin ka Chaand ho, and Neel gagan par udte badal aa aa aa, and Raha Gardishon mein har dam, and Is Bhari Duniya mein koi bhi hamaara na hua. It is so easy to recall Naseeb mein jiskey joh likha thaa. People will never forget Husn se chand bhi sharmaya hai.
Sri Ravi Shankar Sharma
But I am going to make a humble attempt now to list those beautiful songs that some of us may have partly forgotten:
The film Mulzim had this beautiful number recorded on Pradeep Kumar that had magical lyrics by
Shakeel Badayuni –Divana keh ke mujhe phir pukaariye
Nartakee (1963) starring Sunil Dutt also had great Lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni and one always remembers that haunting zindagi ke safar mei akele the hum, a truly hummable song that has remained fresh in our minds.
Comedian Agha got a great chance to sing Poocho Koi Sawaal Bacchon, playing a bemused school teacher. Rafi Saab seems to have thoroughly enjoyed singing this one.
Nayee Roshni brought for us this intoxicatingly beautiful number jitni likhi thi muqaddar me hum jee chuke and the equally well -composed kis tarah jeete hain ye log bata do yaaron.
Baazi kisi ne pyaar kaa from the film Nazraana has been always fondly remembered by Ravi Saab’s fans
Neelkamal fascinated the audience and listeners of its songs alike. The Raj Kumar signature song Tujhko pukaarey mera pyaar found an able ally in Balraj Sahni based bidaai song where Rafi Saab actually broke down – baabul ki duaayen leti jaa, but one wonders how many people recall that Waheeda Rehman dance- based song sharma ke yun na dekh adaa ke maqam. Pure delight, that song !
Pyar Ka Bandhan was a forgettable film but it had one song that had me captivated from childhood and every time I sat on a Tonga, which was quite often in my early days in Delhi I always sang ghoda peshawari mera taangaa lahori mera. Rafi Saab too seems to have recalled his early days of Lahore as he specially brought out that robust and enthusiastic Punjabi accent when he sings ‘hoga gulaabi rang kaala’!!!
Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya brought with it that number even Shammi Kapoor would have loved to remember always. Soft and sensual, jaan-e-bahaar husn teraa bemisaal hai has always been a favourite of Rafi Saab’s fans. But that wasn’t all from this film. There is that pain laden number- zindagi kya hai gam ka dariya hai, a perfect threesome in Shakeel, Ravi and Rafi Saab.
Rafi saab brought the brother-sister bonding beautifully with rakhi dhagon ka tyohaar bandhaa hua in the film Rakhi. To bring in a different mood, Ravi composed yaa meri manzil bataa yaa zindagi, picturised on Ashok Kumar. Rafi Saab has modulated his voice superbly in this song where he touches new scales.
Sagaai too had a robust, Punjabi song – o paape na sharmaa kuch garmi warmi dikha, a song made even more colourful with the lyrics of Rajinder Kishen, the jackpot king of Mahalakshmi. The same film had the Rafi-Asha duet, Na yeh zameen thee na aasmaan thaa, truly hummable and tuneful.
Shehnai Biswajeet imploring Rajshree not to shake her tresses in na jhatko zulf se paani ye moti …a perfect Rafi Saab romantic number. I am sure many young men would have sung this song for their ladyloves.
Ummeed brought a durable and lovable signature Ravi style song by Rafi Saab- mujh ishq hai tujhi se meri jaan
And who can forget that most popular radio days hit from Ustaadon Ke Ustaad – sau baar janam lenge sau baar phana hongey, with its haunting instrumental encore to the main lines.
Waqt, the film entranced everyone with its multi star cast and many beautiful songs, but Rafi Saab had only one there. All the same it was very important to the theme of the film and aptly the title song went like waqt se din aur raat waqt se kal aur aaj, waqt ki har sheh ghulam, waqt ka har sheh pe raaj.
Ye Rastey Hain Pyar Ke starred Sunil Dutt and the elegant Leela Naidu. This movie was loosely based on the infamous Nanawati case. It had some marvelously composed Asha Bhonsle numbers but my favourite has remained the Rafi Saab special- tum jis pe nazar daalo us dil ka khuda hafiz, a song I have heard so many times during my school days with the transistor tucked under my quilt on those winter nights in Delhi.
Ye Zindagi Kitni Haseen Hai had Joy Mukherjee croon Masha Allah tum jawan ho to the Rafi inspired khudara yun na dil todo.
And I too have the same thing to say to Ravi Saab- Mashallah kya gaaney banaaye. Yeh zid chhodo aa bhi jaao ab wapas aur hamein apne khoobsorat geet sunaao.
RIP RAVI SAAB. Tujhko pukarey hamara pyaar.
Jaatey jaatey I couldn’t help sharing with you all a simple song composed by Ravi Saab that I have always held very close to my heart- it is a Rafi-asha duet from the film Girls Hostel. I would like you all to enjoy this one.
Very good article about Ravi sahab and my all time favorite Rafi Sahab.. Thanks a lot. Some of the songs are gems like Chaudvin ka Chaand ho, tujhko pukare mera pyar and so many more. I was not aware that these songs were composed by Ravi sir. That era was really blessed with Great talents like these gems of people.
You are the face of Ravi & ears of M.Rafi Saab.
My ardent desire is that the song “thum magar saath” sung by
MK ji would have sung by Rafi Saab.The music by Ravi Saab in
this song is taking us to the sky and MK also sung it in good way
but if it is Rafi Saab it would have a “Gem”.
I agree that the combo of Ravi/rafi was a great successful one but I’m baffled like many others why Ravi was not given his due as a great music director but then again Mohd rafi was deprived of the same. We just have to face the fact we live in an unjust world and people are not always rewarded for their talents but for who they know and dirty politics pays a big part in this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
it is also intersting to note that no composer extracted more Filmfare awards for his singers than RAVI
2 for Rafisaab Gharana and Chaudhvin ka Chand
2 for Mahendra K Gumrah and Hamraaz
1 for Lata Khandaan
1 for Salma Agha
making him perhaps the most successful i n terms of awards
Well said sir.
Nicely written article which I happened to see only today.
I used to wonder whether Rafi has sung his most
sweetest songs that are composed by Ravi and at the same time one gets the same feeling when listening Rafi’s number composed by OP Nayar or Roshan not to leave out SJ or LP because Rafi has treated all music directors alike giving his best to every music director.
But one thing is certain that Ravi’s composition of Rafi songs stands out.
In this list mentioned by the author he has forgotten to mention
the gem of a song
DHUR RAHKE NA KARO BAAT KAREEB AVO
from the film Amaanat.
Well written article, just a small correction! The music of Godaan was composed by Pandit Ravishankar and not MD Ravi.
Rafi Saab was the greatest singer of all times The velvet voice can never be copied or imitated or produced again for centuries It was God’s gift to our country
“Wallah Kamall Hai Are Wallah Kamaal Hai”
I met Rafi sahab in 1972 in the month of rmazan in building named SEABIRD in Bandra.he listened a song from me.I used to think that nobody is there in the world ,a bigger fan than i.But i am wrong there are million big fans of Rafi Sahab.I am a shayar also i wrote some ghazals in praise of Rafi Sahab.
Few of Ravi-Rafi songs our friends missed Husnwale Tera nawab Naye from 1961 film Gharana for which both shakeel and Ravi got film fare awards and Rafi missed by a whisker.Two songs from film Bahubeti 1965 Sab mein shamil ho magar and jiyo tho aise jiyo are worth mentioning.
Janab Salim k Sahab, ASA,
I totally agree with you,
Long live rafi sahab,
” Iss ghirathe naheed ki har taan hai deepak
shola sa lapak jaye hai aawaz to dekho ”
With regards to all Rafi lovers,
Dr. Khaja Aliuddin
To cut a long story short, the 3 songs that Ravi bhai composed and that the emperor Rafi Sahab sang in Do Badaan are enough for any music lovers to survive on.
These 3 songs are a million times worth more than songs created from 70’s onwards.
The film industry has strange ways. In this industry one can rule the world even with one hit film or song and at the same time, one can produce hit after hit but no recognition comes. Ravi has given the maximum number of hit songs along with Rafi, Shakeel and Sahir Ludhiyanvi. From a beggar in the street to a billionaire, every body humns Ravi’s songs but they do not take his name. No big awards, no life time achievement. It is sad that Ravi has left us without getting his due from the Industry. I heard Ravi’s ” Tum agar saath dene ka vada Karo” from the Film Humraaz in 1967 and the even today the tabla beats in that song mesmerises. Ravi has produced many great songs in Malayalam films. Ravi had always composed the tunes after the song is written. Even in Malayalam, he composed the music after the song is written as confirmed by great Malayalam poet, ONV. Kurup with whom Ravi produced some real gems. For a person, who does not understand the language, the tunes are really amazing. Ravi was undoubtedly one of the rare talents which the film industry had ever seen. He is not with us today but his music will never die.
mohd rafi ne music director ravi ke saath 226 se bhi adhik song gaaye hai.. adhik jaankari ke liye …apniawazbijnor.blogspot.com
Post 21
Thank you Haldar Sahab for your analysis. Your pick of Ravi Sahab’s following songs is a testimony of your knowledge of quality music. Please keep educating admirers of music like me.
http://youtu.be/wxPOBc-Gjbk
http://youtu.be/WxsrtTDFivE
Here is one of my favourites :
http://youtu.be/e8ReKM-djqU
POST 34 Mr Murthy : I had not heard this song before. Thank you
http://youtu.be/vSkQGIqcMcM
Regards
Harvinder
In continuation to my earlier message, when Ravi Saab asked Rafiji, how he will match the peculiar voice of Radhakrishnan, the character actor, Rafi Saab immediately changed his voice and spoke. Later he recorded the song, “Maike Se Aaja Biwiri” for Radhakrishnan. If any body listens to this song, it will not be surprising if they mistake the singer for some body else, other than Rafiji.
Binuji,
Most of the anecdotes you have given was shared by Ravi Saab when he visited us at Bangalore. One more thing he revealed was, for the title song of ‘ek mahal ho sapnon ka’, Devendra Goel insisted KK as DG’s son was fond of KK. After recording, both Raviji and DG were not happy. The same song was re-recorded with Rafi Saab.
gurumurthy ji…
there were many duets of rafi and asha whereas lata came in for ravi saabs solo songs only.
the reason could be : one….lata would give dates only to her ‘favourite’ composers.
two: lata’s price and dates ‘may’ have not worked out with producers as its well known that mohd rafi will sing for a rupee for few struggling composers and asha would also not mind this benevolence – many times.
in our first meeting some seven years back i had asked ravi saaheb why he took kk voice of sanjay khan in the movie dharkan. He had said : it was due to the actor demanding it. the song was : ‘mai to chala jidhar chale rasta……it was a devendra goyal movie i feel.
ravi saab had also said then that b r chopra had called rafi and mahendra for a recording together and our legend did not like it and that was the end of the legends association with br chopra.
another incident ravi ji did mention was : before the release of neel kamal, ravi sang the song : babul ki duwaein leti jaaaaaa in front of a filmi gathering/party.
rajendra kumar was there sobbing heavily at the end of the song.
ravi saab knew this song would be a runaway hit.
Achalji,
Nice tribute to Ravi Saab. You have listed out most of the excellent songs of Raviji. Though he was as talented as any other composer, he was never brackted with Music Directors like Naushad, OPN, SJ, SDB, etc. But his music was always melodious and was never loud.
One small question to all Rafi-Ravi Bhakts. Ravi Saab gave so many solos as well as duets to Rafiji, Lataji, Ashaji & MKji, but with Rafi Saab in duets, it used to be predominatly Ashaji. Can any body throw some light on the reason? When I broached this subject with Raviji during his visit to Bangalore for the BBR program, he was evasive. I think, Binu Nair may be able to share some thing on this aspect.
countless golden melodies created by one of the greatest composer ravisaab who was active at this advanced age is a remarkable achievement in his life,his association with rafisaab was the best,considering the songs he made with him,i watched his latest interview on tv,he was most lively,lovable and full of life the way he talked about his experiences with rafisaab….well in giving to him i remember this song…tu bemissal hai ke teri tariff kya karoon,ankhen se pee raha hoon ke hosh hi nahin…….kya nasha hai in rafisaab voice….wah ravisaab..
‘Zindagi ek khwab bankar reh gayi,
dil ne jis se chaaha, woh door chale gaye
ek khwab is tarah…ek sunehre geet ke tarah,
alvida joy and ravi saheb.
March 2012
Post no. 17
Dear Harvinder ji,
Many thanks for your response.
Sahir his lyrical partner in many projects, I suppose was a little too outspoken
in the ‘politically correct’ world that we live in. As a result he oft attracted the ire of producers & even lost projects I suppose. Once Sahir requested Raviji to negotiate the fees with a producer saying light heartedly ‘ meri wajeh se aapko kaam haat se chut na nahi chayiye’.
Raviji also used to plead with Rafisab’ aap toh dukh bhara geet bhi haste haste gaateh ho, magar orchestra team ko mood ka mehsoos hona bhi important hai’ & rafi sab would say ‘ chaliye main koshish karta hun magar
unhe bhi kehdijiye meri taraf mat dekhne keliye’.
Most of us on this forum are aware as to how during making of the song
‘babul ki duayen’ it was ‘authobiographical’ moments for Rafi sab whose
daughter was just then married & that Rafi sab was sobbing inconsolably
at the end of the recording.
Regards,
Nagesh
…ya both names are very small and it seems almost similar too” RAFI & RAVI” but they are great legends and in their partnership what they created a god gift for us.
“Kaun Apna Kaun Paraya, Kaun Apna Kaun Paraya
Duniya Ka Ye Bhed Abhi Tak Koi Samajh Nahi Paya”
Just listen this song and imagine their talents.
Post 15 Nagesh ji,
Would you be kind enough to share some of the trivia and other things of interest you had the honour of hearing from the stalwart.
Lucky you.
about singers and composers………
ravi saaheb came to mumbai to be a singer but on seeing the talent of mohd rafi and talat saaheb – changed tracks without losing ‘much’ time. scored hits with all singers and mohd rafi was his main singer.
in waqt, he used mohd rafi for a song in b r chopra movie on ravi jij’s insistence. otherwise, he left the way clear for his disciple mahendra kapoor to sing in b r chopra movies.
c. ramchandra anna to many – was a singer/composer and he gave ‘few’ hits for bhagwan dada and others – but could not continue as a singer for long.
madan mohan ji could also sing and gave a great account of himself in ‘Maaiye re mai kaase kahun apni piya se, maai re’. but he too struck to his composing ways – giving us timeless gazals and songs.
hemanta kumar ji gave us great songs as composer and singer but many are still wondering whether he was a great singer or a great composer.
r d burman sang few songs but it was all ‘loud’ hurting the ears for many. but sd burman saabs are still cherished.
many singers have acted in movies and they include talat mehmood, mukesh, mohd rafi, yesudas, suraiya and most probably our nightingale lata mangeshkar.
Hi Achal
Nice tribute to a tuneful maestro. –you really are passionate achaljee.
Sorry I am late in responding ‘cos I did not find time to read though I had a glimpse of the detailed write up.
I had the privilege of being Ravisaab’s neighbour way back in 1978 when I had gone to stay with my uncle in Santa cruz.I didnt know much about him then but what had caught my attention was the number of cars parked inside his house neatly in a row.-Did I ever think then, that one day I would escort him to the airport?well I was fortunate to escort him to the airport after Zara hatke show and listen to his words of melodious wisdom en route.
He was all praises for our singers and the show.I listened intently and answered all his questions with great caution lest I end up making him form an opinion about my Hindi;-))
May his soul rest in peace
tuneful regards
vasudha
Dear Achalbhai,
Bahut shukriya for paying a gentle tribute to a rather unsung composer in a strict popular sense.
Your write-up did take me back to Sep 30th 2009 when I spent a better part
of my Mumbai visit at ‘Vachan’ meeting Ravi sab, half the time wondering what to ask in 15 minutes time he had initially allocated. Thankfully it turned out to be a handsome one hour of unforgettable moments spent with the
great composer. He shared trivia about almost every legendary singer, predominantly Rafi sab.
His 16’X20′ living room perhaps looked the same as it did in the 70s. His ‘L’ shaped seating arrangement had all the awards & accolades tucked in the corner, looked more decorative than the best crystals money can buy. The mint condition of his harmonium was suggestive of the eternal student of music in him. His walls adorned his pictures with legends of the industry.
Ravi sab truly looked stunningly handsome in his younger days that made
me ask him if he ever considered acting options. One of his displays was a collage of various photographs & with his permission, I gleefully took snapshots of all those unforgettable moments. Ravi-Rafi-Sahir. Just couldn’t get enough of all the trivia he had to share with us about the other two of
the terrific trio.
I had the opportunity of personally inviting him to grace a musical for Rotary in Bangalore. ravi sab was in his elements during the half an hour tete-e-tete at Bangalore show & the audience loved his wit & humour besides the trivia that he shared. He was honoured by the hands of another unsung technician of b/w era, Shri. VK Murthy sab, who too was recognised for his life-time works (Couple of weeks later cinematographer Murthy sab won the prestigeous Dada Saheb Phalke award).
Ravi sab’s music makes a compelling argument for generations to come, that when music touches one’s heart & soul, it continues to remain eternal.
Rest in Peace Ravi sab
Nagesh
Omi saaheb, sons of rajinder krishan, daughter of anil biswas – shikha biswas, rohan kapoor, raju naushad, of course our dil ka dhadkan mohd rafi saahebs son in law perves ahmed – were all there : offering their last tributes to ravi saaheb.
ravi saaheb had also weaved a couplet on rafi-ravi and used to render that to mohd rafi lovers who visited the vachan bunglow at santa cruz west .
our ravi saaheb – inspite of illness had taken a special leave of two hours from bombay hospital ‘ last ‘ dec 24, travelled to bandras rang sharada auditorium – to play glowing tributes to mohd rafi saaheb and returned to the hospital.
it may be mentioned that ,
ravi saaheb scored over opn using mohd rafi, mahendra kapoor, lata mangeshkar, salma khan and of course asha bhosle for his heart touching compositions.
down south ravi saaheb used chithra, yesudas, jaichandran and other s and gave smashing hits to Mollywood music.
ravi saaheb scored hits after hits with mahendra kapoor. on the other hand, opn tried mahendra kapoor after splitting with mohd rafi while being on a ego trip. opn had then ‘said’ I will make another mohd rafi. opn could not and had to approach rafi saheb again for joy mukherji for : dil ki awaa z bhi sun …… heralding another brief spell of success for him.
to meet and talk to ravi saheb was a musical treat of a life time. and that ‘too’ has ended now.
Harvinder ji,
Let me first make a few comments on Ravi. As many of you know, I have been a diehard Rafi fan since I was 11. And although I grew up in Calcutta, my heart was in Bombay — to be more precise, in my mind’s eyes, I was following Rafi saab. So when I comment on a music director’s association with Rafi saab, I don’t do it lightly. When I say that Ravi is part of the Rafi household, I mean it. Rafi saab knew that this composer was one of his greatest fans and he could take that extra liberty in singing the way he wanted to. So Rafi could wear the composer’s hat and Ravi the singer’s. Consider two songs: “itni haseen itni jawan raat kya kare” from aaj aur kal and “deewana kahke aaj mujhe phir pukariye” from mulzim. Just listen to the way Rafi plays with the words; it’s magic!
sanson mein ghul rahi hai
kisi sans ki mahak
daman ko chhoon raha hai
koi haath kya kare
…….
I can listen to these lines over and over again.
Given that Rafi has sung for so many md’s over the years, it’s really difficult to select the top 5 without disappointing someone or the other. But no matter which list we create, we must include naushad and sj. And whoever you select for the remaining three slots, you are going to disappoint fans of one music director or another (sd, op, mm, ravi, lp, roshan, chitragupta…). That’s the problem in selecting the top 5.
For Lata, selecting the top 5 is even tougher; my top 5 at this point in time (it keeps changing), in no particular order, is:
mm, sd, salil, sj and c. ramachandra. But see how many md’s I’ve left out: naushad, roshan, hemant kumar, sajjad, rd, khayyam… Getting into Lata’s top 10 is a Herculean task.
Selecting the top 5 for other singers is much easier. If you consider Mahendra Kapoor, the top md’s are Ravi, OP and KA. For Kishore, it’s RD, SD, KA and LP. For Mukesh, it’s SJ, KA, Roshan and Salil. For Manna, it’s SJ, Roshan, SD, RD and Salil. For Asha, it’s OP, RD, SD and Ravi (she has worked well for many other md’s too). I’m sure I missed out a few md’s here and there, but I’m sure you get my point.
Thank you Haldar Sahab. Yes my missing genius OPN is a blunder. Besides Ravi ji getting the soft and emotion filled songs with Rafi Sahab ( Neel Kamal – Tujhko Pukare mera pyar or Garibon ki suno – Dus Lakh or Amaanat’s – Teri Ankh ka ishara na hota or Nai Roshni’s Jitni likhi thi muqadar mein and so on) memorable.
Yes Sir you said it. Ravi ji will make top 5 cut with Rafi Sahab’s songs.
With Lata, Ravi ji’s song of Khandaan – Tum hi mere Mandir or Bharosa’s Woh dil kahan se laoon teri yaad jo bhula de.
To me Khanadan’s song will qualify in Lata’s ten best. Others being Asli Naqli’s Tera mera pyar Amar by SJ and Aapki Nazron nein samjha – MM.
How about my belief that the numbers given by Ravi ji, he would probably score over anybody in percentage of those songs becoming popular for years to come. Such was the simplicity in his music. OPN would probably score in intensity and rytham.
Thank you again for your expert opinion, it is always valuable to me.
Rgds,
Harvinder
very shocking news,a real admirer of beloved rafi sahib.once afew years ago,when he came to ulhasnagar near kalyan,on rafi night on 31st july (rafi sahib”s anniversary,every year organised by rafi fan club in ulhasnagar run by hon’ble dr prabhu ahuja),ravisaab remembered rafi sahib heartly ,shared many memories.whenever any one,nearer to rafi sahib passes away,our hearts sink, seems like,it is meaningless to live.kaash rafi saab se pehle is jahaan mein aye hote,aur rafi sahib se pehle is duniya se vida ho jaate.kaash?
i was fortunate enough to meet ravi saab december 2010.he told us a interesting story regarding his composition darshan do ghanshyam nath from film narsi bhagat.he said the power of that bhajan came to light 50 years later with the film slumdog millionaire in which they used the bhajan without ravi saabs permission.ravi sued the distributors for 20 crores but eventually settled for 20 lakhs
Ravi ji was one of few in 1970″s was with mohd rafi,even on many interveiw Ravi ji spoke about greatness of mohd rafi,also Ravi ji used m kapoor by great way, he got best from m kapoor or I can say he used m kapoor as Naushad ji did with mohd rafi(maybe I am wrong)I think as music director Naushad gave us mohd rafi and lata ji,opn asha ji,sd kishora da,sj mukesh and ravi m kapoor…..
post 10:
Achal ji, it’s an honest mistake. If you take out the references to Godaan and the song, the article is very good.
Godaan is based on a short story written by Munshi Premchand. The music was composed by Pandit Ravi Shankar, and in addition to “Holi khelat Nandlal”, there’s a very good Rafi solo in Bhojpuri style:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiJ0MLFbsF4
There’s a Mukesh beauty in the same film:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vE6-PqX6jhA
post 8:
Mohan ji, here’s “jai govinda gopala” by rafi saab:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPZDFCB5yMc
haldar saab i stand corrected on the name of the music director of the said song right at the beginning of the article. i am grateful to you sir for pointing out this blunder on my part
warm regards
achal rangaswamy
It was indeed shocking to learn the death of Ravi Saab.In his days it was cosidered a sure Box Office success if the music of the Film was given by Ravi Saab I feel like reminding all of a sweet song of Rafi Zara sun haseenaye nanznee, Ye lucknow ki sarzameen,Mujhe pyaar ki zindgi denewale,Saaze dil ched de,Shola ulfat ka bhadkake,kiske liye ruka hai,there are two talat songs1.maine bhi husn ki nazron mein 2.sab huctch luta ke.There was a time in Delhi people use to go to Standard Restaurant ( Near Regal ) to listen songs in Jukebox. Once when i went the only song which was played was ravi composition Cat Cat cat maayne billy. It was such a raze that people would put a coin of 25 paise ( Chavanni ) in the juke Box to listen a favourite song. Ravi saab was a master of creating simple but hit music.I just mentioned a few songs that came in my mind but there are so many of them not only in Hindi but in South Indian langgages also .In south he was called Bombay Ravi.He was such a gentle that he once declared that his song Dil ke armaan was a clear copy of Naushad song Milte hi aankhen dil hua.Who can in these days be so nice to admit that.
Thanks for saying wonderful things about a great Music Director, Ravi saab. May his soul rest in peace. Your list of films starts from 1963. One important film with “bhakti poorna” music was Hindi Film Narsi Bhagat (1957), lyrics for which were penned by Shri Gopal Bahadur Nepali(more popularly known as Gopal Sing Nepali). The said film on the great saint of Gujarat, moved not only people from Gujarat, but also lovers of devotional music in the entire country. Fortunately, some of the beautiful songs such as : “Sab ki nayya par … ” by Manna da & Ashaji and “Vaishnava janato” are present on the You Tube. However two beautiful songs are not present, namely, “Jai Govinda Gopala” by Rafi saab and “Aaj Faisla tere dwar par”… by Manna da etc, this being the second part of “Darshan do Ghanashyam” rendered by Hemantda, Sudhaji & Manna Da. I have the songs, but cannot load them, since they are on 78 rpm records. I wish some young and active music lover does it.
“Subhaa na aayee shaam na aayee ,jis din teri yaad na aayee yaad na aayee” rafi sahib ke liye.
…ya both names are very small and it seems almost similar too” RAFI & RAVI” but they are great legends and in their partnership what they created a god gift for us.
“Kaun Apna Kaun Paraya, Kaun Apna Kaun Paraya
Duniya Ka Ye Bhed Abhi Tak Koi Nahi Samajh Paya”
Just listen this song and imagine their talents.
Dear Achal ji,
This forum is truly enriched by the such luminous write-up by great Rafian like you. Even though there is a factual error which Haldar ji has pointed out in post no. 1, this glossary of gems of Ravi-Rafi combination is delightful. And it is more than just a list, you have presented it in your immaculate style of writing with apt one-liners for bringing that feel of nostalgia, which is simply superb. Please accept my compliments and congratulations for your effort.
I would like a make a few addition to your list: ‘Door reh kar na karo baat karib aa jaao…’, ‘Ye khamoshiyan, ye tanhaiyaan….’, ‘Kal chaman tha aaj ek…’, ‘Mili khaak mein mohabbat…’, ‘Aaj mere yaar ki shaadi hai…’, ‘Ye waadiyan ye fiyaayen bula rahi hain tumhen…, ‘Itni hassen itni jawan raat…’, ‘Kya ajab saaz hai ye shahanaai..’ etc.
-J.K. Bhagchandani
vinod mehruji,
your views are simply superb – kyaa khoob kahee hai aapney – vakai aapney bahuth behthereen comparisons dee hai ravi sahab kee composition kee.
indeed he was highly gifted and brought fore the best and rafi sahab usko saakaar kar diyaa.
binaa rafi sahab koi hee sitaaraa ithnee bulandiyaan choo hee nahee sakhtey.
iss mein loi shakh. ?????????????? meherbaano – rafi key cchahney waalon rafi key bhakhton ?????????????
ramesh narain kurpad
09448455164
dear achal ji,
achal ji i and shri binu nair sahab attended the funeral of ravi sahab on 9th march 2012 , his last rites was performed by ravi ji.’s daughter . music director anand ji, lalit pandit alongwith rohan kapoor and sidhant kapoor and actor raza muraad ji was present.
while writing ravi sahab aur rafi sahab ka shammi ji ke liye evergreen song baar baar dekho, hazaar baar dekho bhi right now play ho raha hai
first of all i would like to express my thanks to you to share the hamare bachpan ka geet mein hoon albela taange wala in this article.
no doubt a great combo of ravi sahab and rafi sahab given unforgettable songs to us , anyhow we can not forget ravi ji ka kaam with others singers with asha ji ke saath film vachan ka woh geet chanda mama door ke, mahendra ji ke saath doli chad ke dulhan sasuraal chali, rafi sahab aur manna daa ke saath hum bhi agar bachhe hote to khane ko milte laddoo, yaa phir film grahsathi ka woh gaanaa dadi amma dadi amma maanjao jo lalita pawar ji par tha.
ravi sahab ne zindagi ke har mauke par behatreen geet diye hai , yahan par mein aapka attention invite kar raha hoon film kaajal ka choo lene do naazuk hoton ko aur film nai roshani ka geet jitni likhi thi mukadar mein yeh dono geet raajkumar par picturise hue the, lekin dono mein kitna farak hai jabki creator of both are same.
i wish to extend my thanks to you for such a article.
vinod mehru
09768245368
A correction, please:
Note the music of the film Godaan was done by the sitarist Pt Ravi Shankar, and not the Ravi Saab we are talking of.
-Vijay Lazarus
rangajee,
congratulations on yet another warm article from your pen. no doubt ravi was a great composer and he had a style of his own which was truly unique.
see what you have done – some heavy weights of the forum have come back with their valuable views and its nice to see an intelligent ensemble of statistics and expert views which no newspaper or magazine would ever print.
most of our views being forthright and on the path of righteousness do not see the light of print in the print media cause they only entertain ” yes men “.
this forum would be that much richer with regular inputs from you rangajee.
warm regards,
ramesh narain kurpad
Starting Waqt Ravi started using Mahendra Kapoor.I dont know why.But the few he gave to Rafi were gems like “chule ne to nazu—–“.the duet in Sagai “Nayee zameen thi aasman tha—–” just to name a couple of gems.
Dear Harvinder ji,
Glad to see you back in this forum. Like me, you are a great lover of hfm and I respect your views. We may have a difference in opinion here and there, but that’s natural. Listing the top 5 mds is a very difficult exercise and it creates unnecessary controversies — but you know very well who my top two are. If you are looking at the top 10 mds of all time — not restricted to any specific singer — you’ll also have to consider op, c. ramchandra, salil, and rd. In my list of top 5 Rafi composers, I’ll always include op — the man’s contribution to Rafi’s career is second only to Naushad’s. In that vein, you can include ravi as one of the top 5 for Rafi, though my list is naushad, sj, sd, op and mm. But I can see why other Rafians might want to replace sd with ravi or lp. That’s a personal choice.
Coming back to Ravi, I’ve always enjoyed his compositions. As a diehard Rafian, I consider Ravi to be part of the Rafi household. He was one of the finest composers of ghazals; in my opinion, he was second only to Madan Mohan, slightly ahead of Khayyam. But more than that, he produced hit after hit with Rafi, Mahendra Kapoor, Asha and Lata. Just imagine hfm without two songs: Rafi’s Chaudhvin ka Chand and Manna’s Aye Meri Zohra Jabeen. These two epics are just as popular as they were 45 years ago. Fifty years from now, music lovers would keep saying “waah waah” when they listen to these two songs.
Regards,
P. Haldar
Haldar sahab,
A few years ago, a few of us thought of making our independent lists of our best five MD’s. Ravi ji figured in my list of five alongside SJ, LP, MM and SD.
Followed by to Naushad, Roshans and Chjtragupt. Could you endorse my judgement please as far as Ravi ji is concerned.
None of the other 6 friends had him listed even amongst top 10. Upon me telling the songs, they agreed that percentage of hit songs wise Ravi ji would probably top the list. Melody and clean music was his forte. His good understanding of Urdu, Hindi and family values is apparent in his songs.
He prided himself by calling himself a Rafi Sahab’s die hard fan and used Mahender Kapoor also primarily for Chopras.
May his soul rest in peace.
“Holi khelat Nandalal” was composed by Pandit Ravi Shankar, not by Ravi. The author should immediately correct this mistake.