Five Deceades of 'Screen' Music

The Roshan family - Rakesh (for courageously facing an attempt on his life and giving us the year’s biggest hit Kaho Naa...Pyaar Hai and best film and icon, his son Hrithik), chhota bhai Rajesh (for giving the composers of today a run for their money even after 28 years in the field), and Hrithik (for generating the hysteria that even Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan did not), all won a special family award for a landmark year, besides their individual awards from Screen in its Golden Jubilee year. Five decades ago, had Screen awards existed, the Best Music award would have effortlessly gone to Hrithik’s grandfather Roshan for Bawre Nain (1950). Incidentally the film’s writer-lyricist-filmmaker Kidar Sharma had said that after the failure of Roshan’s debut Neki Aur Badi (1949), Roshan wanted to commit suicide and Kidar comforted him and told him, “Let’s try one more time.” Bawre Nain, in that sense, also was the rebirth of Roshan Sr.

The last five decades has seen kaleidoscopic changes in film music. From 1951 to 2000, Hindi film sangeet has evolved, assimilated a zillion influences and changed in form, context and work ethic without losing its status as the opiate of the masses, and the Numero Uno pop music in the country. Many would say that it has degenerated beyond hope, but I would contest that statement. Time has a key role to play in music, and if we have youngsters giving us music like Dilwale Dulhan Le Jayenge and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, and the ‘masters’ of the 50s doing work like Guddu and Nishchaiy, obviously it is not public taste that has gone awry.

Let us then look at the momentous musical trend changes over the years.

1951 - Shanker Jaikishan consolidate their 1949 Barsaat success with Awara. Awara hoon, the first film song to become a rage in a foreign country (USSR) and initiated the ‘dream sequence’ in Hindi cinema with Tere bina aag yeh chandni and Ghar aaya mera pardesi. Albela had C. Ramachandra going Western again (a la Shehnai in 1947) with his Shola jo bhadke, considered one of the ten all-time greatest hits.

1952 - Naushad spreads cheap rugs on the floors and walls of the recording theatre for the songs of Aan, ingeniously improving the acoustics in the era when recording studios were not soundproof, and generated a tinny reverb. He uses a 100-piece orchestra and mixes the film’s songs in London - both firsts for Hindi cinema. With Baiju Bawra he swings to the Indian extreme to prove that raags and folk can spell popular magic too. Naushad, Shakeel and Rafi, three Muslims, begin their team trysts as creators of some of the finest Hindu devotional numbers of Hindi cinema.

1954 - O.P. Nayyar rescues himself from anonymity and Geeta Dutt from the staid bhajan image with the saucy Aar Paar score. Hemant Kumar gives a cult song in Man dole tera tan dole, and the film (Nagin) becomes the first to be known by an instrument, the wonder gadget called clavioline played by a struggling musician called Kalyanji.

1955 - C. Ramachandra creates history by composing and recording nine hits within a month for Azaad after several composers turn down the quickie.

1957 - S.D. Burman makes Rafi depart from his Punjabi/melancholy/flamboyant image to softly croon the heart-tugging Yeh mahalon yeh takhton yeh taajon ki duniya, without a hint of lachrymosity.

1958 - Adalat is the ‘Hindu backlash’ to Baiju Bawra as three Hindus - Madan Mohan, Rajendra Krishan and Lata Mangeshkar - have their first combined go at establishing a supremacy in the Urdu-Persian form - ghazal.

1960 - Kanoon proves that a good film without songs can work at the box-office. On the other hand, S-J and Raj Kapoor prove that last minute inclusion of music in a dacoit-‘infested’ saga without musical potential can still result in an extraordinary score with Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai. Barsaat Ki Raat gets the film qawwali going.

1961 - S-J give Shammi Kapoor a definite screen image - Yahoo! becomes a famous term three decades before the Net age. Screen romance is never the same again. Suku suku heralds the meaningless kootchie-koo era.

1962 - Baar baar dekho composed by Ravi for China Town creates history by becoming the first film song to be adapted by a West Indies group - with official permission!

1963 - Marathi folk gets national recognition with the cult song Govinda aala re in Bluff Master, it’s Shammi Kapoor here there and everywhere again. Laxmikant-Pyarelal too create history by topping the annual Binaca Geet Mala (the mother of Indian countdown shows) with their very first film Parasmani.

1964 - A small non-star-cast weepie called Dosti becomes a box-office sensation solely on the strength of a terrific music score by L-P, sweeps the awards and goes on to do Golden Jubilee.

1966 - Shammi Kapoor wants S-J for Teesri Manzil, but Nasir Husain persuades him to give an ear to a youngster called R.D. Burman. For RD, its is the pehli manzil to eternal (if delayed) fame.

1967 - L-P storm the charts with Anita, Aasra, Aye Din Bahaar Ke, Jaal, Milan, Farz, Shagird, Night In London, Taqdeer and Patthar Ke Sanam, all within twelve months. Their intense melody puts every veteran composer in the shade and unsettles S-J. Kalyanji-Anandji and Gulshan Bawra give patriotic songs a new dimension with Mere desh ki dharti.

1969 - The Burman father and son coalesce to compose Aradhana, a trendsetting score that unleashes two superstars - Kishore Kumar as singer and Rajesh Khanna as a music-obsessed actor.

1970 - It’s a K-A grandslam with Geet, Gopi, Safar, Johny Mera Naam, Saccha Jhutha, Yaadgar and Purab Aur Paschim.

1971 - R.D. Burman gives cabaret songs a new status and becomes a ‘cult’ voice of sorts too with Monica o my darling (Caravan). V.Shantaram-LP’s Jal Bin Machhli Nritya Bin Bijli becomes India’s first music to be recorded in Stereophonic Sound, and L-P’s Haathi Mere Saathi becomes the first-ever album to win a sales Disc.

1972 - RD ushers in a new era in teenybopper music with Dum maro dum (Hare Rama Hare Krishna) and Jawani Diwani. Pakeezah’s music storms the charts amidst the RD-pop craze and RD himself swings to the classical extreme in Amar Prem and Parichay.

1973 - L-P redfine parameters of popular hysteria with the music sales and endemic popularity of Bobby. The ‘dosti’ song trend is set by the mega-hit Yaari hai imaan mera (Zanjeer) and Raaz ki baat (Dharma) makes the Pran song and the qawwali compulsory b-o. ingredients.

1976 - Mukesh’s death is a tragedy for the sad song too.

1977 - Rafi stages a spectacular comeback with Dharam-Veer, Amar Akbar Anthony and Hum Kisise Kum Nahin.

1978 - Bappi Lahiri ushers in the ‘disco’ era with Mausam hai gaane ka (Suraksha).

1980 - Disco rules (Pyaara Dushmun, Lootmaar, Karz, Qurbani, Shaan) and causes far-reaching changes in music. Rafi’s death ends an eon of melody.

1982 - Umrao Jaan and Nikaah prove trend-breaking hits.

1985 - The backbone of the disco culture is broken by Pyar Jhukta Nahin, Utsav, Saagar and Ram Teri Ganga Maili.

1988 - Music and melody return to centerstage with Tezaab, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak and Khoon Bhari Maang. Tezaab signifies the arrival of the ‘item’ song.

1989 - Ram Lakhan’s score creates double history - ushers in the CD era and notches sales of 10 lakhs. Maine Pyar Kiya crosses three times that figure. Tridev’s Tirchhi topiwale and MPK’s Aate jaate and Mere rang mein make plagiarisation ‘trendy’.

1990 - A new generation of composers and singers take over. The dubbing system for recording songs makes inroads.

1993 - It’s sleaze time as double entendre steals the show. Choli ke peeche (Khal-Nayak), Rukmani (Roja) and Gutar gutar (Dalaal) lead. A.R. Rahman arrives - film music will never be the same again.

1994 - Javed Akhtar brings back the dignity and importance of poetry and sensitivity in film lyrics with 1942 - A Love Story.

1999 - Ismail Darbar and Mehboob prove that melody and poetry of awesome calibre can be made by youngsters with the awesome Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.

2000 - Kaho Naa...Pyaar Hai ushers in musical hope for the new millennium.

Rajiv Vijayakar

Also see:>>>

Music all the way
Romancing Music