SEVEN ICONIC 70’s SONGS OF ARUNA IRANI

The seventies was a very melodious decade and a constant thread through all those years was an actress who never got the lead role in the films that we will mention in this post but made a lasting impression with her roles and songs in those films. The theme for this post is the 70s songs of Aruna Irani. I have cherry picked seven songs of this versatile and beautiful actress, keeping in mind how she made each of these songs memorable with her charismatic performance.

1. Dilbar dil se pyaare Caravan (1971)

A dulcet Lata solo, written by Majrooh Sultanpuri and music by R D Burman, this is an iconic Aruna Irani song and ranks among the favourites of all her fans. This was an apt song to start the list with although it fits into the chronological order, too. In a recent interview, Aruna Irani acknowledges this as one of her favourite songs and has shown gratitude to Lata Mangeshkar for giving her the biggest song of her career. 

This song is a melodious blend of serpentine Arab music and Romani folk music boosted by the classic guitar refrain and lifted by Majrooh Sultanpuri’s lyrics. Aruna Irani plays the role of Nisha, who is a knife thrower in a band of banjaras and is desperately in love with Mohan (Jeetendra) who drives the van of the caravan. Dilber dilse pyaare is a lovelorn tribute from a woman in love which almost celebrates Nisha’s unrequited passion, revelling in the joy it gives her. 

Trivia: Aruna Irani made her debut in the film Gunga Jumna (1961) playing Azra's childhood character. 

2. Choron ko saare nazar aate Naya Zamana (1971)

Composed by S D Burman and written by Anand Bakshi, this solo by Lata Mangeshkar is a lesser known song of Naya Zamana. Aruna Irani plays the role of Rekha, Dharmendra’s sister, who is accused of stealing in a party. Feeling awkward that the gift she brought may not be good enough for such rich hosts, she takes it back from the table on which all the gifts are kept. The host’s wife (Indrani Mukherjee) thinks that she is stealing one of the gifts. The humiliation she faces feels very unjust to her and what could have been a typical situation with a party song is lifted to a memorable cinema moment by Aruna Irani. This is probably the only party song that Aruna Irani would have done where she didn’t need to dance and she herself was the focus of the song for her expressions. This song underlines the fact that she wasn’t given her due in films and that she was a very able actress.

3. Ae phasa Bobby (1973)

Aruna Irani plays the role of Neema, who turns into a friend and guide for Raju in the film Bobby. The song is placed at the climax of the film, a classic rich boy-poor girl tale, where on realising that Raju (Rishi Kapoor) is being forced to leave Bobby (Dimple Kapadia) and marry a girl who isn’t his choice, Neema hints to Raju that maybe the only way out of this desperate situation is to elope with Bobby. Aruna Irani also appears in another song in this film ‘Main shayar toh nahin’. 

Trivia : Bobby was a trend setting films and was a major box office success as it got the second highest collection of all 70s Hindi films (No prizes for guessing that Sholay was the highest earner in that decade!). Also, the film was remade in Persian as Parvaz dar Ghafas in 1980.

4. Sapna mera toot gaya    Khel Khel Mein (1973)

When one has shared one’s dreams with someone and that person is gone, those dreams feel hollow and one feels shattered. Aruna Irani nails these emotions as she reminisces about Rakesh Roshan in this song. The song switches between memories in the antaras and back to reality with the mukhda. The slight pause before the mukhda as one is jerked back to the present works to emphasise the despair of broken dreams and the utter emptiness that takes their place. Aruna Irani’s eyes speak volumes in these pauses as she does full justice to the total starkness and despair in this song. 

Trivia: Aruna Irani holds the record for the most nominations in the category of Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress. 

5. Panditji mere marne ke baad Roti Kapda aur Makaan (1974)

Composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal, this song is a gem in an album where every song is a treasure. This song has slipped past many people’s notice, and I was very keen to include it in this list because of that.  A classic diversion song where Aruna Irani diverts the attention of Manmohan to help Manoj Kumar flee. The lyrics are unusual with the intro lines leading up to the mukhda to make it a very catchy beginning. Lata Mangeshkar sings this Verma Mallik song with the right mystery and pathos as the song leads up to the character Poonam played by Aruna Irani dying at the end of the song while helping Manoj Kumar escape.

5. Rang le aayenge Bhanwar (1976)

A song full of passive aggressive asides by Randhir Kapoor, ably aided by Aruna Irani towards a hapless Parveen Babi who cannot say the truth and has to bear the onslaught of their accusations. A classic party scene where the hero has a lot of angst against the heroine, and she has no option but to listen amidst a room full of curious party goers. This is a brilliant creation by R D Burman, written by Anand Bakshi and sung by Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosale, with underlined pathos by the heart wrenching sarangee. Although the song’s focus is on Randhir Kapoor and Parveen Babi, Aruna Irani steals the show with the sharp sarcasm in her expressions and the inner intention to create a rift between the couple. 

Trivia: I have come across some articles that claim that Aruna Irani and actress Bindu are first cousins. However, there has been no way of confirming this, so I leave it to my readers to comment below if they know this as true!

Note: A helpful reader has since confirmed that Aruna Irani and Bindu are indeed cousins with this link from The Kapil Sharma Show. 

7. One two cha cha cha Shalimar (1978)

This is a very catchy song that helps to starts off a very unusual film on a brilliant pace. Written by Anand Bakshi and music by R. D. Burman, this song is sung by Usha Uthup. Aruna Irani has a guest appearance in this film for this song. She plays the role of a dance teacher, and the song is filmed in a dance school where she is shown teaching the steps for the Cuban dance form Cha Cha Cha. This is one of her briefest appearances on screen in a film, but she makes an indelible mark on the minds of the audience. Shalimar, for many of us, is Aruna Irani’s One two cha cha cha. 

It was very difficult to narrow down my favourite Aruna Irani songs to a mere seven. I have had to leave out many of my favourites like Kya gazab karte ho ji (Love story), Sham-e-furqat ka dhal gaya saya re (Sanyasi) Humein tumse pyar kitna (Kudrat) because they were not from the 70s, except for Sanyasi! Do comment below with your favourite Aruna Irani songs, no matter which decade you select them from! 

Seven sparkling songs of Rati Agnihotri

 

Two posters adorned the walls of my room in my schooldays. One was of Kumar Gaurav and the other was of Rati Agnihotri. They remain my ‘popstars’ of my teens. 

Seeing Rati Agnihotri films now has made me realise that her films always had great songs, most of them by Laxmikant Pyarelal and R D Burman. She was one of the few actresses of her time to have music director Ravi compose music for one of her films (Tawaif).  Here’s following her journey with some of her best melodies.

 1. Solah baras ki baali umar                        Ek Dujjhe ke liye               1981

Ek Dujjhe Ke Liye was directed by K. Balachander. It was a remake of his Tamil film Maro Charitra. Rati’s first Hindi film and definitely among her best. This film was a super hit in its time and has made a place in Indian films history as one of the lasting love stories. Vasu-Sapna became legendary at that time and rewatching this film tells us why. The magic is intact in this film with the chemistry between Kamal Hassan and Rati, no matter how many times we watch it. It was tough to choose just one song from this film as Rati Agnihotri shines brilliantly in all of them. Based on Raag Ahir Bhairav, Solah baras ki touches very poignant chords as Sapna visits various places to relive moments that she spent there with Vasu.  Written by Anand Bakshi and music composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal, this song is rendered beautifully by Lata Mangeshkar.

Trivia: The tune of Solah baras ki can be spotted in the background score composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal for Raj Kapoor’s film Bobby during the scene where Bobby ( Dimple Kapadia) leaves for Kashmir.

2. Chalo haseen geet ek banayein                        Shaukeen     1982

Rati plays the role of Anita as a singer at a local club in Goa. This film was a huge hit and was the among the highest grossing movies of 1982. The music of this film was by R D Burman and the song Chalo haseen geet is sung by Ashok Kumar and Chirashree Bhattacharya and written by Yogesh. A fresh and breezy song which is timeless and can get our feet tapping every time we hear it.

Trivia: Shaukeen is based on Samaresh Basu’s novel. Gulzar’s Kitaab and Namkeen are also based on this author’s novels.

 3. Aisa to socha na tha         Pasand apni apni               1983

Pasand Apni Apni was a Basu Chatterjee film and the song Aisa toh socha na tha is filmed in the classic Basu Chatterjee style. Local train of Bombay, heroine in a simple cotton saree with situations and emotions that the common man can relate to. It is interesting to note how Rati Agnihotri readily took on a deglamourised role in this film. She plays the role of a struggling actress whose life path crosses with a millionaire (Mithun Chakraborty) and events unfold in a light yet engrossing tale. Aisa toh socha na tha is sung by Asha Bhosale with music composed by Bappi Lahiri and lyrics by Yogesh.

      4. Boom Boom            Star                            1983

Right after the Nazia Hassan wave in India with Qurbani, Nazia Hassan and her brother Zoheb Hassan made a couple of private albums with Biddu, following which Biddu produced Kumar Gaurav -Rati Agnihotri film Star. Rati Agnihotri was the only screen persona to get the playback of Nazia Hassan on screen besides Zeenat Aman. Star had a very successful soundtrack and Boom Boom remains mint fresh every time we see it. She played the role of Maya who works at a nightclub.

As my opening paragraph will tell you, knowing that Rati Agnihotri and Kumar Gaurav were coming together in a film had made my schoolfriends and me nearly delirious with expectations. It was a bit of a setback to see that they were not paired together in the actual sense ( I will avoid spoilers here in case someone sees the film now!) It was also a disappointment that the film didn’t click at the box office.

    5. Sajna sun sun          Rishta Kagaz Ka                  1983

The first thing you will realise when you see this song is that the whole situation looks very familiar.  Aarti, played by Rati Agnihotri, is trying to woo and distract Arun , played by Raj Babbar , from his work. It feels like this song was made as a tribute to Bindiya chamkegi from Do Raaste. The tribute is complete with Rati wearing an orange saree with a clear accolade and salute to Mumtaz in this song.  This is purely my conjecture and, despite searching on the net, I have managed to find no reference to this. However, I am totally convinced that this song was filmed keeping Bindiya chamkegi in mind. It just seems too much of a coincidence to have so many unintended similar points in a song (I have this same conjecture for another song in this list and you will come across that soon!)

    6. Mujhe tum yaad karna    Mashaal                    1984

The lyrics of this song caught my fancy the first time I heard them. All songs in hindi films that precede any parting between lovers talk of parting as an anguish of love and say things like ‘Bhoolne waale yaad na aa’ or ‘tum yaad na aaya karo’. This song instead asks to make sure they remember each other.  

Mujhe tum yaad karna aur

Mujhko yaad aana tum

Even the stanzas are out of the box with the boy telling the girl to meet people and stay busy and smiling, while she tells him to smile and be friendly with every approaching girl. Which is very different from the standard parting duet where the boy and girl concentrate on telling each other to keep on remembering them!

Sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar to the music composed by Hridaynath Mangeshkar, this song is written by Javed Akhtar. Rati Agnihotri plays the role of Geeta who is a press reporter and comes across Raja (Anil Kapoor) who decides to turn over a new leaf under the mentoring of the editor Vinod Kumar (Dilip kumar) who she works for.

     7. Bhool ho gayee jaane de   Zabardast 1985

The conjecture I mentioned for another song is for this one! This song also feels like a clear tribute to Shammi Kapoor- Asha Parekh song O mere Sona re from Teesri Manzil. Here, there is a distinct connection as both are Nasir Hussain films. The heroine wooing the hero, the female solo with lyrics laced in mischievous pleading, the broken handbag strap of the hero halfway through the song…well, this was elementary, my dear Watson! This is an Asha Bhosale solo composed by R D Burman and written by Majrooh Sultanpuri. O mere sona re also had the exact same creators. If you see both these songs one after the other, you will realise the joie de vivre is the same in both, a lot of which is a credit to the actors Rati Agnihotri and Rajeev Kapoor as Shammi Kapoor and Asha Parekh were a tough act to follow. People who just do remixes should observe these songs to understand what a real tribute is. The entire creation is new, there is a lot of hard work and the team brings together something that is a masterpiece even when seen after the original.

6. 

We see that Rati’s films have very little stereotyping if we follow her career graph. From a career-oriented journalist in Mashaal to a housewife in Rishta Kagaz ka to a tawaif in the film Tawaif, she took on a wide range of roles and made a mark even though the films in those days mostly centered on the hero. Hope you enjoyed following Rati Agnihotri’s musical journey in Bollywood. Comment with your favourite Rati Agnihotri song!

Melodies of Rajesh Khanna with Laxmikant Pyarelal

Rajesh Khanna films have always been synonymous with good music. While a lot has been written about the magical combo of Pancham with Rajesh Khanna, not enough is written about the fact that this superstar had nearly equal number of hits with Laxmikant Pyarelal. Starting with Do Raaste in 1969, this team continued giving melodious songs up to Nazrana in 1987. Rajesh Khanna and Laxmikant Pyarelal had 26 films together.

Interesting Trivia: The combination of Rajesh Khanna and Laxmikant Pyarelal had 21 songs featured in Binaca Geetmala.

Mere naseeb mein ae dost                     Do Raaste     1969

The first film in LP- Rajesh Khanna combination was Raj Khosla’s Do Raaste which became a super hit in 1969. Based on the raag Yaman Kalyan, Mere naseeb mein ae dost was the only song sung by Kishore Kumar for Rajesh Khanna in this film. Mohammed Rafi gave playback for the other two songs (Yeh reshmi zulfein and Chhup gaye saare nazare). A moving melody that gave the classic poor boy -rich girl scenario a deft emotional touch with lyrics written by Anand Bakshi .

Gareeb kaise mohabbat kare ameeron se
Bichhad gae hain kaee raanjhe apanee heeron se
Kisee ko apane muqaddar pe ikhtiyaar nahin…
Mere naseeb mein e dost tera pyaar nahin

Dilbar jaani chali hawa mastaani         Haathi Mere Saathi           1971

Apart from being one of the most melodious songs, Dilbar jaani is definitely among the most unusual duets on the Hindi film screen because of two reasons. Firstly, it is a romantic duet which is also a lullaby.  Secondly, it is sung not only in the presence of elephants and other animals, but the second stanza of it is sung to the animals! Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar light up this song with the mesmerising lyrics by Anand Bakshi. The start of the song with the whistle and the softening of Kishore’s voice for Saare soye tu kyon jaage saathi kya hai baat are just some of the magic moments in this song.

Interesting trivia: This was the first film written by Salim Javed.

Waada tera waada           Dushman      1972

This song would definitely get top rating by almost every Rajesh Khanna fan. It is said that the audience threw coins at the screen when this song appeared. Rajesh Khanna defied his hero image by taking on this role of Surjeet Singh, a truck driver who is almost an anti-hero in the beginning of the film and is accused of drunk driving and homicide. He went on to win the Filmfare award for best actor for this role.

Sachchaai chup nahin sakti banaawaT ke asulon se
ki kushboo aa nahin sakti kabhi kaagaz ke phoolon se!
Main intezaar karoon
yeh dil nisaar karoon
main tujhse pyaar karoon
O magar kaise aitbaar karoon?
jhootha hai tera waada…

 

Mere dil mein aaj kya hai           Daag              1973

Sung by Kishore Kumar and lyrics by Sahir, this song is sheer magic. Rajesh Khanna played the complex character of Sunil in the film Daag with a lot of finesse. The implausible script seems believable because of the earnestness that Rajesh Khanna gave to the role. Daag was filmed when Rajesh Khanna was at the peak of his popularity. The chartbuster score by Laxmikant Pyarelal contributed in equal measure to the thundering success of this film. Strangely, expecting a lukewarm response, Daag was released in a low-profile manner. Within six days of the release, the number of prints had to be tripled.

Interesting trivia: Daag was Yash Chopra’s first film as an independent producer.

Yeh jo public hai yeh sab jaanti hai     Roti    1974

Roti was a home production of Rajesh Khanna. It was actually the first film of Manmohan Desai which had music composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal.  LP and Manmohan Desai went on to have a very long and fruitful association after this film. The songs of this film gained a lot of popularity and the phrase Yeh jo public hai remains relevant for every phase we live in. Sung by Kishore Kumar and worded by Anand Bakshi, the first line of this song has become a catch phrase for expressing the angst of the common man over the years. The song is filmed around the gorgeous locales of Kashmir. Rajesh Khanna discovers the hoarded grains in Jeevan’s store and the song pinpoints the effect that corruption has on the common man. Roti remains one of Manmohan Desai’s underrated films.

Interesting trivia: Jeetendra does a cameo appearance in this song!

Heere-moti tumne chhupaaye kuchh hum log na bole
Ab aataa-chaawal bhi chhupaa to bhookhon ne munh khole
Are bheekh na maange, are karz na maange,

Bheekh na maange karz na maange
Ye apnaa haq maangti hai
Public hai ye sab jaanti hai

Phool ahista phenko                     Prem Kahani           1975

Every time Mukesh sang for Rajesh Khanna, it made people sit up as they were used to hearing Kishore or Rafi as his playback. This Mukesh- Lata duet worded by Anand Bakshi ranks among the best of Rajesh Khanna-Mumtaz songs. There is so much crackling chemistry and palpable anguish between the two in this song. Our heart goes out to Shashi Kapoor who, for some reason, seems totally unaware of it despite the clear underlining by the lyrics! The song is filmed with all the three actors seated and camera is focused on their faces for the entire song. With understated expressions which speak volumes, the three actors have nailed this complicated story situation in the film. This song begins with a back-and-forth poetry recital by Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz which finally culminates into this song. These were the days when songs were not used to just fill up space, they had a lot to say and add to the story.

Kaha aapka ye dagaa hi sahi
Ke hum beqadar bewafa hi sahi
Bade shaukh se jaaiye chhod kar
Magar sehane gulshan se yun tod kar
Phool aahistaa phenko
Phool bade naazuk hote hain
Waise bhi to ye badd-kismat
Nok pe kaanton ki sote hain….

Aate jaate khubsoorat                  Anurodh       1977

This song is among the few that have been filmed in a radio station, where the main character is a singer. Sung by Kishore Kumar and worded by Anand Bakshi, the singer reminisces about meeting a girl in the middle of the night in a car garage. The situation that the song describes is uncannily similar to Kishore Kumar and Madhubala in Chalti ka naam gaadi (Ek ladki bheegi bhaagi si). Anurodh was a very melodious album in 1977 as the 70s hurriedly added precious gems to our collection before the desolate 80s swept in. This film has many Kishore solos for Rajesh Khanna (Aap ke anurodh pe, Mere dil ne tadap ke, Jab dard nahin tha seene mein) each of which deserves a place in this list, ideally.

An interesting aspect of Laxmikant Pyarelal- Rajesh Khanna combination is that LP used Rafi as well as Kishore Kumar nearly on equal basis for his playback.

Limiting the list to seven, as always, has made me miss out on some beautiful songs from this team. It was tough to omit Mehboob ki mehndi, Aan milo sajana, Palkon ki chhaon mein… to name just a few! Do write in with your favourites in the comments below!

SEVEN RESONANT MELODIES OF RAJESH ROSHAN

 When we talk of music directors who have their own distinctive style, the name of Rajesh Roshan springs instantly to mind. Rajesh Roshan has made an indelible mark in hindi film music with his compositons, giving us over 50 years of melodious music. Let’s take a look at some of his beautiful numbers. An attempt has been made to include some not so often mentioned songs which are gems from his repertoire. 

1. Aa ri aa ja nindiya tu le chal kahin   (Kunwara Baap) 1974  

 This song never fails to tug at the heartstrings. The situation in the film is heart-breaking enough and Rajesh Roshan’s music and Majrooh Sultanpuri’s lyrics give the emotional goose bump inducing emphasis to it. Actor-filmmaker Mehmood had given an eighteen-year-old Rajesh Roshan his first break as a composer with this film. 

 

2. Yeh raatein nayi purani    (Julie )    1975

Although best known for Preeti Sagar’s lilting My heart is beating and Kishore Kumar’s soulful Dil kya kare, this dulcet solo of Lata Mangeshkar written by Anand Bakshi sounds fresh and fragrant whenever we hear this album. Julie was Rajesh Roshan’s second film for which he won his first Filmfare Award.

3. Johnny ko maine toh jaana hai aaj (Ginny aur Johnny )        1976

A lilting song from this ace composer for Mehmood again. A sweet song that touches a chord every time we hear it. Sung by Kishore Kumar and a very young Vijeyta Pandit, this song is a gem that has gone unnoticed by many Rajesh Roshan fans.

4. Pal bhar mein yeh kya ho gaya  (Swami )        1977

Swami was the first Basu Chatterjee film for which Rajesh Roshan held the baton of music director. This went on to be a long and beautiful association, creating mellifluous music for all of us to treasure in six more films that came later which were Priyatama, Khatta Meetha, Dillagi, Baton Baton Mein, Man Pasand and Humari Bahu Alka.

Swami has very soulful songs, from Yesudas’ Ka karun sajni to Kishore Kumar’s Yaadon mein woh. However, I chose this Lata solo because of the complete blend of her voice into the feeling of falling in love, drenched with the monsoon as a backdrop. Amit Khanna’s lyrics spark the magic further. The taar shehnai and the santoor seal the deal.Sheer magic.

5. Tumse mila tha pyaar  (Khatta Meetha)  1978          

 

Woh khwahishein ajeeb thi

Sapne ajeeb the…

A beautiful duet sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar, penned by Gulzar. One more from the Basu Chatterjee- Rajesh Roshan team. This was filmed on Rakesh Roshan and Bindiya Goswami, one of many songs that Rajesh Roshan has composed for his brother to enact on screen. A delightful film which is remembered as much for the dialogues, acting and direction, as it is for the music. A song filled with nostalgia which makes us take a look at what we were years back and what we dreamt of.

 

6. Main kaun sa geet sunaaoon  (Dillagi)       978

One more gem from the Basu Chatterjee- Rajesh Roshan duo, penned by Yogesh. Lata Mangeshkar makes magic in this melodious solo, the calmness is further heightened by the use of the flute. This song has been filmed on the steps of a ghat (I am unsure of the exact location, but I believe this was near Mysore) and one can feel the cooling down of the day in the late evening with a refreshing breeze from the water in the tune of the song. The unlikely romance between Dharmendra as SwarnKamal - a newly appointed Sanskrit professor in a Girls college- and Hema Malini as Renu -a strict Chemistry lecturer further enhances the charm of this Rajesh Roshan masterpiece.  

          

7. Main akela apni dhun mein magan    (Man Pasand)   1980

I feel that the music of Man Pasand never got its rightful due because people were quick to shrug it off as the remake of My Fair Lady. What needed to be noticed was that Rajesh Roshan and Amit Khanna worked under a stringent framework of the original and yet they managed to give Man Pasand a unique Indianness in the composition as well as the lyrics. Main akela apni dhun mein magan is meant to replace ‘I’ve grown accustomed to her face’ of the original. It goes beyond that by being a song that is immortal in its magic now. Listen to this song and you will realise the magic that Amit Khanna’s words have created:

Mere sapno ka sach ho jana, sach ho jana
Meri manpasand ban jana,

Inse mujhe kya hai haasil phir bhi
Ye hai meri aadat mein shamil ….

And the magic of Rajesh Roshan with Kishore Kumar serenading you as the words and tune gently define how musicologist Pratap (Dev Anand) has begun to fall in love with the flower girl Kamli (Tina Munim). This is one of the most exquisite solos of Kishore Kumar for Rajesh Roshan.

These were just seven of my selected gems from Rajesh Roshan. Would love to hear from you in the comments below about your favourite Rajesh Roshan songs!