It is not uncommon to find classical artistes being invited to compose music for films. Pandit Pannalal Ghosh - the eminent flutist was invited to compose the music for the highly successful Bombay Talkies film, Basant (1942). Pandit Ravi Shankar composed the music for K.A Abbas' Dharti Ke Lal (1946) and Chetan Anand's Neecha Nagar (1946) and went on to compose music for Satyajit Ray's Apu Trilogy [Pather Panchali (1955) Aparajito (1956) and Apur Sanasar (1959)]. He also had a successful stint in Bollywood with Anuradha (1961), Godaan (1963), and Meera (1979). One could classify him as a fairly busy composer considering that he spent much of his time in the 60s and 70s touring abroad and giving lessons to illustrious people like the Beatles. He went on to compose music for 28 films in all including the Oscar winning Gandhi (1982)
Ustad Ali Akbar Khan - the sarod maestro - also composed the music for Chetan Anand's Andhiyan (1952). Besides Ustad Amir Khan had sung for composer Naushad in Baiju Bawra (1952) and for the composer Vasant Desai in Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1955). Naushad had also invited Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan to sing for Mughal-E-Azam (1960) and Bhimsen Joshi had also lent his voice to composers Shankar Jaikishen for Basant Bahar (1956)
So when Yash Chopra invited Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia to compose the music for Silsila (1981) - they knew that comparisons will immediately be drawn to the work of other maestros.
Both had worked for films earlier. Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma had played the santoor in Naushad's title composition for Mere Mehboob (1963) and Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia had paired with Bhubahneshwar Mishra (as Bhubhan Hari for many films most notably Avatar Kaul's 27 Down (1974)
But Silsila made its mark like no other film they'd done before, The sense of popular music that they displayed, the rhythm that they created and the harmony between purist and popular streams that they achieved is unparalleled. The supreme number in this unforgettable album remains Neela Aasmaan So Gaya rendered by none other than Amitabh Bachchan himself. Set against the backdrop of the night and flowing into the morning through the passionate embrace of the lovers - the song captured the mood of the film. Getting an untrained singer like Amitabh to sing it with feeling - was an achievement that spoke for itself. Neela Asmaan So Gaya was indeed the crowning glory of the film.
The next in line was Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum where Amitabh recites the poem and Lata Mangeshkar sings the verses. Much has been said about this number. The poetry of Javed Akhtar, the melodious guitar notes, and the haunting interludes - everything seemed to be arranged in perfect order. Above all the harmony between Lata Mangeshkar and Amitabh Bachchan has an effect that no other song can create. Most of Silsila's romance has been conveyed through its songs. Most of its pain has been conveyed through its superlative dialogue. But Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum conveys both the pain and the passion with a an aura that transcends dialogue and cinematography. It conveys the central theme of the film. When you see this song on the screen, you just have to close your eyes and you instantly grasp what the film is all about.
If one had to make a list of perfect duets then Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum would make it to the list. It is in the league of Dil Dil Se Keh Rahaa Hai - Parchchain (1952), Pyar Par Bas To Nahin Hai - Sone Ki Chidiya (1958) and Chupaa Lo Yun Dil Mein Pyar Meraa - Mamta (1966) as the most unforgettable examples of duets in Hindi film music
The next favorite is the Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar duet Pehli Pehli Baar Dekha. A staple part of films of the Chopra banners is the jugalbandi song. Whether it be Ude Jab Jab Julfein Teri from Naya Daur(1957) or Tere Pyaar Ka Assra Chahata Hoon from Dhool Ka Phool (1959) the jugalbandi between the male and the female leads is a sure fire way of evoking the audience's interest. Jugalbandi may not mean that the two parties are pitted against each other but rather that they are two musical aspects or pehlus that play with each other to enhance the musical and lyrical effect of the song. So we find Ab Chahe Maa Roothe Ya Baapa from Daag (1971), and Tera Phholon Jaisa Rang from Kabhi Kabhie (1976) belonging to the same genre. A different type of jugalbandi was seen in Mohabbat Bade Kaam ki Cheez Hai from Trishul (1978). The common thread in all these songs was the lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi. However the Silsila song has been penned by Rajinder Krishan, so there is a possibility that the verses may have been part of Yashraj Films' archives or repertoire and were set to music for this film.
Ustad Ali Akbar Khan - the sarod maestro - also composed the music for Chetan Anand's Andhiyan (1952). Besides Ustad Amir Khan had sung for composer Naushad in Baiju Bawra (1952) and for the composer Vasant Desai in Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1955). Naushad had also invited Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan to sing for Mughal-E-Azam (1960) and Bhimsen Joshi had also lent his voice to composers Shankar Jaikishen for Basant Bahar (1956)
So when Yash Chopra invited Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia to compose the music for Silsila (1981) - they knew that comparisons will immediately be drawn to the work of other maestros.
Both had worked for films earlier. Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma had played the santoor in Naushad's title composition for Mere Mehboob (1963) and Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia had paired with Bhubahneshwar Mishra (as Bhubhan Hari for many films most notably Avatar Kaul's 27 Down (1974)
But Silsila made its mark like no other film they'd done before, The sense of popular music that they displayed, the rhythm that they created and the harmony between purist and popular streams that they achieved is unparalleled. The supreme number in this unforgettable album remains Neela Aasmaan So Gaya rendered by none other than Amitabh Bachchan himself. Set against the backdrop of the night and flowing into the morning through the passionate embrace of the lovers - the song captured the mood of the film. Getting an untrained singer like Amitabh to sing it with feeling - was an achievement that spoke for itself. Neela Asmaan So Gaya was indeed the crowning glory of the film.
The next in line was Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum where Amitabh recites the poem and Lata Mangeshkar sings the verses. Much has been said about this number. The poetry of Javed Akhtar, the melodious guitar notes, and the haunting interludes - everything seemed to be arranged in perfect order. Above all the harmony between Lata Mangeshkar and Amitabh Bachchan has an effect that no other song can create. Most of Silsila's romance has been conveyed through its songs. Most of its pain has been conveyed through its superlative dialogue. But Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum conveys both the pain and the passion with a an aura that transcends dialogue and cinematography. It conveys the central theme of the film. When you see this song on the screen, you just have to close your eyes and you instantly grasp what the film is all about.
If one had to make a list of perfect duets then Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum would make it to the list. It is in the league of Dil Dil Se Keh Rahaa Hai - Parchchain (1952), Pyar Par Bas To Nahin Hai - Sone Ki Chidiya (1958) and Chupaa Lo Yun Dil Mein Pyar Meraa - Mamta (1966) as the most unforgettable examples of duets in Hindi film music
The next favorite is the Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar duet Pehli Pehli Baar Dekha. A staple part of films of the Chopra banners is the jugalbandi song. Whether it be Ude Jab Jab Julfein Teri from Naya Daur(1957) or Tere Pyaar Ka Assra Chahata Hoon from Dhool Ka Phool (1959) the jugalbandi between the male and the female leads is a sure fire way of evoking the audience's interest. Jugalbandi may not mean that the two parties are pitted against each other but rather that they are two musical aspects or pehlus that play with each other to enhance the musical and lyrical effect of the song. So we find Ab Chahe Maa Roothe Ya Baapa from Daag (1971), and Tera Phholon Jaisa Rang from Kabhi Kabhie (1976) belonging to the same genre. A different type of jugalbandi was seen in Mohabbat Bade Kaam ki Cheez Hai from Trishul (1978). The common thread in all these songs was the lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi. However the Silsila song has been penned by Rajinder Krishan, so there is a possibility that the verses may have been part of Yashraj Films' archives or repertoire and were set to music for this film.
Jo Tum Todo Piya is a traditional Meera bhajan that has been around for more than three hundred years. It has a long history in Bollywood too with the earliest Bollywood version being sung by Sitara Devi for Meerabai (1947) where the composition was by S K Pal. There was another film Meera in that same year where Meera was played by the great M S Subbalaxmi but it didn't feature that bhajan. Lata Mangeshkar herself sang Jo Tum Todo Piya under Vasant Desai's baton for Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1955). Gulzar also directed Meera (1979) where the music was scored by the classical maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar and it also featured this bhajan sung by Vani Jairam. But all these compositions fade into the background when one encounters the beautiful composition by Shiv Hari and its pathos so effectively superimposed on Jaya Bhaduri's loneliness and unrequited emotions. The composition lingers in memory and doesn't seem ancient at all neither in language, nor in the musical setting.
Sar Se Sarke, Sar Ki Chunariya is set to another scene that signifies a spring song in some B R Chopra and Yash Chopra movies. A garden or a field in Punjab where there are belles singing. I have seen a similar setting in the earlier movie song Yeh Desh Hai Veer Jawano Ka from Naya Daur (1957) and also seen it in the much later Ghar Aaja Pardesi Tera Des Bulaye Re from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995) and even in Yeh Mera Des Hai Aisa from Veer Zaara (2004). Kishore and Lata create a resonance that very few duet singers have managed to do. Their voices seem to blend into the spring wind and even if one may have not seen the way the song has been picturized, one can easily visualize the scenario due to the evocative rendering by the singers.
This brings us to Dekha Ek Khwab Toh Yeh Silsile Hue. Here the picturesque fields have become more of a trademark of Yash Chopra movies from Tujhe Dekha toh Ye Jaana Sanam (Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge) to Yeh Hum Aa Gaye Hain Kahan from Veer Zara. Various music directors tried to recreate the mood of reuniting, regrowing from the past and reaping a new harvest that underlies this recurrent theme in Yash Chopra's movies. But the serene and surreal atmosphere created by Kishore and Lata in Dekha Ek Khwab Toh Yeh Silsile Hue is certainly out of this world. As the title song of this movie, I have heard Javed Akhtar's account that it was the first song for the movie that he penned down and therefore decidedly the first song that was set to tune by Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia. At the start of this song, Kishore almost matches the bass effect in Amitabh's singing and moves effortlessly towards the higher notes showcasing the tremendous note range that he had. It is certainly difficult to state whether Kishor was basically a bass singer who could sing tenor or a tenor singer who could sing bass but he certainly possessed mastery over both note ranges (as aptly demonstrated by him in Pyar Hume Kis Mod Pe Le Aaya from Satte Pe Satta released a year after Silsila). Lata Mangeshkar stays within the tenor note range throughout the song providing the transition effect that song beautifully imbibes.
This brings us to the orchestration of the female rendition of Neela Aasmaan So Gaya. In the male rendition the vibrant notes of the santoor were complemented by the soothing effect of the flute giving a wonderful feel of the male and female emotions as well as the approaching evening and the rising sun of the new dawn as expressed in the picturization. However in this female rendition, that expresses the angst of two sets of separated lovers, the santoor is accompanied by the cello, the violins and the sorrowful shehnai to illustrate the unwanted union that was forced on three individuals. The orchestration highlights the contrast in the two songs and one must mention the brilliance of Javed Akhtar whose words also contributed to the different moods of two songs that began with the same lines. Lata Mangeshkar's amazing range also highlights the superiority of this song as she moves like a soprano as the song reaches its crescendo to reflect the amazing catastrophic turn of events in the movie.
Khudse Jo Vada Kiya Tha is a ghazal by Nida Fazli and sung by Pamela Chopra. Very emotionally rendered by the singer and justice given to every word of the poet. Very soft and impressive in the traditional ghazal mold. This song's popularity actually increased after Pamela Chopra passed away, which is so unfortunate as it ranks among her best renditions right alongside Main Sasural Nahin Jaaungi from Chandni (1989), Mere Laddo Ki Ayegi Barat from Aina (1993) and Ghar Aaja Pardesi from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995).
Rang Barse Bheege Chunarba is a song set in a traditional poetic form where only a few words are changed in every stanza, which is largely repeated over and over again. Similar patterns are observed in Inhi Logon Ne (From Himmat,1941 and again in Aabroo, 1943 and Pakeezah, 1971), Nadi Nare Na Jao Shyam from Mujhe Jeene Do (1963) and Chalat Musafir from Teesri Kasam (1966). Penned by Harivanshrai Bachchan and sung by Amitabh Bachchan, it is still the most popular song from this film.
Silsila remains a musical milestone in Hindi cinema. Every song of this film is a gem - painstakingly crafted and intertwined with the film's story in an inseparable manner and yet each song creates a world of its own with its own dedicated set of follwers.
