Two days ago was Kishore Kumar’s 22nd death anniversary. Considering, I am quite a big fan of Kishoreda I missed his 80th birth anniversary(.. damn!) . But better late than never.
Right from my childhood, My Dad and I always have debated about who was the better singer and right till this age we have yet to arrive at a consensus. And how can you, they were both great in their own right and could just about sing any kind of song. With his “oozing pathos in every word”: voice, Mohd Rafi was a firm favorite of my Dad’s. Rafi Sahab was indeed the most coveted singer of his time, there was no denying that. He had a softness and serene quality in his voice that few have been able to match, a voice that could soothe a broken heart.
But something was amiss. Maybe it was to do with the kind of films being made in those days that all the hero got to do was to mourn his misfortune or woo his girlfriend through a beautifully written ghazal. For those kinds of songs Mohd Rafi, Talat Mahmood and the likes began sleepwalking through such melancholic melodies inducing feelings of Devdasian proportions.
Then along came Kishoreda. Kishore Kumar for me was the not the quintessential singer. He was an icon, a giant among giants who defied and shattered prevalent norms that singers have to be classically trained artists. He was eccentric(he had names for all the trees in his garden (Janardhan,Raghunandan, Gangaram, Jhatpatjhatpat), blatantly greedy behind money, married four women and extremely idiosyncratic. His good times for the benefit of millions of music lovers coincided with the rise of new age music in India , (RD Burman and the likes) and also with a stronger and angrier hero. And he could transcend into any musical style with ease.
In this scenario, the hero needed a macho playback voice, a firm yet clear expression to vent his feelings be it love, discontentment or philosophy.
Seeing all this, makes it so hard to choose my five favorite Kishoreda songs from the vast array of gems he has rendered. Surprisingly for a man who was the only male playback voice throughout the 70s and most of the 80s, some of the treasures lie in the times when he wasn’t even famous for his singing!! So I have had to set conditions to bring my choices forth. No fun songs included and also which I can recall on the spot. Kishore could effortlessly transform from one genre to another so here are the compositions (in no particular order) that showcase his versatility :
Aa chal ke tujhe
Door Gagan ki Chhaon Mein (1964)
A song written, composed and sung by the great man in a movie directed by him. What more can you say about the genius of the man. The song is low on musical accompaniment which does more to amplify the vocals and it works wonders.
Khwab ho tum ya koi haqeeqat
Teen Deviyaan (1965)
In his earliest days Kishore da only sang for Dev Anand and music directors of those days also lowered his confidence maintaining that he could only sing for himself and Dev Anand. Coming back to the song, the best part about it is the contrast between the soft voice of the Mukhda and the exuberant yet slightly disgruntled tone of the Antra makes this an all time Kishore favorite.
Ami Chinigochini Tomarey Ogo Bideshini
Charulata (1964)
Written by stalwart Rabrindranath tagore and set to music by the great Satyajit Ray, language makes absolutely no difference to this beautiful melody. I have no idea what the lyrics say but Kishoreda’s silky vocals are just mesmeric.
On a side note, it is worth noticing the maestro Satyajit Ray at work , when he chooses to use a handheld and deliberately shakes the camera as the male actor walks towards the woman. Typical of Mr. Ray’s work - less dialogue and more symbolism.
Koi hota jisko apna
Mere Apne (1971)
Salil Chowdhury, the magician behind this song never regarded Kishore as anything more than a singer of fun-filled songs. But then by the time this movie got made, Kishore was at the peak of his popularity and Salil didn’t want to stay out of this. The song is notable for the baritone based voice of the genius and difficult chord progressions.
Kuch to log kahenge
Amar Prem(1971)
A friend of mine and fellow Kishore fan , once commented that this song could have not been sung by anyone other than Kishore. And how right he is. Semi-classical in nature, Kishore da’s voice is in perfect harmony with the mood created by the lyrics and immediately brings to mind Rajesh Khanna with his cringe-worthy “Pushpa, I hate tears”. Although I like listening to Chingari Koi Bhadke from the same film more often, this song in my opinion deserves more plaudits just for the difficult nature of the song.
Honorable mentions include Rim Jhim Gire Sawan from Manzil(the melody here is so superior) and Phoolon Ke Rang se from Prem Pujari(1970).
There will be only one Kishore Kumar. What a legend, we sorely miss you.
Right from my childhood, My Dad and I always have debated about who was the better singer and right till this age we have yet to arrive at a consensus. And how can you, they were both great in their own right and could just about sing any kind of song. With his “oozing pathos in every word”: voice, Mohd Rafi was a firm favorite of my Dad’s. Rafi Sahab was indeed the most coveted singer of his time, there was no denying that. He had a softness and serene quality in his voice that few have been able to match, a voice that could soothe a broken heart.
But something was amiss. Maybe it was to do with the kind of films being made in those days that all the hero got to do was to mourn his misfortune or woo his girlfriend through a beautifully written ghazal. For those kinds of songs Mohd Rafi, Talat Mahmood and the likes began sleepwalking through such melancholic melodies inducing feelings of Devdasian proportions.
Then along came Kishoreda. Kishore Kumar for me was the not the quintessential singer. He was an icon, a giant among giants who defied and shattered prevalent norms that singers have to be classically trained artists. He was eccentric(he had names for all the trees in his garden (Janardhan,Raghunandan, Gangaram, Jhatpatjhatpat), blatantly greedy behind money, married four women and extremely idiosyncratic. His good times for the benefit of millions of music lovers coincided with the rise of new age music in India , (RD Burman and the likes) and also with a stronger and angrier hero. And he could transcend into any musical style with ease.
In this scenario, the hero needed a macho playback voice, a firm yet clear expression to vent his feelings be it love, discontentment or philosophy.
Seeing all this, makes it so hard to choose my five favorite Kishoreda songs from the vast array of gems he has rendered. Surprisingly for a man who was the only male playback voice throughout the 70s and most of the 80s, some of the treasures lie in the times when he wasn’t even famous for his singing!! So I have had to set conditions to bring my choices forth. No fun songs included and also which I can recall on the spot. Kishore could effortlessly transform from one genre to another so here are the compositions (in no particular order) that showcase his versatility :
Aa chal ke tujhe
Door Gagan ki Chhaon Mein (1964)
A song written, composed and sung by the great man in a movie directed by him. What more can you say about the genius of the man. The song is low on musical accompaniment which does more to amplify the vocals and it works wonders.
Khwab ho tum ya koi haqeeqat
Teen Deviyaan (1965)
In his earliest days Kishore da only sang for Dev Anand and music directors of those days also lowered his confidence maintaining that he could only sing for himself and Dev Anand. Coming back to the song, the best part about it is the contrast between the soft voice of the Mukhda and the exuberant yet slightly disgruntled tone of the Antra makes this an all time Kishore favorite.
Ami Chinigochini Tomarey Ogo Bideshini
Charulata (1964)
Written by stalwart Rabrindranath tagore and set to music by the great Satyajit Ray, language makes absolutely no difference to this beautiful melody. I have no idea what the lyrics say but Kishoreda’s silky vocals are just mesmeric.
On a side note, it is worth noticing the maestro Satyajit Ray at work , when he chooses to use a handheld and deliberately shakes the camera as the male actor walks towards the woman. Typical of Mr. Ray’s work - less dialogue and more symbolism.
Koi hota jisko apna
Mere Apne (1971)
Salil Chowdhury, the magician behind this song never regarded Kishore as anything more than a singer of fun-filled songs. But then by the time this movie got made, Kishore was at the peak of his popularity and Salil didn’t want to stay out of this. The song is notable for the baritone based voice of the genius and difficult chord progressions.
Kuch to log kahenge
Amar Prem(1971)
A friend of mine and fellow Kishore fan , once commented that this song could have not been sung by anyone other than Kishore. And how right he is. Semi-classical in nature, Kishore da’s voice is in perfect harmony with the mood created by the lyrics and immediately brings to mind Rajesh Khanna with his cringe-worthy “Pushpa, I hate tears”. Although I like listening to Chingari Koi Bhadke from the same film more often, this song in my opinion deserves more plaudits just for the difficult nature of the song.
Honorable mentions include Rim Jhim Gire Sawan from Manzil(the melody here is so superior) and Phoolon Ke Rang se from Prem Pujari(1970).
There will be only one Kishore Kumar. What a legend, we sorely miss you.
