Asha Bhosle. Image source: MumbaiMirror
The great playback singer Asha Bhosle (née Mangeshkar) died last Sunday at age 92. Born into a musical family, she recorded 12,000 songs (according to the Guardian's obituary) for over 2200 movies (according to the Internet Movie Database), outpaced perhaps only by her older sister Lata. If Lata became famous mainly for songs of romantic yearning and sorrow, Asha often represented youth, flirtatiousness and pleasure. (Of course, this division of labor wasn't absolute by any means.)
Asha's career as a playback singer began in the 1943 film Maze Baal (My Child), when she was was 10, and continued into the 21st century. Below I've selected some of my favorite Asha performances spanning the decades, linking to the videos on YouTube when they can't be embedded.
Aaiye Meherbaan from Howrah Bridge (1958): Many of the films for which Asha Bhosle sang playback in the 1950s became classics, such as Raj Kapoor's Shree 420 (Mr. Trickster, 1955), Bimal Roy's Devdas (1955), and Guru Dutt's Kaagaz Ke Phool (Paper flowers, 1959). In Howrah Bridge she voiced the seductive "Aaiye Meherbaan" (Come, my dear one), in which cabaret-singer-with-a-heart-of-gold Edna (Madhubala) practices her allurements on handsome stranger Prem (Ashok Kumar). Ultimately she will help him bring his brother's killer to justice. The music is by O.P. Nayyar and the lyrics by Qammar Jallalabadi. (Song ends at 43:16.)
Incidentally, in the video of this song linked above the young dancer in the cap and checked shirt is Saroj Khan, the subject of another "In memoriam" post.
Koi Kehde from Baharen Phir Bhi Aayengi (Spring will come again, 1966): The final production of Guru Dutt Films, Baharen Phir Bhi Aayengi features a love triangle between newspaper publisher Amita (Mala Sinha), her younger sister Sunita (Tanuja), and crusading journalist Jitendra (Dharmendra). In a classic plotline borrowed later by many other films, each sister decides to sacrifice her love for her sibling's happiness. But we can hardly blame Jitendra for being unable to resist the combination of Tanuja and Asha in "Koi Kehde" (Go tell the world). The music is by O.P. Nayyar and the lyrics by Sheven Rizvi.
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koi kehde kehde kehde zamaane se jaa ke ke hum ghabraa ke mohabbat kar baithhe haaye mohabbat kar baithhe koi kehde kehde kehde ab jalta hai jale zamaana banaaye fasaana nahin ghabraayenge hum dil ka sauda kiya hai khushi se daren kyun kisi se ke hum to abhi se hain thaame jigar baithhe haaye mohabbat kar baithhe koi kehde kehde kehde kyun na raahon mein kaliyaan bichha den jahaan ko dikha den mohabbat ki jaadugiri aaj dil ko jabaan mil gayi hai dil ki kali khil gayi hai ye dunia nayi hai jo karna thha kar baithe haaye mohabbat kar baithe koi kehde kehde kehde |
Go, tell, oh tell, tell the world, That in fear love we unfurled, Oh, love we unfurled. Go, tell, oh tell, tell. Let the world burn, let tales be spun, We shall not tremble, not be undone. We exchanged our hearts, a joyful trade, Why fear anything? We're unafraid. Joining our hearts in this embrace, Oh, love we embrace. Go, tell, oh tell, tell the world, Why not scatter blossoms on the way, And show the world love's magic play? The heart now speaks, the bud has bloomed, This world is new, our hearts consumed. What had to be, we now have done, Oh, love we have won. Go, tell, oh tell, tell. |
Phur ud chala from Tere Mere Sapne (Our dreams, 1971) is an example of the spectacular songs that Asha sang in films such as Teesri Manzil (Third Floor, 1966) and Anamika (1973), which take place in Busby-Berkeley-like fantasy spaces or in nightclubs as big as airplane hangers. Anand (Dev Anand) is an idealistic doctor who chooses to practice among poor villagers instead of treating the complaints of the rich in the big city. In the coal-mining town where he goes to treat black lung, he meets schoolteacher Nisha (Mumtaz), and the two fall in love. On their day off they go to the village fair, where Bombay Touring Talkies has set up a screen to show the latest movie of the biggest Bollywood star, Maltimala (gorgeous and glamorous Hema Malini, voiced by Asha). The music of "Phur ud chala" (Where does the heart take flight?) is by S.D. Burman, with lyrics by Neeraj:
Piya Tu Ab To Aaja from Caravan (1971): Asha made something of a specialty of drunken songs, many picturized on dance legend Helen. "Piya Tu Ab To Aaja" (Oh my beloved, come to me) is a paradigmatic example from Caravan. Helen plays Monica, a cabaret performer in thrall to the villain Rajan (Krishen Mehta), who is trying to steal the inheritance of heroine Sunita (Asha Parekh). The music is by R.D. Burman, with lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri.
Dil Cheez Kya Hai from Umrao Jaan (Beloved Umrao, 1981): Amazingly, Umrao Jaan is the first film in which Asha sang the entire soundtrack, and it was also the first film for which she won the National Film Award for best female playback singer. It is a classic, probably the finest work not only of Asha, but of its star Rekha, writer/director Muzaffar Ali, and composer Khayyam. Set at the time of the 1857 Uprising, Umrao Jaan is the story of the impossible love between the tawaif (courtesan) Umrao Jaan (Rekha) and the Nawab Sultan (Farooq Shaikh). "Dil Cheez Kya Hai" (What is my heart?) is the moment when the Nawab Sultan, hearing her singing from his passing carriage, becomes enraptured by her voice—as are we. The music is by Khayyam and the lyrics by Shahryar.
Zara Sa Jhoom Loon Main from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (The Brave Heart Will Win The Bride, 1995): DDLJ, one of the biggest blockbusters in Bollywood history, is the film that made Shah Rukh Khan a superstar. The brash Raj (SRK) and the demure Simran (Kajol, Tanuja's daughter) meet on a summer Eurail tour, and despite Raj's relentless teasing of Simran, opposites attract and the two fall in love. But soon Simran reveals her secret: she is betrothed to a man she's never met, the son of her father's friend back in his home village in India. "Zara Sa Jhoom Loon Main" (Let me dance a little) displays the special onscreen chemistry between SRK and Kajol, a jodi that would ultimately appear in a series of superhit films. It's another drunken song: Simran has her first taste of alcohol, and enjoys it a little too much. The music is by Jatin-Lalit, with lyrics by Anand Bakshi; Abhijeet Bhattacharya sings playback for SRK.
Radha Kaise Na Jale from Lagaan (Land Tax, 2001): Asha Bhosle was ageless; her voice retained its purity and range for decade after decade. In "Radha Kaise Na Jale" (How can Radha not burn with jealousy?), Asha, approaching 70, sang the playback for Gracy Singh, who had just turned 20 and was appearing in her first starring film role. Singh plays Gauri, a young woman who has long been in love with her village's leader Bhuvan (Aamir Khan). Bhuvan has accepted the challenge of the captain in charge of the nearby British military outpost (Paul Blackthorne): if Bhuvan's villagers can beat his soldiers in a game of cricket (a game the villagers have never played), they will be spared the ruinous land tax for three years. The captain's sympathetic sister Elizabeth (Rachel Shelley) decides to help the villagers prepare for the match—and discovers her own growing love for Bhuvan.
In "Radha Kaise Na Jale" Gauri's suspicions are enacted as she and Bhuvan adopt the ritual roles of Radha and her wayward lover Krishna. Will the ragtag villagers set aside their caste prejudices and romantic rivalries to overcome impossible odds and defeat the crack British military team in the Big Match? And will Bhuvan be tempted by the British beauty or stay true to his village sweetheart? The music is composed by A.R. Rahman, with lyrics by Javed Akhtar; Udit Narayan sings playback for Aamir Khan.
Asha received the International Indian Film Academy Award for Best Female Playback Singer for this performance, and the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in the year of Lagaan's release. With her passing, an era has ended.