Today marks the (I think 14th) death anniversary of  Nargis,  one
of the legendary icons of the Golden Age. I'll spend the next few
posts on some  ageless  melodies  picturized  on  this  versatile
actress.

#339

        Song:   Luta dil mera haaye 
                Aabaad hokar, aabaad hokar
                Hansi reh gayi meri
                Fariyaad hokar, fariyaad hokar
        
        Film:   Hulchul (1951)
        Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
        Music:  Sajjad
        Lyrics: Khumar Barabankvi
        *ing:   Nargis, Dilip Kumar, Balraj Sahni

This enchanting track from one of K Asif's early productions  has
all  the  hallmarks  of  a  Sajjad  tune  -  an  offbeat  rhythm,
unpredictably  intricate  musical  patterns  and   a   profoundly
haunting  melody  that  seems to emerge almost magically from the
labyrinth of notes and vocal gymnastics. The song starts off with
a short, high octave prelude :         
         'Bahaar aayi magar dil ke phool khil na sake          
         Hum unko paa ke bhi afsos unse mil na sake'  
       The  short  musical  piece that follows this prelude is an
instant Sajjad giveaway. This is another of those songs  which  I
honestly believe only Lata could have done justice to. The lyrics
are noteworthy too, as  the  song  comes  at  a  rather  delicate
juncture  in the movie. Note one of the antaraas : 
     'Siva mere tha kaun unka jahaan mein      
          Kahaan jaayenge ab  azaad hokar'
        There's  a  strange kind of guilt that weaves through the
emotional predicament in the song. You wonder whom to  feel  more
sorry  for  - the girl who, due to extenuating circumstances, has
been forced to betray her love, or her lover, who, unaware of the
betrayal, has implicit faith in his sweetheart, and is waiting to
be emancipated from his wrongful imprisonment to be reunited with
her.

There  is  another  famous  Sajjad  tune  in  this  movie  -  the
magnificent  'Aaj  mere  naseeb  ne  mujh  ko  rula  rula diyaa',
considered by Sajjad himself to be his best creation.

If I remember correctly, this movie has got two music directors -
Sajjad  and  Mohammad  Shafi.  There's  a  lovely  Shamshad dance
sequence (picturized on the ubiquitous Cuckoo) at  the  beginning
of  the  movie  that goes something like know who the MD for this
tune is ? (Is it Sajjad or Shafi?)







Guest Author: Hrishi Dixit