Note: The complete version of this song is now in the consolidated ISB. The original FITB article is retained here for archival purposes.

This installment in the series picks up a song from Nargis's last movie. The song is IMO the best song on the soundtrack. The breezy, swinging surface of the song has a worried undertone that captures the movie's theme beautifully. There's just one thing I wish were different. To reverse a cliche: Lata does a good job, but the song would have been enhanced by Asha's voice.

Film: Raat aur Din (1967)
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Shankar Jaikishan
Lyrics: Shailendra
ISB Contributor: Surajit A. Bose

aavaaraa ai mere dil
jaane kahaa.N hai terii ma.nzil
aavaaraa ai mere dil ...

viiraano.n me.n, saharaao.n me.n
aate jaate in raaho.n me.n
tere ishaaro.n par
naachii mai.n jiivan bhar
aavaaraa ...

raat aur din ke ye do chahare
kab tak pahanuu.N ye to kah re
mai.n kaun huu.N mai.n kyaa huu.N
sach huu.N yaa saayaa huu.N aavaaraa ...

I originally posted the two stanzas given above in response to a lyrics request on RMIM. Since then, I've discovered that there are two distinct versions of the song. One has a more pulsating beat than the other, and goes a slightly faster in tempo. Of the two versions, I prefer the one without the dance beat, since the latter seems a bit heavy-handed.

Both versions of the song have three stanzas. The first and the last stanza are the two given above. The middle stanza differs between the two versions. Version A, without the dance beat, has:

ab to batalaa, ai dil mere
baaqii hai ab kitane phere
ab to ruke ye safar,
meraa bhii ho koii ghar
aavaaraa ...

Version B, with the dance beat, has the following middle stanza:

kaise kaise tuufaa.N aaye
bijalii chamkii, baadal chhaaye,
par naa ruke ham tum,
par naa jhuke ham tum
aavaaraa ...

The Raat aur Din soundtrack has one other song worth a mention, a lovely Viennese waltz sung by Lata and Manna De: "dil kii girah khol do, chup na baiTho, koii giit gaao." Lata's voice is beautiful here--she's at the top of her form. I like this song almost as much as I like "aavaaraa ai mere dil."