RMIM Archive Article "183".
From the RMIM Article Archive maintained by Satish Subramanian
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# RMIM Archives..
# Subject: Amjad Ali Khan on The Magic of Movie Music - an Interview
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# Posted by: Ashok (ADhareshwar@WorldBank.Org)
# Source: Filmfare March 96
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Amjad Ali Khan
Yesterday Once More: The Sarod Wizard on the Magic of Movie Music
(Filmfare, March `96)
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Whether you meet him at this tastefully appointed bungalow in a
New Delhi colony, chance upon him at an airport lounge, or visit
him in an old-worldly apartment in Mumbai, he exudes abundant
charm and grace.
At 50, the sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan is one of a kind--soft-
spoken and self-effacing. If his voice rises, it's only when he
breaks into a stanza of a song.
Of late, there has been talk that the classical musician will
compose music for a film... unfortunately, that turns out to be
just one of those rumours.
In order to find out whether the classical and the popular can
meet, Filmfare talked to the music wizard and the gentleman about
film music.
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Why haven't you ever thought of composing a film score?
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I've thought about it, yes. Through films, one could communicate
to a wider audience. But I've never been asked to compose a
score by filmwallahs. Moreover, there must be a subject which I
could relate to. Some years ago, I did compose as many as 30
ghazals for the TV serial 'Guftagu' which was made by Saeed
Naqvi.
Unfortunately, a gentleman in Mumbai is sitting on those
ghazals... they haven't been released on cassette yet. There
seems to be some problem which is beyond my comprehension. I
phoned him and requested him not to do this to my work which is a
part of my life. It's not every day that one gets an opportunity
to compose music to the great lines of Ghalib and Mir Taqi Mir.
Some day, I hope the cassettes will be released.
Those rumours about me composing a film score must have started
because I was in Mumbai recently to release a cassette called
'Ishara' by Roop Kumar and Sonali Rathod. (Laughs.) 'Ishara'
was the title of the cassette and not of the film I'm supposed to
be composing!
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Haven't you ever rejected film offers?
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There were a few offers, yes. I even ended up playing the sarod
for a scene in Sai Paranjpe's 'Sparsh.'
The subject matter of all the offers which have come to me didn't
inspire me enough to take the plunge. After all, what can one do
for films whose taqdeer seems to be written in the box office?
It's strange but film-makers have moulded the taste of the
public... ironically of late, film-makers have also corrupted the
taste of the public.
I can't help lamenting the fact that no one makes films like
'Devdas,' 'Naya Daur,' 'Mother India,' and 'Mughal-e-Azam' any
more. Today, I'm told that lyricists are asked to write lines
which have double and triple meanings.
In fact, I liked what Majrooh Sultanpuri said the other day. He
said that once the heart would be affected by film songs... alas,
today, the entire body is affected. I don't think the trend of
such songs can last very long. Already, listeners appear to be
fed up, and are switching on to the more melodious numbers...
like the songs of 'Hum Aapke Hain Kaun..!' '1942 A Love Story'
and 'Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge.'
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Gulzar has made a documentary on you. In the course of its
making, didn't he ever ask you to compose music for one of
his films or TV projects?
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No, unfortunately this topic never came up. But I'm sure we
would make a good combination. I would also like to work with
Shyam Benegal and Sai Paranjpe. Sai has often used my sarod
pieces in the backgound of her films... in one of them, she even
showed the hero buying one of my LPs. She has been very sweet,
really.
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What is your opinion of the music of A.R. Rahman?
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Wonderful! He has a new approach, he has given a new direction
to film music. I think even the established music directors want
to sound like him. Perhaps all his songs won't be remembered and
hummed after decades. But for the time being, Rahman's tunes are
extremely enjoyable.
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What kind of music will be remembered for decades?
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The songs of the 1940s and '50s have entered our hearts and
minds. When I was studying in Delhi's Modern School, I would
often be asked to play film dhuns on sarod. And I would play the
title song of 'Chaudhavin Ka Chand,' "Teri pyari pyari soorat
ko," "Dum dum diga diga '' ... and even the theme music of 'Come
September.'
See, there's no denying that film music can be a very creative
process. Ravi Shankar, Vilayat Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Hariprasad
Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma have composed music for films.
Bismillah Khan's compositions were used effectively in 'Goonj
Uthi Shehnai.' At every mehfil, he would be asked to play a
number from the film... and the audience would be thrilled when
he would play a refrain from "Dil ka khilona haaye toot gaya."
Today, I can't help asking... where are the committed actors like
Dilip Kumar? He studied the sitar for months for a single song
sequence... "Madhuban mein radhika naache re" in 'Kohinoor.' No
other hero or heroine has played the sitar so beautifully.
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Are your sons attracted to film music or have you insisted
that they immerse themselves in the classical music
discipline?
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Amaan is 18 years and Ayaan, 16. By the grace of God, they are
proficient sarod players and have been acclaimed by audiences
everywhere. Sarod is in their genes, they're the seventh
generation in our family to play the sarod. They've chosen the
sarod over popular music. They haven't opted for short-cuts.
They've preferred the traditional pace inspite of the fast tempo
of life in the '90s.
Despite the atmosphere around them and their friends at school
who talk about anything but classical music, they've chosen the
right path. Of course, this doesn't mean that they don't enjoy
listening to film music. Whenever we're travelling together in a
car, they put on the tape of 'Rangeela.'
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What do you have to say about the trend of music videos?
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I approve of music videos wholeheartedly. Concerts and
performances are being recorded for posterity. There was a time
when I couldn't afford to buy a tape-recorder... otherwise I
could have recorded a virtual archive of music by my father
(Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan). Recording performances, whether 'live'
or enacted specially for the camera, is a great boon. Through
recordings on compact discs, videos and documentaries, art can be
preserved forever.
Because of exposure on television, schoolkids have started
recognizing the sarod... and even ask me for autographs.
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Do you ever watch the V and MTV channels?
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The visuals, especially the vivid use of colours, are
interesting. But I can watch them only for a while. I couldn't
possibly watch them for hours at end. I'm just not used to that
frantic pace. It's like this... I'd rather linger on a raga
instead of playing a dozen in quick succession.
Perhaps that's why the sweet songs of yesterday keep playing in
my mind. When I hear an old song, I'm immediately transported to
the past... to the moment when I first heard it over the radio or
in a cinema hall. Like everyone, I have grown up on film
music... and like everyone, I remember them like one remembers
the first pangs of love.
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Personal Favourites
Kahan jaa raha hai (Seema, 1955)
Dukhi man mere, sun mera kehna (Fantoosh, 1956)
Mohe panghat pe nandlal (Mughal-e-Azam, 1960)
O sajna, barkha bahaar aayee (Parakh, 1960)
Dhundo dhundo re sajna (Ganga Jumna, 1961)
Puchho na kaise main ne rain bitaayi (Meri Surat Teri Aankhen, 1963)
Deewana hua baadal (Kashmir Ki Kali, 1964)
Man re tu kahe na dheer dhare (Chitralekha, 1964)
Meri aankhon se koi neend liye jaata hai (Pooja Ke Phool, 1964)
Phir wohi shaam, wohi gham (Jahan Ara, 1964)
Tum gagan ke chandrama ho (Sati Savitri, 1964)
Chingari koi bhadke (Amar Prem, 1971)
Raina beeti jaaye (Amar Prem, 1971)
Naam gum jaayega (Kinara, 1977)
Yeh kya jageh hai doston (Umrao Jaan, 1981)
Ek ladki ko dekha to (1942 A Love Story, 1994)
Pyar yeh jaane kaisa hai (Rangeela, 1995)
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Ashok
From the RMIM Article Archive maintained by Satish Subramanian