Updated on the occasion of her birthday! NO one had a voice like hers, full of dard that welled up from her life experiences!
Born Akhtari Bai Faizabadi, Begum Akhtar began her training as a singer at age 7, and gave her first public performance at age 15 and soon became the voice of ghazals, dadras and thumris. In a biography of Begum Akhtar, Rita Ganguly and Jyoti Sabharwal tell us of how her father abandoned her, her mother and twin sister, a parting that led to a constant search for approval from her father, and one that she never ever got. At the age of 4 the siblings were poisoned and Begum Akhtar survived but her sister died, and a second parting left an indelible mark of sorrow on Akhtari Bai’s soul. A series of abusive relationships began with her first guru – a respected name in Indian Classical music, and was followed by an assault by a known royal patron of music from Bihar. At age 13 she gave birth to an illegitimate daughter whom she could never acknowledge as her child and always called her a sister! These traumas shaped a life full of melancholy that was channeled into the most divine music.
Ashaji’s birthday today – so I am bumping this one up!
On the spur of the moment I made the decision to try my luck at the Flint Center where Asha Bhosle was supposed to be singing, along with Sudesh Bhosle. We rushed madly through traffic, arrived late, were told only cash could be used for ticket purchase and the ATM was out of money please! After everyone turned their wallets and pockets inside out we had enough money to get middling good seats, and walked in to see Asha ji on stage, spotlighted, in a baby blue bejewelled saree, talking of how RD Burman asked her to sing a song, which she was unsure of ever being able to do. It was for a Nasir Hussain film, and a bet was on between Nasir and RD about whether Asha or Rafi would do a better job! RD won and the song was a lusciously mad number Aaja Aaja Main Hoon Pyaar Tera with the signature hyperventilation in the mukhda. She started to sing and the clapping and dancing in the seats and out of the seats began! Magic was ON stage and I was viewing it. (Thankfully NO male accompaniment, just pure Asha magic!!). We were told to not do any video photography – so to invoke the magic of Aaja Aaja, I post here the original version from Teesri Manzil:
It is the birth anniversary of Kishore Kumar, a day worth remembering for all lovers of music. Born 4th August 1929, Kishore was never a trained singer. His biopic mentions that he once got badly injured as a child, cried very loudly for several days, and that “opened” up his vocal chords! It is one of those injuries that changed Indian music forever! Continue reading →
On his birth anniversary, I thought I would share with you some of my favorite compositions from this master. The winner of three National Awards for his compositions in the films Ankahee, Gaman, and Reshma Aur Shera, he also composed the music for Harivanshrai Bachchan’s Madhushala. Continue reading →
He died 31 years ago but his songs are immortal and give me joy even today! For all the fans of Rafi – here is a film made on his life, it contains great commentary, and wonderful video footage! Enjoy!
The first long song promo is out! Desi Beats is a catchy enough number but it does have some energetic choreography:
Here is my analysis:
1. Salman is looking quite youthful and fit – best looking Khan today.
2. He is actually dancing to the beat, following the choreography and playing to the galleries splendidly.
3. The backup dancers are shirtless, while Salman has a vest on and shows us his biceps!
4. Kareena is almost a glorified extra with little to do – but at least she indicates she is romancing Salman by looking at him or coming out from behind him.
5. Salman is so focused on the choreography that we get no indication he is even aware that Kareena is sharing the song with him! Reminds me of the kid who memorizes his lines so painstakingly that he forgets to add the expressions as he recites.
At the age of 12 Kaifi penned a couplet, and then to convince his father he really write it, he had to pen a whole ghazal. Here it is sung by none other than Begum Akhtar:
In the Pancham Unmixed DVD package is included a DVD of the songs of RD Burman – The Great RD Blast. These are original film videos of 30 of his best songs and the sound quality for the music is exceptional. I have often wondered why it is that CDs of old music have shrill and screechy sound, while the same songs heard in a film DVD, or even on Youtube, will often sound so much better. The old music is all in analog form up-converted to digital, so why does the type of source make a difference? Anyway I digress. On to the DVD full of music! Continue reading →
I decided to make this list before the revelry of the 31st made me lose my judgment. After a few margaritas and some loud music one tends to make all kinds of resolutions that seem foolish the next morning. And then the guilt sets in. So this year I am starting early. In 2011 I resolve to:
1. Spend less time Twittering (I know I know – it is Tweeting) and more time reading. My stack of books is growing at an alarming rate and has been ignored for too long. Continue reading →
The year is racing to a finish, and it is time to look back at what went by, or rather whizzed by. I wish I could have read more, seen more films, traveled more places – and eaten less 😀
Films: There were some really good ones and there were some really bad ones, and then there was mostly a lot of stuff in between. After a hiatus from Bollywood I went back to watching a lot of BW films (mostly what released in theaters here), while picking my HW films with care and caution! Here is a HW list:
1. Inception – loved the film, the mind-bender that kept us thinking and discussing for days on end. Leo DiCaprio did not disappoint and Marion Cotillard was luminous. Continue reading →
Music or lyrics? I always ask people this question in today’s age of synthesized Hindi music where lyrics have taken the backseat. A friend once told me that playing music from The Doors guaranteed a cleared out room and an end to the party! Hindi film music today is like The Doors of the days gone by – wonderful music that accompanied lyrics like “There’s a killer on the road, his mind is squirming like a toad!” (Riders on the Storm). Today’s Hindi songs lose their luster within a few weeks, and it is not the musical composition but the words that are the culprit! Look at this from Sameer:
Jadoo se Jadoo kiya re
Uski yaadon mein,
Uske khwabon mein
Jhume jiya re! (quite nice IMO)
And then Crazy Kiya re? Followed by Sexy Lady on the Floor?
Sameer is of course an egregious offender with such lyrics:
Once time touch me like this
I like what you want
What you give its a risk
Two time touch me like this
Together wanna fasa d style the way tat a lover (WTF? and I am struggling for words here)
Three time touch me by far
Gets over here comes the crazy with me in my car Continue reading →
Farah Khan teams up with Akshay Kumar, in a Shirish Kunder script with music by Vishal Shekhar (and Shirish Kunder). The curiosity level is sky-high! After two back to back big hits that both had chart-buster type music, Farah chose to branch out on her own and produce and direct a film for her own production house – and to do it without her regular star, Shahrukh Khan. Tees Maar Khan was written by Shirish and with Akshay Kumar in mind. Continue reading →
Sachin Da was born in the family of the then Raja of Tripura, and after his BA did extensive training in music. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about his training:
He started his formal music education by training under the famous musician K. C. Dey from 1925 to 1930; thereafter in 1932 he came under the tutelage of Bhismadev Chattopadhaya, who was only three years his senior. This was followed by training from Kahifa Badal Khan, Sarangi player, and Ustad Allauddin Khan [2]. Eventually he got K.C. Dey, Ustad Badal Khan and Allauddi Khan into Agartala, noted Bengal poet laureate, Kazi Nazrul Islam also spent time in their family home, Comilla House, in Agartala.
Stranger in a strange land 