Chhaayaageet #72 - "If you fail, remain as my guest for six days and enjoy Bombay."
1955-56. Eminent poets of Hindi and Urdu literature grace a mushaira evening with their beautiful poetry. A filmmaker is also in the audience. The filmmaker likes a poet's recitals and leaves him with a promise. If the poet ever wants to write for films, he should contact the filmmaker.
Ten years later, the poet sees an advertisement for the film in a film magazine, a call for talent. Remembering the promise, the poet writes a letter to the filmmaker, expressing his inclination to write songs for the film. Within ten days, a reply arrives, inviting the poet to Bombay.
The poet takes a leave of absence for six days from his teaching post in Dharam Samaj College, Aligarh, and travels to Bombay. The filmmaker puts up the poet in a luxurious hotel in Santa Cruz. The poet is surprised that the filmmaker even pays him Rs. 1,000 as advance, even before signing him.
"Tomorrow we will meet the composer", the filmmaker informs the poet.
The next day they arrive at the composer's home. The composer is apprehensive. Can a poet really write a song to a given tune and a situation? They write from their own inspiration, not to someone's tune. Is this really going to work?
"Don't worry, just give him the tune", the filmmaker instructs the composer.
He then turns to the poet. "If you fail, remain as my guest for six days and enjoy Bombay."
The composer gives the poet the tune, and in addition, another demand. The song must start with specific words. The situation is about a girl who sees her beloved coming to a party with another girl. It should reflect jealousy, satire, frustration in love.
This is a different ball game for the poet. He stays up the whole night writing, rewriting, and writing some more.
The next day he goes to the filmmaker's office and shows him what he has written. After reading it, the filmmaker is elated. He embraces the poet, astonished at how he could write these lyrics in one night.
Immediately he gets the car out and takes the poet to the composer's home, and proudly presents the poet's work. "See, I told you, he has done it."
The composer listens to the lyrics, and asks the filmmaker to leave. "You go, now we will sit together."
After the filmmaker leaves, the composer admits to the poet that he had given him this complex situation to make the poet give up. This was the start of a bond between the two.
Eminent poet of Hindi literature, Gopaldas Saxena, who went by the pen name, Kavi Neeraj, wrote the lyrics for all songs of Prem Pujari (1970), music by SD Burman, written directed and produced by Dev Anand. SD's challenge assignment for Neeraj ji was that the song should start with the words "Rangeela re".
Dev Anand was looking for a lyricist after the demise of Shailendra. After that meeting in the mushaira, it took ten years for Neeraj ji to feel inclined to write songs and reach out to Dev Anand.
The song, Rangeela Re, became a massive hit during its time and was played several times on Binaca Geetmala. Lata ji sang this song to perfection lending an enigmatic feel to the inflections demanded by Burman da.
Dev Anand counted this song as his favorite Navketan song and also thought this, for him, was Lata Mangeshkar's best song.
Neeraj ji pioneered the Hindustani ghazal which easily connected with the masses. He had a rhythm in his writings, evident in the lyrics of songs like Phoolon Ke Rang Se. Another song of Prem Pujari, Shokhiyon Mein Ghola Jaye was adapted from one of his own poems. He was decorated with the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and won Filmfare awards for Best Lyrics. He went on to write the lyrics for Tere Mere Sapne, Mera Naam Joker, Sharmilee, Gambler, among other films. After Jaikishan passed away in 1971, and SD Burman passed away in 1975, Neeraj ji was dejected, causing him to leave Bombay and return back to Aligarh.
Lyrics: Kavi Neeraj (Gopaldas Saxena)
Music: SD Burman
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
*ing: Waheeda Rehman, Dev Anand
Director: Dev Anand
Film: Prem Pujari (1970)