As a young child I grew in a family where watching films was not considered proper. It required lot of cajoling and patience to be permitted to see an odd movie perhaps a couple of times a year. The picture stayed in one's mind till it was wiped out by another movie. It did not take long for me to learn the trick of saving up from the meager pocket money I got, enough to be able to buy a third class ticket in the movie theaters. 

Along with other similar friends, we would go to see a movie. After standing in a line for an eternity when our number came to buy the third class ticket we would e filled with joy at having made it. The struggle of having to hold one's position in the ever shifting line full of toughies and odd looking characters taught me to face many odds in later life. 

It was almost always that I would land up buying a ticket which would entitle me to sit in the front row perhaps 8 to 10 feet away from the screen. At first, I found it odd but soon began to like being seated in the first row preferably in one of the the center seats. The reason was that at this seating position one becomes part of the movie rather than part of the audience. It is simply a thrilling experience. Imagine when the villain is bashing the hero you also duck and when the hero is giving it back you also join in. Same with the heroines but in a different sense. The feeling at the end of the movie is one of Paisa vasool.

I saw the movie  Gone With The Wind   from a center seat in the first row in a theater in Delhi. I had purchased the ticket in black. As soon as I was seated the movie started. The scene was a wide bridge is being crossed in a car. Believe me I felt I was myself crossing the bridge in an American city in a wide bodied car. It has always remained with me as one of my sweet memories of my college days. I would try to see as many movies as possible from the front row or rows. Another movie I saw from the front row center seat was the Hindi movie Prince and the opening shot shows the royal flag coming down and the Indian flag go up. At such near distance it was as if I was hoisting the flag. Memories.

There was an English movie of Marilyn Monroe whose name I forget which I was enjoying from the second or third row center row seat and just as the hero was warming up the scene with her, the lights went out. So involved were the "third class' front row persons that no sooner had the power failed, many of them got up and started damaging the bare wooden seats breaking their arm rests and so on. I was very surprised but realized their frustration at the timing of the power failure.

In many movies I have seen the 'third class' audience liberally throw coins on the screen when popular song came on the screen. The sound of falling coins added a peculiar charm to the wonderful song on the screen. Hooting and whistling was quite common. It was the solid involvement of this audience with the characters on the screen that was a joy to watch. Many a times the person next to me would fold his legs on the chair and sit in an excited position as soon as the hero started bashing the villain and verbally encourage the hero to give it to the bad man.

Soon I graduated and got a job in a big city and after a few months got married. Seeing a movie with the 'third class' public was now out of question.  It had to be now watched from the balcony. Every one there would watch without any feeling and gesticulation. No hooting and whistling. However I would hear sounds from near the screen and feel happy. The multiplexes have now totally killed the joy of watching the movies the old noisy and involved way. I often get the feeling that people do not go to see a movie in such theaters, they go to eat pop corns in buckets.

However some time back when the magnum opus Mughl-e- Azam was re-released in colour, I went to see it  alone on the last day last show. My joy knew no bounds when at the ticket window I was informed that only one ticket was available. You guessed it right, it was the center seat of the front row in a prestigious multiplex. I grabbed it and enjoyed the movie in colour  and remembered the good old days.

Recently I went to see the movie Bhag Milkha Bhag at the same theater and at the ticket window I was informed that only three tickets are available in the front row. I took a chance with my better half but she turned down the proposal. I booked a seat in the last but one row of the next show. How could I tell her that athletics are better watched from the front rows.

I am told in single screen theaters there is still the old style thrill alive of watching the movie from the front couple of rows. Must go and see a movie in such theater one of these days. When you come out of a single screen theater you really get a feeling that you have watched a movie but there is generally no such feeling when you come out of a multiplex. At least this is true with persons like me who have watched more movies in single screen theaters.

Ah, did I tell you that I watched Aamir Khan movie,  Lagan, from the third row of a single screen theater. I immensely enjoyed it as I too had become part of the movie's rural audience watching the Indians defeat the English! The joy of watching a movie from the front row cannot be explained, it has to be felt.

SRK – Shah Rukh Khan is the ‘Badshah’ of Bollywood who has dominated the industry for the past two decades or so. Now he is 45+ and has worked with almost all Divas of Bollywood in the past 20 years – From his first heroine Divya Bharathi to the latest one – Deepika Padhukone. Yet, a few successful heroines of Bollywood has been paired only once with SRK. You will be interested to know who they are. I have added a few less significant heroines too, in the list. The list clearly indicates that Shah Rukh Khan shares excellent screen chemistry with a few more heroines, if we keep Kajol, Rani Mukherjee and Juhi Chawla as exceptions.

Tabu: Tabu has won National awards twice and one among the most talented heroines of Bollywood from 1994. Yet, this successful actress has worked only once with Shah Rukh, that also for a cameo appearance. It happened in 2002, with Maniratnam’s movie – Saathiya. Till the release of the movie, guest appearance of SRK and Tabu were kept secret, and they played a significant role in the success of the movie too. They reprised the roles of Aravind Swamy and Khushboo, as husband and wife in year 2000 hit Alay Payuthey. 

Karishma Kapoor: It’s often commented in a teasing way, in many TV shows that Karishma Kapoor bought a  new show case to place the awards that she accumulated through Dil to pagal hai in 1997. When almost all leading ladies of B’town, including Juhi Chawla rejected the supporting role to Madhuri Dixit, Karishma accepted that role with full heart and this movie proved to be the best work done by her till now. Surprisingly, similar to the success of Raja Hindustani with the other Khan of Bollywood, Karishma Kapoor never worked with king Khan again!

Urmila Matondkar: This Rangeela heroine is most known for her glamourous looks and dancing skills. She was one among the most wanted faces during middle 90’s. Though Shah Rukh Khan worked for numerous movies till middle 90’s, he has worked with this lady only once in his life time for a ghost story named ‘Chamatkar’ released in the year 1992.

Sushmita Sen: When Farah Khan decided to do a movie and was working on the script, she had already planned in her mind that leading actress role will surely go to Sushmita Sen. Whole script of Mein hoon na was written keeping that fact in mind. In this blockbuster hit of SRK, Sushmita Sen and Khan were paired for the first time and last time together.

Mahima Chaudury: Pardes happened long back in 1997. It was released in the golden jubilee year of Indian Independence. It was the biggest break of Mahima Chaudury to Bollywood and same magic was never repeated in Bollywood with any other hero. Success of debut movie of Mahima Chaudary still stands alone in the list.

Twinkle Khanna: Badshah was only a moderate hit at box office. Yet this movie helped Shah Rukh Khan to earn the title, ‘Badshah of Bollywood’. Though this comic movie received mixed reviews from the critics, the movie released in the year 1999 was a semi hit at box office.
Gayathri Joshi: Swadesh was the next venture of Ashuthosh Gowarikar, after Oscar nominated movie ‘Lagaan’. Swadesh, released in the year 2004 was a critically well acclaimed movie though it was a box office failure. Soon after the release of the movie, the debutant heroine disappeared from the screen singing the song ‘Saawariya Saawariya’ in Alka Yagnik’s voice.

Isha Koppikar: Everyone including me was quite surprised seeing the climax of Don (2006), where SRK reprised the role of Amitabh Bachchan he did about three decades ago. Priyanka Chopra was paired for the first time opposite Shah Rukh Khan in this movie and whole throughout the movie Shah Rukh Khan romanced Priyanka Chopra. It was known in the climax scene only that Don was interested in Isha and not Priyanka.

Lara Dutta: Now also I am not sure if Isha Koppikar was replaced by Lara Dutta is the sequel of Farhan Aktar’s Don. Both actresses shared same mannerisms in both these movies. Similar to its prequel it’s clearly shown that Lara Dutta is the heroine of SRK, though she shared only a few screen shots with King Khan.  

Suchitra Krishnamurthy: Kabhi haa kabhi naa of comic director Kundan Shah released in the year 1993 is still regarded as a classic comedy. It was a successful movie in the year that presented Shah Rukh Khan with a Filmfare for the best actor (Critics). Though SRK was the leading hero of the movie, Deepak Tijori wins Suchitra’s heart in the climax.

Priya Gill: The movie Josh was in news since Aiswarya Rai and Shah Rukh Khan were casted as siblings. It was their first movie together. So, the lucky coupon of Shah Rukh Khan’s love interest was won by Priya Gill. Priya Gill is not a well known name in Bollywood, with a few exceptions like Sirf Tum and her debut movie, Tere mere sapne. Yet, she would have surely enjoyed SRK’s screen presence along with her in the movie. For the first time, Shah Rukh Khan sang a song for his heroine in his movie ‘Apun bola tu mere laila’.

Pooja Bhatt: In the list of flops, let me add the movie Chaahat released in the year 1996. Nothing is memorable in the movie except a few songs, specially the title track. It’s the only movie where Shah Rukh Khan and Pooja Bhatt shared the same screen space.

Shilpa Shetty: Baazigar was the debut movie of Shipa Shetty. It was the first big hit of Shah Rukh Khan as a solo hero too. 20 years have passed since the movie was released. Yet, still now, no one has forgotten the way by which Raj kills his love interest - Seema Chopra.

Navneet Nishan: Perhaps most of the readers may not know about Shah Rukh Khan – Raveena Tandon movie ‘Yeh Lamhe Judaai Ke’. Yes such a movie shot in the year 1992 was released after a Jupiter year in 2004. Most recently I had a horrible experience too, seeing this uncompleted movie released without head or tail. Navneet Nishan is a popular serial actress of present times. Many of you people may not know that Navneet played the second heroine/vamp’s role in this movie and most surprising fact is that, she appears in more shots than Raveena Tandon. Also, SRK and Navneet shared more screen shots in the movie than SRK-Raveena pair. Surprisingly SRK and Raveena have acted together only in one song picturisation and the final shot before she got killed by a trucker! 

Nagma: King Uncle is one among the first releases of Shah Rukh Khan. He played the younger brother’s role. Jackie Shroff and Anu Agarwal were the leading actors of the movie and SRK and Nagma played supporting roles. This movie was released before Baazigar in the year 1993.

Sri Devi: This beauty queen has been paired opposite SRK in 1996 flop movie, Army. Though SRK did a cameo in this movie and it’s a movie about romance and revenge, this movie is mostly remembered as the single movie in which both these great actors of silver screen shared screen space together.

Anjali Jathaar: Multi-star cast Trimurthy released in the year 1996 was one among the biggest flops of Subhash Ghai. Anjali Jathaar was casted opposite Shah Rukh Khan in this movie and her role too was less significant.    

Katrina Kaif: Their sizzling chemistry was more noticed than the movie and its script. The movie was the latest release of SRK – Jab tak hai jaan, the first time for which SRK kissed his lady onscreen. It’s not sure if this super success movie will remain always as the single movie of Katrina and Shah Rukh together. Let us wait for them till they come back with a new story.

Hockey Team of Chak de India: 16 girls under one captain – Kabir Khan who played for India in World Hockey Championship. Perhaps it’s the only movie of Shah Rukh Khan as a hero, where he was not casted opposite any Bollywood heroine. Yet, it’s sure, all the ladies of the movie worked with SRK for the first and last time in the super hit movie – Chak de India, released in the year 2007. 

Jab tak hai jaan, Baazigar, Saathiya, Kabhi haa kabhi naa, Pardes, Chak de India!, Dil to pagal hai or Mein hoon na - these movies were huge hits at box office. This success cements the fact that audience always love to watch fresh pairing of SRK with other heroines of Bollywood. Before I leave a special mention of 1992 movie – The idiot, which won Critics awards for best movie in the year 1993. This movie was one among the first releases of SRK. Though the movie was meant for Doordarshan, this movie was released seeing the popularity of Shah Rukh Khan with the release of Deewana. As I too have never seen this movie, I have no idea of who SRK’s co-star was – either Nastassya Mukhopadhyaya or Amba Mehta. But one thing is quite sure these two ladies have never acted with Shah Rukh Khan again. 

Before I conclude, let me add the list of a few heroines who have been paired with SRK twice – Kareena Kapoor in Ashoka and Ra.One, Sonali Bendre in Duplicate and English babu desi mein, Deepika Padukone in Om Shanti Om and Chennai Express (yet to release), Anushka Sharma in Rab ne bana de Jodi and Jab tak hai jaan, Deepa Sahi in controversial movie Maya Memsaab and Oh darling! Yeh hai India, Manisha Koirala in Guddu and Dil se, Priyanka Chopra in Don and its sequel, Raveena Tandon in Zamana Deewana and Yeh lamhe hai judai ke, Aiswarya Rai in Mohabbatein and Dev Das and Divya Bharathi in Deewana and Dil Aashna hai. Let me add one more thing. Among the leading actresses he has never worked with Vidya Balan (except a song sequence in Heyy Baby), Bipasha Basu, Bhumika Chawla, Asin, Parinithi Chopra and Ameesha Patel. Perhaps Shah Rukh Khan is that single name who has romanced with almost heroines of Bollywood in the past two decades or so and audiences have always enjoyed those scenes and love songs. There is something in his eyes that captures millions of hearts over years. No doubt, among romantic heroes Shah Rukh Khan’s position is always number 1 in Hindi cinema. A year back, just before the release of Don 2, I have seen him so close in Don’s make up in an inaugural function and my opinion is that he looks more handsome and dashing live than on silver screen. In true sense, he is the romantic king of Bollywood, perhaps after one and only evergreen hero of Bollywood – Mr. Dev Anand.
Note: I have prepared this article based on my observations. If I have quoted some name wrong or missed any actress’ name, do comment please.

Image source: Wikipedia

We are celebrating the 100 glorious years of Indian cinema and what better occasion would I get to mention the movies that proved to be a milestone in these wonderful years of Bollywood. With the first feature film of Indian cinema “Raja Harishchandra” began an era of romance, dance, music, action, thriller, suspense, drama and everything we can imagine about movies. So I take you to the glorious journey of the Indian cinema, the movies which proved to be a landmark for Bollywood. Starting right from the first silent film of the Indian Cinema “Raja Harishchandra” to the blockbuster movie “Lagaan” the movies that I personally believe were epics in true sense of the Bollywood history.

Raja Harischandra

We all know a silent, black and white Raja Harishchandra was the first all Indian feature film of Indian cinema. It was directed and produced by the legend Dadasaheb Phalke. He was also the script writer of the film and is today known as the “father of Indian cinema”. The story was picked from the epics of Indian mythology. It was released on May 3, 1913. The film was on Raja Harishchandra who was a truthful and noble king. He sacrifices his kingdom, then his wife and children in order to keep his promises to a sage named Vishwamitra. The sage was impressed and pleased by his truthiness to his promises and at the end returned the kingdom and family to the king.

At that time women had yet not come into cinema and the lead female role in the movie had to be played by a male actor called Anna Salunke. It is said that it became very difficult for Dadasaheb Phalke to search the female lead who was needed to play Raja Harishchandra’s wife in the film. While sitting tensed at a tea shop he noticed the hands of the boy who offered tea to him. He thought to himself that these hands look feminine and that was the moment that he had the idea that he can make a male actor to play the female lead role in the movie. He offered the boy 15 rupees for playing the role and the boy readily agreed. The boy was Anna Salunke. The male lead was played by a Marathi stage actor called D.D. Dabke, while the role of Harishchandra’s son was played by Dadasaheb Phalke’s own son. The role of the sage Vishwamitra was played by G.V.Sane.

The movie went on to become a hit and proved to be a landmark for Indian cinema. It played an important role as the foundation stone for Indian cinema.

Alam Ara

It is remembered as the first talkie of Indian cinema. It was the movie that paved the way for Indian Bollywood music industry. Playback recording had not yet been introduced and the song was thus recorded live. It was directed by Ardeshir Irani and was released on March 14, 1931. The film showed a love story between a prince and a gypsy girl. The story was adapted from a Parsi play by Joseph David. It is a story about a king and his two wives. The wives were namely Dilbahar and Navbahar. The two wives become rivals of each other when a fakir predicts that Navbahar will give birth to the successor if the king’s throne. As a plan to take revenge Dilbahar tries to have an affair with the chief minister of the kingdom named Adil. The role of Adil was played by Prithiviraj Kappor. The affair does not turn out to be in her favor so she imprisons

Adil and sends his daughter to exile. The daughter called Alam Ara was brought up by tribal people and when she returns to the kingdom after the exile she falls in love with the prince of the kingdom. The end is a happy one with the release of Adil and marriage of the love birds.

By this time women had entered Indian cinema and had taken their place. The role of the lead was played by actor Zubeida. The first song of Indian cinema also became a hit. The song sung by the actor who played the fakir in the movie namely Wazir Mohammed Khan and the song was “de de khuda k naam per”. It also had many other songs and thus was a milestone movie that led the path for the feet tapping Indian Bollywood music. At that time there were no soundproof studios so most of the shooting for the film had to be done at night to avoid the excess noises in the recordings. The film was a success and it is said that in some places police had to be called in to control the crowds during the screening of the film at some theaters.

Mother India

Produced, directed and written by Mehboob Khan Mother India is a movie that depicts the hardiness of Indian women Mother India was a movie that threw light on the high spirited women of our country. The story shows a mother and her two sons fighting the odds in their life. The mother Radha’s character was played by the actress Nargis. The roles of the two sons of Nargis were played by actors Rajendra Kumar and Sunil Dutt. Radha has to repay the loan her mother in law had borrowed from a moneylender. Her husband leaves her and she has to raise her sons and pay three quarters of their crop as interest on the loan. Severe storm and flood destroys the village houses and the villagers decide to evacuate the place but give up when persuaded by Radha. She loses her youngest son to the storm but still firmly decides to stay in their village and rebuild it and also convinces the other villagers. She does not even have the money to buy ox to plough her field and thus has to drag the plough through the entire field by herself. In spite of living in poverty she does not part her ways with her morals. Left with her two sons Birju (Sunil Dutt) and Ramu (Rajendra Kumar) she faces all the challenges bravely. Birju is a disillusioned boy and is short tempered and often harasses the girls in the village specially the moneylender Sukilala’s daughter Rupa. He is easily provoked and eventually after committing crimes like theft is branded a bandit by the villagers. While in the village Radha assures Sukilala that she will not let Birju interrupt Rupa’s wedding Birju returns with his gang of bandits on the wedding day and kills Sukhilala and kidnaps his daughter Rupa. The most dramatic point in the movie comes when the mother shoots her own son when he tries to flee to respect the honour of the society. Her son dies in her arms and thus she teaches a lesson to a criminal not considering her as a son but as a criminal only. Radha is respected by the villagers for her act of utter morality and considered as the mother of the village.

The music in the movie was composed by Naushad while the lyricist was Shakeel Badayuni. The movie had twelve songs which were sung by legendry singers like Mohammad Rafi, Shamshad Begum, Lata Mangeshkar and Manna Dey. One of the famous songs of the movie is “Holi Ayi Re Kanhayi” sung by Shamshad Begum.

A movie that was high on morals and emotionally touching too. The film was high on cost with the expenditure costing up to 35-40 lakh. It was the highest expenditure on a movie till that time. An interesting fact about the movie is that for shooting the flood scene for the movie a farmer agreed to flood his 500 acres of land. The film won the Filmfare award for Best Film in 1957 when Nragis also won the Best Actress for her role in the movie. It was also nominated in the foreign category of films at the Oscars.

Mugal-e-Azam

One of the highest grosser the epic movie Mugal-e-Azam directed by K. Asif was truly a Bollywood flick that had everything needed for full time entertainment of the masses and the classes as well. It depicted the love story between the Mughal Prince Saleem and the beautiful court dancer Anarkali. The legendary actor Dilip Kumar played the role of Saleem in the movie while Anarkali was played by one of the most beautiful actress Indian film industry ever had – Madhubala. The story is a short story based on the life of the Mughal Prince Saleem who later became the Emperor Jahangir. He falls in love with court dancer Anarkali and their relationship is strongly opposed by his father emperor Akbar played by Prithvi Raj Kapoor. The love birds stay strong and face all the hurdles in their relationship until Saleem is awarded death punishment by his own father. The emperor announces that Saleem’s life will only be spared if Anarkali surrenders before him. In order to save the life of her love Anarkali surrenders before the emperor and she is punished with death in exchange for sparing Saleem’s life. However at the end the emperor is reminded of a favor Anarkali’s mother did to him by giving him the news of Saleem’s birth many years ago. So he secretly sends Anarkali and her mother to exile. While Prince Saleem never comes to know that Anarkali is still alive somewhere.

The music was composed by Naushad and lyrics were given by Shakeel Badayuni. There were twelve songs in the movie sung by music legends like Lata Mangeshkar. One of the famous songs of the movie was “Pyar kia toh darna kya”.

The film was released on August 5. 1960 and later re-released in November 2004 in colored version. It won the National Award for the best film and the Filmfare Award in the subsequent year of its release. It is one of the highest grosser of Bollywood history of 100 years. The film’s majestic and beautiful sets, cinematic quality along with powerful performances by the actors truly makes it a benchmark movie of the Indian film industry.

Sholay

Released on August 15, 1975 the most loved films of all time the film had drama, romance, music, comedy, emotion and action. The film was directed by Ramesh Sippy and produced by his father G.P. Sippy. The film had multiple star cast with actors Amitabh Bachan, Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar, Hema Malini, Jaya Bhaduri and Amjad Khan playing the lead roles. In the movie Sanjeev Kumar is shown as the Thakur who was a courageous police officer and in had caught the dangerous dacoit Gabbar Singh played by Amjad Khan. To take revenge from the Thakur Gabbar Singh kills his entire family. Only thakur’s daughter in law Radha survives the brutal attack. To teach the dacoit a lesson Thakur decides to catch him again with the help of two small time thieves he had once arrested. They were Jai and Veeru played by Amitabh and Dharmendra. The film then progresses and shows Gabbar Singh attacking the Thakur’s village Ramgarh on the occasion of the festival Holi when Jai and Veeru bravely fight the dacoit and he flees but they become furious on Thakur who in spite of having a good chance to shoot Gabbar doesn’t pick up the gun. It is when there comes the dramatic point in the movie when Thakur shuns the shawl off his shoulders and shocks both of them with his cut arms. Then he tells them how Gabbar had killed almost all his family members and cut his arms. The romantic quotient between Veeru and Basanti (Hema Malini), Jai and Radha (Jaya Bhaduri) was much loved by people. The plot further progresses among these romances, bits of comedies placed at the right places and powerful dialogues. At the end it is the win of the good over the evil. In the fight between the dacoit and the heroes Jai loses his life in Veeru’s arms. Veeru and Thakur beat him severely and chop of his arms when at the last moment police arrives and arrests Gabbar Singh alive. Veeru and Basanti leave Ramgarh for a new life while Radha is left alone again.

The music composer for the film was R.D.Burman while the lyricist was Anand Bakshi. The songs of the movie are greatest hits of all time. The most popular songs were “Yeh Dosti hum nahi todenge” , “ Mehbooba oh Mehbooba” and “Holi k din”.

At first the movie was being considered a flop but it progressed slowly and went on to become one of the greatest movies of Indian Cinema of all times. The huge success of film impressed the director Shekhar Kapur and he made a statement that “Indian film history can be divided into Sholay BC and Sholay AD. It was even called the “All Time Blockbuster”. The places where the movie was shot in Southern India are still a tourist attraction. The dialogues of the movie like “Kitne admi the” and “Ye haath humka de de thakur” are evergreen. The movie was declared as the Best Film of 50 years by the jury of the 50th Filmafare Awards.

Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge

Even after 18years of its release this romantic film is still running on a big screen in Mumbai. Branded as the longest running movie of the history of Bollywood, DDLJ (as everyone calls it) indeed proved to be a milestone movie of the Indian Cinema. The film was produced by Yash Chopra, written and directed by his son Aditya Chopra. The film shows a story of an Indian girl named Simran (Kajol) who on a holiday trip to Europe falls in love with an NRI boy named Raj (Shahrukh Khan). While Raj’s father is an open minded parent and supports his son’s choice to marry the girl he loves but Simran’s father is conservative and opposes her choice. He instead is determined to marry her to his friend’s son Kuljeet (Parmeet Sethi). They return to India and marriage preparations start, but Simran has already given her heart to Raj and was very sad about the wedding. Raj follows her to her village where she tells him to take her away but Raj decides to win over his to be father in law. The story next shows how Raj befriends Kuljeet and thus gets entry in his house and then he tries to impress Baldev (Simran’s father). Along with Simran he secretly makes a number of plans to delay the marriage. He soon becomes the favorite of everyone in the family. Later even Baldev becomes on friendly terms with Raj until one day when he comes to know that the boy Simran had fallen in love with on the Europe trip was none other than Raj. Infuriated he tells Raj to leave the house immediately. Raj disheartened goes to the station where Kuljeet drops in to fight with him. Soon Baldev also comes to the station and stop the fight. While Raj boards the train Simran pleads and begs Baldev to let her go with him. Finally when the train starts running Baldev permits his daughter to go with Raj and she runs and catches the departing train.

The music was as famous as the movie itself. The composer Jatin Lalit, lyricist Anand Bakshi and singers Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Kumar Sanu, Abhijit, Udit Narayan did a great job and gave Bollywood songs that still are favorite of thousands of Indians. The film had a total of 7 songs and almost all of them were hits and one can still hear these songs on wedding ceremonies across the country.

The film was shot in parts of London and Switzerland. The movie has been declared as the all time blockbuster of Indian Cinema while it remains the longest running movie till date. On this year in January 2013 it completed nearly 900 weeks of running successfully at the Maratha Mandir in Mumbai.

Lagaan

A movie based on Cricket with the hero in Dhotis released in May 8, 2002. Many thought that a movie on a sport (Cricket) which was such an untouched topic untill then  could never become a success on the box office. However Lagaan proved those people wrong and and went on to become a benchmark movie of Indian Cinema. The film was written and directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar and the cast included Amir Khan (also the producer of the film) and Gracy Singh. The film was shot in Bhuj. The story is set in the India under British Rule. The villagers had to pay high taxes to the British. The villagers in Bhuj are unable to pay the high taxes levied on them due to drought. In a challenge between the villagers led by Bhuvan (Amir Khan) and the British Commander Russel decide to compete in a cricket match. The conditions were that if Bhuvan’s team wins they will be freed of the Lagaan (Tax) and Russel will pay the tax on behalf of the entire province. Initially Bhuvan has to convince the villagers to join the team and fight against the British Rule. Russel’s sister Elizabeth teaches the villagers the rules of the game and falls in love with Bhuvan. However Bhuvan loves Gauri. Bhuvan leads his team of villagers to an enthralling win over the British team defying all the hurdles. With the last ball of the over comes the winning six and the rains that ends all the woes of the villagers. Russel loses and is transferred while his sister Elizabeth returns to her country heartbroken. 

The soundtrack of the movie was given by A.R. Rahman and the lyrics were given by Javed Akhtar. The music was an instant hit with vocalists like Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik and many more adding to the glory of the beautiful songs. The movie had many good scores like “ghanan gahnan” and “Radha Kaise Na jale”. There were inspirational songs in the movie like “O Mitwa O Mitwa” and “Chale Chalo Chale Chalo”.

Lagaan was praised worldwide and won many National awards. It was nominated in the Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars. It was also listed under the “All Time 25 Best Sports Movies”. The movie broke myths and was truly a milestone movie of the Indian cinema.

(All images source -- Wikipedia)

In this centenary year of Indian cinema, have often wondered as to what makes a song great, that people want to hear it again and again, even after decades. Is it the lyrics or the singer's voice or the music? I would vote for the lyrics, because it is the soul of the song. The singer's voice and music are like the body. As we say the soul is immortal and it keeps changing bodies , in the same way a song with a soul will become immortal and be sung by different voices to different music. It is the choice of words that make a song meaningful and touch one's heart and succeed in conveying the meaning in a harmonious manner.

However when all three components are well matched the song becomes divine and one wants to hear it,feel it again and again. This was the quality of a vast number of Hindi film songs between the golden period from the late nineteen forties till the early nineteen seventies. The lyrics were literature, the singers had golden voices and the musicians were rhythmically simply superb. The results were song after divine song. These are loved by every generation and will continue to be equally loved and hummed by coming generations. A large number of songs af this period have become legendary.

It is going to be very difficult to choose the top ten songs which I have grown up listening and are my favourites. Readers can and will have their own choices which is perfectly alright. Following are my top ten presented without ranking  because I like all of them equally:

"Tu Pyaar Ka Sagar Hai -----"

Film : Seema    Year: 1955     Lyrics : Shailendra     Singer : Manna Dey      Music Directors : Shankar - Jaikishen 

It is a spiritual song picturised on Balraj Sahni, one of the Bollywood's finest actors. Nutan is the heroine of the film and won the Filmfare Best Actress Award while Amiya Chowdhry the director of the movie went on to win the Filmfare  Best Story Award in 1957.

The touching words of thre song are addressing the conflict so many of us face many times in life when we  have gone away into a shell and are either afraid or unable to come back and face the reality of life. The writer puts it beautifully " Idhar jhoom ke gaaye zindagi udhar hai maut khadi" and then goes on to add 'koyi kya jaane kahaan hai seema uljhan aan padi". Can the conflict between life and death have a border and when one realises it it is a problem. The poet then makes the mentor/ well wisher say 'kanoon mein zara keh de ki aayen kaun disha se  hum". What choice of words. Tell me in my ears from where should I come back into the real world. The mesmerizing music of Shankar-Jaikishen and the soulful voice of Manna Dey go to lift this Shailendra written song to a different plane altogether where one realises the love of the  for his astray subjects. The song is picturised on Balraj Sahni sitting on a chair and does not have action to divert attention from the meaningful words. 

It truly is a song which touches the heart every time one listens to it.

"Jaane Woh log The Kaise Jinke Pyaar Ko Pyaar Mila--- "

Film : Pyaasa    Year : 1957        Lyrics : Sahir Ludhianvi       Singer : Hemant Kumar        Music Director :  S.D.Burman

The song is picturised on Guru Dutt playing the role of a defeated and crestfallen writer whose poems are rejected by every publisher. No one understands him except a prostitute played by Waheeda Rehman.Till he meets his college flame played by Mala Sinha, who has married a publisher played by Rehman only for money and comfort. "Jaane woh log the kaise jin ke pyaar ko pyaar mila, Humne to jab kaliyan mangi thi kantoo ka haar mila--". Loosely tanslated it means that who are the persons whose love begets love, whenever I have desired buds in return I have only get a garland of thorns. The defeated poet then goes on to conclude "Issko hi ghar jeena kahte hain to yoon hi jee lenge, uff na karenge, labh si lenge, aansoo pee lenge---". The choice of words by Sahir the lyracist is simply so apt that the listener sympathises with the hapless poet. In keeping with the mood of the pessimsitic mood of the film the song has been put to matching music by the great composer S.D. Burman. However I feel in this  song it is  the voice of Hemant Kumar that lends the right touch of agony and despair so necessary to convey the ethos of Sahir's words. Pyaasa has gone to become an iconic picture and this song has also become famous for its musical composition, Hemanda's voice and the melancholy words.

There are many occasions when one is in a downcast mood and wants to listen to this song for the matching mood it generates.

"Pyaar Hua Iqrar Hua --------"

Film : Shree 420       Year : 1955   Lyrics : Shailendra        Singers : Lata Mangeshkar and Manna Dey             Music : Shankar -Jaikishen

This song has now become almost an iconic song associated with loveand romance. It is picturised on the hit pair of Raj Kapoor and Nargis during evening atmosphere on wet road with a road side chaiwallah very apprciatingly staring at them. It does not have may lines but it is the music which is the real soul of this song. The harmonium is used very effectively to alter the tune when needed. The fine romantic pair of Raj and Nargis live the song rather than act in it and this lifts the song to very high level. Especially the lines " Mai na rahoongi, tum na rahoge, Phir bhi rahengi nishaniya --" and the camera pans to show two small boy and girl walking togetherin a drizzle of rain. It shows the committment for eternal love between the lead pair. Once it was Manna Dey turning out a romantic songs for Raj Kapoor and along with Lata it has now become an recognition of love and romance. Its tune is used as a signature in many programmes. It is very uplifting to listen the song.

If you are somewhat down just listen to this song to lift your mood.

"Aayega aanewala aayega -------"

Film : Mahal         Year : 1949              Lyrics : Kamal Amrohi         Singer : Lata Mangeshkar                       Music : Khemchand Prakash

This 1949 film has given one of the most popular and hummed songs of bollywood. Wheni the song was released, as per custom then the song was credited tom the character Kamini played by Madhubala and not to Lata. The haunting but melodius song became so popular that radio stations where flooded with requests to name the actual singer. Lata has sung this perenially famous song in a superb style which conveys to you that someone is going to come after a long time to a particular place. The movie was the first movie on the theme of reincarnation in Bollywood and had the evergreen Ashok Kumar and the fresh sixteen year old Madhubala in the lead roles. The song keeps appearing frequently in the movie and it went on to make Lata into a household name. The song continues to be popular today also.

For going into a wistful mood this nothing to beat the listening experience of this song.

"O Duniya Ke rakhwale -----"

Film : Baiju Bawara         Year : 1952            Lyrics : Shakeel Badayuni             Singer : Mohammed Rafi       Music : Naushad

This is Rafi at his best. Under the music maestro Naushad Rafi brings out the pathos of the lyrics describing the state of a dejected and heart broken lover addressing God about his sad state. The words are simply fantastic and every line has a contrasting comparison like " Mandir ghirthaa phir ban jhatha, dhil ko kaun sambhale' or "Chaand ko doonde paagal sooraj,shaam ko doonde savera" or "Nayya sung toofan bhanaya ,milan sung judaai". Naushad set it on the classical Darbari raga  and Rafi sang it to perfection. Rafi was to become a sensation after this and other songs sung by him in this movie were released. This song was also sung in college competitions by aspiring singers trying to show their mettle. Baiju Bawra was a musician in King Akbar's time and wanted  to avenge his father's death on the orhers of the great simger Tansen, by outclassing him in a competition. It is a great musical movie and ironically  the great Naushad went on to win his first and only Filmfare Award for Best Music in this movie.

A very soothing and mood uplifting song which can be heard anytime one likes.

"Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya---"

Film : Mughal-e-Azam          Year : 1960                 Lyrics : Shakeel badayuni                Singer : Lata Mangeshkar            Music : Naushad

This evergreen song by Lata Mangeshkar under the direction of Naushsd and set in Raga Durga wentv on tombecome a song of the young in a world where love was still not accepted. It was almost the song of defiance. Picturised on the most beautiful Madhubala in a specially erected Sheesh Mahal set both the tone of the music and the voice of Lata along with thec words together go to create a environment of challenging the authority of the mighty King Akbar. The line like"Chup na sakega ishqa humaaaraa,charo taraf hai iska nazara" and the subsequent shot of hundreds of Anarkalis in each small mirror of the Sheesh Mahal are etched in the minds of the viewer. In order to get the feel of echo Lata was made to sing the song in a bathroom during the recording. The more than six minutes in length song continues to be popular today also for its words and quality of music.

A song worthy of listening to anytime anywhere.

"Tadbeer Se Bigdi Hui Taqdeer Bana Le ------"

Film : Baazi                    Year; 1951                        Lyrics : Sahir Ludhianvi                Singer : Geeta Bali                        Music : S. D. Burman

The tantalising and teasing voice oF Geeta Dutt has given this song a timeless flavour. The  picturisation is equally wonderful in a club.  The words are taunting the players  to take a gambling risk if  they have confidence in themselves. The song is sung in the movie by an equally inviting Geeta Bali. It was produced by Navketan films and directed by Guru Dutt. Its overall music by dada Burman was and is today also very popular. The husky voice of Geeta Dutt is a treat to listen and it was unfortunate that she died in tragic circmstances at a young age.

The song and its tune makes the listener light at heart and peps the mood.

"Dil Jalta Hai To Jalne De Aansoo Na Baha;;;;"

Film : Pehli Nazar         Year : 1945                Lyricist : Aah Sitapuri                      Singer : Mukesh             Music : Anil Biswas

This sad song was the first song sung by Mukesh in Hindi films. It is sung by him on the voice pattern of the legendary singer K L Saigal. It is said that after the song became famous Saigal asked when had he recorded this song. Mukesh got recognition in the industry with this song. However he later developed his own style which has also made him a legend of Hindi film singers.  The words of the song are best appreciated when heard alone  preferably in a dark room. The pain of the lover at the  unsure betrayal by the loved is the theme of the song. Anil Biswas was a famous music director of the forties. I once heard this song being played in a multiplex theatre and the whole effect was mesemerising. When the song ended there were a few claps  in an otherwise predomnantly young audience. Such is the timelessness of these old songs

This song is a good song to hear when someone does not respond the way you want especially from  the opposite sex.

"Yahoo, Chahe Koyi Mujhe Junglee Kahe ---"

Film : Junglee                    Year :1961                  Lyrics : Hasrat Jaipuri                             Singer : Rafi                      Music : Shanker- Jaikishen

This Shammi Kapoor song set the whole nation on fire. Rafi sang it with gay abandon. The catchword Yahoo caught the imagination of one and all. Picturised on Shammi Kapoor on a snowy mountain along with the beautiful Saira Banu (her first film) the fast paced and loud music along with the liberating and pleading of love words made the song an immidiate hit and it continues to be liked today also. It is one of Rafi's top selling and heard songs. It also helped Shammi to get a boisterous image. It is a song every youngster when he realises he is in love wants to sing and telll the whole world about it.

The song lifts your mood and wants you to jump and dance.

"Zindagi Ek Safar Hai Suhana--- "

Film : Andaz                         Year : 1971                 Lyricist : Hasrat Jaipuri                       Singer : Kishore Kumar            Music : Shankar-Jaishen

This song picturised on the first super star of Bollywood, Rajesh Khanna driving a motor bike with the beautiful Hema Malini on the pillion became an instant hit with the masses. The light song tells about the philosophy of life. The rising singing star Kishore Kumar sang the song and yoodeled also in his unique style. Its music was as usual fitting the lyrics and the situation. India was changing and was becoming a nation of the young. It was therefore appropriate that such songs would capture the mood of the nation. The movie also was a hit. Hasrat Jaipuri won the Best Lyricist Award for the song and Kishore Kumar was nominated for the Best Singer Award category at the 19th Filmfare Awards in 1971.

A pepsy song worth listening whenever one is in a good mood.

Why don't they make such songs anymore ? Any answers.