Some of My Favorite RD Compositions:

"Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thoughts."

1."O hansini"

2."Aanewala pal jaanewala hai"

3."Saawan ke jhule pare"

4."Rimjhim gire saawan"

5."Tujhse naraz nehi yeh zindegi"

6."Aisa ho to kaisa Hoga"

7."Sili hawa chhoon gayee"

8."Khamosh sa afsana"

9."Aajki raat hona hai kya"

10."Aja piya tohe pyar doon"

11."Aap ki aankhon mein"

12."Aise na Mujhe toom dekho"

13."Tere bina jia jai na"

14."Bade achhe laagte hai"

15."Bahat dur Mujhe Jana Hai"

16."Chand mera dil"

17."Chala jata hoon"

18."Chura liya Hai tumne jo dil ko"

19."Do naino mein aasoon bhare hai"

20."Jaane kya baat hai"

21."Jaane kya soch kar"

22."Jeevan ke har mode pe"

23."Kabhi palkon pe aasoon hai"

24."Kis liye Maine pyar kiya"

25."Kya yehi pyar hai"

26."O Sathi chal"

27."Rona kabhi nehi hona"

28."Zindegi ke safar mein"

29."Tu rootha to mein ro dungi Sanam"

30."Mausam pyar ka"

31."Do naina aur ek kahani"

32."Raat kali ek khwabo mein aayee"

33."Naam gum jayega"

34."Yaad aa rahi hai"

35."Mera Kuchh saaman"

and many more.........

"Rahul and I":--

It was the early days of my youth, when the true appearance of this world with its various shades of grey (neither milky white, nor pitch dark) was being revealed to me gradually as I was walking towards maturity, that the philosophical lyrics and tune of "Aanewala pal jaanewala hai" moved me deeply. The tune bears a peculiar tone of leaving the dear ones, of departing away from the mortal world and suggests that life is fast moving towards its end. I was not that much acquainted with RD songs at that period but I felt that he could be my most favorite musician for this song only. "O hansini"-- a tiny but rich composition awoke in me the eternal cry of a romantic soul-- " Mere aarmano ke pankh laga k kahan urh chali" ("Hetha noi, Hetha noi, anyo kotha, anyo kono khane.") And the prelude of this song is an awesome creation --quite different from the tune put to its lyrics, makes me recall the immortal scene of"Pather Panchali"-- the ever romantic boy Apu, running by the railway track.

The rainy season, with deep black clouds hovering in the sky, the thunder, the lightning, the gloomy darkness still mesmerizes me. There is a peculiar touch of sorrow and loneliness in a rainy day.And I feel the ambience to be completed with "Rimjhim gire saawan".

I listened to most of the film songs, being blind about their picturization, and thus my imaginative mind creates its own situation for each song I love. And thus, "Jane kya soch kar" arises in me the solitary gloom of a person, living alone, in some faraway country, far from his motherland and dear and near ones. My soul cries for that lonely dear one, whom I have lost years ago as I listen to "Saawan ke jhule pare"-- "Tum chale ao, tum chale ao......"

On the way through the path of life, with thorns of grief scattered all over, I again rise up and love to live as I listen to "Kabhi palkon pe aasoon hai/ kabhi lawb pe sheekayat hai/ Maagar ai zindegi, /Tujhe meri zarurat hai" or "Zindegi pyar ka geet hai/ Ise har dil ko gana parega". When I am upset, it is Kishore Kumar who inspires me with his generous tone-- "Rona kabhi nehi hona/ Chahe toot jaye koi khilona".

My blood curdles as I listen to the awesome prelude of "Tere bina jia jai na" --this creation of seconds is the mark of a genius and soon after, appears Lata's sparkling voice.

A helpless cry spreads over my entire soul as one plays "Zindegi ke safar mein guzar jate Hai jo mokaam/ Woh phir nehi aate, woh phir nehi aate" or "Do naino mein aasoon bhare hai/ Nindiya kaise saamaye"; " Khamosh sa afsana/ Pani pe likhha hota/ Na tum ne kaha hota/ Na humne soona hota...".

The calm, soft tune of "Kabhi kabhi swapna laagta hai/ Kabhi yeh sab aapna laagta hai" beautifully brings out the fear of losing amidst full contentment.

The thoughtful, philosophical RD of "O majhi re" and "Musafir hoon yaaron" turns almost 360° and becomes a naughty boy as he composes "Samandar pe nahan ke/ Aur bhi namkeen ho gayee","Ek chatur naar karke shingaar","Mere saamnewali khidki mein/Ek Chand ka tukra rehta hai", "Kitne bhi tu karle sitam/Hus Hus ke kehenge hum/ Yeh pyar na Hoga Kam/ Sanam teri kasam". Pancham mastered in the use of brass instruments like trumpet; bass guitar, and percussion -- these gave the unique RD touch to his music.

We discover the reckless, ever revolutionary Pancham in compositions like "Duniya mein logon ko","Dum maro Dum","O haseena zulfonwali","Gulabi Ankhen" and many more. And the same person makes us gloomy as he composes "Chingari koi bhadke","Naam gum jayega".

A dreamy situation of pure,spotless and unconditional everlasting love is created with "Mausam pyar ka/Rang badalta rahe","Aisa ho to kaisa Hoga", "Kya yehi pyar hai".

And last but not the least, there is "Mera Kuchh saaman"--a song, through its beautiful lyrics and tune, so wonderfully brings out the secret pain of a bereaved, romantic soul , that we feel it impossible to hold our tears.

Thus, Rahul Dev Burman remains with me, awakening every mood of my life and each emotion of my soul, through his immortal creations, forever.

( Inspired by --

1."Gaaner Rajputra Rahul Dev Burman"-- Khagesh Dev Burman.

2."R.D.Burman-- The Man, The Music"-- Aniruddha Bhattacharjee and Balaji Vittal and 

of course, RDB's heart-touching notes.

Helped by Google.)

(Finished, but the musical magic continues.)

Awards and Honours:--

Though RD Burman modernized Bollywood music and laid the foundation for numerous music directors to have the path for the future of music in Hindi film industry, he was awarded a total of only three Filmfare Awards-- the last of them being posthumously - "Sanam Teri Kasam" (1983), "Masoom"(1984) and "1942-- A Love Story "(1995). It is surprising that he was nominated for the award for many times -- "Caravan "(1972), "Yaadon ki Baarat"(1974), "Aap ki Kasam "(1975), "Khel Khel Mein" and "Sholay"(1976), "Mehbooba"(1977), "Hum Kisi se Kam Nehi" and "Kinare" (1978), "Shalimaar"(1979), "Shaan" (1981), "Love Story"(1982), "Betab" (1984), "Jawan"(1985), "Saagar"(1986); though not received any. In 1976, RD Burman was also nominated for the category of "Best Male Playback Singer" for "Mehbooba Mehbooba" ("Sholay").

"Izazat" brought national awards both for Gulzar and Asha Bhonsle but conspicuously not for RD Burman. And today the Filmfare gives an award entitled "Filmfare Rahul Dev Burman Award" to the promising musician, the only award after the name of a genius -- such is the tragic satire of fate.

Tribute and Love:--

The consolation is that today, people are gradually realizing and respectfully recognizing the vast and wonderful talent of the genius -- many documentary films on Pancham are being made, numerous research based books are being written on this musical wonder, unlike other great musicians of Mumbai. In 1980, "Pantara" by Pet Gavankar brought world wide fame for RD Burman. Today, no music programme in any radio or TV channel is complete without a number by Pancham or Kishore --- such is their influence. Not only the Indians, the foreigners also have a taste for RD Burman's music, because he internationalized the Indian Film Music by mixing the impressions of jazz, rock, Brazilian Bosa-Nova, Arabic melodies Italian tunes and many more.

Sujoy Ghosh, the eminent film director pays homage to RD Burman through his creation "Jhankar Beats" while the critics declare that Brahmanand Singh's "Pancham Unlimited: Mujhe Chalte Jana Hai" is a "must-watch" film for all. A testament to RD Burman's unmatched popularity across continents, this film was a recipient of a "special critical mention" from the jury at Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA)(2008).

Till today, every year, RD Burman's fan clubs, viz. "Euphony" and "Melody Chime" organises functions based on Pancham's musical creations, (both vocal and instrumental) regularly and it's really an enchanting and memorable experience to attend them. In these cultural marvels, some of the musicians of RD Burman's team -- Kishore Sodha(trumpet), Raj Sodha ( trumpet and trombone), Nitin Shankar (tabla, octopad and thumba), Pt. Ronu Majumdar(flute) gift the audience their amazing performance.These programmes, undoubtedly play a role to retain and enhance the popularity of this musical genius.

The King of Sorrowful Night:--

Often we see that the son with his qualities is overshadowed by the dazzling talent of a famous and genius father, or mother. Such is the case with Sandip Ray. Rabindranath Thakur couldn't but declared," The worst ill-luck of Rathi(Rathindranath Thakur) is that he is my son." But, RD Burman, in spite of being the son of the great musical talent Sachin Karta, possessed the power to glow in the light of his own talent and that too, in the very same field.

In spite of being born in the royal family of Tripura, SD Burman missed the opportunity of royal comfort and luxury.The grandson of Maharaja Ishaan Chandra Manikya, Sachin Dev Burman inherited the tradition of music. He revolted against the tradition of the royal aristocracy by joining the film industry. And the same revolutionary attitude became prominent in the music of Pancham, by going against the traditional film music. While Sachin Karta sought the pearls for his music from different types of Bengali folk songs like "Baul","Fakir","Darbeshi", "Kirtan","Agamani"," Bijoya","Manashar Bhashan","Jhumur","Dehatatwa", "Manastatwa", Pancham went for blood -curdling tunes throughout the world -- jazz, rock, circus-music, Mexican Mariachi, Brazilian Bosa-Nova which he used to record in his sound track.

Yes, there came many great musicians in Bollywood -- a large number of them being Bengalee -- from Hemant Kumar - Sachin Karta - Salil Chowdhury, the legacy is still being carried on successfully by Pritam - Jeet Ganguly - Anupam Roy. Yes, taste varies from person to person. Being respectful to all these great talents, -- that of the earthly flavor of Sachin Karta, the quality of unpredictability of Salil Chowdhury, I cannot but declare RD Burman as my most favorite. None could play the tune in my soul in this way, neither he could make all my deepest and most secret gloom flow away with the current of music, nobody can touch my heart thus-- and so, there is and will forever be a special place for Pancham in the core of my heart. I can't forget how my blood curdled when I listened to "Aisa kabhi hua nehi" ("Yeh Wada Raha") for the first time, became morose with the tune of "Mera Kuchh saaman" or touched by the philosophy of life as I heard " Aanewala pal". His tunes, his personal sorrow, pain, anguish-- with all, he seems to me the "King of Sorrowful Night"-- a tragic character. Salute to him!

Pancham and Bengali Music:--

Pancham also, like his father, left his mark of genius in Bengali music. He entered the arena of Bengali music in the era of the great masters like Salil Chowdhury, Hemanta Mukherjee and Shyamal Mitra and still then, with his talent, he, as usually modernized Bengali music -- by giving to its tune a cosmopolitan touch. RD composed both for Bengali film and non- film songs.

Though he had few non-film compositions with Kishore ("Akdin pakhi ure jabe","Shey to elo na","Akash kano daake") , Lata ("Amar malatilata","Ami boli tomay") and Amit Kumar ("E par bhange, o par gade","Jeyo na, Jeyo na","Path cheye bosechhilam","Praan to maane na"), it is with Asha that he recorded most of his compositions. Thus, RD-Asha duo was a challenge, or from another perspective, a suitable heir to Salil Chowdhury -Lata Mangeshkar partnership in Bengali modern songs.This partnership resulted in innumerable hits to capture varied moods of music. A few cannot but be mentioned -- "Jete dao amay deko na", "Phule gondho nei","Mohuyai jomechhe aaj mou go","Sondhyebalai tumi ami", "Moina balo tumi krishno raadhe", "Kine de reshmi churi", " Chokhe naame brishti". It is a wonderful variety of range that RD gifted to make Bengali modern songs prosperous and we are wonderstruck as we listen to the gorgeous devotional tune of "Durge Durge Durgotinashini", the seducing "Akta deshlai kathi jwalao", the ticklish and teasing "Chokhe Chokhe katha balo" and the strange sadness of "Tumi jabe go chole jabe go" with the obvious Pancham-impression or the peculiar haunting note of "Kotha kotha khunjechhi tomay".

Pancham lent his own richly trained voice to create memorable hits like "Mone pore Ruby Ray","Phire esho Anuradha","Tomate amate dakha hoyechhilo","Jete jete pothe holo deri" and many more. The purely urban tune of "Phire esho Anuradha", the classical gem "Banshi shune ki ghare thaka jai" are sharp contrast to the rustic note of "Sajani go premer katha" (reminding us of the Pancham-intervention of addressing the "Majhi" in "Bade achhe laagte hai") -- but, yes, they are all created by the one and only Pancham. How beautifully the deep cry of a bereaved, adolescent, fascinated lover is captivated in the all-time hit "Mone pore Ruby Ray"! The "naughty" composer of "Machher kanta, khonpar kanta" or "Shono mon boli tomay" makes us gloomy with his "Ki hobe r purono diner kotha aaj tule/ Kichhu bhulechho tumi, aami o gechhi bhule" or "Jai re jai re balaa j boye jai re". We get our favorite RD-Asha combination in the songs like "Phire elam dure giye", "Jai re jai re balaa j boye jai re" and many more. The lyricists of most of the Pancham-Bengali songs were Swapan Chakraborty, Gouriprasanna Majumdar, Sachin Bhowmick, Mukul Dutta, Pulak Bandyopadhyay, Shyamal Sengupta, Purnendu Roy, Sanjoy Chakraborty.

Between 1970 to 1996, RD Burman composed music for a number of Bengali films like "Rajkumari"(1970), "Teen Murti"(1984), "Anyay Abichar" (1985), "Aagun"(1988), "Jhankar"(1989), "Satarupa"(1989), "Ladai"(1990), "Apan Amar Apan"(1990), "Andha Bichar"(1990), "Ekhane Aamar Swargo"(1991), "Debota"(1991), "Bourani"(1991), "Ahankar"(1991), "Ananda Niketan" (1991), "Adhikar" (1992), "Maa"(1992), "Purushottam" (1992), "Swet Patharer Thala"(1993). Amongst others, the songs of "Anusandhan"(1980), "Kalankini Kankabati"(1981), "Troyee" (1982) and "Akanto Apan" were widely acclaimed and thus, Pancham left his impression permanently in the domain of Bengali film music.

Songs like "Jete jete pothe holo deri", "Jai re jai re balaa j boye jai re", "Shono mon boli tomay", "Tumi jabe go chole jabe go", "Kotha kotha khunjechhi tomay", "Phire esho Anuradha" are Pancham's signature tunes. Even a layman in music can guess that these compositions could only belong to none other than RD Burman.

Apart from film songs, the world of Bengali modern songs was thus enriched with RD compositions, as the trend goes in Bengal to release Puja songs, on the occasion of the greatest festival -- Durga Pujo. So since sixties, RD's Puja albums were released. And the then new-comers like Usha Utthup and Indrani Sen were blessed to have albums with this great composer. In the year 1990, RD Burman's last Puja album for HMV --"Ga Pa Ga Sa Re Ga" was out --but it didn't do well, in spite of the songs being magnificent. Then Biswanath Chatterjee of Concord contacted RD and the result was RD-Usha Utthup album --"Preme Pore Jai" (1993) with compositions like "Ami jani tumi ashbe", "Agami sishura", "Preme pore jai". Later, this album was released in Hindi as "Tera Mera Pyar Jawan".

RD's last album was with Indrani Sen -- "Shure Shure Jaal Bona"(1993) in which most of the songs were re-made from the original Hindi tunes,e.g.-- "E mor chalar path"("Is mode pe jate Hai"), "Shei to achhe thikana"(" Beeti na beetayee Raina"), "Ki chokhe dekhechhi tomay"("Hume tumse pyar kitna"), "Smritir opaar"("Sagar Kinare") with a few originals like "Dhire dhire din gona", " K tumi dakle amay".

Apart from these, RD, like SD, had a number of songs in his bag with both Bengali and Hindi versions. Some popular among them are --

"Aaj gun gun gun"("Pyar Diwana hota hai") ,"Akash kano daake"("Yeh shaam mastani"), "Akdin pakhi ure jabe"("Tum bin jaoon kahan"), "E ki holo"("Yeh kya hua"), "Bandho dware andhokare"(" Aap ki kamre mein"), "Jete dao amay"("Jane do mujhe"), "Cholechhi aka"("Chala jata hoon"), "Swapno amar hariye galo" ("Swapna mera toot gaya"), "Jete jete pothe holo deri"("Tere bina zindegi se"), "Deke deke kato"("Diye jwalte hai"), "Tomate amate"("Do naino mein"), "Haire kala"("Majhi re majhi").

Other than Bengali songs, RD Burman also tuned for few other films in regional languages like Tamil, Telegu, Odiya and Marathi during the period 1987 to 1994.

Still......A Genius :--

In spite of his prolonged, gradual and successive failure towards the end of his career, R D Burman is unanimously acclaimed as a genius. As mentioned earlier, it was he who changed the pattern of Hindi film music by the intelligent blending of Western tunes with it. It was not to follow the Western music blindly, but a successful improvisation of it to match with both the Indian ambience and the taste of the audience. Successful creative genius not only understand the popular taste, but they also play an important role in shaping the taste of the mass. Sometimes, as it was frequently in case of Pancham also, people fail to accept them because they are far more advanced comparing to the times in which they belong. But sooner or later, talent is recognized.

The wide range and variety of Pancham's music is awesome. Unlike many other popular music directors who appeared before or after him, he is equally at ease with cabaret song or soft melodious tune-- be it romantic or sad note, and at the same time, also with songs of fast rhythm. The title track of "Sholay" itself is a good exhibition of the range and variety of Pancham genius. Who else can create so heart-touching a tune in a purely sensuous note like "Jahan bin hawa ke parda hile" (Asha Bhonsle -- "Jhoota Such"-- 1984)? Would it be an exaggeration if we remark that especially Asha Bhonsle and Kishore Kumar, amongst others, were lucky to have RD Burman as the music composer for a large number of songs? Undoubtedly not. RD composition brought national award to Arati Mukherjee ("Do naina aur ek kahani" from "Masoom"), countrywide fame to Anup Ghoshal ("Tujhse naraz nehi yeh zindegi" from "Masoom"). The Pancham -Gulzar -Kishore trio gifted a number of immortal tunes to Hindi film world.

Another mentionworthy characteristic of RD-- the music composer was obviously his innovative nature in the use of musical instruments.The clapping sound used in the title track of "Yeh Wada Raha" made us mesmerized while I was simply wonderstruck by the overlapping voice of Asha in "Katra Katra" ("Izazat"). Examples may be made of the use of Listerine bottles in the song "Mehbooba Mehbooba" ("Sholay"-- singer--Pancham) and that of soda bottles containing water at various levels in the song "O majhi re" ("Khoosboo"). The tinkling of cups and saucers in the song "Chura liya Hai tumne jo dil ko" is known to many. The rubbing of comb on a rough surface to produce a whooshing sound in the initial tune of "Mere saamnewali khidki mein" ("Padosan") exhibits his creative talent.For "Satte pe Satta" (1982), he made the singer Annette Pinto to gargle to produce a background sound. He also experimented with different musical sounds produced from methods like rubbing sand paper and knocking bamboo sticks together to give a running train's effect in "Hoga Tumse pyara kaun" from "Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai"(1981).He introduced rhythm through the way we breathe, pant and laugh. Remember the panting sound in "Duniya mein logon ko" ("Apna Desh"). Background singer Asha Bhonsle's laughter became the rhythm in "Yeh naina yaad hai" from "Manzil Manzil". Truly unconventional, he once patted his music assistant Maruti Rao's back, to create rhythm for "Raat gayee, baar gayee samjho" ( "Darling Darling"). The rhythm for the song "Teri meri yaari badi purani"("Charitraheen") was achieved from the cackling sound that RD played on a kettledrum! As Nitin Shankar, the renowned percussionist and chief rhythm assistant of Pancham, reveals, he once derived his music from the sound made by beggars while doing their rounds and shepherds make while grazing their flock-- "Yeh naina yaad hai piya" ("Manzil Manzil").

RD was arguably the first music director to combine semi-classical Hindustani music with guitar strokes. In "Raina beet jaye" ("Amar Prem"), he combined santoor and guitar. In "Chingari koi bhadke" also, the same technique was deployed. In the song "Tujhse naraz nehi yeh zindegi" from "Masoom", he used 12-strings semi-electric guitar coupled with a twang effect to create an extraordinary sound effect.

Tabla, essentially an instrument of rhythm, was brilliantly used for the purpose of both melody and rhythm in the two memorable songs-- "O majhi re" ("Khoosboo") and "Tere bina jia jai na" ("Ghar").

He revolutionized the Bollywood music. As his career co-incided with the rise of Rajesh Khanna -starrer youth love stories, he made electronic rock popular in these sort of movies.He was confident to mix disco and rock elements with Bengali folk music.Rahul Dev Burman also used jazz elements, which had been introduced to him by the studio pianist Kesri Lord. Biswarup Sen rightly describes his popular music as one featuring multi-cultural influences and characterised by "frenetic pacing, youthful exuberance and upbeat rhythms."

Besides Western, Pancham was also influenced by Latin, Oriental and Arabic music and incorporated elements from these in his own music.

RD sometimes used the Western dance music as a source of inspiration for his compositions. Some of his songs featured the tune of popular foreign songs. Sometimes, the filmmaker insisted him to copy these tunes for the soundtracks, resulting in allegations of plagiarism. Mention may be made of "Mehbooba Mehbooba"("Sholay") from the traditional Cyprus song "Say you love me", "Mil Gaya hum ko Sathi" from ABBA's "Mama Mia","Aao twist Kare" ("Bhoot Bangla") from Chubby Checker's "Let's twist", "Tumse milke" from Leo Sayer's "When I need you", "Zindegi milke bitayenge" from Paul Anka's " The Longest Day" and "Dilbar mere" from Alexandra's "Zigeunerjunge".

Burman realized very early in his career that he lacked the voice of a playback singer for Hindi movies. But that didn't deter him to bend his vocal chords to suit the needs. He made the gruffed voice modulation his trademark. Mention may be made of "Mehbooba" from "Sholay", the medley of "Tum kya jano" from "Hum Kisi se Kam Nehi" with flanging, "Samandar mein Naha ke" from "Pukaar", the prelude in "Duniya mein" from "Apna Desh" , his intervention in Amit Kumar -sung "Bade achhe laagte Hai" ("Balika Badhu").

One of the main reasons of RD Burman's popularity is, I think, that he was very much "predictable" as a music director. It is this reason that his tune went so well with the expectation of the listener, who gets contented to listen to his music. It is not a stunt, but a pure and silent understanding of the demand of the listener's mind and taste.

Still......A Genius :--

In spite of his prolonged, gradual and successive failure towards the end of his career, RD Burman is unanimously acclaimed as a genius. As mentioned earlier, it was he who changed the pattern of Hindi film music by the intelligent blending of Western tunes with it. It was not to follow the Western music blindly, but a successful improvisation of it to match with both the Indian ambience and the taste of the audience. Successful creative genius not only understand the popular taste, but they also play an important role in shaping the taste of the mass. Sometimes, as it was frequently in case of Pancham also, people fail to accept them because they are far more advanced comparing to the times in which they belong. But sooner or later, talent is recognized.

The wide range and variety of Pancham's music is awesome. Unlike many other popular music directors who appeared before or after him, he is equally at ease with cabaret song or soft melodious tune-- be it romantic or sad note, and at the same time, also with songs of fast rhythm. The title track of "Sholay" itself is a good exhibition of the range and variety of Pancham genius. Who else can create so heart-touching a tune in a purely sensuous note like "Jahan bin hawa ke parda hile" (Asha Bhonsle -- "Jhoota Such"-- 1984)? Would it be an exaggeration if we remark that especially Asha Bhonsle and Kishore Kumar, amongst others, were lucky to have RD Burman as the music composer for a large number of songs? Undoubtedly not. RD composition brought national award to Arati Mukherjee ("Do naina aur ek kahani" from "Masoom"), countrywide fame to Anup Ghoshal ("Tujhse naraz nehi yeh zindegi" from "Masoom"). The Pancham -Gulzar -Kishore trio gifted a number of immortal tunes to Hindi film world.

Another mentionworthy characteristic of RD-- the music composer was obviously his innovative nature in the use of musical instruments.The clapping sound used in the title track of "Yeh Wada Raha" made us mesmerized while I was simply wonderstruck by the overlapping voice of Asha in "Katra Katra" ("Izazat"). Examples may be made of the use of Listerine bottles in the song "Mehbooba Mehbooba" ("Sholay"-- singer--Pancham) and that of soda bottles containing water at various levels in the song "O majhi re" ("Khoosboo"). The tinkling of cups and saucers in the song "Chura liya Hai tumne jo dil ko" is known to many. The rubbing of comb on a rough surface to produce a whooshing sound in the initial tune of "Mere saamnewali khidki mein" ("Padosan") exhibits his creative talent.For "Satte pe Satta" (1982), he made the singer Annette Pinto to gargle to produce a background sound. He also experimented with different musical sounds produced from methods like rubbing sand paper and knocking bamboo sticks together to give a running train's effect in "Hoga Tumse pyara kaun" from "Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai"(1981).He introduced rhythm through the way we breathe, pant and laugh. Remember the panting sound in "Duniya mein logon ko" ("Apna Desh"). Background singer Asha Bhonsle's laughter became the rhythm in "Yeh naina yaad hai" from "Manzil Manzil". Truly unconventional, he once patted his music assistant Maruti Rao's back, to create rhythm for "Raat gayee, baar gayee samjho" ( "Darling Darling"). The rhythm for the song "Teri meri yaari badi purani"("Charitraheen") was achieved from the cackling sound that RD played on a kettledrum! As Nitin Shankar, the renowned percussionist and chief rhythm assistant of Pancham, reveals, he once derived his music from the sound made by beggars while doing their rounds and shepherds make while grazing their flock-- "Yeh naina yaad hai piya" ("Manzil Manzil").

RD was arguably the first music director to combine semi-classical Hindustani music with guitar strokes. In "Raina beet jaye" ("Amar Prem"), he combined santoor and guitar. In "Chingari koi bhadke" also, the same technique was deployed. In the song "Tujhse naraz nehi yeh zindegi" from "Masoom", he used 12-strings semi-electric guitar coupled with a twang effect to create an extraordinary sound effect.

Tabla, essentially an instrument of rhythm, was brilliantly used for the purpose of both melody and rhythm in the two memorable songs-- "O majhi re" ("Khoosboo") and "Tere bina jia jai na" ("Ghar").

He revolutionized the Bollywood music. As his career co-incided with the rise of Rajesh Khanna -starrer youth love stories, he made electronic rock popular in these sort of movies.He was confident to mix disco and rock elements with Bengali folk music.Rahul Dev Burman also used jazz elements, which had been introduced to him by the studio pianist Kesri Lord. Biswarup Sen rightly describes his popular music as one featuring multi-cultural influences and characterised by "frenetic pacing, youthful exuberance and upbeat rhythms."

Besides Western, Pancham was also influenced by Latin, Oriental and Arabic music and incorporated elements from these in his own music.

RD sometimes used the Western dance music as a source of inspiration for his compositions. Some of his songs featured the tune of popular foreign songs. Sometimes, the filmmaker insisted him to copy these tunes for the soundtracks, resulting in allegations of plagiarism. Mention may be made of "Mehbooba Mehbooba"("Sholay") from the traditional Cyprus song "Say you love me", "Mil Gaya hum ko Sathi" from ABBA's "Mama Mia","Aao twist Kare" ("Bhoot Bangla") from Chubby Checker's "Let's twist", "Tumse milke" from Leo Sayer's "When I need you", "Zindegi milke bitayenge" from Paul Anka's " The Longest Day" and "Dilbar mere" from Alexandra's "Zigeunerjunge".

Burman realized very early in his career that he lacked the voice of a playback singer for Hindi movies. But that didn't deter him to bend his vocal chords to suit the needs. He made the gruffed voice modulation his trademark. Mention may be made of "Mehbooba" from "Sholay", the medley of "Tum kya jano" from "Hum Kisi se Kam Nehi" with flanging, "Samandar mein Naha ke" from "Pukaar", the prelude in "Duniya mein" from "Apna Desh" , his intervention in Amit Kumar -sung "Bade achhe laagte Hai" ("Balika Badhu").

One of the main reasons of RD Burman's popularity is, I think, that he was very much "predictable" as a music director. It is this reason that his tune went so well with the expectation of the listener, who gets contented to listen to his music. It is not a stunt, but a pure and silent understanding of the demand of the listener's mind and taste.

The Tragic Hero:--

In the great tragedies of world literature, we see that the hero with immense qualities ultimately meets his downfall not only because of the cruel fate, but also for a flaw inherent in his character. It is that flaw that destroys him-- still he remains forever-- in our hearts, in our tears, in our respect and love for him for the qualities he possesses. So was with this genius.Here is a music director who created innumerable hits, for people of all tastes,in sixties and seventies; but the eighties, surprisingly enough, showed his decreasing popularity. Though it was not that he, as a creative person, was finished. Then, what was the reason? They were many.

Each and every thing in this material world has to come to an end one day or other. The taste of the mass changes. So they do not hesitate to throw away a public entertainer whom they themselves had throned once. RD's heart-touching melodious tunes were replaced by the newly arrived tunes in 80s and 90s. And the fact is undeniable that there was a cultural degradation in the taste of the mass during this period. But does it mean that he couldn't keep pace with the changing taste of public? Not really. In many respects,he was much ahead than the contemporary likings.With the successful improvisation of Western music, he literally brought a massive change in Bollywood film music. The use of Western musical instruments like Resso-resso (African instrument used for the song"Gulabi Ankhen" of the film "The Burning Train") as well as the improvised western tunes (eg.--"Do lafzon ki hai yeh kahani", the use of Brazilian Bosa-Nova rhythm for"Maar dalega Dard-e-Jigar" from "Pati Patni") really brought revolutionary change to Indian film music. He was also the creator of the twin-track effect.In the song "Roop tera mastana"("Aradhana"), he introduced the"Afro" taal.

Another reason was that while most of the films with his music composition of 60s and 70s were huge hits,those of 80s and 90s were either flop or never released.And that affected the popularity of the music of those films to a large extent. Examples of flop films with RDB music are "Shaan, "The Burning Train", "Pukaar", "Romance", "Betab","Mahan","Bindya Chamkegi", "Sagar", "Alag Alag", "Izazat". Some other names are "Sitamgar"("Pyar jab na diya zindegi ne kabhi","Mausam pyar ka"),"Harjayee", "Jeeva"("Roz roz aankhon taale"). But today,after his demise, people could discover the beauty of these songs. "Libaas" with its heart-touching scores like"Sili hawa chhoon gayee" and "Khamosh sa afsana" remained unreleased. And this was how luck left him at that period.

Didn't his tumultuous personal life play any role in his gradual failure? Pancham's first whimsical marriage with Rita Patel and the eventual divorce, the demise of his father-cum-guide-cum-friend SD Burman, the dispute in his family regarding his relationship with then-already-married Asha Bhonsle, his disturbed relationship with Asha, and as a result the psychiatric problem developed in Meera Dev Burman -- his mother -- all accounted for his loss of peace of mind.Moreover, he was devoid of the company of his wife, Asha during his severe illness in 1989 -- while he had his bypass surgery in London --all these tumults took revenge on him. Still, his creative mind didn't rest.Moreover, it was the period when many of his old and close friends departed him. Kishore Kumar --"his musical alter ego" passed away suddenly. Some producers insulted him.There was a temporary break -up with Asha. Many of his close persons left him including some of his chief assistants,his friends. Thus, he was left as a loner in the days of his bad luck,frustration , insult and successive flop films. There was almost none to boost him up. He started slipping down and down through an unending dark tunnel. His health also did not support him then and during illness,he got the company neither of Asha nor of his mother.

Besides, the atmosphere of healthy competition in which Sachin Katra worked,was changing --it was becoming one of treachery and Rahul Dev Burman did not possess the slyness to tackle it. And he was not clever enough to handle the situation raised by so many flop films,rather he foolishly put the blame on himself.

SD Burman worked as a music director for thirty years while his son remained in the film industry for thirty-two years.In this period of time,while SD Burman composed for 89 films, the number increased to 331(actually 372,since 41 films were unreleased) for RD.So,it is opined that though he had the talent and sincerity, his whimsical attitude barred to let him realize the expansion of his talent.He lost his position as he lacked to re-evaluate the tunes that he had created. He composed for a large number of films, and had to face failure to a great extent as a result. Sachin Dev Burman was able to retain his popularity till the last moment since he concentrated to compose good songs,if not always hit songs.Unlike SD Burman, his son failed to evaluate his talent, and look at his own strength and weakness impartially.So, his whims and fancies were thus largely responsible for his diminishing acceptability.

Another fault on his part was to become more and more instrumental by deviating from melody, in order to meet the demand of the day,which was not his cup of tea. The music of RD Burman mainly stands upon rhythm and melody.

The Eightys:--Not Very Lucky --

Though Rahul composed for fifteen films in 1980,"Shaam" and "The Burning Train" were flops in spite of being musically hit."Khoobsurat" by Hrishikesh Mukherjee with beautiful notes was a hit,though.

In 1981, Pancham created his signature tunes in "Satte pe Satta","Love story", (the debut film of Kumar Gaurav), "Rocky"(the debut film of Sanjay Dutt), "Basera" and "Kudrat"."Hume tumse pyar kitna" from "Kudrat" brought national award to Parveen Sultana.

Out of fifteen movies in 1982, "Sanam Teri Kasam" and"Yeh Waada Raha" were hit. The former brought the first Filmfare Award to RD."Yeh Zameen ga rehi Hai" by Amit Kumar from"Teri Kasam" is an awesome creation. It was in this year that Ashok Kumar recorded his song for the last time --"Chalo haseen ek geet baanayen"("Shaukin"). 

"Masoom" was the greatest hit of RD Burman in1983. The Shekhar Kapoor film brought national award to Arati Mukherjee ("Do naina aur ek kahani") and Filmfare Award to RD Burman. "Tujhse naraz nehi yeh zindegi" brought national fame to Anup Ghoshal."Agar tum na hote" was also a hit of this year. But, unfortunately, "Pukaar", "Betab, "Romance", "Mahan", "Jaane Jaan", "Bindya Chamkegi"-- all were flops though their music was accepted by the mass.

"Tu rutha to mein roh dungi Sanam"-- is a beautiful note by Amit Kumar -Asha Bhonsle in"Jawani". But,apart from this one and"Andar Bahar" and"Duniya", all the fourteen films were super-flop. The next year --1985 also did not bring any hit for Pancham.Still, "Sagar" and "Alag Alag" were musically hit. The"Jaalpari" theme -tune of"Sagar" is a splendid display of Pancham -genius-- marked in his orchestra -direction. The year 1986 also couldn't bring any ray of hope for for Rahul, except "Jeeva".

So was 1987."Izazat", released this year,is a film with wonderful songs with Gulzar's immortal lyrics.Initially, Rahul found it "impossible" to tune "Mera kuch saaman" and remarked irritatingly to Gulzar, "Some day, you will come with some clippings from"The Times of India" and ask me to compose the tune for it." Also, he told Gulzar,"Have you ever heard any song starting with so peculiar words? Write whatever you wish and call it a song. Change the words and write something nice." Gulzar didn't lose his patience-- he realized that the genius was hunting the right tune for the lyrics,but couldn't get it immediately and so was becoming frustrated and desperately restless. The finishing is known to all-- the song is a milestone in Rahul's career. It brought National Award to Asha Bhonsle."Chhoti si kahani se" and"Katra Katra" are another hits from this film.

It was in this year that "Dil Padoshi Hai"-- the album of the musical trio -- Pancham,Gulzar and Asha was released. Unfortunately, this present-day popular album was not accepted at that time.

The following years-- 1988-1993 couldn't bring any good news for this creative genius. Almost all the movies were flop. Still,mention may be made of "Parinda" ("Tumse milke aisa laga") and"Joshile". "Libaas"(1991) -- the film marked for the last combination of RD-Lata , remained unreleased.But the heart-touching notes of "Sili hawa chhoon gayee" and "Khamosh sa afsana" create a gloomy feeling in the listener's mind -- the cruel fate didn't bring any success for Pancham for these immortal songs.

The Lamp Burns Brightly Before Being Extinguished:-- 

And then it was "1942 -- A Love Story"-- the Bidhu Binod Chopra direction (1994)--Pancham's last creation which proved to be a blockbuster hit musically, though the film itself was a flop.RD revived his empire finally.This film brought him the Filmfare Award for the best music director, though it remained unknown to him.He had already passed away by then.(4th January,1994).

The Rising:-The Seventies:--

The 70s saw the rising popularity of RD Burman with the Kishore Kumar songs in Rajesh Khanna starrer movies. The series began with"Kati Patang" (1970),a musical hit by Shakti Samanta. Its songs "Yeh shaam mastani" and "Yeh jo mohabbat hai",both sung by Kishore Kumar,proved to be instant hits.

In1971, Dev Anand's "Hare Rama Hare Krishna" was released and the music director was RD Burman. The Asha Bhonsle song "Dum maro Dum" proved to be a seminal rock number in Bollywood film music. It is rumoured that Dev Anand didn't include the complete version of"Dum maro Dum" in the movie, since he was worried that the song would overshadow the film. Another note --"Phoolon ka taaron ka" by Kishore Kumar from the same film was also very popular. The same year witnessed the release of "Amar Prem" and the Lata Mangeshkar song "Raina beet jaye" from this soundtrack is considered to be a classical gem in Hindi film music. The classical hits "Kuchh to log kehenge" and "Chingari koi bhadke" by Kishore Kumar from the same film were also widely accepted. The year included other hits like the romantic "Raat kali ek khwabo mein aayee" from" Buddha Mil Gaya", the Helen-starer cabaret song "Piya tu aab to aaja" from "Caravan", for which Rahul received his first Filmfare Award nomination.

The 1972 released nineteen films,in which the music composer was RD Burman and among them"Sita Aur Gita", " Rampur ka Lachhman", "Mere Jeevan Sathi","Bombay to Goa", "Apna Sesh" and"Parichai" were musical hits. "Parichai" also marked the start of the superhit combination of Pancham -Gulzar."Beeti na beetayee Raina" from "Parichai" brought national award to both Lata Mangeshkar and Bhupindar Singh.

Twenty films with the composition of RD Burman were released in 1973,of which"Yaadon ki Baarat", "Joshila", "Shariff Badmash", "Heera Panna", "Anamika" are mentionworthy for their hit music.The popular note from "Yaadon ki Baarat"-- "Chura liya Hai tumne jo dil ko" has been recognized in "Monsoon Wedding" as a tribute to Indian cinema.

"Aap ki Kasam", "Ajnabi", "Zehrila Insaan", "Manoranjan","Ishq Ishq Ishq", "Iman", "Phir Kab Milogi","Shaitan", "Dil Deewana" were the films released in the very next year,marked with the signature tunes of RD Burman." O hansini" from"Zehrila Insaan" is my all-time favorite. "Aap ki Kasam" projected Rajesh Khanna as the superstar.

1975-- the year was marked by the release of all-time blockbuster hit-- "Sholay"(Ramesh Sippi). The theme music of the film proved to be legendary.The song"Mehbooba Mehbooba" sung by Pancham himself in"Sholay" marked his genius as a singer."Deewar", "Dharam Karam", " Aandhi", " Khoosboo" were other musical hits of the year. "O majhi re" ("Khoosboo "--Kishore Kumar), " Is mode pe jate Hai", " Tere bina zindegi se koi" ("Aandhi"--Kishore-Lata) were huge hits. It is also the year of demise of Sachin Dev Burman.

In 1976,ten pictures under the music direction of Rahul Dev Burman were released,but none was superhit. "Mehbooba" was a flop, but the song " Mere naina saawan bhadon" by Kishore Kumar from this film is still regarded as one of the ten best notes by Kishore. The same year saw the national fame of Amit Kumar, the son of Kishore Kumar,on singing Rahul's composition " Bade achhe laagte Hai" for "Balika Badhu".

"Keenara", "Hum kisi se Kam Nehi" and "Queetab" may be mentioned among 1977 musical hits,gifted by Pancham. "Keya hua tera wada" brought national award to Md. Rafi ("Hum kisi se Kam Nehi"). In "Queetab", RD sang remarkably " Dhannyo ki aankhon mein".

The Asha Bhonsle -sung title track of "Shalimaar", "Hum bewafa hargiz na thhey"(Kishore Kumar), "Aati rahengi bahare" and " Kasme wade nivayenge hum" from "Kasme Wade", "Aap ki aankhon mein", "Phir wohi raat Hai" and "Tere bina jia jai na" from "Ghar" and the songs of "Azad" are memorable creations of Rahul in 1978.

"Aanewala pal" from "Golmaal" -- a comedy by Basu Chatterjee,"Jeevan ke har mode pe"("Jhoota Kahin Ka"), "Rimjhim gire saawan"("Manzil") and "Do lafzon ke Hai dil ki kahani"("The Great Gambler) are some of the songs that brought fame for Rahul in the very next year. Asha Bhonsle once remarked very rightly that the list of monsoon songs remains incomplete without "Rimjhim gire saawan".

The Pancham Magic

Here is a tribute from my part to a genius who has filled the days and nights of my childhood, adolescence, youth and matured age melodiously; in the month of his birth ---

"The Pancham Magic "

The realm of Hindi film industry has been often glorified by the talented contributions of various Bengalee genius in different fields -- direction, acting,production,lyricism and of course music composition.And in music direction, the two most noted legendary figures were Sachin Dev Burman and his able son-- Rahul Dev Burman.

Since the enchanting days of my youth, when I had the gift of an FM transistor from my father,I started to be mesmerized by the heart-touching notes composed in the 60s and 70s and later I was wondered to discover that most of those songs were created by none other than Rahul Dev Burman. And that was the moment when the love and adoration for this genius grew in my mind. The magic continues till today --for he is the creator of some eternal notes in Bollywood movies .

Birth, Childhood:-- The Indian film score composer Rahul Dev Burman was born on 27thJune,1939 at Hindustan Road, near Gariahat in Kolkata. Initially,the only son of the music composer Sachin Dev Burman and his singer,dancer and lyricist wife Meera Dev Burman ,was nicknamed Tublu by his maternal grandfather, though later, he became popular by his another nickname -- Pancham.

A story says that he was nicknamed Pancham since the word means"five" or "fifth" in Bengali and the baby could cry in five different notes. While, according to some, whenever he cried,it sounded in the fifth note (Pa), G scale, of music notation.Yet another version is that the veteran Indian actor Ashok Kumar nicknamed him Pancham,seeing the new-born uttering the syllable 'Pa' repeatedly.

Rahul's schooling started in Ballygaunj Government High School and later,he was transferred to Tirthapati Institution.But his educational career was largely hampered due to the tumultuous career as a music director of his father,Sachin Karta,who was,at that period, running between Kolkata and Mumbai, still unable to settle down permanently anywhere. And in addition, Pancham was very naughty and inattentive in his studies. He failed to get promotion to classes at the tender age of eight or nine.But,himself an MA in English from the University of Calcutta, Sachin Dev Burman,once, hearing of his son's failure to get promotion in class,gifted Pancham a costly racing cycle and badminton racket,so that the little boy would not suffer from frustration! Many criticized,but,after all,they were genius-- they would not and should not think and act in the traditional way!

Training Started:-- But the father didn't fail to recognize the son's talent, and so started Pancham's training in classical music and various musical instruments at a very early age.He learnt sarod from Ustad Ali Akbar Khan while Santa Prasad and Brajen Biswas trained him in tabla.He had his musical training to Ashis Khan. He also considered Salil Chowdhury as his guru.Pancham's maternal uncle Mr.Abhijit Dasgupta recalled that since childhood he had the rare capability of writing down the notation of any song,after listening to it once only.What should be it named other than talent?

Though Pancham's childhood was unstable because of the uncertainty still prevailing in Sachin Karta's career, the father never neglected to teach his son the minute details of music composition-- how to compose music according to the scene of the film,how to compose good music even if the scene was not mentionworthy enough. The musicians must not be over excited while composing -- opined SD.

Pancham started to serve his father as an assistant from 1955--and often played harmonica in his orchestra.

Assistant to His Father:-- When he was nine years old,RD Burman composed his first song"Aye mere topi palat ke aa" which his father used in the film"Fantoosh"(1956). The rock-n-roll style tune of the song"Sar Jo tera chakraye" was also composed by him,in his childhood,later included by SD Burman in the sound track of Guru Dutt's film "Pyasa"(1957). The mouth organ was his favorite companion since childhood and in the film "Solva Saal"(1958), Pancham played the mouth organ for his father's hit composition"Hai apna dil to awara" , in the voice of Hemant Kumar, picturized on Dev Anand.

"Chalti Ka Naam Gadi"(1958),"Kagaz ke Phool"(1959),"Tere Ghar ke Samne" (1963), "Bandini"(1963),"Ziddi"(1964), "Guide"(1965) and"Teen Deviyan"(1965) are some of the hit films in which Rahul Dev Burman is credited as the music assistant. Sachin Karta used to compose the"mukhra" or the initial lines of a song and cast the responsibility to compose the remaining part ("antara")on Joydev Verma, Surit Kaur and Rahul Dev Burman --to select the one that he liked the most and thus created a healthy competition among the three. Since1955 till the death of Sachin Dev Burman,Rahul served the assistant music director to his father.

The superhit Kishore Kumar song "Mere swapno ki raani" from "Aradhana"(1969), though credited to Sachin Karta, is rumored to have been his son's composition."Kora Kagaz tha yeh maan mera" from the same film was also his tune.It is believed that when SD Burman fell ill during the recording of the film's music,his son took it over and completed it.He was credited as an associate composer for the film.

Beginning Independently:-- It was in 1959 that RD Burman signed up as a music director for the film"Raaz" directed by Guru Dutt's assistant Niranjan. Unfortunately,the film was never released.Thus, RD Burman's first released film as an independent music director was "Chhote Nawab"(1961) produced by the famous Bollywood comedian Mehmood. It is interesting to note that Mehmood first approached Sachin Karta who was unable to give him dates and noticing Rahul playing the tabla,Mehmood signed him up as the music director of his upcoming film. The song,"Ghar aaja ghir aaye" composed with a classical touch,in the Raag Maalgunj,sung by Lata Mangeshkar in this film, is regarded as one of the best compositions of Pancham.

Rahul's first great success as a music director was "Teesri Manzil"(1966). Burman gave credit to lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri for recommending him to Nasir Hussain,the producer and writer of the film.Vijay Anand had arranged a music session for Rahul before Nasirji. The film had six songs,all of which were written by Majrooh Sultanpuri and sung by Mohammed Rafi-- four of which were duets with Asha Bhonsle. But it was also Shammi Kapoor, the superstar of the period and the hero, who finally selected RD for "Teesri Manzil" after listening to the tunes for the songs--"O mere sona", "Aja Aja main hoon pyar tera" and"O haseena zulfonwali"."Aja Aja main hoon pyar tera"is regarded as one of the finest provoking songs in Bollywood films. The 1968 showed Pancham's talent in composing the note of"Padosan"-- "Mere samnewali khidki mein", the comical"Ek chatur naar karke shingaar", and the romantic "Kehna Hai, Kehna Hai".

Later, Nasir Hussain went on to sign R. D. Burman and Majrooh Sultanpuri for six of his films including "Baharon ke Swapno"(1967), "Pyar ka Mausam" (1969) and "Yaadon ki Baarat"(1973). Meanwhile,he continued to work as his father's assistant for movies like"Jewel Thief" (1967) and "Prem Pujari"(1970).