Chhaayaageet #108 - “That’s strange, I don’t recall singing that song.”

It is his sister’s wedding today. He is catching up with all his relatives. He just got introduced to a distant cousin who is an actor and a singer. All actors have to know how to sing these days.

What would be a better gift to his sister than sing a nice song for her. Singing has always been his passion. He delivers his performance apt for the occasion. There is thundering applause. He can see his cousin walking towards him with both arms stretched out ready for an embrace. “You sang so well. You need to come with me to Bombay. I can introduce you to experts who can really polish your talent. Also, I know a composer really well. You should meet him” There is no convincing needed for the young singer.

A meeting is fixed with the composer. “Ok, let’s hear your voice. Sing for me something.” The singer idolizes the superstar actor and singer of that time. He closes his eyes and sings one of his somber songs. The composer is stunned listening to the young man’s voice. He had imitated the maestro’s voice to perfection. “I like your voice. I want us to work together.”

The composer is a good singer himself. This latest film that he had signed up for, he felt he could sing the songs rather than hire another singer. But what the heck, let’s try this young man.

He invites the singer over for a rehearsal. The song is quite sophisticated. The hero is going through a heartbreak and expresses his feelings full of melancholy. The singer just can’t get it right. He tries several times. “You leave it. You’re not getting the song right. I will sing it myself.” The singer is disappointed and leaves right away.

He meets his actor relative and unloads his emotional baggage. “If composers and actors sing their own songs, what is going to happen to us singers? What is the future for us?” The actor can sympathize with him. He doesn’t say anything. Instead, he goes to the composer and repeats verbatim what he heard from the young singer.

There is a long pause. “You have a point. We cannot do everything. Act, compose, sing, etc. Let him sing this song. Call him for the recording.” The composer feels he is breaking the trend by doing this.

The composer and all the musicians reach the Famous Studios in Tardeo on the recording day. The singer is nowhere to be seen. Where is he?

“After all the hullabaloo about wanting to sing the song, he hasn’t shown up at the recording. Does anyone know where he is?” The composer is getting upset now.

One of his assistants just walks in through the door. “I just met him. He is sitting at a bar in Chowpatty, drinking away. He is very nervous and getting a few drinks to gather the courage to sing. He should be here soon.”

The composer cannot control himself. He rushes to the bar. He spots him in a corner drinking away to glory. He goes near him and picks him up by his collar. “You had said what will happen to singers? You better sing the song now.” The singer is not at all in control. He has had one too many.

The composer drags him to the bathroom and puts his head under the tap. On the way, he gestures to the waiter to get some coffee. It’s time to sober up the singer.

They get back to the studio. Apparently, he is so sobered up after that, he sings the song very satisfactorily in just one take. After the recording, the song is played back. There is total silence in the studio and not a single dry eye.

The film is released. One fine day, the superstar happens to hear the song. He is taken aback. “That’s strange, I don’t recall singing that song.”

https://www.youtube.com/embed/Yu0ibF46cio

Mukesh Chand Mathur (aka Mukesh) sang Dil Jalta Hai for the film Pehli Nazar. The music was composed by Anil Biswas and the lyrics were penned by Aah Sitapuri.

Mukesh's voice was first noticed by Motilal Rajvansh, a distant relative, when he sang at his sister's wedding. Motilal was an actor as well as a singer. In those times (before 1950) it was quite common for an actor to be the playback singer too. Motilal took him to Mumbai and arranged for singing lessons by Pandit Jagannath Prasad. His first hit song as a playback singer was Dil Jalta Hai for actor Motilal in 1945 with the film Pehli Nazar which was his 2nd career film.

Mukesh was such a fan of superstar singer K. L. Saigal that in his early years of playback singing, he used to imitate his idol. In his first meeting with composer Anil Biswas, he sang Saigal’s Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya. Anil Biswas was stunned by how indistinguishable his voice was from that of Saigal. Mukesh was a big proponent of singers focusing on just their specific talent rather than diluting that with acting and composing. He started the trend where acting and singing was assigned to separate individuals.

K.L. Saigal was so impressed with Mukesh’s singing after hearing Dil Jalta Hai that for a moment he thought it was his own voice. That was the reason for his remark. “That’s strange, I don’t recall singing that song.”

Here is Mukesh singing the same song live in a concert.

Singer: Mukesh
Music: Anil Biswas
Lyrics: Aah Sitapuri
*ing: Motilal Rajvansh, Munawar Sultana
Director: Mazhar Khan
Film: Pehli Nazar (1945)