Chhaayaageet #152 - “Isko kya aapne koi baniye ki dukaan samjha hai? Ek gaana tak nahi milega aapko tees din mein.”
The filmmaker is on cloud nine. His Tamil film has broken all records for the year. The film is an Indian blend of Robinhood and Zorro. The protagonist steals from the rich and helps the poor. The film has the right balance of fights, songs, dances, and comedy scenes. The whole package. It is a mass entertainer.
The filmmaker feels invincible and wants to monetize further. If one film works, why not make more of the same kind? Or make the same film in more languages. Except that has never been done before. But this has not stopped the filmmaker from taking risks in the past. He finally decides. He will remake the same film in five languages.
The Hindi version is the big one to pull through due to the industry size. He is on his way to Bombay. The idea is to clone most aspects of his film. The music is an important aspect of the film’s success. The filmmaker wants quality compositions to be delivered in the shortest amount of time. He decides to meet up with the most sought-after Hindi film composer.
The meeting is fixed at the composer's house. Even though the filmmaker is into Tamil films, his reputation proceeds him. The composer knows all about him and his recent successes.
“Sirji, mein meri Tamil film ko paanch aur languages mein bana raha hoon. Mein chahta hoon Hindi film ka composition aap banaaye.” Sirji, I am remaking my Tamil film in 5 other languages. I want you to be the composer for the Hindi remake version. The composer is honored to hear that. “Yeh to bahut acchi baat hai. Mein kuch mahinon mein aapke liye bahut badhiya compositions taiyaar kar doonga.” This is great to hear. I will have compositions done for you in the next few months. The filmmaker is not happy to hear that. “Kuch mahinon mein? Mujhe nau (9) gaane chhaiye tees din mein.” In a few months? I need 9 songs done in 30 days. This ticks off the composer. “Isko kya aapne koi baniye ki dukaan samjha hai? Ek gaana tak nahi milega aapko tees din mein". Do you think this is a grocery shop? You won't even get a single song here in 30 days.
The filmmaker leaves in disappointment. His search is back to square one. From his sources, he is made aware that there is a composer out there who could meet his aggressive deadlines. He is a bit on the western side and uses many Western instruments. Well, that’s the only one available right now. A meeting is fixed between them.
The new composer seems much more accommodating. He also has a partner in crime. A lyricist who can turn around the lyrics with the same speed. The filmmaker is happy he is making progress. “I would like both of you to move into a hotel with me for the whole month. I am staying there with the rest of my crew as we are working on other aspects of the film. Let’s review the compositions in 30 days.”
Both the composer and lyricist check into the hotel. They start working on the songs. Days go by, and then weeks pass. The lyricist comes up with the lines and the composer tries to put a tune together. But in the end, nothing jives together. it is just not working. Now they are on to the last but final day. There is a meeting set up with the filmmaker for tomorrow to review the compositions except that there are no compositions ready.
They both decide to stay up through the night. For some reason, this night turns out to be different. The lyrics start flowing and the tunes follow suit. One after another. Eight songs down. They are down to the last song now. Something is different about this one.
“What is the situation of this song? I just can’t get the lyrics.” The lyricist is at his wit’s end. He can't proceed until he knows more about the song. The composer tries to recall what he had heard from the film crew. “I think it is a fast dance song. There are two South Indian sisters trained in Bharat Natyam doing the dance sequence. I have chosen a pair of sisters to do their playback.” The lyricist feels like he has something now to move forward. “I think I need to put some words together to make them rhyme to stay with the song's tempo.”
Rajinder Krishan wrote the lyrics of the song, Aplam Chaplam along with eight other songs for the film Azaad. C. Ramchandra composed the music and the film was produced/directed by S.M. Sriramulu Naidu. The playback of the song was provided by Lata Mangeshkar and Usha Mangeshkar. The song is picturized on Sai and Subbulakshmi who were experts in Bharat Natyam dance.
The film Azaad was based on the hit Tamil film, Malaikkallan which was produced and directed by Mr. Naidu. Looking at the success of the Tamil version, he decided to remake the film in 5 other languages (Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Sinhalese). He was the first producer/director to remake films in 5 other languages.
The timing of the release was very important to Mr. Naidu so that he could monetize the films to their maximum potential. When he met with Naushad for the composition of the Hindi version, he didn't like the timeline that Naushad proposed to him. Naushad was well known for doing monthly rehearsals until the final recording happened. For him to compose 9 songs in a month was simply unthinkable.
That’s where C. Ramchandra and Rajinder Krishan were brought in to do the 9 songs in a month. Rajinder Krishan was well-known for completing songs in a matter of days as compared to his peers. C. Ramchandra had a similar track record for completing compositions. They struggled through the entire month but were able to finally pen and compose the songs on the last night.
In addition to Aplam Chaplam, the rest of the songs of Azaad included hit songs such as Na Bole Na Bole Na Bole Re, Kitna Hansi Hai Mausam, and Ja Ri Ja Ri O Kari Badariya.
Azaad was the top-grossing Hindi film in the year of its release, and one of the biggest Hindi film hits in the decade. In addition, Dilip Kumar won his second Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his work in this movie. The Malayalam remake used the same opening lyrics for their Chaplam Chaplam song.
Music: C. Ramchandra
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar, Usha Mangeshkar
*ing: Sai, Subbulakshmi
Producer/Director: S.M. Sriramulu Naidu
Film: Azaad (1955)