Chhaayaageet #180 - "Kal se tum saadi pehen kar studio aana."
The filmmaker has his own studio finally. It makes such a big difference. He doesn't have to bother scheduling time with other studios. Not to mention dealing with their specific quirks. Ah, freedom at last.
There is a debut film planned as part of the inauguration of the studio. The filmmaker wants it to be a musical blockbuster. He has already selected the cast including a seventeen-year-old actress who will be featured on the big screen for the first time. Everybody is excited about this venture. The next step now is to finalize the composer.
There is one composer who is really apt for the film based on the music that the filmmaker wants but he is booked solid. He is in so much demand. The filmmaker still decides to call him.
“Haan bhai. Kaise ho? Tumse dates chhaiye thi meri nai film ke liye. Issi mahiney mein” How are you, brother? I needed dates from you for my new film. I need it for this month.
The composer responds back in a serious tone. “Aap mazaak to nahin kar rahe ho. Aap ko meri dates kuch mahinon pehle mangni chhaiye thi. Mein aapke liye agle kuch mahinon tak kuch nahin kar sakta hoon.” Are you joking? You should have asked me for dates a few months back. I cannot do anything for you for the next few months. And he hangs up. So much ego. The filmmaker is pissed and shocked at the same time.
The filmmaker knows the film world well. He decides to look for others. He makes a few phone calls. He knows a lyricist friend who has become a close confidant over the years. One day he calls the lyricist, “Yaar, ek composer ki talaash mein hoon. Koi hai tumhari nazar mein.” I am looking for a composer. Do you know anyone?
The lyricist pauses on the other side. “Koi bhi tujurbe waala nahin hai meri nazar mein. Haan par ek ubharta hua sitaara hai. Tum kaho to tumhari mulaakaat karwa deta hoon.” I don’t know any experienced composer who will be available now. But there is a promising newcomer. If you want I can make an introduction. The filmmaker agrees and the meeting is set.
The filmmaker expects a young guy in a kurta pajama trying to break into the industry ready with his compositions. In walks the lyricist. And along with him, there is a young girl in a frock. “Kya hua, composer ko saath nahin laaye.” What happened? You didn’t get the composer along with you.
The lyricist smiles. “Dada, yeh ladki hi aapki composer hai.” Dada, this girl is the composer.
The filmmaker can’t believe his eyes. He turns to the girl and asks, “Acchha, kya umar hai aapki?” Ok, what is your age?
The girl is shy at first but then responds sheepingly, “Mein satrah saal ki hoon.” I am seventeen years of age. The filmmaker is still trying to get over the part that this whiff of a girl is a composer but now he also learns that she is seventeen. This meeting is not what he thought it would be.
Now that she is here, he wants to use the time wisely. He asks her, “Sunao kuch apni dhunnon ko.” Play some of your compositions.
The girl grabs a harmonium and goes through several of her compositions. The filmmaker is quite pleased. The filmmaker moves the conversation forward in earnest. “Dekho ye jo film hai uske liye mujhe iss famous composer ke style ki dhun chhaiye.” You see this film that I am making, I need the compositions to match the style of this famous composer. The girl shakes her head in confirmation. The typical sideways head nod that signals a Yes.
A meeting is set for the girl to come to the recording studio to meet others in the team. She shows up at the agreed-upon time, wearing a frock just like before. The filmmaker assembles the entire team and addresses them, “Mein aap sabko iss film ki composer se milaana chaahta hoon.” I want to introduce the composer of the film to all of you.
The musicians try to contain their shock and in some cases laughter as well when they hear this. The filmmaker leaves after the introductions.
The young girl composer decides to address the team. “Aap mein se kissi ko mere saath kaam karne mein koi dikkat to nahin hai?” Does anyone of you have a problem working with me?
The musicians shake their head. This time it is a sideways head nod that means No. She is delighted that she has this great team. She will be composing songs for a film made by a well-known filmmaker in his studio. What more could she ask for.
Compositions, rehearsals, and recordings commence over the next few weeks. She shows up to the studio on time and focuses on her work. But, something is not right. Whenever she has her back to the musicians, she can hear whistling and laughing in the back. As soon as she turns around, there is silence and everyone looks like they are engrossed in work. It doesn't take long for her to realize what’s going on. She is being subjected to eve-teasing. A young girl in a frock among middle to old age men. And she is telling them what they should be doing. It's a male dominated industry. This is the 1950s.
After putting it up for a few days, she can’t take it anymore and decides to meet with the filmmaker. The filmmaker goes silent like he is in deep thought over this issue. He opens up, “Yeh to acchi baat nahin hai. Mujhe meri team se ye ummeed nahin thi.” This is not good. I did not expect this from my team.
She wonders if he might go to the studio and reprimand everyone over this behavior. Instead the filmmaker says, “Ek kaam karo. Kal se tum saadi pehan kar studio aana.” Do one thing. From tomorrow you come to the studio in a sari. The girl composer is shocked but decides to follow the filmmaker’s advice.
The next day, she shows up to the studio in a sari. Immediately she sees a change in their behavior. Her team is much more respectful and ready to abide by her requests. The recordings happen as per the schedule. The film gets released and declared a musical hit.
Usha Khanna composed the music for her debut film Dil Deke Dekho. The film was produced by Sashadar Mukherjee, directed by Nasir Hussain, and lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri. The playback for all solo and duet songs was provided by Mohammed Rafi and Asha Bhosle. The lead cast of the film included Shammi Kapoor and Asha Parekh in her debut as a heroine.
Sashadhar Mukherjee selected two seventeen-year-olds for his first movie which was shot in his own production house, Filmalaya Studios. This included Asha Parekh as the lead female actor and Usha Khanna as the composer. Sashadhar initially wanted to select OP Nayyar as the composer since he was at the top of his game at that time. When he was approached by Sashadhar, OP Nayyar was quite abrupt with him regarding timing. He was also known for charging the highest fees in the industry. Sashadhar could not handle his ego and decided to look for an alternate.
Sashadhar was friends with the lyricist Indeevar at that time. Indeevar knew Usha Khanna’s family through his father. Right from childhood, Usha was immersed in music since her father was a ghazal shaayar and also wrote lyrics for a few films during the 1940s and 1950s. Initially, Usha wanted to be a singer but Indeevar spotted the talent in her for composing music. Once he heard that Sashadhar was on the lookout for a new composer, he suggested Usha Khanna's name. Usha Khanna is only the third woman to become a film music director after Jaddan Bai (mother of Nargis), and Saraswati Devi both of whom worked in the 1930s and 1940s.
Dil Deke Dekho was a big musical blockbuster. Songs like Dil deke dekho, Bade hain dil ke kaale, Hum aur tum aur yeh sama and Yaar chulbula hai were all great hits. Her style was very similar to OP Nayyar and this was one of the key reasons why Sashadhar chose her in the first place. A lot of people initially did not believe that a young girl could compose such successful film music until the next few years during which she delivered other music hits in films such as Hum Hindustani (1960) and Shabnam (1964). She still remains one of the very few female composers in a male-dominated film-music industry and the only one who survived a long tenure and provided great compositions right from the 1950s until the 2000s.
After Dil Deke Dekho, Nasir Hussain started his own production company. From Dil Deke Dekho onwards, Asha Parekh was the heroine in every Nasir Hussain film.
The title song Dil deke dekho is inspired from the song, Sugartime, by the McGuire Sisters. See below.
Music: Usha Khanna
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
Singers: Mohammed Rafi, Asha Bhosle
*ing: Shammi Kapoor, Asha Parekh
Produced by: Sashidhar Mukherjee
Directed by: Nasir Hussain
Film: Dil Deke Dekho (1959)