Chhaayaageet #233 - "Baapre, yeh kaun gaa raha hai?"
"OMG, who is this singing?"
Some dreams push us to action, others give us something beautiful to hope for. The young hero has two dreams, both associated with the two passions of his life. He knows both are unattainable.
The first dream is to do with cricket. India is 7 wickets down in a dire crisis. In the dream, the young hero, playing for India, walks out to bat, and saves the day for the country.
The second dream is to do with singing. In this dream, the young hero is a fantastic singer, singing massively popular songs. He just loves to sing.
However, in reality, he does not have the voice to match his passion for singing, nor does he have the ability to hold a tune.
The young hero is excited to be cast as the lead hero in the filmmaker’s new film. This is his first opportunity to work with the veteran filmmaker. The cast and crew who have heard the music of the film are already certain it is going to be a chartbuster. The young hero is excited about it.
Any time he is at an outdoor shoot, he always asks the crew on set to crank up the volume on the loudspeakers. This way he can ensure that none of the crew can hear his singing, and he can sing to his heart’s content.
Outdoor shoots are the best. The camera pans. It zooms in. It takes long shots. For the most part, the crew is not within hearing distance. He can just let go of his inhibitions and sing away to glory.
Whoever said you only need to lip sync? Our hero actually sings every song. But only when the shoot is on outdoor location. He is also known as the ‘jumping jack’ for his energetic dancing, running, jumping as he sings the song.
Little does anyone know that he is actually singing, and not just moving his lips.
So it is then that our hero and heroine find themselves on location to film this song. It is a vast open field. The choreographer provides instructions on the dance steps. The loudspeakers are set up so that the hero and heroine can hear the song being played even when they are a little distance away from the camera.
The hero asks the spot boys to crank up the volume on the loudspeakers. They reluctantly do it. They are the ones who have to stand near the speakers and listen to it blaring into their ears.
The camera rolls. The director calls, “Action.” The hero and heroine start dancing to the song.
All of a sudden the music stops and the loudspeakers go silent. Someone apparently tripped over the wire disconnecting it from the speakers.
The hero is startled. He thinks to himself, “Baapre, yeh kaun gaa raha hai?” OMG, who is this singing? He is startled to hear his own out-of-tune singing. He feels embarrassed. What must the heroine be thinking? God, how awful he sounds. Why does he have to sing loudly? Can’t he just move his lips and be done with it?
To his amazement, he realizes the heroine is also singing in her voice and not silently lip syncing. And she is equally terrible at singing and even more out-of-tune!
Jeetendra and Asha Parekh lip-synced, and also sang on location, the song Kitna Pyara Wada Hai from Caravan (1971), written and directed by Nasir Hussain. The actual playback is provided by Mohammad Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar, music by RD Burman, and lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri.
Caravan is Jeetendra’s first film with Nasir Hussain. It is also Nasir Hussain’s last film with Asha Parekh in the lead role.
The music of Caravan and the entire soundtrack of the film is one of the hit compositions of RD Burman with chart topping numbers.
RD Burman was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director, however, that year Shankar Jaikishan won for Mera Naam Joker (1971). Asha Bhosle won the Filmfare Award for Best Playback Singer, Female, for the song Piya Tu Ab To Aja.
Caravan was a superhit at the box office. It also garnered widespread popularity in China when it released there in 1979, becoming the highest grossing foreign film in China, surpassing Awaara (1951).
*ing: Jeetendra, Asha Parekh
Music: RD Burman
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
Singer: Mohammad Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar
Director: Nasir Hussain
Film: Caravan (1971)