Chhaayaageet #253 - "Agar aisa hai to, main bhi iss film ke liye ek paisa nahin loonga.”
If that is the case, then I will also not charge a single paisa for this film.
The year is 1971. The filmmaker is at the peak of his productivity, balancing two massive projects simultaneously. He is a man of habit. He insists on using the same crew, including most of the cast, for both films. Probably his way to keep the creative energy consistent across his films. The only difference is the music team, including the composer and lyricist.
However, tragedy strikes mid-production.
The film with the duo composer team loses the junior composer. The senior composer is completely heartbroken. He is left with no desires. Finishing the film is the last thing on his mind.
The filmmaker pays him a visit at this Marine Drive residence and offers his condolences. The senior composer knows what’s on the filmmaker’s mind. “Main ye film nahin kar sakta hoon ab. Par main poori koshish karoonga ki iss film ko ek kabil composer mil jaye. Mera ek dost composer hai, chalo uske ghar chalte hain. Aapne ek film ki hai usske saath.” I cannot do this film by myself. But I will try to help you hand over this film to a capable composer. I have a composer friend in mind. You have worked with him in one of your previous films.
He asks his driver to take the car out. They start driving towards the new composer’s home in Santa Cruz. The entire drive, the silence is heavy. The evening traffic does not help and prolongs the somberness.
They both enter the house. There are no loud greetings. Everyone is mourning the absence of a maestro.
“Aapko shayad pata ho hum kyun aaye hain.” You might have realized why we have come. The Senior Composer says, his voice cracking slightly.
The new composer nods slowly. He knows it. Very few words are spoken, and he agrees to do the film. For him, this isn’t just a job or a career move. It feels like a sacred obligation.
The filmmaker is sad but a bit relieved that he has someone to finish the composition. They agree to meet next at the recording studio. Something else is bothering him. Given the solemnity of the moment, he forgot to ask the composer his price.
The composer shows up at the recording studio. The filmmaker is already there waiting for him. “Ek baat karni thi aapse. Aap kitne paise loge iss film ke?” I wanted to talk to you about one thing. How much would you charge for this film?
The composer hadn’t given any thought to this yet. All of it happened so suddenly. Plus, the film is partially done. He decides to throw it back to the filmmaker. “Aap mujhe wohi dijiye jo aapne mere swargwasi dost ke saath tai kiya tha.” You give me the same that you had agreed to pay my late friend.
The filmmaker is in a bind now. “Maine to sirf ek rakam tai ki thi aur woh main bade sangeetkar ko deta tha. Chhote sangeetkar ko main alag se kuch nahin deta tha.” I had agreed to one amount with the senior composer. I wasn’t giving anything separate to the junior composer.
The composer drops his eyes and takes a deep breath. This is his moment to rise up above the mundane. “Agar aisa hai to, main bhi iss film ke liye ek paisa nahin loonga.” If that is the case, then I will also not charge a single paisa for this film.
The filmmaker doesn’t agree but feels it’s not worth pushing. Time to get on with the upcoming composition. “Ye gaana do doston ke baare mein hai. Isski dhun thodi dheemi chhaiye. Tumhari pichli filmon ki dhun se alag hai thodi.” This song is about two friends. The tune needs to be a bit slower. It needs to be different from your previous tunes.
The composer is known for producing compositions on a dime. “Aap fikar mat kijiye. Main ek aur film kar raha hoon jiska sangeet kaafi milta julta hai. Main aisi hi koi dhun iss gaane ke liye banaaonga.” Don’t worry. I am doing another film whose music is similar to this film. I will compose something similar.
The composition gets completed, and the song is recorded.
The day of the shoot arrives. The lead actor is supposed to be singing with the supporting actor. The latter is just sitting there listening to him. The first take is still in the works when the filmmaker shouts, “CUT.”
“Mazaa nahi aa raha hai,” I’m not enjoying this, the Filmmaker mumbles, pacing the floor. “Kuch toh kami hai.” Something is missing. He feels the scene is too stagnant with one character singing and the other just sitting there smiling and listening to his song.
He notices a bulky, strange object near the lead actor’s chair. It is a massive video camera, a rare luxury that the lead actor recently brought back from one of his trips abroad.
The Filmmaker’s eyes light up. “Yeh kya hai? Isse istemaal karte hain!” What is this? Let’s use it!
He hands the heavy camera to the supporting actor. “Tum gaana sunte hue isse shoot karo. Lead actor ke peeche peeche ghoomo.” You shoot with this while listening to the song. Move around behind the Superstar.
Suddenly, the frame comes alive with the new prop. The lead actor sings with his unique expressions, and the supporting actor circles him with the camera, creating an engaging atmosphere.
RD Burman composed the music for the song Diye Jalte Hain as well as the rest of the songs in the film Namak Haram. The film was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, produced by Rajaram Satish Wagle, and the songs were written by Anand Bakshi. The playback for the song Diye Jalte Hain was provided by Kishore Kumar, and the song featured both Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan on the screen.
Hrishikesh Mukherjee was working on two films, Anand and Namak Haram at that time. Both had Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan in the lead and supporting cast. Most of the crew were also shared between the two films, except the music teams. Shankar Jaikishan was initially assigned to compose for Namak Haram, but unfortunately, Jaikishan passed away during the making of the film. Shankar was devastated and requested RD Burman to step in as the composer. At this point, Hrishikesh Mukherjee had only worked with RD Burman in the film, Buddha Mil Gaya, and wasn’t completely sure if RD Burman would be the right choice for the slow tunes he needed in Namak Haram. Also, when it came to payment, RD Burman refused to take any money since Jaikishan was not being paid directly anyway, and he was stepping in because Jaikishan was no longer there. RD Burman was also composing for Amar Prem at that time and used similar tunes in Namak Haram. There are underlying subtleties between Diye Jalte Hain and Chingari Koi Badhke if you listen to them carefully.
Hrishikesh Mukherjee was fascinated with the consumer-grade video camera that Rajesh Khanna once brought to the sets. It was quite massive back in the days and resembled what they used to shoot astronauts in space. He decided to use it as a prop to make the scene much more lively. This is typical of Hrishikeshji, where he would have a character singing with the rest of the cast sitting and listening, but with some twist to it. We have seen that with Ab Ke Sajan Saawan Mein in the film Chupke Chupke.
Namak Haram was unfortunately the last time we would see the pairing of an existing superstar, Rajesh Khanna, with an upcoming superstar, Amitabh Bachchan. Rajesh Khanna influenced Hrishikeshji to change the ending, where his character passes away in the end. He had seen the impact of such endings in his other films, such as Anand and Safar. When Amitabh found out about this, he was furious since the original ending had been envisioned differently by Gulzar in Amitabh’s favor. This created a distance between the two superstars.
Amitabh Bachchan won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor in the film Namak Haram.
Singer: Kishore Kumar
Lyrics: Anand Bakshi
Music: RD Burman
*ing: Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee
Producer: Rajaran Satish Wagle
Film: Namak Haram (1973)