Chhaayaageet #278 - "In bachhon se gaana gawaalo. Mujhe kyun pareshan kar rahe ho?”

Get the song recorded by these kids. Why are you troubling me?

The recording studio looks more than busy today. The musicians are tuning their instruments in anticipation of the upcoming rehearsals and final recording.

Suddenly, the door flies open. It is Dada. He walks in like he owns the place. He cracks jokes with the recording crew on the way, laughing loudly. Seriousness ceases to exist when he is around.

As he walks toward the singing booth, he spots a young man sitting with a harmonium. Dada recognizes him immediately. It is Hariharan, the classical and ghazal singer.

Dada exclaims. “Arre Hari! Tu yahan kya kar raha hai? Kya tu bhi ye gaana gaa raha hai?” Hey Hari! What are you doing here? Are you also singing this song?

Hari smiles respectfully and nods. “Ji Dada, main bhi is gaane mein hoon.” Yes, Dada, I am also in this song.

Dada chuckles, thinking it is a nice duet. He glances further into the studio. Sitting right there is another person who looks familiar. It is Anup Jalota. Dada walks over.

“Anup! Kya tu bhi is gaane ka hissa hai?” Anup! Are you also a part of this song? Anup smiles back. “Ji haan Dada, main bhi yehi gaana ga raha hoon.” Yes, Dada, I am also singing this song.

Dada shakes his head, highly amused. Three male voices in this one song. He turns his eyes toward the far corner of the singing booth. There, he spots someone curled up tightly and wrapped in a thick woolen shawl, looking really miserable. Dada steps closer, looking at him with concern.

“Arre tu kaun hai aur yahan kya raha hai? Kya hua tujhe?” Who are you and what are you doing here? What happened to you?

He looks up with tired eyes. “Dada, main Suresh Wadkar hoon. Main bhi yahan gaana gaane aaya hoon. Mujhe thoda sa bukhar hai.” Dada, I am Suresh Wadkar. I have also come here to sing a song. I have a bit of a fever.

Dada stands in the middle of the room, scratching his head, trying to digest the fact that there are four singers lined up for a single track. What is this song about? Just as he is processing this, the restroom door clicks open. Shailendra Singh walks out into the studio.

Dada looks at Shailendra for a second. He throws his hands up in the air and laughs. “Ab tu ye mat kehna ki tu bhi yehi gaana gane aya hai!” Now you don’t tell me that you have also come to sing this same song!

Shailendra, completely unaware of the conversation that just took place, looks a bit confused about what’s going on. He responds innocently, “Ji Dada, haan.” Yes, Dada.

Dada is absolutely amazed. He looks around the room at the four singers. The composer has really gone all out, gathering a small army of singers for one melody! He quickly gathers all of them together.

“Dekho bhai, main tum sabse umar mein bada hoon aur senior bhi hoon. Main ghar ja raha hoon, aur jab tak main ghar na pahunch jaun, koi bhi Bala (the composer) ko kuch nahi batayega!” Look, brothers, I am older than all of you, and I am also your senior. I am going home, and until I reach home, nobody will tell Bala (the composer) anything!

Before anyone can ask questions, Dada slips out of the studio door and disappears.

A little while later, Bala walks into the main recording hall. He wants to have a quick rehearsal.

“Chalo sab log, taiyar ho jao. Ek baar rehearsal kar lete hain.” Come on, everyone, get ready. Let’s rehearse once.

The composer looks around the room, expecting to see a familiar face. He turns to his studio assistant.

“Dada kahan hai? Usse andar bulao.” Where is Dada? Call him inside. The assistant looks nervous. “Balasaheb, woh toh ghar chale gaye.” Balasaheb has already left for home.

The composer is not surprised. He knows exactly who he is dealing with. Without wasting a moment, he walks over to the studio telephone and dials Dada’s home number.

Back at his house, Dada picks up the phone. But instead of his usual voice, he answers in a perfectly mimicked female voice, pretending to be the maid.

“Hello? Kaun bol raha hai? Ghar par koi nahi hai.” Hello? Who is speaking? There is no one at home.

Balasaheb has known Dada for a very long time. He hears right through the mimicry.

“Dada! Yeh apni aawaz badalna band karo. Tum recording chhod kar ghar kyun chale gaye? Studio wapas aa jao.” Dada! Stop changing your voice. Why did you leave the recording and go home? Come back to the studio!

Hearing himself get caught, Dada drops the female act. He lets out his signature hearty laugh over the receiver, coming clean to the composer.

“Arre Bala! Wahan pehle se hi itne saare gaane wale baithe hain. In bachhon se gaana gawaalo. Mujhe kyun pareshan kar rahe ho?” Hey Bala! There are already so many singers sitting over there! Get the song recorded by these kids. Why are you troubling me?

Suresh Wadkar, Hariharan, Anup Jalota, and Shailendra Singh provided the playback for the song Footpathon Ke Ham Rahane Vaale from the film Mashaal. The music was composed by Hridaynath Mangeshkar, and the lyrics were penned by Javed Akhtar. The film was produced and directed by Yash Chopra. The song was picturized on Anil Kapoor, Gulshan Grover, Madan Jain, and Harish Magon.

Hridaynath Mangeshkar had Kishore Kumar selected for most of the other songs in Mashaal, such as Zindagi Aa Raha Hoon Main and a duet, Mujhe Tum Yaad Karanaa Aur Mujhako Yaad Aanaa Tum. These turned out to be major hits. He invited Kishore Kumar to the group song as well, which was picturized on all the youth characters in the film. Once Kishore Kumar reached the studio and saw the number of singers already invited, he decided to go back home. Hridaynath requested him to come back, but wasn’t successful.

Yash Chopra’s films always had a musical aspect to them. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, he relied almost exclusively on Kalyanji-Anandji and Shiv-Hari. But for Mashaal, which was adapted from the Marathi play Ashroonchi Zhali Phule, he felt that Hridaynath Mangeshkar would be the better choice. Hridaynath Mangeshkar was an absolute maestro in Marathi cinema and theater, and Yash Chopra knew that he could provide the music for a complicated subject such as Mashaal.

Hridaynath’s nickname was Bala since he was the youngest in the Mangeshkar family.

At the 32nd Filmfare Awards, Anil Kapoor won the award for Best Supporting Actor. Dilip Kumar was nominated for Best Actor, and Javed Akhtar for Best Story.

Singer(s): Suresh Wadkar, Hariharan, Anup Jalota, Shailendra Singh
Composer: Hridaynath Mangeshkar
Lyrics: Javed Akhtar
Producer/Director: Yash Chopra
Actor(s): Anil Kapoor, Gulshan Grover, Madan Jain, Harish Magon.
Film: Mashaal (1984)