Classical Songs of Mohammad Rafi, With Some Thoughts on Gara

Guest article by Subodh C Agrawal

(My friend Subodh Agrawal is a great lover of music, he wields a fluent pen, and knows a good deal about classical music. Being among the earliest ones to be a part of SOY journey, he had accepted my request to write a series on film songs based on classical raags. It is difficult to believe that once upon a time he was an active contributor to the Songs Of Yore. For the last few years, he has been in hibernation, his only excuse being he was not feeling like writing anything. His last guest article for SOY was more than four years ago. I am happy that Rafi’s centenary has woken him up from his deep slumber.

For newcomers to the SOY, Subodh is from UP, worked in Punjab and Delhi, and after retirement, is settled at Chandigarh.

Subodh writes on a serious subject with a light touch which you see in his very first sentence. In fact the subject line in his mail mentioned, Kumbhkarn has woken up! The article was too late to be scheduled in the 2024, but it was too good to be left out. Some more Rafi-fans also had sent me their tributes somewhat late, hence I am pleased to extend the Rafi centenary celebrations. Thank you, Subodh for finally giving this pleasant surprise. – AK)

The birth centenary of Mohammad Rafi (December 24, 2024) has pulled me out of my Kumbhkarn like slumber. I don’t even remember when I contributed my last article to this platform. My apologies to those who expected more from me. Hopefully this article will make up for the delay.

When one thinks of classical songs by male singers in Hindi films, Manna Dey’s name automatically springs to mind – and rightly so. He has given us some of the greatest classical based songs: ‘Poochho na kaise maine rain bitaayee’, ‘Laga chunari mein daag’, ‘Jhanak jhanak tori baaje payaliya’ to name just a few. However, the classical songs of Rafi are no less. His name is not so easily identified with classical songs because of his amazingly wide range. The songs in the list below show that he was not lacking in the skill needed to do full justice to classical ragas.

Before I present the list I would like to make a distinction between songs that are quite clearly and obviously based on ragas because they present the alaaps and taans typical of a regular classical piece. There are many other songs, however, which are faithful to a raga, but don’t have the embellishments typical of a classical performance. The list below presents both types of songs.

1. Man tarpat hari darshan to aaj, in Malkauns from Baiju Bawra (1952), music by Naushad, lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni

Some classical based songs from Hindi films have become iconic examples of their ragas. Teachers of classical music use these songs to explain the structure of the raga to their students. This song has everything one expects from the majestic Malkauns: depth, an aura of tranquility despite expression of inner anguish, prayerful mood. In the days of social media it is often presented as a classic example of our Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb with three Muslims creating an outstanding Hindu prayer.

2. O duniya ke rakhwale, in Darbari from Baiju Bawra (1952), music by Naushad, lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni

This song is faithful to Darbari, also known as Darbari Kanada. However, I don’t count it among my favourites. I don’t like Darbari being used for this type of wailing and whining. As the name suggests, it is a majestic raga and should be used as such. There are other ragas like Todi for as much wailing as one wants. Rafi, however, has done a great job with this song in both high and low notes.

3. Madhuban mein Radhika naache re, in Hameer from Kohinoor (1960), music by Naushad, lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni

Another iconic song from the Rafi-Naushad-Shakeel trio. Students of classical music have tuned their ears to Hameer by listening to this song. This has all the embellishments one associates with a full-fledged classical performance. Rafi manages all of them, except the taans filmed on Mukri which, according to Wikipedia, have been sung by Ustad Niaz Ahmad Khan. Some other sources, however, attribute these taans to Ustad Amir Khan, thought that appears unlikely – given the sober style of Ustad Amir Khan. Our expert Sh. KL Pandey confirms that it is Ustad Niaz Ahmad Khan. (In any case, that portion in the total song is so insignificant that I would like to give the entire credit to Rafi for this great song. – AK)

4. Man re tu kahe na dheer dhare, in Yaman from Chitralekha (1964), music by Roshan, lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi

This was rated as the best Hindi film song of all time in a poll conducted by Outlook Magazine a couple of decades back. It is a simple composition without any complicated harkats or murkis but absolutely true to the tranquil and prayerful mood of Yaman – Roshan’s favourite raga (also mine!).

There is a popular post on social media about a dialogue between Sahir Ludhianvi and Pandit Narendra Sharma about Hindi and Urdu. Sahir, apparently, said that Shuddh Hindi was incapable of expressing subtle moods and emotions needed by songs and this was best left to Urdu. Pandit Narendra Sharma charmed him with the lyrics of Jyoti kalash chhalke and Sahir had to concede that Hindi was as suitable for songs as Urdu.

I don’t know whether this anecdote is true or not, but a good story is a good story. Bhabhi Ki Chudiyan was released in 1961. Three years later Sahir demonstrated his remarkable prowess with Shuddh Hindi in the songs of Chitralekha.

5. Nache man mora magan tig da dhigi digi, in Bhairavi from Meri Surat Teri Aankhen (1963), music by SD Burman, lyrics by Shailendra

This song should dispel any doubts one may have about Rafi’s ability to sing songs based on classical ragas. It is from the same film in which Manna Dey gave the all-time classic Poochho na kaise main rain bitayi. Still, SDB chose to give this song to Rafi.

The tabla in this song is played by Pandit Samta Prasad, also known as Gudai Maharaj. I vaguely recall there was an interesting anecdote about how he was persuaded to perform, but I can’t recall the details.

6. Radhike tune bansuri churayi in Nayaki Kanhda, Darbari, Pilu, Patdeep from Beti Bete (1964), Music by Shankar-Jaikishan, lyrics by Shailendra

The song begins with a flute prelude in Pilu followed by a mix of Darbari and Nayaki Kanhda with a glimpse of Patdeep in the second line of the stanza. I could not confirm this with Mr KL Pandey’s magnum opus, as I didn’t find it in the appropriate place between Radhey Radhey (4943) and Radio (4944). I would very much appreciate his valued comments if he reads this. (Radhike tune bansuri churaayi is listed at #4744, and raags mentioned are Darbari Kanhada+Naayaki Kanhda+Kafi+Patdeep. KL Pandey does not mention Pilu, Subodh doesn’t mention Kafi – AK)

7. Koi sagar dil ko behlata nahin, in Kalawati/Jansammohini from Dil Diya Dard Liya (1967), music by Naushad, lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni

This song would not be considered classical based by most lay listeners, as it lacks the embellishments and flourishes typical of a classical performance. While I am quite familiar with Kalawati, my knowledge of Jansammohini is limited to the classic Haye re wo din kyun na aaye from Anuradha. I would identify it only as Kalawati. I listened carefully to the song twice, but couldn’t place the note ‘re’ or the phrase ‘ga-re-ni-sa.’ I request Mr KL Pandey and Ashwin Bhandarkar to enlighten me by drawing attention to the particular timestamp in the video.

8. Maine chand aur sitaron ki tamanna ki thi in Bhimpalasi from Chandrakanta (1956), Music by Datta Naik, lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi

Bhimpalasi is one of the sweetest ragas. Datta Naik has kept this composition simple, making it popular with amateur singers. Rafi too has presented it in a straightforward manner that goes directly to the listener’s heart.

9. Saaz ho tum aawaz hun main, in Patdeep from Saaz aur Awaaz (1966), music by Naushad, lyrics by Khumar Barabanqvi

We had a glimpse of Patdeep in song no 6. Here is the raga in its full glory. This is another iconic song used by students to get a feel for the raga.

As I mentioned in my article on Bhimpalasi and related ragas, Patdeep is formed by changing the komal ‘ni’ of Bhimpalasi to shudh, just as Chandrakauns is formed by a similar change in Malkauns. This one change completely alters the character of the raga. The feminine softness of Bhimpalasi goes out to be replaced by an aggressive masculinity.

10. Hum bekhudi mein tum ko pukare chale gaye in Chhayanat from Kala Pani (1958), Music by SD Burman, lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri

Chhayanat is eminently suited for ghazals. This song doesn’t meet the strict definition of a ghazal but the mood of expressing one’s feelings from the depth of one’s heart is very much like a ghazal. Majrooh, SDB, and Rafi have joined hands to give us a beautiful composition and Dev Anand has not let them down.

Sorry for the advert in the beginning of the video. All video versions that I could locate had such annoying ads, and I thought something would be lost if one didn’t show Dev Anand.

Thoughts on Gara

I would have sworn that Mohe panghat pe Nandlal chhed gayo re was Pilu. It came as a surprise to know that it was Gara. Gara is a very slippery raga often confused with others.

Deepak Raja wrote a very good piece on the nuances of Gara on his blog swaratala.blogspot.com. The article is no longer on the site hence I can’t add the link here. I reproduce a few excerpts I kept from it, rather than giving my own views:

Gara is a rare raga. But, if you have heard several renditions of it, you could be confused because one Gara often does not sound like others. There is a good reason for this because Gara, is not the exclusive name of a well-defined melodic entity. Gara is, in fact, an independent raga, as well as an additive fragrance to other ragas; and that too, in two variants. If there is confusion about Gara, it is because musicians might announce, simply, Gara, when they decide to perform one of the two variants, each of which has a self-explanatory name.

Gara belongs to a family of ragas, which were apparently derived from folk melodies, and entered art-music in association with the Thumree genre. (Manuel, Peter. Thumree in historical and stylistic perspectives, First edition, 1989, Motilal Barasidass, Delhi). This family includes ragas like Kafi, Pilu, Jangula, Barwa, and Zilla, along with several others. These ragas remained loose, informal melodic entities until the 18th century, after which their grammar was organized by classically trained musicians. However, even today, as Manuel points out (Ibid. 1989), they are performed only infrequently in classical and semi-classical music, and in disparate versions. 

Raga Jaijaiwanti bears the closest resemblance to Gara. However, according to some authors (B Subba Rao, Raga Nidhi, 4th edition. 1996, Music Academy, Madras), Gara is a combination of Khamaj, Piloo and Jhinjhoti. The raga belongs to the Kafi parent scale.

This raga is characterized by limited improvisational potential and a zigzag phraseology, both protecting it from the shadow of Jaijaiwanti. But its phrasing strategy exposes it to risk of confusion with other ragas, such as Pilu and Desi in the purvanga, and Barwa (Agra version) in the uttaranga. The most comprehensive risk of confusion for Gara comes, of course, from Jaijaiwanti of either anga (bias) – Desh or Bageshri.

Don’t worry if you can’t make sense of half the words and phrases above. The central message is clear – Gara is not easy to grasp and often gets mixed up with ragas like Jaijaiwanti, Pilu, and Jhinjhoti.

Why this diversion on Gara in an article on Rafi’s classical songs? A search for classical film songs in Gara on Chandrakantha.com brings up seven film songs of which four are Rafi solos, two Rafi duets and only one Mohe panghat pe Nandlal in another voice. The reason is not far to seek. All these songs have a similar feel – of the singer baring his soul to a friend, a beloved, or just to himself in an introspective mood. This is something in which Rafi had no parallel.

So, without further ado I post links to the songs of Rafi in Gara:

11. Tere mere sapne ab ek rang hain from Guide (1965), music by SD Burman, lyrics by Shailendra

12. Kabhi khud pe kabhi halat pe rona aaya from Hum Dono (1961), music by Jaidev, lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi

13. Aise to na dekho from Teen Deviyan (1965), music by SD Burman, lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri

14. Deewana kah ke aaj mujhe phir pukariye from Mulzim (1963), music by Ravi, lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni

15. Humsafar saath apna chhod chale with Asha Bhosle from Aakhri Daao (1953), music by Madan Mohan, lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri

16. Jeevan mein piya tera saath rahe with Lata Mangeshkar from Goonj Uthi Shehnai (1959), music by Vasant Desai, lyrics by Bharat Vyas

This one is different from the other five with its peppy rhythm.

Songs 1 to 10 relate to ragas that have featured earlier on SoY and these songs have also been presented. Hence, I am not adding clips of classical music in these ragas. However, as Gara is featuring for the first time, I add a few pieces for the enjoyment of learned readers of this blog.

Ustad Vilayat Khan: https://youtu.be/wITfom4rqu8?si=2uzFxMYwermKSfBj

Rajan and Sajan Mishra: https://youtu.be/rchjc0Sb1tM?si=VgtfNafLT3NMLc00

Kaushiki Chakraborty: https://youtu.be/Gjh_SskKvPQ?si=IoiSZdJMDiZaWLgy

Before leaving let me say that after listening to songs 11 to 15 I had thought the songs Aap aaye to khayal-e dil-e nashad aaya and Jaag dil-e diwana were also in Gara. The first is listed as Gara on one YouTube channel, but Shri K L Pandey’s book doesn’t list either of them as Gara. I defer to his superior knowledge. (KL Pandey identifies Aap aaye to khayal-e-dil-e-nashad yaad aya as Bageshree+Malgunji; and Jaag dil-e-deewana rut jaagi as Bhairavi.)

With this I take leave and go back to my slumber; for how long, I know not!

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer:
The song links have been have been embedded only for listening pleasure of music lovers. Neither the author nor the blog have any commercial interest and claim no copyright over these songs which vests with the respective rights owners.