The Rafi-Kishore saga
The following article appeared in The Statesman,Calcutta, on Aug.7 th 2005. It will give more food for thought to the ongoing debate about the Rafi personality and magic – Mohan Flora .
Mohd. Rafi was the greatest playback singer, asserts Ranjan Das Gupta as he pays tribute on the melody kings 25th death anniversary. Rafi was a classically trained singer while Kishore was naturally endowed with excellent resonance. The latter was a versatile genius, singer, music director, actor, writer and director all rolled into one. Both were proficient singers but had separate individual styles.
In the 1950s Rafi literally ruled the roost. He was the most favoured singer for veteran composers like Naushad, S.D. Burman, Shanker Jaikishan, Madan Mohan while Kishore was preferred by S.D. Burman and Salil Choudhury who was playback mainly for Dev Anand and his own films. Rafi on the other hand could balance his melodious voice for diverse stars like Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, Guru Dutt, Rajendra Kumar and Shammi Kapoor.
It is an astonishing fact that O.P. Nayar used Rafi to sing for Kishore Kumar the unforgettable tune Man Mora Bawra in Ragini in 1957. Shanker Jaikishan also had Rafi to sing Ajab Hai Dastan in Shararat in 1958. Says record museum owner Vinod Santhalia, It is simply amazing. Imagine Mohd. Rafi sang for Kishore Kumar in films Kishore himself acted.
Shanker Jaikishan commented, No doubt Kishore Kumar is a good singer. He sang beautifully for me in Rangoli. But Ajab Hai Dastan was simply not Kishores cup of tea. The mukhdas and antaras required a singer of Rafis range and classical background.
Although Kishore Kumar felt bad about this, he could only marvel at Rafis brilliant rendering of the two songs. Rafi characteristically remarked, No one else except Kishore could sing Dukhi Man Mera in Funtoosh so well.
Salil Choudhury was not favourably inclined towards Rafi at one point of time, but even he was compelled to use Rafi for the unforgettable Tootey Huey Khuabo Nay in Madhumati and Koi Soney Ke Dil Wala in Maya and confess that Rafi was indeed peerless.
It is generally known that Rafi and Kishore went through a bad patch in their relationship. Yet it is also true that both liked and respected each other. S.D. Burman openly admitted to Kishore that the three solos in Guide by Rafi could not be matched by any singer. On Dev Anands special request, he composed the Kishore-Lata super hit duet Gata Rahe Mera Dil for Guide. Similarly, Rafis numbers in Teen Deviyan and the haunting duet with Lata Mangeshkar in Jewel Thief were far superior to the Kishore numbers in these films.
In the late 60s when R.D. Burman composed the melody for Tum Bin Jaaun Kahan in Pyar Ka Mausam, he experimented the same solo with both Rafi and Kishore. True, Kishore sang this number by melodiously incorporating his inimitable yodelling. But in the romantic number, Rafi scored over Kishore in melody.
The 60s was also considered Rafis decade though Kishore matured considerably as a singer during this period. The Jungle Mein Mangal number Woh Din Ke Baat Sharan Karo had both Rafi and Kishore together but is somehow not remembered that well. But Shanker Jaikishans Hanste Gate Jahan Se Guzar in Andaz by Rafi quite eclipsed Kishores entire Zindagi Ek Safar in 1971.
Madan Mohan also used both Rafi and Kishore in the song Yu Na Sharma for Parwana in 1972. Kishore sang the happy rendition for hero Navin Nischal. But there was Rafi again to do full justice to the Are Hansnewale, the melancholic aspect of the same song for Amitabh Bachchan.
In the 1970s the Kishore Kumar wave took the Hindi film music by storm and was backed by R.D. Burman. Some critics felt R.D was partial to Kishore and avoided using Rafi. The Rafi Kishore duet Yaadon Ki Barat from the film with the same title in 1973 turned out to be a superhit. But it cannot be categorised either as an exclusive Rafi or a Kishore gem for both sang in perfect harmony.
Subsequently, R.D. Burman opted for Rafi again after four years as no other singer could have rendered so skillfully Chand Mera Dil and Kya Hua in Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin; that too in a film with many Kishore Kumar superhits like Mil Gaya and Aa Meri Jaan.
When Rafi sang Darde Dil for Laxmikant Pyarelal in Karz in1980 based on a single note, he proved melody was indeed God-gifted to him, remembers upcoming singer Sujan Bose. Kishores Ay Mere Umar Ke and Ek Hasina Thi could not touch that level. The same can be said for Rajesh Roshan’s Yarana where Rafi’s Aare Re Aisa Tarana completely surpassed Kishore’s Sara Zamana and Tere Jaisa.
Mohd. Rafi left for his heavenly abode on 31 July, 25 years ago. Remembers author Nabaran Bhattacharya, The photo of a silent, sad and grief-struck Kishore in the newspapers portrayed very well that no one except him understood what an irreparable loss had taken place in Indian film music.
As Kishore himself said when Jagjit Singh criticised the Rafi gharana, How dare these so-called ghazal singers criticise an icon that Manna Dey, Mukesh and I dare not criticise. Rafi was unique.
Well said, Ali!! Kishore is alright in his own right, but is next to nothing as a singer when compared to an unbelievably gifted singer like Rafi!! The Rafi fans don’t even care about comparing Rafi to anyone else because they know for a fact that Rafi is so much greater than the rest. On the other hand, the KK fans are always trying to compare him to Rafi because they have a complex. They know that even though KK was a successful singer, he is nowhere close to Rafi when it comes to versatility, range, quality of voice, expressionism, and sheer “class”!!!
Dear kundu
As u said that SPB and Yesudas are better than KK now and many other singer are better than K K but not because of vote ,dear Kundu u have 2 agree that no way 2 compare Mohd Rafi 2 any singer around the world,As Ravi(MD) said that there are no song which singed by KK and Mohd Rafi can’t sing it but there are many songs which KK can’t sing it but Mohd Rafi singed,also LP ,Madan Mohan,S jai K and O P Nayer they all said that Ravi said that Mohd Rafi can sing any song by best way no singer can do as Mohd Rafi.
Dear Kundu jest be honest with yourself and say If “Kya hua tera waada”was singed by KK,Do u think that it was look same as Mohd Rafi singed it or better?I saw a programm at Zee Tv a look time go,Maybe u remmber it the programm was Amit kummar and his brother sons KK and Amit kummar tried to singed a song of Mohd Rafi and Lata , Amit kummar singed it but so bad way I don’t know about the music but the singing way was so bad also the people at stage said singing it again and amit kummar said that he will sing it othere time but he never.
Dear kk fans please be honest when we comare Mohd Rafi with any singer,As I think and many other there no male singer can be compare with Mohd Rafi,there is only one name in Bollywood we can jest compare her with Mohd Rafi and she is Lata,Jest compare not better than Mohd Rafi.
A man sing for all people and a man sing for money dear KK fans u have to answer it who sings for all and how sing 4 money.
Asif Majeed wrote:
“Because Kishore would have failed miserably trying to go from the high to the low notes’
I guess you havent heard to ->
“Koi humdum Naa raha” from Jhumroo
“Dil aaj shair hain” from Gambler
Hear to them and come back to me.
I agree there are many songs that only Rafi could have sung. But please not “Kya hua Tera waada”!!. Anyone could have sung that song.
LG Usha says:
“About 4 years we had done survey on film music amongst music lovers and lo Rafi sahab n Lata di were voted 75% followed by S.P.Balasubramaniam and Yesudas.”
So SPB and Yesudas are better than KK now. Please!!!
SPB is a great singer no doubt but I think its better he sings in Telegu and other south indian languages.
Sorry K K fans,
K K was a great singer only for Indains as I thinks.IF u ask 2 any Pakistani how is the man from India all Pakistani like him?I think they will say Mohd rafi.
I think the best male singer is clear like the Sun and that is Mohd rafi as many who know about music said.
I don’t understant that why people compare Mohd rafi with K k because as I think(sorry kk fans)KK only be 10% of Mohd Rafi maybe less but not more.
really sorry K K fans.
please try 2 compare K K with other singer not with the King of Bollywood Mohd Rafi.
Please be honest ony 1% when u compare Mohd Rafi with K K,as I think if u will be honest 1% to compare mohd rafi and KK then u will say Mohd rafi
Hi Ashutosh n J.Kundu,
This is to inform u that as true Rafi Sahabs fan I would like to gift both of u with 2 classic masterpieces of evergreen songs sung by THE GREATEST MELODY KING OF OUR TIMES RAFI SAHAB. The songs are taken from 1950s 1960s with some great compositions by Naushad sab, Burman da, Shankar-Jaikishenji, Lakshmikant Pyarelalji,O.P.Nayyar sab etc. Kindly listen to them in silence and if both of u are not won by this mangnificent voice and then GOD save our few listeners like u.
In fact I used to scold some of our friends who told that in Ashique Kumar Shanu was better than Kishore da and Abhijeet singing better than Kishore in Yes Boss. Pl note that imitators cannot bebetter than original. This is the reason poor Mahendra kapporji or Suman Kalyanpur could not come into lime light like Rafi sahab or Lata di.
About 4 years we had done survey on film music amongst music lovers and lo Rafi sahab n Lata di were voted 75% followed by S.P.Balasubramaniam and Yesudas.
Ashutosh n J.Kundu pl email to me at ushanani1@hotmail.com with full address n tel numbers to get free casettes.
Usha Coimbatore
As I said before, KK can never come close to matching Rafi’s talents. Rafi can sing with ease any of Kishore’s songs, but can you imagine Kishore trying to sing ” Oh duniya ke Rakhwale”, Madhuban me Radika, Or “Mere Mehboob tujhe” Even RD who clearly was biased towards KK had to chose Rafi for the sing Kya Huwa Tera Wada”. Anyone cares to guess why? Because Kishore would have failed miserably trying to go from the high to the low notes. KK prospered in an era of loud music, where beat and tempo meant so much more than the talents of the singer. Be real KK fans, MOHD Rafi is the KING, and this is confirmed by one of our greats Manna Dey.
Hi C. Rajendran,
It’s not even a debate as to who is the greatest — anybody who understands music, has a good taste, and is unbiased —- knows that it is Rafi and only Rafi because his body of work just towers over everyone’s else. I am just proud that India gave birth to such a rare talent!!!
And yes, I do have very high respect for Shri Yesudas and Dr. Bala Murali Krishna!!
Ravi
Though the debate is who is the greatest – Rafi or Kishore,
a mention must be made of two other geniuses Shri Yesudas and Dr. Bala Murali Krishna from South of India, the contribution from these veterans to the Music is very great.
Any comments please?.
dear jaydeep,
are u sure that u knows about music,sorry but how u said (naushad compose the hardest song in the world, make the greatest singer sing it, and if it does not get popular), the most popular song in all bollywood is O DUNIYA KE RAKWALE,SUHANI RAAT DACHUKI,MADUBAN MERA DEKHA NACHE RE,and many more in AAN,DEEDAR,MOTHER INDIA, KOHINOOR,GANGA JUMNA,RAM aur SHAM,BAIJU BAWRA,PALKI,MERE HUZOORetc.I dont think RDB/KK have abetter list than this.naushad never asked Kishore Kumar to sing for him because he always want the perfect work.RDB/Rafi make great work toghther.Itell u that after death of Rafi RDB also loose him .I belive he needed Rafi in sharabi to sing MANZILAN APNI JAGA HAIN because KK didt make fair on this song and got awarded.
Manoj:
What we are having here is a debate. If you look at the topic of this discussion, it says “Rafi-Kishore saga”. So I dont think I can find a better place to put forth my comments. So I am not going anywhere 🙂
But I guess I have said what I wanted to say.
Later folks.
Rafi and Kishore both are greatest singers. Let us respect the
contribution of these two singers to the world of music. No doubt both are gifted and are not replaceable.
The teenagers today are crazy after Himesh Reshammiya, Udit Narayan and Sonu Nigam, These three have this to say:
Himesh Reshammiya: I take inspiration from LP’s music and am trying to tread in their path.
Udit Narayan:Rafi is my idol and I am proud to belong to the Rafi school of singing.
Sonu Nigam:Rafi is God! – as told to Kathmandu Express.
What do you infer from the above? That Rafi rules in the heart and mind of people teenagers today are crazy after? Please draw your own conclusions.
Jaydeep…nobody is getting personal here except you. The point is that if you want to show your love for KK & Hemant Da, you should share that in a forum that talks about those singers and I am sure you will get like-minded people, (mostly people who have li’l understanding and experience in the field of music) to agree with you and appreciate your comments.
Anyways, if you gauge somebody’s worth by looking at the teenage population, you would conclude that ShahRukh Khan is greater than Amitabh & Dilip Kumar because in most polls, SRK comes up the winner amongst the teens. It just goes to show how incorrect and incongruous your reasonings are. Anyways, you should know that the greatness of Rafi lies in the fact that not only is he hailed the greatest by most of the masters in the field of Bollywood music, but that he is immensly popular amongst the people all over the world. Even after 25+ years of this death, he is still the most heard and requested Bollywood singer on the radio all over the world, even more than Lata!!!
Manoj:
Dont get personal dude. Its a forum. You write what you feel is right. If you like somebody fine but dont make judgemental remarks. I am not going to ask you or anybody who is best. I decide who is best. I dont know which world you live in but I believe in democracy.
You said “Manna Dey is/was a master singer, and knows everything about Rafi, KK, Hemant Kumar and the rest”. You speak as if you know these people personally and who is Manna Dey to decide who is best. Take a break.
Just because teenagers love RDB/KK doesnt imply these guys are not good. It just goes to show that RDB/KK had a wider audience than Naushad/Rafi etc etc. Its about being popular. You compose the hardest song in the world, make the greatest singer sing it, and if it does not get popular, whats the point.
Like I wrote earlier that Rafi had a vast range and had sung songs composed by a much greater number of composers than Kishore. There should be no doubt as to who is the better singer-Rafi is. Manna Dey says that Rafi is no. 1 to no. 10. Rafi has sung different kinds of songs to showcase his mastery. Kishore is limited to a certain kind of songs just as RD was. As for popularity, minus the Rajesh Khanna era and it was Rafi always. This doesn,t mean that I don’t like Kishore.I like him as much as Rafi but I also accept the facts. I listen to both Rafi and Kishore and enjoy the fare dished out by them equally.But I also know that Rafi Saab is the better and more accomplished singer.As far as Rafi’s versatility and popularity goes, here is this note- Come Republic Day and Independence Day and whose voice do we hear blaring out from functions all over the country-Rafi. During his time Rafi was the most popular singer of Bengali Puja songs in the sixties.Even in the late seventies he had the best selling Bengali song,” Pakhitar booke aman teer mero na,” and as everyone knows, he breathed his last after rehearsing for a Bengali Puja song for a crew which had set up studio in his house as Rafi was feeling not too well. Go to any temple along the Ganges or anywhere else and you are sure to hear his bhajans.His bhajans bring peace and calm compared to others.Rafi was an integral part of Punjabi films. His first ever song was for a Punjabi film Gul Baloch.The 50’s,60’s and 70’s had Rafi singing for all Punjabi films.He is the pioneer of Bhangra songs.Even in Hindi films, he had popular Bhangra songs starting from Raj Kapoor’s Jagte Raho.As for Punjabi devotionals, the shabads he has sung have become classics and you can hear them in Sikh homes and Gurdwaras everyday.What to write about Muslim socials and devotionals. He brought his own grace to them.During his heydays and not so heydays, he recorded for a lot of Telegu,Tamil,Kannada and Malayalam songs which were popular. There are so many other languages in which he has sung- not to forget Marathi,Gujrati and Sindhi. And what about his Christian devotionals? Just hear them.He has also cut a few records in English=including the songs ” the she I love is a beautiful dream come true” and “all through we hail from”=- and they were so popular and brought a smile to hear him give his own masti touch. I could go on and on but I have to go.Rafi is the Emperor and Kishore is King of playback singing. Bye.
Being a Rafi fan, it took me several years to appreciate KK. This was only possible when I stopped comparing KK with Rafi. This goes by theory with other singers as well.
Rafi was the greatest, but I appreciate KK was his fighting spirit. The song from Imtehaan sang by KK “Ruk Jana Nahi Tu Kabhi Haar Ke” is one of my favouraites.
A short note, particularly on National Awards; when Aradhana wave hit Bollywood, the National Award for the best male playback singer that year went to the bag of SD Burman himself for his song “Safal Hogi Teri Aradhana”. Mohd Rafi was honoured with National Award twice, first for “Jinhen Naaz Hai Hind Par” (Pyaasa) and then for “Kya Hua Tera Vaada” (Hum Kisi Se Kam Nahin).
Nair
Dear jaydeep sorry if u mind that I said ever 5 year like k k born but when we speak about playback singer there is one King(mohd Rafi) and one queen(Lata).
Some said that some songs which singed by KK Mohd Rafi can’t sing that songs!!!!!!! and some songs singed by Mohd Rafi K K can’t sing that,I think they are wrong because If we go to Shammi kapoor songs I thing 95% singed by Mohd Rafi and few by Manny day if we go for Rajesh khanna or big B as I thing they have there greatest songs with Mohd rafi,Rajesh Khanna was at the top when he used Mohd rafi voice or go K K as actor K K has his best songs with Mohd Rafi(as I thinK),Mohd rafi jest singed few songs for K K but I think that are great songs.
dear Jaydeep Kundu I like my child more than any one in world it not mean that they are best in world.
we are speaking about Mohd rafi and K K as a singer and we should answer on that jest,we should be honest on that,really I can’t understand how some one can said that KK or any other singeris better than Mohd rafi!!!!! as a singer,As I think Mohd Rafi is live of Music and body without live it is nothings as we see now days,
I think K K was a great actor we should speak about him as actor not compare him with Mohd Rafi if we compare k k with Mohd rafi as singer as I think and many more who know about music they said that Mohd Rafi is best ever born in Bollwood,P from LP said once that it is easy 2 make songs form Mohd Rafi,Lata and Asha because how we make it they will sing it but other singer we should make songs for there voice 2 sing it.
Dear Jaydeep Kundu or Kk fans please jest give me one name who said that he came famous because of K K,about Mohd rafi there are big names in bollywood they said like LP,O P Nayer,Shammi K and many more.
Sorry KK fans if u don’t like what I said.
Hi Jaydeep,
You should really quit writing because as I mentioned in my previous post, you seem to have a habit of putting your foot in your mouth everytime you try to speak. It’s laughable to even think of Hemant Kumar as a better singer than Rafi, and I am from Bengal and have heard most of Hemant Da’s Bengali songs. And a singer is a singer is a singer, no matter what the language is!!! Hemant Da was a pretty good singer but had too many weaknesses and limitations, especially when compared to somebody as gifted as Rafi….just ask another Bengali Manna Dey and he will tell you everything you need to know about Rafi being the greatest ever. Manna Dey is/was a master singer, and knows everything about Rafi, KK, Hemant Kumar and the rest. I can understand if you are some teenager or something who is into RDB/KK, but if you are an adult then please don’t show your musical ignorance and bad taste anymore :-))
Mr Manoj:
Thanks for you kind comment. FYI I was answering Mr Ali Baluch who I think was trying to say that a man like KK can be born every 5 years. I do NOT wish to compare KK with SRT or SRK. That is not my point here. And btw you might be a singer and a great one but as you said everybody has his own choice. If you like Rafi fine, but what soothes your ear might not soothe mine. If you ever listened to Hemant Kumar’s bengali songs (rabindra sangeet) you might think Rafi is not even close to Hemants league but then that is my opinion and I will not force it on anyone. Maybe you will then say we are comparing who can sing hindi songs better 🙂 But again not to digress from the point, I prefer listening to Kishore more than Rafi because I like Kishore’s voice. Doesnt make Kishore a better singer. People will always have different opinions on what they like to hear but its just stupid to say that Kishore’s voice is harsh or bad or things that some people have said in the previous posts. If you think Rafi is a better singer, so be it but do not belittle yourself by belittling a legend.
The statement you made that “everybody universally acknowledges that Rafi is the greatest in pretty much all aspects of singing” is a very bold statement and foolish. You might want to rephrase that as: “everybody I know acknowledges that Rafi is the greatest in pretty much all aspects of bollywood singing”. I wouldnt use the term “universal” in any statement I make unless its a fact and nothing is a fact unless its agreed upon by everybody.
Dear Jaydeep Kundu,
As u said there There are many great singers in this planet but there is and there will be one greatest and he is and will be Mohd Rafi these are not my words.
Yes u r right that KK was all in one,I think we r human and we can’t do many think together if we do it ,i think we will come bad in what we was good in,KK was one of the best actor.
Mohd Rafi I can do what KK done as I think because Mohd Rafi was an actor in one or two films and also give music for some songs(no films).
Mohd rafi don’t like bollywood also put his family away from bollywood.
dear Jaydeep Kundu we are speaking about singer not all in one,it is not mean that the song became famous that he or she is great singer if like that I think the Big B is the best singer because all songs he singed are famous also Amer Khan singed a song it became so famous.
I don’t know about music but about the Name like Naushad,Lata,Manny day,Asha,madan mohan and many more
Hi Jaydeep,
Everytime you write on this forum, you dig yourself a bigger hole!!:-)) We all know that Kishore Kumar was an alright actor, producer, director etc. but it was very clear from the discussions over here that we were talking only from a singing perspective, and which part of that was so unclear to you???? What’s next….are you going to compare Sachin Tendulkar with Rafi and then later clarify that you were referring to Sachin’s cricketing talents and not his singing abilities. 🙂 Plus, one would rather be the GREATEST in one field like Rafi was in the field of singing rather than being average-to-good in several fields.
And by the way, if you understand music you will know that none of Hemant Kumar, Manna Dey, and KK are in the same league as Rafi as singers. I am a singer myself and understand Hindi film music quite a bit, and also hang around with musically literate people and they all believe that Rafi has no peers, and that he is miles ahead of the rest of the pack. Everybody has their own favorites for different reasons, but everybody universally acknowledges that Rafi is the greatest in pretty much all aspects of singing.
Mr Ali Baluch,
There are many great singers in this planet. Rafi was a great singer, no doubt and one of the best, maybe better than Kishore. But the reason I said a man like Kishore will be born every 500 years was because Kishore was not only a singer but also a musician, a writer, an actor, a comedian, a director and a producer. And he was good at most of them. Look at Hemant Kumar, Manna Dey. They are all in the same league as Rafi and better singers than Kishore. But then all of them were only singers (Note Hemant Kumar was a musician too). I hope you get the point by now. I have been ranting too much. I’ll stop now.
hello rafi is a great singer he is a man who sing very very difficult songs like ‘gham uthane ke liye’of film mere hazoor.I also want to be a singer like rafi so u can give me one chance to sing songs of rafi.please contact me.My email address: salmansinger2007@yahoo.com THANKS YOU
Dear KK fans,
I can’t understand how we compara Mohd rafi with K K.Please ask 2 the people who worked with Mohd Rafi and K K like Lata,Asha,Manny day,Shammi Kapoor,P from LP,big B,Amit kummar son of KK,Rajesh Khanna and many more
Dear Jaydeep Kundu as u said that A Man like Kishore will be born every 500 years i think maybe u r right in 5 year but u r wrong about Mohd Rafi I think there will never be on the earth other Mohd Rafi.
I think if we speak about best five singer there will no K K name I think
Sorry K K fans but really i don’t understand
Dearest Rafi fans,
Mohan Flora has said it nicely in his inimitable style and I feel our friendsAshutosh and Shankar got the answer. Let us continue to enjoy the evergreen everlasting melodies of Rafi Sab which only connousseirs of music can relish immensely. These liked not only by great singers, actors, professionals, but also cabbie from India to New York.
But still I cant resist one question to totally biased Ashutosh . Can Kishore da sing the lowest pitch of song Nav Kalpana Nav roopse shobha bade sansaar ki from the film Mrug Trishna in which dream girl Hema Malini dances to this song? This was composed by Shombu sen father of Dilip-Sameer sen. I feel this is the lowest pitch song rendered in hindi film music and Rafi sab has done full justice to it.
Iam not talking about other great classics of Baiju Bawraa, Kohinoor, Deedar, Uran Khatola,etc which no indian singer could have rendered.
Infact like Rafi Sab I am great fan Of Lata di but even she could not overtake Rafi Sab in the S-J compositions like Ehsaan tera hoga mujhpar, Tum mujhe bula na paoge, Oh mere shane khuba etc and Madanjis Chirag compositon Tere Ankehon ke siva is duniya mein rakha kya hain.
WE KNOW AND GOD KNOWS THAT RAFI SAB IS POPULAR NOT ONLY IN INDIA BUT ALSO IN U.S BRAZIL NETERLANDS FIJI MALAYSIA MALDIVES SRILANKA MIDDLE EAST AND ENTIRE GLOBE.
P.NARAYANAN BANGALORE 09886779557
It is obvious that most of the views above are of people who are into Hindi film music and have been fans of the two great singers-Rafi and Kishore- for a long long time.There is no doubt that that in spite of talented singers like Udit, Kumar Sanu, Shaan,Sukhwinder and Sonu(who has spoilt his voice in trying to be original) none can ever shine like the two combos.However, I want to share something which happened just a few days back. My younger brother, who is from Canada, became addicted to listening to a CD (Rafi-Kishore duets) whille driving to work or taking his children to school. The CD was a compilation of duets from Akalmand, Jungle mein mangal,Aap ke diwane,Zakhmee,Andaaz,Badaltey Rishtey,Doosra Admi etc.,which I had selected from Hamaracd and other sources.Except for Andaaz, all other films had either the duo or Asha,Lata or others for company. My niece,studying in Grade eight, became puzzled and asked him about his new fad. My brother said that he liked the songs because they made him nostalgic about his school and college days when these two singers were the rage. Suddenly,out of nuwhere, my brother asked her which of the two singers did she like more. My niece, fed on rap, hip-hop, bhangra and the kajra-re dance fest, bent her head, pretended to listen more intently to songs which she was forced to hear all week and said, ” It’s Rafi!”. On being asked why, she said it was because he sounded more pleasing and he showed more feelings and emotion in his voice. Kishore, on the other hand, seemed to be trying too hard and was loud. That was a blow to me as I love them both and that was why I had spent so much time and money to collect their duets.My niece next took the CD to her music class and made her class of mostly desis listen to a few songs. Their verdict-Rafi all the way. One of her class mates later told her that her brother was very much into Rafi after seeing the hollywood film Ghostbusters(2001). I have also discovered that Rafi is a great search item in the internet among many foreigners specially after the Jaan Pehchaan Ho in Ghostbuster.My brother complains that he has requests from desi parents to burn them the Rafi-Kishore CD. My contention is that both had their own style and both were masters in their style. Rafi was king and the only one between 1952 to 1970 when the best composers in different genres ruled. By the time Kishore matured there were only two maestros left in the field-SD/RD and LP. As such his range remained limited. Even though it was RD who favored and supported Kishore during the early surge of Kishore’s reign upto 1977(because as records show it became a shared reign with Rafi till the latters death in 1980) it was LP who gave some of the best melodies to Kishore and helped him broaden his range. Take away RD,s trendy rythms and western interludes and you have a very limited range. Also,RD’s sheer repetitiveness caused him to be upstaged by LP and the latter never looked back.In fact, connoisseurs of Hindi film music will understand how LP used Kishore as a weapon against RD before sidelining him in the eighties.By then they had extracted the best they could from Kishore and in the process defy the myth that Kishore was a singer of only limited range. Rafi, on the other always had LP by his side and the moment they saw RD go down by 1975 they started churning hit after hit with Rafi starting with the Dharmendra led Pratigya and the ManMohan Desai films.Rafi was back in favor with RD too and had many films with him after Hum Kisise Kum Nahin. While all these battles were being fought , Rafi and Kishore used to sit down together and share dinners and anecdotes together-according to Kishore’s son Amit Kumar. Sometime before his death, Rafi,Kishore and Manna Dey recorded two songs for Kishore Kumar’s film Chalti Ka Naam Zindagi and Rafi charged only a token one Rupee.That was their camaraderie. We should try to emulate them and try to get together to get our music back on course. Hearing the fast food type music of the present day composers and the “here today gone tomorrow” longetivity of the songs makes me feel that music even during the Udit Narayan-Kumar Sanu era was good.Long live Rafi, Long live Kishore and long live their bhakts.
In reply to Shankar and Abhitosh.
Songs sang by Rafi and picturized on Rajesh Khanna were a result of incapability of kishore to sing them. Example – “Ekna To Yaad Hai”, “Yeh Jo Chilman Hai”, “Ann Milo Sajnaa”, etc.
Manna Dey himself has acknowledged that Rafi was not basically a classical singer, but had the capability to sing any type of classical song. Rafi was trained by renowed Ustads and Pandits.
I have been listening to Rafi for last 23 years. I have listened to Kishore also. Rafi has sang for maximum number of music composers. It is not the question of high pitch only, but also the control of the voice. Songs “O Duniya a Rakhwale”, “Mann Tadpat Hari”, “Madhubhan Mein Radhika”, “Tum Jo Mil Gaye Ho”, etc. speak of voice modulation with great control.
Coming to Kishore, he survived because of S D Burman(Dada), because in the 1950s and 60s only Dada had the right musical notes for his voice. Without Dada Kishore could have been wiped out long back. Kishore sang remarkable numbers under the Burmans & LP.
Kishore needs a very good tune to excel. In case of Rafi what ever the tune may be his voice will do magic. Rafi could sing for any actor. That is not the case with kishore at all. These were the major differences between the two.
If Kishore was such a great singer, then majority songs should have been sang by him after Rafi death in 1980. In the 80s music composers felt the need to Rafi so much that even a singer like Mahendra Kapoor was also not considered, though he could match Rafi’s pitch very well. Singers like Anwar, Shabir Kumar and Munna Aziz got break through. Just imagine new comers competing with Kishore Kumar. One can imagine where Kishore stands.
Media has tried to promote that Kishore Kumar over Rafi in the 70s. But after Rafi’s death his absence has proved how great a singer he was.
Rafi was a great singer. Rafi cherished more in romantic and melancholy type songs. His fun songs like “Bade Miya deewane aise na bano” are praise worthy too. But then Rafi lacked versatility. He was no doubt a better singer than Kishore when it came to classical elements (Raaga, Sur, melody etc). Kishore on the other hand was a complete versatile singer. If you compare Kishore’s songs like “Dukhi Man Mere”, “Kaise kahe hum” from Sharmilee, “Dil aaj shair hain” from Gambler to “Ina meena dika”, “Ek chatur Naar”,”Phoolon ke rang se”, you get to see his versatility. I agree some of Kishore’s songs are loud but any given day I would prefer hearing to Kishore just because his songs had more energy than Rafi’s. And people who watched movies like Half-Ticket, Jhumroo,Chalti kaa naam gaadi will simple begin to love Kishore. He is full of zest, energy and is a real likeable person. A man like Rafi will be born every 100 years. A Man like Kishore will be born every 500 years. Again I have nothing against the Rafi fans. I agree Rafi was a better singer but then singing is not everything, is it now?
sorry there is one thing more shankar bhai, from ur articale i dont understand that u want to compare kk with rafi or manna day with rafi or let me tell u something make coktail i mean make both of them one guy and mohd rafi will be mohd rafi. ab shambu ko bambu kab maroge,i mean i am waiting for ur next articale. and with respect for manna day who i like as a gre8 human being and telling the reality.
sorry manna day saab
dear shankar ,
ji karta hai marun tumen kankar,who told u kk is more popular than rafi? most of the ppl in this world likes rafi than kk,and why u ppl repeating the same sentence every time that manna day is no.1 in classical songs,yes i agree that but rafi was not behind.rafi is only one man but every body wants to compare there favorite singers with him.and for u the legend nausad said,
kehta hai koi dil gaya dilbar chala gaya
sahil pukarta hai samandar chala gaya
lekin jo baat sach hai vo kehta nahin koi
duniya se mosiki ka pimbar chala gaya
god bless him
Hi Shankar,
First of all, it is actually Rafi who is not only more respected by people who know music, but also more popular overall than any other Bollywood singer ever. Maybe you don’t know it but Rafi is the most played and most requested artist on radio channels, more than KK, and even more than Lata. Besides, Rafi fans abound all over the world— he is well known even in places like the Carribeans!
KK might be more popular in India where the media wants to promote him and most of the remixes are those westernized RDB tunes, and teenagers who have li’l understanding and grasp of music love those remixes and KK. But even then, who cares about popularity. Shahrukh Khan is more popular today than Dilip Kumar & Amitabh Bachchan, when anybody who understands movies and acting knows that Shahrukh is not even a patch on those two legends.
Both Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar were equally great.
Mohd. Rafi had a classical background and, had a very soothing voice and was perfectionist. In perfection and difficult singing, Mohammed Rafi was the best.
Kishore Kumar on the other hand, was the greatest voice ever- the crown jewel, God’s own voice. Nobody can ever evoke emotions that kishore’s voice could. In thsi respect he was the best, unbeatable.
Both of them are Great sons of India we will always be proud of=
well, well, when rafi fans claim rafi to be the most versatile singer, i’ll agree. but if u say rafi is a better classical singer than manna dey, no way. ask lata, asha, anybody. nobody beats manna dey in a classical song. that’s a well-known fact.
so, by ur logic, SPB is a greater singer than M.Balamurali Krishna ? after all, SPB is so versatile while BMK can only sing classical songs ? substitute SPB for rafi, BMK for manna dey, and u’ll see my point.
reg. those who feel KK’s voice to be rough, loud, it’s a matter of taste. i found rafi’s voice unbearable when he sang “kya hua tera vada …” or “chaand mera dil, chandni ho tum …”. people only talk about rafi’s high-pitch songs. since when have only high-pitch songs considered difficult ? nobody sings low-pitch songs like KK. just listen to how low a pitch he can go in the song “pyar humen kis mod pe le aaya … ” from “satte pe satta”.
for those who think yodelling is childish or easy, i suggest u to try it, and let me know.
the truth is rafi fans feel hurt that KK is more popular and loved, even though rafi saab is a more trained singer, technically.
it’s ok to love rafi saab but u don’t have to try to put down other great singers in order to do that.
Hi Abhitosh,
All you are doing here is displaying your low taste and lack of any music sense. Rafi could sing “Chala Jaata Hoon” in his sleep and much better than KK. Kishore had a bad, loud, and cheap voice and had a “constipated” style of singing. Further, it just shows your taste that you mention a childish song like “Chala Jaata Hoon” — why don’t you mention some real songs like “Madhuban men Radhika”, “O Duniya ke rakhwale”, or even zanier and lighter songs like “Aa Aa re Aaja from Teesri Manzil” or “Badan pe Sitare”. KK had very li’l talent as a singer, and couldn’t have even attempted any of these songs. Kishore Kumar had no range, and was not versatile at all, besides carrying an unfit-for-singing voice. With his loud and crass voice he would make most of his fast numbers sound rather cheap and rickshaw-walla like!
The biggest proof of Rafi’s genius is to hear what Manna Dey has to say about Rafi, and Manna has seen all the Toms, Kishore Kumars and Harrys himself. Manna has said that Rafi is so much better than anyone else that he held positions 1 to 10 in terms of greatness in the field of playback singing!!!! In fact, I met Manna at one of his concerts, and he told me backstage that people in the music circles didn’t even count KK as a singer, and it’s just a sign of degradation of Indian music that a person like KK has become popular. He also jokingly said that he couldn’t say that in media since he was a Bengali himself, and people in Kolkata won’t be able to digest the truth!!
-Manoj
Dear Abhitosh,
K K was a good singer but Mohd Rafi will be the greattest ever born in Bollywood it is not my words,If u go to the people who know the Music.like singer Manna Day,Lata,Asha and many more ,Do u know that RD burman and S D burman best singer was Mohd Rafi?
Please try 2 be honest with yourself dear Abhitosh.
Sonu can sing as K K best as he sing Mohd Rafi songs.
Mohd Rafi made R kummar,Raj kummar,Shamma Kapoor and many more,If u go with Rajesh Khanna he have best of Mohd Rafi .
i have read all the articles and i found them ridiculously biased in favour of rafi……..i just want to ask one question from all rafi fans that whether rafi could have sung the song ‘chala jata hoon’ …. there is nothing extra ordinary about rafi’s voice… even sonu nigam is better than him… i strongly believe that one can come at par with rafi by constant practice….but kishore is always born …. at his times also kishore was ahead of his times…thats why kishore is still popular…..rafi was a normal singer who was appreciated for his benevolent behaviour than for his singing….. his pathetic songs like ‘gulabi aankhen’ and ‘darde dil’ say all about the the “quality” of his voice… kishores voice is just out of this world and by no stretch of imagination it can be said inferior to rafis voice…
Dear Chamman Bagga,
From what u have mentioned inspite of the fact I do not want any controversy why R.D.B took Rafi sahabs youthful voice in Tum bin jahun kahan from the film Pyar ka Mausam picturised on Shashi Kapoor and Kishore da s voice for the older Bharat Bhushan?. Also if you carefully listen to the Yaadon ki baraat title song by both the singers Rafi sab sounded more youthful and romantic.
Similarly in many movies L.P used Rafi sabs voice for the youthful romantic hero like Rishi and the co-singer Shailendra singh was used for the older hero.
This amply proves the point that Rafi sabs voice till his unfortunate demise suited for the romantic hero. Regarding Teesri Manzil Rafi sab has sung all the songs composed by Rafi sab which my frined Chaman Dagga has mentioned in his note erronously.
I PAY HOMAGE TO ANOTHER MUSICAL LEGEND NAUSHAD ALI SAB WHO PASSED AWAY RECENTLY AND WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE MUTUAL SUCCESS OF THE BEST COMBINATION OF RAFI N NAUSHAD MAGIC AND GAVE US MANY IMMORTAL VINTAGE TUNES.
P.Narayanan Bangalore
the article was simply amazing, and i am very happy to get the opporttunity to read this article, coz i am a huge fan of rafi saab…..but did jagjit singh really critisice rafi?…….if so, shame on him….how can he do that…he is simply nobody comapred to rafi, or kishoreda
just now i read abt naushad saab’s death. may Allah bless him.
Mohd Rafi was, and will always be the greatest playback singer of hindi films. i am from a very small country called Maldives. u may not belive it, but the fact is that ppl here loves rafi’s songs more thna their own local songs. we simnply adore rafi’s songs and his voice. May Allah bless him
Hi Dear friends,
We r human and we can have got mistakes but I think we should not have mistake like this 2 compara The Only one greatest Mohd Rafi to anyone.
I think if we want 2 compara Mohd Rafi we should compara him with Mohd Rafi because there are and there will be no one else 2 compara.
If we speak about Kishore da I think we was a good singer and a great actor,
Today we lost great MD Mr Naushad as we lost before,it is a big lost of Music
Hi friends,
I think there is no way 2 compara Mohd rafi sahab 2 any other siner even the great Lata.
Please try 2 compara KK with Talat or Manny Day or any other singer because there is one SUN for us on the earth as Mohd Rafi and there are many stars on the sky but when Sun come out we will not see the stars.
Ok, I will have it perfect this time(Sorry about reposting….I wish this site allowed us to edit our comments):-) : “It’s just that the difference between Rafi & the rest of our great male playback singers is so huge, so vast, that it’s incomprehensible why anybody who is rational and understands music would ever want to compare Rafi with KK or anybody else.” :-))
HI I M 18 YEARS OLD I LIKE MANY SINGERS LIKE KISHORE DA,MUHAMMAD RAFI,KUMAR SANU,ETC.BUT SIR MUHAMMAD RAFI IS MY BEST SINGER.HIS SONG ‘O DUNIYA K RAKHWALE’ AND ‘TU GANGA KI MAUJ MAIN JAMNA KA DHARA’ IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF HIS EXELLENCY I LIKE IT SONG VERY MUCH.SIR MUHAMMAD IS BETTER THAN KISHORE KUMAR.MUHAMMAD RAFI IS A GREATEST MALE SINGER SO NOBODY LIKE HIM.EVERYBODY ENJOY HIS SONGS.HIS SONGS ARE CHALLANGED OF ALL THE NEW SINGERS. THANKS YOU
Sorry, the last sentence of my previous post was supposed to read: “It’s just that the difference between Rafi & the rest of our great male playback singers is so huge, so vast, that anybody who is rational and is steeped in music would ever want to compare Rafi with KK or anybody else.”
Emadul…you make a good point regarding Rajesh Khanna influencing MDs to have Kishore Kumar sing his songs. It was just a different era with RD Burman & Rajesh Khanna calling the shots, and KK got extremely lucky because he had a loud(rough-on-the-ear) voice with a limited range, although he was still better than today’s singers!! It’s just wrong to compare a singer like him with a rare singer like Rafi. And I don’t count yodelling as part of singing, and it sounds childish many a times. Besides, even Johnny Lever can yodel as well as KK and Johnny is not even a singer, so that confirms the point that yodelling is no big deal, and KK fans need to get over that rather childish gimmick.
Chaman….you also make a good point how KK used to consciously try to sing in greater amplitude whenever he was singing with Rafi just because he wanted to overpower the Great Rafi….and KK often sounded really cheap and rough when doing that. Actually, even though KK was a good singer, he sounds like he is shouting in many songs instead of singing, and this is also because he was quite incapable of singing the high surs. I quite like Kishore as a singer, but I just don’t get why people are always trying to compare him to Rafi….I know people always like to compare and it makes sense in some cases like a Tendulkar & Lara comparison. It’s just that the difference between Rafi & the rest of our great male playback singers is so huge, so vast, that anybody who is rational and is steeped in music would compare Rafi with KK or anybody else.
I would like to add to Chaman Bagga that another factor of KK’s success was Rajesh Khanna. Rajesh Khanna dominated the film world in seventies. He gave condition to the Producers/Music Directors that the songs in his leap must be sung by KK. Rajesh Khanna’s condition was unfair to the Music Director as well as other male singers. To me Music Director should have the liberty to choose the singer for his song as he knows better who can sing his song well.
cont’d… she fumbled at that question… she could not come up with one song. Dont you think it is utter waste, not to have one “AMAR” song. !!!!!! I blame the music directors of today… who are and eventually will kill the playback singing. This will give rise to private albums, like Hollywood. Nowadays, these ignorant singers of today, say (on television) Aap mera gaana dekhiya NOT SUNIYE. So what are we watching not the song but some almost nude girls. actually we are not listening we are watching nudity. Is there any singer, who can render just one song without the help of nude girls. answer is NO I repeat (a big) NO.
This message is to all music lovers…..
Very soon the next generation will forget what was the actual meaning of Raagas was ??? !! Our rich music heritage is in the hands of incompetant, in-experienced music directors of today. It is a shame and a disgrace. Please stop comparing the dead legends, at present please raise your voice and be concerned to keep our heritage safe.
Baba Sahab
In my eyes, both Kishore-da and Rafi sahab were superb singers. Kishore da’s yoddling is immortal and Rafi’s sahabs, bhajans, ghazals, geets, romantic songs, sad songs, background songs, high -pitched songs and duets are inimmitable. Kishore-da himself used to call him (Rafi Sahab) his “guru”. According to our legend music director Ravi saab once mentioned to me that Rafi sahab came to his house extremely upset. The reason was that media guys were asking such stupid questions that, is there any song where you couldn’t sing and Kishore-da managed to render the same song. Then Ravi saab said there is not a single song but there are a dozen songs where Kishore-da could not sing and Rafi sahab had to render the same song with ease. eg. Laxmi-Pyare’s Nafrat ki duniya ko chordkar from Haathi mere Saathi..Please do ask Pyare-lal-ji who is still alive. Rafi sahab sang that song in 10 minutes. Kishore-da requested the composers to lower the music scale. O chinnappa devar wanted to have a blast of this “pilot” song in his movie. Every singer has his/hers limitations. Rafi sahab could not do justice to yoddling. Kishore-da had a gift.
In my eyes a person is NOT an artist or an art-lover who criticizes other artists. That simply shows his family background. Jagjit and Abhijeet are dead against Adnan Sami. But the public loves Adnan’s voice , his way of singing. I think Adnan has given more hits than Abhijeet. Jagjit Singh will criticize Rafi sahab because Jagjit is not gifted was a high pitched voice. Naturally, that ill feeling will always remain in his heart. To me Jagjit is a very good ghazal singer. he has only ONE style. He cannot give variations to a song like Rafi Sahab or Kishore-Da. There is absolutely no comparison. Jagjit is only and only restricted to ghazal singing. He better remain floating in his “similar-identical tunes”.
Some people compare Begum Akhtar-jee to Lata-jee. Dont you think this is so absurd. Every fruit or every flower has its own individuality, its flavour, its taste, its colour. Being baised is not going to resolve anything. It is insanity to compare even Asha-Lata. Alka sang thousands of filmi songs, she was bragging that very soon, she will be the only singer with the highest number sof songs to her credit. One news reporter immediatly asked her a question…Mam, can you tell us out of those thousands of songs you have already sang, how many are “IMMORTAL”. Sh