True Voice – Mohd Rafi
The following article was brought to my notice when Sharad posted it on MAS. The article has been trimmed down a bit keeping afloat Rafi details. However, anyone interested can go visit the source at http://tfmpage.com/forum/4980.6302.04.57.19.html
I am Swaminatha Iyer and I am 78 years old. I hail from Tiruchi and I am a part of music associations in Tiruchi, M’as as well as in West Bengal and Maharashtra.
I think it is wrong to condemn music or artists on either side of Vindhyas. Our Indian music is one of the few which has not been cleaned off by the western music though there has always been a influence. It speaks a lot of the richness of our music. Sometime back director of MTV had said that MTV westernized the music wherever it went but in India , MTV had to be Indianized for it to be accepted. A lot of this credit goes to the Indian film music.
I have been fortunate to have close personal association with Rafi, Sirkali, TMS, Dr. BMK, Kishore, SPB & KJY, PS, Mannadey and the one and only Lata Mangeshkar.
Comparisons are bound to come, but almost every artist or I have met considers Lata to be beyond comparison. Her talents are beyond anyone’s reach. Even Sirkazi used to talk of her singing like a die-hard fan as do countless others.
Now coming to the Rafi-SPB discussion. It might be difficult to convince an South Indian to believe Rafi is the better and at the same time Rafi crowd will never believe any other male singer comes anywhere nearer. There is one more mobile crowd, which is well conversant with Hindi and some south Indian language. Majority of them tilt to either Rafi or Kishore.
During one of my stays in M’as I had stayed with SPB. While talking of true voices he said, I don’t feel like half a singer when listening to Rafi. True voice is not a tech term but many in circle use it. Perfect example would be lata, but to understand consider our own PS who within her range is superb. People who do not have such true voices can never do justice to original. They generally underplay many parts of the song or fake it with bass/superficial singing. True voices make people like Sirkazi, Nusrat Fateh Ali khan, Lata… Inimitable. However since Sirkazi and Nusrat did not have the filmy voices their “real” following is limited to their local arena.
In addition to the true voice if the singer has a very good voice then in “most” cases he/she can better songs of others. It is this combination which makes Rafi stand out among the other male singers. There are many here who seem to have mistaken notions on a good bass and also on high pitch.
Bryan Adams does not require a monster bass in “Summer of 69” to sound real manly. It is the punch which gives that feel and that is decided only by the comfort level in most ranges (that is by what your throat can support). This you CAN never disguise with bass. Since people have talked about lack of manly voice viz. a viz. Rafi it was necessary to bring this point out. I have had the fortune of listening to most singers in studio and some times without a mike, practicing with MD’s.When Lata or Rafi do, the level is so high that people hesitate to even hum. It felt silly to sing in their presence (and it feels silly when someone says his voice isn’t manly).
In RD’s tribute when SPB sang “Aaja Aaja mein hoon” or “Chaand mera dil” it sounded only sweet and lacked punch if you compare with Rafi’s original.
Yesu once told me God has been partial to Rafi. He said “god gift term anavasyamaa romba common aa ippo use aardu”.. but idu Rafi kee thaan 100% porundu”. This person could sing “as intricately as a lady without sounding thin”, “cover any mood”, “versatility odey perfect example Rafi”. Yesu said most important is the comfort level over ranges which makes you feel God has been partial to Rafi. (But Of course in Rafi’s early career (1950’s) the voice was relatively feeble).
To people exposed to Rafi’s talent, these or any amount of praise can only seem less. I just wish he was alive and you people could get a live chance to hear him. Probably you can get hold of the DD album for the Geet Gaata Chal series where the first four episodes were dedicated to Rafi. Rafi is on camera singing “O Duniya Ke Rakwaaley” and many other songs. If you see and hear the last part you will realize why SPB said “impossible”. I think particularly those people who have talked about scales w.r.t Rafi should see this album. Its a known fact in industry that Rafi ruled high pitch and there is no male singer better in switching notes so easily. There are artists who can go beyond but then they sound strained or they don’t have pleasant voices when they venture into those territories.
Many singers of today are his compulsive followers. But they end up inheriting only part of his quality. Md. Aziz ended up with a sad voice. Mahendra Kapoor with a thick nasal voice. Anwar with a nasal voice. Sonu Nigam with a feminine voice. Rafi neither had a soft voice nor a heavy (bass) voice he had a good voice. Importantly did not strain at high notes, and voice if at all only became better at higher notes. If you see him singing it will remind you of Janaki. However diff the song is or the note is he will be smiling and singing. It is unthinkable that he cannot sing something.
There seems to be lot of talk about “Shankara Bharanamo” song. SPB has sung many a great numbers and things being said about this song in this forum are rather amusing, particularly b’cos 3 out of 4 people who can be called as singers will be able sing it and at least one out of 10 will sing it with the same effect. There are lot of other songs of SPB where this great singer has played with songs in total control. You will find most south Indian singers who have had a good exposure say that it is beneficial to learn Hindustani as it gives better breath control and improves expression.
Rafi was not only able to glide over a song, the important thing was that he could express each word/sound when singing. It is one thing to hold your breath, start and reach a crescendo (high note), as like in “Shankara”, “Anbey (Yennai kaan villaye)” it is different ballgame if you have to do it from low notes or suddenly switch notes. With practice the former can be done, latter requires a special gift. Rafi had a natural ability to do the latter. In “Tum joh mil gaye ho” there is such a transition in the “karwaan mil gaya” part. I have never seen anyone do justice to most of his songs in my life time. In “parda hai parda” quawaali the similar part is “kar doon to, Akbar mera naam”. In fact most of his songs will have these specialty as it was his natural ability to sing freely in a wide range at the same time giving that extra expression.
Whereas SPB takes us to heavens with “Idu oru pon maali”,”Ilaya nila” “bisiladarenu”(kannada), when he sings Rafi’s song it lacks the punch or expression, though it has the bass. But at least most agree that SPB does some justice to original, whereas most others murder the original.
One trivial point I would like to add is that singing in Hindi is harder. There are more “JHA”,”CHA”,”HA”,”THA”, “KHA”,”JA”,”FA”. These take away the breath faster. The more expressive you are the more air you are using up. Just singing from Nabhi will not help, your throat also needs to do a lot, for singing in Hindi, Bengali etc. SPB makes you fall in love with his south Indian songs but same cannot be said about his Hindi songs. If you just glide through words having these sounds, you will never be expressive. Doing this as well as reaching high notes is not easy. Rafi had this gift and that’s why it is difficult to imagine anyone else in his shoes. Song “Chalkaaye jaam” has so much expression that it is unthinkable how anyone can sing it. When Rafi switches to a high note with “Mitwaa” in the song “Chaahunga mein tughey” you cannot replicate it with bass. Most others will sound as if they are shouting in such cases. That man’s throat had the ability to freely sing at such levels.
Versatility is not just the ability to sing in various styles, more important is how good you are singing in those styles. You have lot of Ghazal singers today but when Rafi sings a Ghazal you will sit up and take notice. You don’t have to be part of the Ghazal listeners crowd. This is one important aspect. Whatever style you sing you should be able to pull the common man to listen and not just a particular crowd. Pick “parda hai parda” or any qawalli and it will stand tall among other qawalli’s.
Variety is amazing :
songs of Guru Dutt’s Khagaz key phool or songs like abhi naa jao chod key, Aaja teri yaad aayi, Aaj kal mein dhal gaya, Aaj kal terey merey pyaar, Aasmaan sey aaya farishta, Dil ney pyaar kiya hai, Deewana mujh saa nahi, Din dhal jaaye, Duniya paagal hai, Jaane walon jara, Dil joh na kaha saka, Dil key jharokon mein, Dil kaa bhavar, Chalkey teri aakkhon sey, Kar chaley hum fida, khilona jaan kar tum, Woh jab yaad aay, Woh hain jara khafa, Vaadian mera daaman, Pathar key sanam, Chaand mera dil, Main zindagi kaa saath, Mainey poocha chaand sey, sun sun jaalima, Koi jab raah na paay, hum to chaley pardes, badan pey sitaarey, laal chadi maidaan, Tum jo mil gaye, O meri shaahey, Sau baar janam lengey, Tum mujhey yoon bhula, Tumney mujhey dekha, Terey merey sapney, Tumny pukaara hum chaley aay
Name a situation/mood and Rafi’s song will be there on the top.
Swami
Dear Mr. Binu and Dear Mr. Hussein !
Why are you people conflicting with this ashu or some other
disguised fellows ?
Actually they love Kishor Kumar and they will never give up.
I do not know what they understand about music or ‘sur’, but
tell him/them to face me in my e-mail id___
raajkumarakela@yahoo.com
I was/am an accordionist in the year 1966 and onward…a keyboard
player and pianist from 1990 and onward.
May be I can make them understand what is music and what is
‘sur’.
I think I can make them understand what is difference between Rafi
Saab and kishor kumar.
so guys, please visit me as soon as possible to enlighten yourselves.
Thanks !
ganesh: thanks to the statutory w a r n i n g… Post 345 ..
I am aware that these trouble makers would come in disguise.
they become avi, ash, ashwin, kkalank, deb jotish etc and
reading them I come to know their true identity..easily & quickly.
secondly, they will get exposed here and their masters name will
also be smeared if they come here with their fictional stories..
so, this is a cautionary note to them….
Khayalon ka pulao banana band karo .. .. aur khandwa ka naam
kharaab mat karo … is my advice to them…
binu
Ganesh thanks…for the info…..
these kalanks and debjoti and this ashu alias ashwini have decided
to blacken the face of the Khandwa person – by entering this
domain….. we will reply them perfectly…. this is a cautionary
warning to them to behave or else…..
binus2000
Dear and respected KK fans If u count who is better on Filmfare Basis It neans Amit Kumar is better than Kishore Kumar because Amit won film Fare in 1985 for the film Love Story “Yad Aa Rahi Hai” in the presence of his father while KK was nominated same year with two songs. Kawwe Se Kawwe ka Bachcha Hoshyar. Ha Ha Ha Ha……..
Besura Ashu ‘sur’ kya jaane…?
Rafians plz dont worry do u know Debjyoti@ KKlan is not visiting here from many days he is come bach with the name of ASHU. no no no Ansoo
Dear Rafians plz dont worry do u know Debjyoti@ KKlan is not visiting here from many days he is come bach with the name of ASHU. no no no Ansoo
ash ashvin bete: Khayalon ka pulao banaya magar mazza nahin
aaya : khud ko expose bhi kar daala….
In one write up u mentioned that u are a greater fan of rafi saab
than me…
Now , you have in the above contradicted yourself…. Jhoot math
boliye ashu ashwini ji : u will be caught…. here
Khandwa ke log aise hai kya?
aap ka london, japan jaaneka program kabhi hai….. hum wahin
melenge aur coffee ke saath bahut sara – sacchha ,industry ka info
aap ko dena chaahte hai…
aur yaad rahe , ke rafi saab ke baare me khayalon ka pulao banake
publish karne se pehle – 2000 baar soche…… agar aisa huwa to
hum khandwa ke hero ko z e r…. banakar rakhenge …. to teach
u a necessary lesson.
aur aap ka hero agar hote aaj to yehan is forum me woh humko
support karte aur aap ko daat te aur slap karte for running down
rafi saab – a farishta of our times and an incomparable singer..
To err is human – to learn – divine . ashwini-ashu bete…..
binu nair..
dear ashu
u are doing a nice job ,keep on going by making blunder statements.
i am challenging u,kishore was less singer even compare to our rushdi.
come on if u want competition?
kuloomian@yahoo.com
Binu Uncle,
jaise aapko kuchh log mil jaate hai jo kishore ko bhala bura kahte hai, waise hi mujhe, kuchh nahi bahut milte hai jo sirf aur sirf kishore ko sunate hai aur rafi unhe bilhul nahi bhaata (They don’t like him at all).
Isse badi baat nahi ho sakti aap logo ke liye, e baatein bardast nahi hoti aur so u people write some nonsense.
Lekin apni apni pasand hai bahiyaa.
Hussein seikh ko main samjhata that ki e mature hai, aur kuchh waisi hi baat karega, but e to ……..
Hussein Seikh,
Jara mature logon ki tarah baat karo. Agar tum itne surile ho to kaha lupt ho.
Rafi was besura many times, there is no surprise to me.
dear ashu
kishor kumar sang a song ; mere samne wali khidki main’ which was indeed pakistani singer ahmed rushdi s song listen and compare the two legends.
dear binus
can u give me your email adress?
dear ashu can u send me kishore songs?i will send u masters gem.then u can make comparisons.if u know about music?
kuloomian@yahoo.com
Ashu, the biggest bluffer, a big bluff master, you know nothing about “Sur”. Just go on playing the same tune.
KK was besura when he sang Rafi Saheb’s ‘Man re tu kahe na…’.
Ashu : Ashwin bete :
What is your address : i want to spend some time with you..
second : I do not like the hoarse voice of Kishore Kumar : it
tends to be a pain to the ears : often : most of them : please
do not get offended : this is the view of many many music lovers
whom I have met including few Londoners…
By the way ,; after 75 rafi was back on top due to public demand..
r.d.burman was on his way out.. L.P. WAS leading the way with
rafi as their main singer amidst KK complaing that all good songs
u are giving to Mohd rafi…
Facts are facts : ashu bete and not khayalon ka pulao … see the
binaca geet mala charts… and ask amin sayani.. ji .. they will
tell you these things… I am from the industry and sitting on one
corner with your lap t o p : u can only cook : khayalon ka pulao…
never ever compare legend mohd rafi with Kishore Kumar… KK is a
bacha in front of rafi saab… therefore Kishore Kumar admired rafi
saab and regared him as his guru publicly…
therefore , aap ka shor machana is a waste ashu bache… its like
badak ke upar paani fenkna.. ( to pour water over a ducks back..
it will never stick )
Meanwhile , I wait for your next Khayalon ka Pulao … as bete…
binus
Binu Uncle,
I know all stories, Uncle (KHAYALI PULAO). Kishore was the only person who could do some experiment, others are like “kolhu ka bail”.
Listen to Manna dey, he said in one interview that Kishore never sound BESURA in any songs. R u Bade Ghulam ali khan or Naushad?
Do u know what is besura….?
Rafi shouts “RAMLAL” was very besure and i don’t think any singer could sing besura like him. Only that songs and few more.
WHat is Rajesh Khanna wave uncle, It was Kishore wave. Pls. refine ur words from next time. Where was Rajesh Khanna after 75, but kishore was on top until he died.
Ashu bete : pl. give me ur address… we can chat over a
cup of coffee . I will come over..
Regarding Kishore Kumar Ganguly he was a ok. singer and
had more shor in his voice according to me . Besurra ho
jaata tha…. and once a music director the No.1 in the seventies
went away from the recording room as this singer was …
going off the tracks…. : this is not our tune and style the md said.
After 2 hours of cajoling by the singer himself and the composers
co-partner : the song was recorded.
The composer had the guts and the musician who witnessed all
this is my friend….who reported to me the same.l
More, your favourite singer was ousted from Navketans for a
period and in that era one could hear the voices of rafi saab
in dev films…
After KK was sent to jail for income tax cases and after he became
bankrupt – he was helped and brought back to the banner.
According to a senior music lover Kishore Kumar was only a comedian in
the rafi era who got some chance due to the Rajesh Khanna wave and also
due to industry politics…..
When I meet u I will tell u many more things in more details…
binus
Mr. Haldar,
First let me laugh on you. Kya baat likhi hai aapne.
U wrote “JAB RAFI SAHEB GAA KAR UTARE to LOG shor machane lage”
Jara aap apna dimaag lagai aur bataiye, Rafi ne to apna gaana gaya hoga, aur logo ke shor machane par kishore ka gaana kyon gane lage. KYA log unke gaane se pak gaye the?
VERY FUNNY
Isi ka natija tha ki Rafi, Even though he sang many songs in 70’s, he could not retain the same position in music world. But kishore, Suru se 66 tak he was there.
For ur kind information, Rafi ki gaddi “Teen Deviyan” movie se hi hilani suru ho gayi thi.
Aap log khalyli pulao pakana chhod kar, sachhai ki baat kare to behtar hoga.
Binuji,
I am not hiding my identity. If u r thinking so then i can’t help. I use laptop and desktop both. Since Name in the textbox get cached, ashu is cached in laptop and ‘ashwani’ cache in desktop and i don’t chnage this name while sending blog. Hope u got me. Aur ha….I will wait for u…
Dear friends,
I’ve already narrated some of my experiences in Rafi-Kishore concerts. I found another hugely amusing anecdote on anothe website. I have to admit I was not present at this concert; must have been in the mid 70s (when Kishore was at his peak). Enjoy!
When He Sang Arrey Rafta Rafta Dekho
This is an eyewitness’s account, in the person’s own words.
Calcutta ke ek show mein Kishore Daa aur Rafi Sahab ek saath maujood the. Rafi sahab gaa kar utre aur Kishore ji stage par aaye….logon ne hangama kar diya, wo sirf Rafi Sahab ko sunna chah rahe the….log badtameezi par utar aaye na jane kya kya phenkne lage aur uchhalne lage….
Rafi saab, fauran green room se nikal kar aaye aur bole theek hai main gaata hoon….aur gaana shuru kiya ‘arey rafta rafta dekho aankh meri ladi hai….’
Do liney gaa kar logon se request kiya ke doosron ko bhi sune wo bhi itni door se aapka dil behlane ke liye aaye hain.
Aur jo do lines gaaeen wo aap sabhi jaante hain ke kishore ji ke gaaye huye gaane ki hain.
My dear friends !
Please forgive this ashu…as it is said in books…
“chhama badhan ko chahiye
chhotan ko utpat…”
means…children are always naughty…elders should forgive them !
In dying stage ‘jesus’ prayed to god …
“o father, forgive them…as they do not know what they are doing !”
ashu, my son ! as an elder person i personally forgive you !!!
Neither i will call you ‘ashu bete’ nor i will call you a ‘trouble maker.’
I am 60 and hope I qualify your age-criterion. Will you please answer
my one question ?
Perhaps you know Amitabh bachan was bestowed “the best male actor
of the millennium”
Lata mangeshkar was bestowed “the best female playback singer of the
millennium”
Late mehmood was bestowed “the best comic actor of the millennium”
Late naushad saab was bestowed “the best music director of the millennium”
and for your kind information late rafi saab was bestowed “the best male playback singer of the millennium”.
I hope a group of most intelligent people must have taken this vital decision.
Why (do you think) they forgot Mr. Kishor kumar ganguly.
Or he rally did not deserve it ???
Have courage…and answer my question.
Ashu beta : U are a pain and a trouble maker…and a bluffer too.
one day in Japan, London or Delhi … I will come across you and
ask you few questions . Ready to meet me for a discussion?
binu nair
Ashu bete :
See what music lovers have to say about u… why are you
hiding your name ? How can we trust ur comments and u –
as u seem to be under disguise….. More, u are contradicting
yourself on many occassions if one goes through your comments…
Henceforth we will be careful about ur comments… We will give you
a break…
meanwhile, pl. learn to respect legends of our land and also know
more about them… and if possible tell ur friends the same in the
other site….
and lastly your type people should not expose yourselves is my
sincerest advice…. take care….
binu
Well said Mr. Narayanan.
you are right narayyan
Dear Haldar sir, Binu sir and all Rafians,
Why are we taking pains to explain to Ashu/Ashwini who is the same gentleman trying to prove that his Guru is the best in a futile immature manner?.He is back to argue with a jaundiced eye !
Let us all music lovers learn from true Rafi Sahab historians like u all and make this short life as sweet as possible.
Yes we are not bothered about these persons quoting Ashaji who revered Rafi Sahab like all her contromparies in the music industry.
He is quoting Ramlal Murdabad ……. which is filmed on Shashi to irritate his father-in-law…… successfully. Nothing wrong in the song as the situation demands.
If we start quoting on his favourite songs which are loud and not melodious the blog will get filled with the same.
Let us ignore him n continue with our good work.Jai Rafi Sahab
Narayanan
dear ashu
very nice.be prepare for bitter facts as rightly said by mr haldar.
dear binus
can u give me u email id?
i will send u some top gems created in the histroy of music in subcontinent.
dear ashu, please do not waste our time, and binus and haldar please leave him, because he is trying to fullfill kk remaining works.please come on new topics.we need u people.
dear haldar, what about u remail adress?
This message has also been posted on the KK site:
Dear Ashu, homework ke liye extra time chahiye kya? Theek hai, tension maat lena. Sawal thora asan kar doon kya? Shashi Kapoor aur Kapoor khandan ka baat chhor; Dev Anand hi kaafi hai hamare liye. We believe in fair competition. Hints chahiye to zaroor batana, hna? In the meantime, Dev ka aur ek gaana bhej raha hoon tumhare manoranjan ke liye. Yeh gana ki dhun Jaikishan ne banaya tha 1959 mein. Bahut hi pyara tha Jai; Rafi saab Jai ko chhote bhai se bhi zyada pyar karte the. Yeh gana ka music Sebastian ne most probably arrange kiya tha. Sebastian ka naam soona? Many in the music world consider him the best in the business. Sebastian D’Souza. Tujhe thora thora history bata raha hoon; theek se homework kar, sab seekh jayoge. Aur yeh sab legends ko izzat karna sikhoge. Jai passed away before he reached 40; he became a legend when he was 17. Ab gaana soon:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=0okwnJkLVB0
Ashu ji:
Thanks for letting me know that you love Rafiji more than me….
2nd point : If people love rafi saab more than god then what is the
problem for you…? Let them be that way and enjoy life…
There are billions of people in this planet who will think differently
than you – please leave them alone since we have small intellect
only and it is humanly not possible to chase them and change their
views….
3rd point : I f you meet the artistes as you said then please convey
to me their thoughts through my e.mail i.d. personally : we can have
a discussion on this too and learn by the experiences…
binu nair
Ref to post 318: Pyaar kiye jaa was a hit film , the songs were hit ,mohd rafi rendere two songs and both were picturised on shashi kapoor i think u r talking and giving your own opinion abt. Ramlal …..? but it was a story demand song and believe it or not but well sang.The other song was “gore haatho par na zulma karo”by rafiji .As per story , situation, and directors instruction some time singer has to sing.Sridhar a versatile director of his time has made dil ek mandir,”PKJ”,Gehri chaal with jitu,amitabh and every time on different plot of story.I rank sridhar after vijay anand.
Mr. Haldar,
I know Mahendra Kapoor was Rafi’s Sishya. Mahendra respect him very much.
Mr Nair,
R u above 60? If yes then i can call u UNCLE.
UNCLEji, main press ki nahi sunata, I met them personally.
I would like to tell u one thing that i ike Rafi, may be more than u , what i don’t like people(Rafi pshycho fans – Not music Lover) start portraying him GOD.
Pls. listen PYAR KIYe JA ka songs and Aandhi ka songs. Let ur heart judge these songs.
A small correction to post 316:
Mahendra Kapoor was his sishya since he was 11.
Ashu : Beta: if you want to know some detail which most know
and which this : I scratch your back, you scratch my back : Press
will never write, please get in touch with me : I will give you the
full time real stories of these sisters to you – free . then u pls
judge for yourself and comment on this site.
Mahendra Kumar I love for he was rafi saabs shishya right
from when he was a 16 year lad. rafi did not fear him and rafi saab
hand was on his head always.. Mahendra Kapoor always re : rafi saab
as his guru…
Look at the record of the elder sister: the song : ai mere watan ke
logo was a duet with the younger one but at the 11th hour : the
elder sister ensured the younger sibling was excluded.
this she has done with many many artistes..
rafi saab never did such things in the industry and he is loved
by all in the industry by the world as the people goes through the
back ground of the singer and they thus judge them…..
A senior music lover also said : if a person can harm the career
of her sister then what u can expect from her for others….
ashu ji : pl. u may not like rafi saaabs voice and songs but appreciate
the man whom every one love..
Pls read the story : King of Melody in this site about rafi saab and
pls give me your views…. Selfish peopld ( few ) ofcourse were jealous
of rafi saab and hence they bad mouthed him.. See the lives of these
persons : where they went : u will then know the sentiments of these
words here. My message is pls do not get carried away by what
asha said …. as many things about her cant be written here..
It will be obscene….
binu nair
Mr. Akmal,
Mere dost, point par baat karo. Don’t run around the bushes.
Sajjad kan zinda hua aur kab mar gaya kiso pata chala. Usne to Lata ko bhi bahut kuchh kaha hai. He was frustrated guy who could not achieve anything in his life.
Kahi aap bhi uske shagird to nahi…
Aap ko shayad e nahi pata ki, what Jagjit singhsaid abt rafi. Many people said his voice has faminine effect.
To kya dhol bajakar sabko bataye…
ashu
asha should be proud off by saying that, because she was beaten by rafi more than hundread times in duets.
asha has sung a lot but now she is biting her nails because no one consider her better than lata
dear ashu
haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
time is changing and humanity is going because some people are going to make comparisons of shor kumar(as said by sajjad) with uncompareable.
if u want to be democratic then beg some people to u kk site.
kishore kumar should be proud of u if u can done that.
I was there in front of TV when Asha said herself in interview.
I know truth is bitter, u will not accept it.
Hear Rafi in PYAR KIYE JAA…..”Ramlal Murdabaf….”songs…he was really pathetic. The way he shouts “Ramlal” was really bad.
Mr Hussein, As i mentioned in my blog earlier, pls. visit KISHORE KUMAR interview clips in YOUTUBE. There are 14 parts and in one part Lata said same thing which i wrote abt him.
Boss, mahendra Kapoor was not bad. He can touch Rafi at high scale songs, i don;t have nay doubt.
Mahendra Kapoor is better in some category… very funny really. Even Mahendra Kapoor will be ashamed if he read your article.
Manna Dey said Rafi saheb sabse aage the, I have a video recording of it. So…? Even Asha Bhosle had said – ‘Jab bhi recording room mein jaati hoon aisa lagta hai Rafi Saheb abhi aaenge!’
Kishore was unable to sing many songs, tell me which song Rafi saheb failed to sing? Ple think before you write anything.
Lata even said Rafi Saheb jaisa na koi hai na koi hoga. I have the recording of Lata saying it!
Were you present there when nasir husain gave Rs. 100/- to RD?
Mr. Haldar,
Why you guys forget lata said “Kishore Jaisa gaane wala maine nahi dekha”.
Asha said “Jab kishore ke saath gaana hota to mujhe kafi taiyari karni padti, unse takkar len eke liye”
Even u people might be knowing, but will not accept that there was a bet between Nasir Hussain n RD during “AAJA AAJA Main hu Pyar Tera” whre Nasir said Rafi will be steal the show and RD support Asha and at the end Nasir Gave 100rs. to RD bcas Asha sang 10times better than him, but it doesn’t mean Rafi was lesser than Asha. He had his own style.
Rafi could sing but he could not touch the heart except few songs, but Kishore…Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
In a democracy : a man who steals a bun to burn his hunger is
promptly sent to jail : but a person who steals – millions of bun –
goes to Parliament….
In the music field one who has deprived many musicians and
artistes their livelihood – for at least 50 years on – gets the highest
civilian award – and the hollow media sings paens of praises for this
one…..
They have forgotten their penury of early years….. god only
can help them now……
binus
Ashu, I focused on “Kabhi khud pe kabhi halat pe” for another reason. This song has been sung sometime back by Lata in her Shraddhanjali series. Again, a mark of respect from the titaness to the titan. I haven’t heard it but I know what the result would be for this song as well as the other Rafi songs she has sung (e.g., man re tu kahe na, din dhal jaye, dil ka bhanwar, suhani raat dhal chuki). She would be technically perfect, no doubt about it, but there will be something lacking. I can’t explain what it is — you can call it the Rafi magic — but in every song for which there was a Rafi version and a Lata version, Rafi always came out on top. Yet, you always see the bias in the media; a prime example is Raju Bharatan, who takes cheap shots at Kishore by praising Rafi, but always reminding everyone that Lata is a notch above. Look at the author of this piece, who starts with the following lines:
“Comparisons are bound to come, but almost every artist or I have met considers Lata to be beyond comparison. Her talents are beyond anyone’s reach.”
Which artist is he talking about? Naushad, Op, Jaikishan, Ravi or Manna? Did they tell him in private that Lata is much better than Rafi?
“Kabhi khud pe” will definitely be in my top-25 Rafi list, as would “Main zindagi ka saath”. These are songs that seasoned artists can keep practising for years, but will not be able to do even 75% justice. Most artists know this simple truth but won’t say that for reasons that are better not discussed here.
By this home work the general fans tooo will gain to know rafi more.
Dev recently said to my friend: when I hear rafi saab, it mesmerises
me even today and I go in to a trance : I love dev for this…..
the same thing happens to me tooo when i hear a rafi – the songs have
a soul and a life of its own – no expiry labels – whatsoever…
But, the soulful songs of saighal-talat-mukesh many moves me too…
they have longest shelf life..
Same with many Kishore Kumar songs..
binu nair
Ashu, if you think that “Dil aaj shayar hai gham aaj nagma hai” compares with the three Rafi songs of Hum dono, I don’t have anything to say. I thought you’d spend a little more time in finding a film where Kishore has three songs that come close, but you decided not to do so. “Dil aaj shayar hai” is a very good song, but it is not in the “Kabhi khud pe” category. Rafi could have sung that song in his sleep; in fact, I was quite surprised that the song went to Kishore in the first place. This is an example where Dev’s heavy hand, post-Aradhana, might have forced sd to switch to kishore. In the same film, remember that Rafi had a gem of a song, “Mera man tera pyaasa”, but Dev chose to sever his ties with Rafi after that song.
Can you identify one song that senior burman composed for rafi1 and one song that junior burman composed for rafi4?
Mr. Haldar,
I appreciate ur thought. I have one question for you..
1. Do u like to hear SonuN sings Rafi?
I am sure NO. Original is always original. Even i don’t like if somebody try to imitate KISHORE.
We brought up listening kishore n Rafi. If one song is sung by Rafi, and it is very popular and somebody of his stauture try to imitate him, few people like few not. I appreciate kishore’ version without any intrument and i found it was flawless.
He sang the same song from Chitralekha in KHANDWA as i mentioned in my prev. blog. I don’t know abt calcutta, but i can trust u.
I don’t rate Rafi as 1,2 3 and so on. I like Rafi too, but i hate if somebody say he is better than anybody else. In few category, i think Mahendra akpoor is better.
Just listen all songs from Prem Pujari. Kishore was fabulous, though Rafi also sang one song in that.
Boss, one simple thing u people have to understnad that when Rafi was ruling industry, nobody was there to challenge him, and he was first choice for all MDs. Kishore was busy in acting those days, but when he got chance, he made Rafi o sit in the corner.
I can count no. of good rafis songs from 70-80’s (till he alive)
I can give one example for all ur above songs:
DIL AAJ SHAYAR HAI, GHAM AAJ NAGHAMA HAI.
Dear Ashu,
I actually heard Kishore sing “Man re tu kahe na dheer dhare” at a concert in Calcutta, not Khandwa. This concert was in 1983, three years after Rafi died. Mind you, the stadium was full of Kishore fans. After Kishore sang the song, here’s what a Kishore fan sitting next to me remarked: Uni kano rofi saheb’er gaan gaitey jachhen? (Why is he trying to sing Rafi’s songs?). The implication was that it is futile to try to reach that level of excellence. I will never forget this straight-from-the-heart statement made by a Kishore fan. What it means is that there are some areas of Rafi that are out of reach for any singer. But as a rafian, I appreciated Kishore’s sincerity in trying to sing his idol’s songs. I read somewhere that he also used to sing “Kya huwa tera wada” in concerts; I’m sure in that song, he did a better job in trying to reach Rafi’s level. Rafi has so many levels, you know; he gives other singers a fair chance to compete in those levels, such as chana-chor garam and chor-sipahee kind of songs. You can say that there are four Rafi’s: rafi1, rafi2, rafi3 and rafi4. Manna and Mukesh compete with rafi2. The bengali bahu competes with rafi2, and rafi3. Your guru competes a little with rafi2 but mainly with rafi3. There is only one singer who competes with rafi1 and also rafi2, but she falls a little behind when competing with rafi1. Oh, I forgot to mention rafi4; that’s the junglee, buttameez, janwar rafi; suprisingly no one can compete with rafi4. We thought some of the mawali singers could outclass rafi4 but they haven’t been able to. Now let me give you the names of md’s who used to compose for all these rafi’s:
naushad, madan mohan, khayyam – rafi1
s. d. burman, roshan – rafi, rafi2
o. p. nayyar – rafi2, rafi3 (and sometimes rafi1)
r. d. burman – rafi2, rafi3 (and sometimes rafi4)
laxmi-pyare and kalyanji-anandji – rafi2, rafi3
shankar-jaikishan – rafi1, rafi2, rafi3, rafi4
Next time, when you visit this site, let us know which rafi you want your favourite singer to compete with; then the comparison becomes much easier. You know it’s difficult to compare apples and oranges.
And here’s a homework assignment for you; take your time because you’ll need it. Among the many Dev Anand films that Rafi sung in, I’ll mention only one and that too a non-SD film. The film is Hum Dono and the music was composed by Jaidev, sd’s assistant. There are three Rafi songs in the film, two solos and one duet:
1. Main zindagi ke saath nibhata chala gaya
2. Kabhi khud pe kabhi halat pe rona aaya
3. Abhi na jawo chhod kar (with Asha)
The first part of your homework is to figure out which rafi sang each of the songs. The second part is a little more difficult. Go through the archives of all Dev Anand films (doesn’t matter who the md is) and give me one film where Kishore has three songs whose combined impact comes anywhere near that of the three mentioned above. This is your home turf. After all, Kishore is Dev’s voice!