4^th August 1929-13^th October 1987

Around one and half years back I had posted an article here on Pre-Aaradhana Kishore Kumar. Obviously, there must be a sequel to it and what other occasion than the 94^th birth anniversary of the legend that falls on 4^th Aug 2023. For the benefit of those readers who might have not read that blog, I am posting the link to that here:

The Pre-‘Aaradhana’ Kishore Kumar

Kishore da started singing for films as a playback singer with the film “ Ziddi “ that was released in 1948 ; music was composed  by  Khemchand Prakash , picturised on a very young Dev Anand. However, he had to wait for around 21 years to get the major break , although, as I had mentioned in my earlier blog, he gave some wonderful songs in those 21 years. But somehow he remained slightly behind the stalwarts Rafi, Talat, Mukesh & Manna Dey, partially due to his  focus more  on acting instead of play back singing. Instead of going into endless arguments as to why he got sidelined, I always feel the discerning listeners of Hindi Film Music ( HFM) are really blessed to have these 5 greatest male playback singers who enriched the music world with their immense variety and talent. When I started writing my blogs, I realised that I like each and every artist who were great in some aspect or the other.

When the Aaradhana tsunami came , there was no looking back for Kishore and he shot into the limelight he richly deserved. With RD Burman and Rajesh Khanna team strongly rooting for him, he started giving hits after hits with astounding speed and quality .  By this time , he practically stopped acting , directing , producing , writing, and even composing music -all the other skills he was good at,  but might have been diverting his attention away from his core competency. An  analysis of the number of films he acted and the number of songs he had sung in both these periods is interesting:

Period	No. of films acted	No. of songs          ( approx.)
1946-1969	74	363
1969-1987	13	2260

The perennial dilemma for me is how to select a few songs, say 25-30, from the vast ocean he left behind from 1969 to 1987. I know that many of my friends who are ardent  Kishore fans may feel that I have missed out some of their favourites but as I always say , these are my personal choices and I have to restrict the length of my blogs!

Song list is arranged chronologically based on the year of the film and  described in this sequence: Song-Film-Year of release-Music director-Lyricist-any co-singers

1. Roop tera mastana-Aaradhana-1969-S.D Burman-Anand Bakshi

The song that gave the biggest break of his career. Accordion, saxophone, and the thundering rhythm of Burman da, excellently picturised  in a single shot and with that so-sensual tone of Kishore…the most remembered song of Kishore.

2. Mere Naseeb mein ae dost-Do Raaste-1969-Lakshmikant-Pyarelal- Anand Bakshi

Laxmikant-Pyarelal come out with a superb song with a sombre tone .  Their  usually elaborate orchestration gives way for a very simple , soulful melody and Kishore excels in such sad songs also.

3. Woh Shaam Kuch Ajeeb Thi-Khamoshi- 1969-  Hemant Kumar-Gulzar

A haunting melody  from Hemant da, sung with a great intensity  by Kishore. Khamoshi was an intense film and in line with the mood of the film, Hemant da & Kishore da created  a masterpiece.

4. Teri duniya se hoke-Pavitra Paapi-1970-Prem Dhawan-Prem Dhawan

Prem Dhawan was an under-rated and not-so-recognised ,  multi-talented artist-choreographer, lyricist, and an occasional music composer also. This is a very famous song of Kishore picturized on a young Parikshit Sahni. The deep baritone of Kishore traverses from the low to high notes with that  natural , free style of singing , which was his greatest strength.

5.  Phoolon ke rang se-Prem Pujari-1970-S.D.Burman-Neeraj

Burman da had a great association with Kishore da and in fact considered him as a “ manas putra”-godson. Kishore da always gave his best for the senior Burman. Lyricist Neeraj wrote some great songs for S D Burman . Picturized in the beautiful Swiss alps, this  evergreen song  will remain as fresh as it was when composed 53 years ago!

6. Zindagi ka safar-Safar-1970-Kalyanji -Anandji-Indeevar

Kalyanji -Anandji were one of those rare composers who worked successfully right from the early 60’s and were able to quickly adapt to the changing style of music right up to the early 2000. Also, they composed excellent songs with all the three stalwarts-Rafi, Mukesh, and Kishore.

7. Geet gaata hoon mein-Lal Pathhar-1971-Shankar -Jaikishan-Dev Kohli

Shankar-Jaikishan and Kishore are a unique combination. They had very few songs together but whatever they composed for him were excellent and projected a totally different tone of Kishore . Sadly, in the popular realm, this combination is mostly ignored . Out of the duo , Shankar was always open to try other singers like Kishore and Manna Dey. After the unfortunate death of Jaikishan at a very young age of 40 , the industry totally ignored Shankar , but I keep discovering many gems from him which he composed individually, but always under the title of Shankar-Jaikishan . Whenever Shankar & Kishore  worked  together, what else can one expect than gems like this song Geet Gaata Hoon Mein.

8. Yeh jo mohabbat hai-Kati Patang-1971-R.D.Burman-Anand Bakshi

Apart from Aaradhana, there are two films that are known for Kishore’s fabulous songs : Amar Prem & Kati Patang. Any playlist of Kishore is bound to have this immensely popular song, that defines exactly  Kishore’s style of singing. That intoxicated ‘ yeh jo mohabbat hai’ is something that will remain etched forever in the film music world.

9. Zindagi ek safar hai suhana-Andaaz-1971-Shankar Jaikishan-Hasrat Jaipuri

There were many songs that had that famous yodelling of Kishore , but I consider this  one as one of the best ever  yodelling!! The very first strains of the prelude will announce fabulously that it is a S-J composition. That grand orchestration , the high-octane energy, and the furious rhythm-all typical S-J sytle. One more “ signature song” of Kishore da.

10. Dil aaj shayar-Gambler-1971-S.D.Burman-Neeraj

One of my favourite Kishore songs, this has that remarkable stamp of senior Burman, with Kishore  conveying the intense emotions written by the great poet Neeraj in an  impeccable way.

11. Koi hota jisko apna-Mere Apne-1971-Salil Choudhury-Gulzar

Salil da is well known for his intricate compositions. In his initial days he had composed some songs for Kishore that were  lighter tunes , mainly for those films which had Kishore as the actor. For Salil da , the main preferences were Talat, Mukesh and to a lesser extent Rafi. However, after hearing Kishore render this song that had intricate transitions from the lower to higher octaves and how Kishore da rendered them so effortlessly, it seems Salil da repented very much that he had not worked with Kishore da more .

One of my very favourite Kishore song-an absolute gem.

12. Tum kitni khoobsurat ho-Jangal Mein Mangal-1972-Shankar-Jaikishan-Hasrat Jaipuri & Neeraj

The humming at the beginning, and once again , those fabulous violins of S-J ,the way in which Shankar brings out the vibrato in Kishore da’s voice-all these make this a masterpiece. I am sure many Kishore fans might not have heard this rare song. I would request them to listen to this song and enjoy a different texture in Kishor’s voice.

13. Yeh kya hua kaise hua-Amar Prem-1972-R.D Burman-Anand Bakshi

Amar Prem had “ amar” songs of the Pancham da-Kishore da -Anand Bakshi troika who were a terrific team. Chingari koi bhadke, Kuch toh log kahenge are the other two immortal songs of this team in this film.

The voice modulation of Kishore da  perfectly fits the on-screen Rajesh Khanna. Pancham da’s superb use of the flute that keeps “ answering” Kishore’s queries and Anand Bakshi’s simple but powerful lines are just out of the world.

14. Oh mere dil ke chain-Mere Jeevan Sathi-1972-R.D Burman-Majroh Sultanpuri

The juggernaut of Pancham-Kishore-Rajesh Khanna continues….How can I describe this song except to say that it is an emotion that can only be felt.

The guitar and thundering percussion of Pancham joined with a santoor piece all add up to an evergreen number. The breezy style of Kishore da’s singing is in full glory.

15. Yeh Jeevan hai-Piya Ka Ghar-1972- Lakshmikant-Pyarelal -Anand Bakshi

The songs in which Kishore da slightly softens  his natural  baritone are simply nectar. LP for a change create a very soothing and soft tune with minimal orchestration that consists of mainly a  guitar. One of the greatest melodies from L-P & Kishore da.

16. Pal pal dil ke paas-Blackmail-1973-Kalyanji Anandji-Rajendra Krishan

The 4-5 years after Aaradhana saw Pancham, L-P and K-A vying with each other to give Kishore da their best creations. This one is again a perennial favourite of any Kishore fan and must definitely be among their  top ten . KA were also equally great in their percussions ; in this song the combination of guitar, violins and accordion complement the full-throated Kishore da’s free style singing.

17. Mere bheegi bheegi si-Anamika-1973-R.D.Burman-Majrooh

Another vintage Pancham-Kishore combo, this time with Majrooh and picturized on the great actor Sanjeev Kumar.

An iconic song. That slight breaking of voice in the word “ mann” at the end of first antara and again at the end of the song are Kishore’s USPs.

18. Mere dil mein aaj kya-Daag-1973-Laxmikant Pyarelal-Sahir Ludhianvi

Laxmi-Pyare come out with one more super hit for Kishore da. Their typical percussion that keeps pounding at your heart and at times, takes a strategic pause at certain places , where Kishore lowers his voice. These subtle variations in the orchestrations make the songs of the golden era evergreen.

19. Ghungroo ki tarah-Chor Machaye Shor-1974-Ravindra Jain

The blind music director cum lyricist Ravindra Jain composed some great songs with many singers. I can say he was the last one to continue the rich legacy of melody from  the golden era to the late 80’s.

Kishor delivers a pathos ridden song in his inimitable style.

20. Oh Hansini mere Hansini-Zehreela Insaan-1974-R.D Burman-Majrooh

One more personal favourite of mine. Pancham creates sheer magic with saxophone, accordion, flute  and guitar. The antara of the song is simply superb.

21. Dil Aisa Kisi Ne  Mera Thoda-Amanush-1975-Shyamal Mitra-Indeevar

Shyamal Mitra was a noted singer and  music composer who worked mainly in Bengali film music  . Amanush was his most noteworthy Hindi film and this famous song by Kishore da made Shyamal Mitra’s  name popular in HFM.

22. Tera bina zindagi se koi-Aandhi-1975-R.D Burman-Gulzar-With Lata

The first duet in my selection- I did not realise that all the songs I selected from the “top of my mind recall” were solos! This is a fabulous duet with Kishore making  a late entry. All the three duets from the film Aandhi are great. The other two mesmerizing duets are :

Is mod se jaate hain, kuch chust kadam rakhkar &

Tum aa gaye ho noor aa gaya hai

23. Badi sooni hai-Mili-1975-S.D.Burman-Yogesh

The last song composed by S D Burman, the recording of which he could not attend as he suffered a stroke and was in hospital. Few days later, on 31^st Oct 1975, Burman da passed away . Maybe the pain that Kishore might have felt while recording this song , knowing his mentor was in hospital , is reflected in the immense emotion he had put in this song. Remains one of Kishore da’s best sad song.

24. Tum bhi chalo-Zameer-1975- Sapan Chakravarty-Sahir Ludhianvi-With Asha

Sapan Chakravarty was a long-time assistant to Pancham da and also a singer in Bengali films. He had composed music for  a handful of Hindi films, and this one is the best among them. There are two versions of this song, and both are excellent. The fast one is a duet with Asha and there is a slower , solo version of Kishore. I have selected the former.

25. Chalo bhool jayen-Do Jhoot-1975-Shankar -Jaikishan-Vitthalbhai Patel-With Lata

The fourth S-J song in my list-one more hidden gem from Shankar. Somehow, being a great S-J fan, I cannot digest the popular perception that after Jaikishan’s demise , their music was not good. Of course , Shankar could give only few hits , but some of his compositions were too good and maybe the public could not appreciate. This is also a great Kishore-Lata duet.

26. Chalte chalte Mere Yeh Geet-Chalte Chalte-1976-Bappi Lahiri-Amit Khanna

Between the many fast paced, disco songs that Bappi Lahiri was famous for, he had composed some great sober songs. This song had become a sort of epitaph for Kishore da…no one can ever say ‘alvida’ to his songs. I prefer the audio only link instead of the video of the song.

27. Rimjhim gire sawan-Manzil-1979-R.D. Burman-Yogesh Gawde

Whenever one thinks of the famous rain songs in HFM, this will always be there at the top.

28. Chhookar mere man ko-Yaarana-1981-Rajesh Roshan-Anjaan

I end this blog with , what I consider , as one of the best by Kishore in his latter days. The soft tone of his voice gently caresses you like a cool breeze. Excellent composition by Rajesh Roshan, son of the legendary Roshan Lal Nagrath.

Acknowledgements and Disclaimer:
The songs mentioned are from the popular, public domain and have been mentioned here   only for the listening pleasure of the music lovers. This blog does not claim any copyright over them, which rests with the respective owners of the rights. I sincerely thank the publishers of following  Internet sources  for the information that I could gather for this article

1. You Tube
2. Wikipedia