Just like the way in which Rafi could elaborate a particular word or phrase in multiple ways in a song, we can write about his songs by looking at them from different aspects. That is why there cannot be any limitation to blogs on Rafi. I keep writing about various artists throughout the year but when it comes to 24th December and 31st July, it always has to be about Rafi.
On his 45th death anniversary , I thought of looking at some of his songs that are written beautifully and with his exceptional singing he elevates these songs to an even higher level . Rafi sahab must have sung around 5000+ songs and the number of music directors who had composed these runs into hundreds with equally hundreds of lyricists who wrote them. Among the most prolific lyricists who wrote the songs of Rafi are : Majrooh Sultanpuri, Anand Bakshi, Rajendra Krishan, Hasrat Jaipuri and Shakeel Badyuni. One day I may write a blog taking up the best songs from these and few other lyricists. Even for some obscure lyricists , he had made their songs immortal by his exceptional singing ! For this blog, I am not applying any criteria and just selected ten songs that came to my mind due to their inherent lyrical beauty and Rafi rendering them in a brilliant manner.
Rafi’s uniqueness was in his dedication to give his best to each song , irrespective of whether they were for big banners or lesser-known banners. Also, his diction was always superb , with no difficulty for us in understanding the words of the songs. Crystal clear pronunciation of Hindi and Urdu words was his strong point. Added to the clarity, he used to add his special touch , emphasizing few words, singing the same phrase in different ways in different stanzas , even rendering the entire song in a tone that suits the emotion of the song.
This blog is specifically about those songs , in which Rafi sahab enhances the beauty of the song by the way he picks up few words and phrases and embellishes them in his inimitable style. I have restricted myself just to ten such songs that are purely my personal favourites. Of course in all these songs one common factor is that the lyrics are also outstanding.
The songs listed her are mainly my personal likes; I am sure any other Rafi fan would have an entirely different list ! One more important note that I would like to add is that many of his top songs that became epics for having some of the best lyrics ever written , like Jinhe Naaz Hai Hind Par and Yeh Mehlon Yeh Takhton ( Sahir Ludhianvi for Pyasa), Bichde Sabhi Bhari Bhari( Kaifi Azmi for Kagaz Ke Phool) , Caarvan Guzar Gaya ( Neeraj for Nayee Umar Ki Nayee Fasal) etc were already covered by me in an earlier blog “ Few extraordinary songs of Rafi sahab” . Those were songs, which if anyone else had sung would not have made any impact . Since I had covered those songs elaborately in that blog , I am not including them here.
The songs are listed in chronological order of their film’s release with details of song viz, Lyricist -song title-film-year- music director mentioned in that order. Giving the entire lyrics for each song would make the blog too lengthy and so I have tried to highlight the best part of the song or the best part where Rafi sahab had enhanced the lyrical value of the song to the best of my ability.
Many songs in YouTube that have visuals sometimes have an issue of not enabled for playing in an embedded form and so in such cases, I have linked only the audio version of the song.
Kaifi Azmi-Jane Kya Dhoondti Rehti Hai Yeh Aankhen-Shola Aur Shabnam-1961-Khayyam
Kaifi Azmi wrote some of the most memorable songs , immortalized by the sheer singing power of Rafi sahab. In his early days, Khayyam composed some of his best songs with the help of Rafi .
Aarzu jurm, wafa jurm, tamanna hai gunaah
Ye wo duniya hai yahaan pyaar nahin ho sakata
Kaise baazaar ka dastur tumhe samajhaaun
Bik gaya jo wo kharidaar nahin ho sakata
Starting off with a leisurely pace , Rafi goes to the high notes at the end , conveying the softness of the lyrics in the beginning and the frustration towards the end. How superbly he breathes life to the hard-hitting lines of Kaifi Azmi with “bikh gaya jo wo khareedar nahin ho sakta ”in a way that only he can do.
2. Raja Mehdi Ali Khan-Mein Nigahen Tere Chehre Se Hataoon-Aap Ki Parchhaiyan-1964-Madan Mohan
Madan Mohan & Raja Mehdi Ali Khan were a great team. And if we add a romantic song , rendered by the master in that genre , then what else do we need! RMAK wrote many such beautiful ghazals for Madan Mohan.
Just that one word ‘ tauba tauba…tauba taubaaa’ is enough to make this song immortal. And in the line “tujhse nibh jaayegi, mein inse nibhaoon kaise” , one can sense the helplessness in his tone.
3. Sahir Ludhianvi-Mehfil Se Uth Jaane Walo-Dooj Ka Chand-1964-Roshan
Sahir is the superstar among lyricists and it is very difficult to choose one song written by this genius. As I had mentioned in my introduction, I have already covered his landmark songs. Mehfil se uth jaane walon is a hidden gem, not heard much and is one of the best by Rafi among the hundreds of songs that he had rendered in an ‘ intoxicated’ manner ( figuratively – everyone knows he was an absolute teetotaller , but rendered the best songs for an on-screen sharabi!!). Watch out for that ‘Mere Sathi’ each time he sings – it is sheer delight to listen . Also the hollow laughter after “ achha khasa khel raha” , which he repeats again in the last stanza. Rafi’s mastery lies in adding these special touches with a razor-sharp precision: a more-than-required exaggeration will make it over-powering and anything less would not make any impact. He knew exactly how to do those ‘ harkats’!!
Do din tumne pyaar jataya , do din tum se mel raha
Achha khasa waqt kata aur achha khasa khel raha
Ab us khel ka zikr hi kaisa, waqt kata aur khel tamaam
Long back, I had written about this song for a different blogsite dedicated to Rafi sahab and that was my very first blog! One of the best lullabies ever sung by a male playback singer, Shailendra’s mastery was in conveying profound philosophy in simple words that even a common man could understand.
Shankar- Jaikishan create a soulful melody and Shailendra’s imagination is at its height:
So gaya chaman-chaman, so gayee kali-kali
So gaye hain sab nagar, so gayee gali-gali
Nind kah rahi hai chal meri baahen thaam
Note how Rafi brings his voice almost to a whisper in the line ‘So gaye hain sab nagar, so gaye gali-gali’
Again, in the last stanza, the sorrow in these lines is so beautifully brought out by Rafi in a way that only he can.
Kaun ayega idhar, kiski raah dekhe ham
Jinaki ahaten suni, jaane kisake the kadam
5. Hasrat Jaipuri-Yeh mera prem patra padhkar -Sangam-1964-Shankar Jaikishan-last few lines by Vyjanthimala
Hasrat Jaipuri wrote some of the best romantic songs in Hindi film music and this could arguably be his best ever. The very beginning of the song shows the class of Hasrat:
Mehrbaan likhoon, Haseena likhoon, Ya Dilruba likhoon?
Hairan hoon ke aapko is khat mein kya likhoon?
Rafi’s special touch: In the very first line, he comes out with a softer ‘ ya dilruba likhoon ‘ , and at the end ‘ is khat mein kyaa likhoon , he perfectly conveys the dilemma of the hero as to what he should write to his lover! In many songs Rafi did almost 90% of the job of the on-screen actor!
Watch out how he goes to a high note till the word ‘bhatkegi’ in the line Agar mar jaaun ruh bhatkegi tere intezaaar main and then rapidly glides down in a silky tone with ‘ tere intezaar mein ’.
6. Majoor Sultanpuri-Janewalon Zara Mudke Dekho Mujhe-Dosti-1964-Laxmikant Pyarelal
The film Dosti had unknown actors, but had one of the best ever scores by Laxmikant Pyarelal for whom this was a major springboard to fame. What great songs Rafi had rendered-wish I could include all of them here! Majrooh weaved magic with his immortal compositions in all the songs.
Can there be any other better way of conveying the emotions of a differently-abled person than these lines?
Is anokhe jagat ki main taqdeer hoon ,
Main widhaata ke haathon ki tasveer hun, ek tasveer hun
Is jahaan ke liye, dharti maa ke liye
Shiv ka waradaan hun, main tumhaari tarah
Throughout the song one can hear how Rafi conveys the earnest plea of a differently- abled person asking the society to consider him as one among them only and not different from them. And his special touch comes with those subtle variations every time he sings “ mein tumhari tarah”
7. Gopaldas Neeraj-Aaj Ki Raat Badi Shok Badi Natkhat -Nayee Umar Ki Nayee Fasal-1966-Roshan
Gopaldas Neeraj was a well-known Hindi poet long before he entered the film world. Roshan immortalized him in the hall of fame with his masterpiece Swapn Jhare Phool Se Meet Chube shool se. I rate this as one of the best ever lyrical composition in Hindi film music. However as I had already covered this song in an earlier blog, I have picked up one more hidden gem from the same film. Dripping with romance , Neeraj’s sublime description of the hero’s lover is brought to life with Rafi’s vocals that seem to be drenched in honey. Though the entire song is a masterpiece in poetry, the last stanza is something magical! Note how Rafi renders the “ aur bezaaar” and also that special tone he lends to the line “ Ho…aisi rangeen ghazal raat na phir gaayegi”.
The last stanza lyrics goes like this:
Raat rani ki yeh bheeni si nasheeli khushboo
Aa rahee hai ke jo chan chan ke ghani dhalon se
Aisa lagta hai kisi dheet jhakore* se lipat
Khel aayee hai tere uljhe hue baalon se
Aur bezaar….aur bezaar na kar mere tadapte dil ko
Aisi rangeen..ho aisi rangeen ghazal raat na phir gaayegi
Aaj to tere bina neend nahin aayegi
Dheet jhakore meaning-a stray or wanton gust of wind
8. Shakeel Badayuni-Kal Raat Zindagi Se Mulakat Ho gayee-Palki-1967-Naushad
Naushad and Shakeel Badayuni are inseparable. While there are many articles about the great lyrics of Sahir, Shailendra, Kaifi ( absolutely no doubt they richly deserve that and I am myself a great fan of their lyrics ) but Shakeel is somehow is not talked about much. He has written some of the best Urdu shayari that were immortalized by the venerable Naushad and when Rafi teams up with them , it is sheer magic.
The tune is simple and more so the orchestration is minimal like most of Naushad’s songs. At around 6 minutes, this song is quite an unusually long song with just three stanzas only. Each stanza is lengthy and note how Rafi breathes life into each and every word, emphasizing few here and there. The basic idea of my blog is to showcase such songs, which sound so great due to the sheer power of the lyrics and how Rafi renders them to a perfection.
9. Prem Dhawan-Allah Hi Allah Kar Pyare Bhai-Pavitra Papi-1970-Prem Dhawan
Everyone must be aware of the anecdote about the young Rafi , who as a child used to be enthralled by a fakir’s singing in his village and he used to just follow him . It is my own imagination that he might have remembered this fakir when he sang this song and one can get the feel as if a fakir is singing it.
Prem Dhawan is one the rare artists who could compose music , lyrics and he was also a choreographer-truly multi-faceted artist. The song appears in the film at various situations and Rafi has sung this in a totally different tone.
This particular stanza seems to have been written for the farishta Rafi who has given us so much pleasure through his immortal songs :
Kabhi kabhi is duniya mein yaro
Aise farishte bhi aate hai
Kisi ko apna sab kuch deke
Khali hath chale jate hai
Jaise sukh ki chhaya deke
Jaise sukh ki chhaya deke
Badal jaye bikhar pyare
Bhai allah hi allah
Allah hi allah kar pyare bhai
10. Anand Bakshi-Mehbooba Teri Tasveer-Ishq Par Zor Nahin-1970- S D Burman
The song that is most popular from this film Ishq Par Zor Nahin, is Yeh Dil Deewana Hai . But in this song , Anand Bakshi, well known for his romantic songs, comes out with superb poetry to describe the hero’s mehbooba ( lover) and her beauty.
Observe how Rafi plays with the words “ Kis tharah” , and an ‘extended’ “tasveer” and that special touch to that “ suna hai” in the line tere jaisa koi kahin dekha na suna hai.
Acknowledgement & Disclaimer
I sincerely thank the publishers of following blogsites & Internet sources for the information that I could gather for this article:
You Tube
Wikipedia
The songs mentioned are from the popular, public domain and have been embedded here only for the listening pleasure of the music lovers. The photograph is taken from the internet, duly recognizing the full copyrights for the same to the original creator or the site where they were originally displayed .This blog does not claim any copyright over them, which rests with the respective owners of the rights.
When I was racking my brain for a suitable theme to pay my humble tribute to the great singer Mohammad Rafi on his birth centenary that falls on 24th December 2024, I remembered an old interview of the great man. In his lifetime he had spoken so little that one can condense them in a single page , whereas if we have to write about the invaluable treasure of songs that he left behind , even a lifetime would not be enough! In that interview he had very modestly credited whatever he sang to his gurus and the music directors! No doubt the music directors explain the tune and situation to the singers to bring out the right effect, but it is a well-known fact that Rafi sahab always used to check on which actor the song was to be picturized, understand the mood of the song , rehearse thoroughly , and then render the song to a perfection that no one has come close to till this day. Also, he always used to point to the sky, referring to the Almighty whenever someone praised his singing , indicating that it was all God’s will. That was Rafi sahab-ever humble and down to earth.
Now , coming to the theme of this blog, since he very modestly credited his music directors , I thought why not look at the number of songs he sang for the music directors with whom he had worked in the 37 years of his career. I did that and selected those music directors with whom he had sung at least 20 songs and above. My count was 36 music directors, surprisingly very close to the number of years of his fabulous career in playback singing.
For this blog I have focused only on his solo songs, and maybe on some other occasion in future will try to write about his duets. For some of the music directors for whom Rafi had sung a huge percentage of excellent songs, I have selected two songs and for the rest only one . This is with an idea to keep the blog shorter ( even then it runs into 45 songs in all!). But I am sure Rafi fans will never tire of listening to his songs ; moreover, being a blog to commemorate his birth centenary, it definitely has to cover a wide range of songs.
Before I get into the song listing , some more statistics. The 36 music directors whom I have included here were the major ones for whom he sang 20 or more songs. But there are around 257 other music directors for whom he had collectively sung around 1030 songs! That only shows how he never bothered about money, big names/banners/heroes etc.
The listing is sequenced in descending order of total number of songs Rafi had sung for each music director, with the approximate number of songs he had totally sung mentioned in brackets. These are only rough numbers as per some data available with me. Even I was surprised to note the numbers against some of the music directors-for some it is surprisingly lower than what we usually perceive, like Naushad or surprisingly higher , like R.D Burman! Also, one may find some music directors like Vinod, Avinash Vyas, A.R Quereshi , S. Mohindar, Jamal Sen etc who could not make it to the top and remained relatively obscure , but some of the songs Rafi had sung for such music directors are top class, even though they are never heard much.
Against each song , I have mentioned the film, year, and the lyricist. The choice of the song for each music director is purely my own personal choice and will never match any other person’s choice. It is absolutely impossible to select one or two from hundreds of top-class songs he had sung for these music directors. Also, I would have written about some of the greatest songs of Rafi with these music directors elsewhere in my blogsite and so to avoid repetition, I have consciously selected some other song. With that caveat , let me start!
Laxmikant-Pyarelal(389)
For Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Rafi was always their most preferred male singer. Despite starting off only towards the late sixties and the fact that Rafi passed away in 1980, they scored the maximum number of songs for him. Although some of the songs towards the late 70’s may not count much in terms of quality, they gave so many hits for him. L-P’s tunes had great orchestration and percussion arrangements and most of their peppy numbers suited Rafi’s breezy style of singing.
Huyi Shaam Unka-Mere Humdum Mere Dost-1968-Majrooh Sultanpuri
I have selected a soft and less-boisterous song of L-P that Rafi takes it to great heights with his typical nuances.
Khilona Jaankar Tum to-Khilona-1970-Anand Bakshi
When the maestro sings, he gets into the soul of the song so much that it really tucks at your heart. There are many phrases that are sung with extra stretch in the antara…only Rafi could pull it so well. One of the most under-rated but superb actors of Hindi films, Sanjeev Kumar enacts this so well on screen.
Shankar-Jaikishan (378)
If only Jaikishan had not passed away so early , the duo of Shankar-Jaikishan would have scored the maximum songs for Rafi. I had to simply do a random pick of two of their songs as Rafi had given the most memorable hits with this golden duo -the emperors among music directors of the golden era.
The distinct S-J style of orchestration and power-packed tunes were rendered by Rafi with equal energy, making them a formidable team.
Mein Gaoon Tum So Jao-Bramhachari-1968-Shailendra
Generally, lullabies are associated with female singers, but Rafi can sing even a lullaby better than others.
Chitragupt( 261)
The very talented Chitragupta, remained in the shadows of the top stalwarts mainly due to the fact that he got only low budget films and not the big banners starring the top heroes. Rafi remained his main male playback singer.
Akhiyan Sang Akhiyan-Bada Aadmi-1961-Prem Dhawan
This could be among the top ten classical raag based film songs of Hindi film songs, but less talked about. Rafi is simply scintillating in this. As the picturization of the song is not matching the superb quality of singing, I have posted a link that has only audio, with good quality and also a bonus -the song repeats once more ! Get yourself immersed in this out-of-the world Malkauns raag based classic.
Sonwa Ke Pinjara Mein-Ganga Maiya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo (Bhojpuri Film Song)-Shailendra
How can a singer bring so much of emotion in a 3-minute film song? Hailing from Punjab, observe the way he has rendered this song written in Bhojpuri dialect by Shailendra. Chitragupta has kept the orchestration to the bare minimum , with Rafi pulling your heartstrings . Even a stone listening to this song will melt.
Ravi (251)
Chitragupta and Ravi had much in common in the sense that melody always dominated their compositions and so Rafi was the most-preferred choice for both. Only difference was Ravi could get better commercial success . Rafi rendered some of his greatest ghazals and romantic melodies for Ravi.
Jaane Bahar Husn Tera-Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya-1963-Shakeel Badayuni
Typical laid-back style composition of Ravi, that mostly had poetry at its heart , with Rafi rendering each and every syllable with so much of passion. That “Are wallah kamaal hai haaye”…it is such special touches that only Rafi brought into playback singing , making him the University for Playback Singing!
Choo Lene Do Nazuk Honton Ko
On screen, actor Raj Kumar is singing , intoxicated, but the teetotaller Rafi is rendering it as if he is even more intoxicated and making us intoxicated with his rendering.
O.P Nayyar (206)
Unlike most of the yester-year music directors who gave more soft, melodious , sober tunes, O.P Nayyar was different with his pulsating percussion arrangements. He brought in so much of high energy in the tunes like S-J and gave Rafi a much-needed break from getting bracketed with more of sad or soft melodious numbers. I have selected two songs that show cases the peppy side of Rafi’s singing as well as a soft romantic side that OPN composed.
Hai Duniya Usiki Zamaana-Kahmir Ki Kali-1964-S.H.Bihari
I could have selected a more fast , typical tonga-style song of OPN but this is too good to be left out. A masterpiece of composition and singing.
Subhan Allah haye haseen chehra
This is the typical OPN-Rafi combo that is full of joie de vivre and the hallmark of OPN-Rafi.
Kalyanji-Anandji (174)
To many it would be a surprise to note that K-A having composed 174 songs for Rafi. Their music is mostly associated with Mukesh in their earlier years and latter with Kishore Kumar. But Rafi had given some fantastic songs with K-A .
Sung with a subdued undercurrent of pathos, with Rafi’s vocals fitting to a tee the actor on screen , Shashi Kapoor.
Dil Bekaraar Sa Hai-Ishaara-1964-Majrooh Sultanpuri
The manner in which Rafi always balanced those little nuances in his singing ( example..mausam nashe mein choor hai, kuch peeke aayee hai ghata), without overdoing the same is something many singers were not able to emulate.
Naushad (171)
After the initial few years when the legendary Naushad used other male singers like Mukesh and Talat Mehmood, he almost completely switched to Rafi for the rest of his musical journey. The number of songs is lesser only due to the fact that he took very few assignments. Sometimes he used to take 6 to 8 months to complete a film. Most of Rafi’s songs with Naushad are masterpieces and it is indeed a futile exercise for me to select two from them!
Man Tarpat Hari Darshan-Baiju Baawara-1952-Shakeel Badayuni
One of the most memorable bhajans ever composed in Hindi films, no one can ever write anything about this song as it is enough to just immerse oneself into the same with closed eyes…Rafi brings Hari’s darshan to us with his singing.
Kal Raat Zindagi Se-Palki-1967-Shakeel Badayuni
This could be one of the songs that has a very long antara. Only the three legends-Rafi, Naushad and Shakeel can create such a masterpiece. The way Rafi elaborates each and every line of the antara is something out of the world.
Madan Mohan (168)
The Ghazal king Madan Mohan had a special chemistry with Rafi-he used to always ask him if he had sung any of those peppy, fast songs in the recent past and only after ensuring a ‘no’ from Rafi , he used to go for his recordings. MM’s music was known for its melody and Rafi rendered many immortal ghazals for him. With Rafi , MM had even experimented with a song that was far ahead of its time-Tum Jo Mil Gaye Ho-that was one of the most complex songs in HFM. I had already written about that song in my earlier blog and so here , I have listed two gems-one a famous ghazal and other one a very soft , romantic number that caresses you as you listen like a gentle breeze.
Rang Aur Noor Ki baraat-Ghazal-1964-Sahir Ludhianvi
Signature composing style of MM, with those fabulous violins and Rafi coming up with those evocative singing for which he was famous.
Ek Haseen Shaam Ko-Dulhan Ek Raat Ki-1966-Raja Mehdi Ali Khan
Like many of MM’s compositions , this is as fresh as it was composed yesterday! Whenever Rafi sings in lower octaves and in a softer tone , they become timeless! While listening , please do not miss that extra sweetness in “ shaaam ko” that only the master can render.
R.D Burman (130)
Although one would not immediately associate RDB with Rafi, like many music directors, who had depended on Rafi in their debut film, RDB was not an exception. His debut film Chote Nawab( 1961) and many other subsequent films till 1970 had predominantly Rafi as the main male singer. In fact, the film Teesri Manzil( 1966) had six songs by Rafi and all were super hits and gave the major boost to RDB’s career. Kati Patang in 1970 marked a significant shift to Kishore, but RDB continued with Rafi even till 1980 , when Rafi breathed his last. Late 70’s had many top hits for Rafi with RDB, even , ironically fetching him the lone National award for best male playback singer with the song Kya Hua Tera Vada.
A superb romantic song from this musical bonanza film, with trend-setting music by Pancham da.
Usha Khanna(115)
The only female music composer to have a long and successful career in the male-dominated field , Usha Khanna had great respect and admiration for Rafi and had given him a much-needed boost in the somewhat lean period for Rafi during the early 70’s, with her Teri Galiyon Mein Na Rakhenge song.
Maine Rakha Hai Mohabbat-Shabnam-1964-Javed Anwar
This typical Arabian music influenced composition is one of Usha Khanna’s top songs with Rafi. Written by her father Manohar Khanna under the pseudonym Javed Anwar.
Sonik Omi (114)
Manohar Lal Sonik and his nephew Om Prakash Sonik started their career as music arrangers and instrumentalists. They got their first film Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya as independent composers and its music is remembered even till today. In spite of giving many hits songs , they were relegated to low budget films and could not come to the top. Rafi had given some memorable hits for them, with Donon Ne Kiya , Tha Pyaar Magar being the most famous.
Kaliyon Ne Ghoonghat Khole-Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya-1966-G.L.Rawal
The nephew, Omi was once an arranger for the legendary music director Roshan and one can get a feel of the same arrangement in this song. An evergreen Rafi romantic song.
N. Dutta (112)
Hailing from a small village in Goa, Dutta Naik, credited as N. Dutta in films, was an unlucky genius. Despite scoring some great masterpieces and that too for big banners like B.R Chopra’s BR Films, somehow he could not get the recognition he richly deserved. He started as an assistant to the veteran composer S.D. Burman and had a great association with lyricist Sahir and together they gave immortal songs . Rafi was always N. Dutta’s favourite singer and the one I have included is an iconic song from the formidable trio of N. Dutta-Rafi-Sahir.
Maine Chand Aur Sitaron Ki-Chandrakanta-1956-Sahir Ludhianvi
The use of two sitars is a special feature of this evergreen song remembered for Rafi’s superlative singing, Sahir’s exquisite poetry and Dutta’s eternal composition.
Hansraj Behl (110)
Master Ji, as he was referred to in the industry ( the only one after the legendary Ghulam Haider) , Hansraj Behl is one more example of a forgotten or unlucky genius. Everyone would have heard his famous Rafi song Jahan Daal Daal Par Sone Ki Chidiya in our National days, without knowing the composer who created it! Starting from the Vintage era and going on to the Golden Era , he composed many melodious songs. His Mohabbat Zinda Rehti Hai for Rafi is also a very popular song.
Now-a-days even the good old Vividh Bharati channel of All India Radio seems to have forgotten such songs. A very beautiful composition sung by Rafi in his inimitable style. I do not know why two lyricists are associated with this song!
S.D Burman(103)
The veteran composer, Sachin Dev Burman, had a late start to his own career, almost at the age of 40, when he really took off. That , plus the fact that he was the only mainstream composer who even in his early years alternated between Rafi and Kishore , might have resulted in relatively lesser number of songs for Rafi. However, if we look at the quality of those songs, they must rank the highest. Many black & white films of Dev Anand had Rafi’s best songs. I have listed two of them here.
Tu Kahan Yeh Bata-Tere Ghar Ke Saamne-1963-Hasrat Jaipuri
The highlights of this song are the ‘out-of-the-world’ humming by Rafi at the beginning of each antara and the special echo effect that Burman da gave to the song.
Din Dhal Jaaye-Guide-1965-Shailendra
An entire blog can be written about this song! Guide was SDB’s magnum opus. All the songs are evergreen and this one has Rafi singing out his soul. The manner in which he expresses the words “ pareeshaaan” and “kkaaunn” are enough to prove he is without any comparison.
Husanlal-Bhagatram(101)
The first successful musical duo , Husanlal & Bhagatram were brothers of a noted music composer of the vintage era, Pt Amarnath. They dominated the 40’s but inexplicably faded into oblivion in later years. Solo songs of Rafi were relatively lesser as their duets for him were more popular.
Ek Dil Ke Tukde Hazar Huve-Pyaar Ki Jeet-1948-Qamar Jalalabadi
When one hears this song , we can realize how even at that young age of 24 , Rafi sang with so much of maturity and feel. By this time Rafi was slowly but surely reaching the top, not to look back till 1980!
Roshan(97)
Roshan ( full name Roshan Lal Nagarath) is known for his scintillating tunes with lilting melody and many twists and turns , with a trademark pause in the song that would elevate the composition to great heights. Flute was an integral part of his music. And similar to how Madan Mohan was considered king of ghazals, he was the king of Qawwalis. With Rafi, even though his number of songs were below hundred , but if we look at their quality, it must be the highest ever by any composer!
Man Re Tu Kahe Na Dheer -Chitralekha-1964-Sahir Ludhianvi
Considered as one of the best ever songs composed in Hindi films by many artists, this song, with a profound philosophical tone written by the veteran Sahir, remains one of Rafi’s career best.
Maine Shayad Tumhe-Barsat Ki Raat-1960-Sahir Ludhianvi
Barsat Ki Raat was one of Roshan’s best ever album. Who can forget the most famous qawwali of HFM , Na To Carvan Ki Talash Hai? The same film had some superb solos of Rafi like the one I listed here and Zindagi bhar nahi bhoolegi who barsaat ki raat.
S.N Tripathi(91)
Known for having composed the music for many films that had mythology or history as the main theme, Shri Nath Tripathi, apart from being a successful music director, was also an actor, singer , writer, and director of films. As Rafi was well-known for singing devotional songs, he was a natural choice for SNT for his various mythological films. The song I have selected is repeated from my earlier blogs , but could not ignore the same as it is a one-of-a-kind , that has only Rafi’s vocals , with no orchestration. Pure bliss!
Na Kisiki aankh ka noor hoon-Lal Quila-1960-Bahadur Shah Zafar(Muztar Khairabadi?)
There is always some ambiguity about who really wrote this song-whether the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar or Iftikhar Hussain Akhtar who was the grandfather of lyricist Javed Akhtar and father of another great lyricist Jan Nissar Akhtar. But there is no ambiguity in stating that this is one of Rafi’s topmost songs which only he can render!
C Ramachandra(83)
Although in his initial days, C Ramachandra composed many songs with Rafi, in the later years he had drifted away from him. There is a reason , but as it is controversial, I will skip that. One apparent reason could be that he himself was a good singer and so in later years he sang many of his compositions. Presenting a famous song of CR with Rafi from the film Nausherwan-E-Adil.
Ye Hasrat Thi Ki Is Duniya Mein-Nausherwan-E-Adil-1957-Parvez Shamsi
Apart from this superb solo, the same film had two very famous duets of Rafi with Lata: Taron Ki zubaan par hai mohabbat & Bhool Jayen Saare Gam.
Iqbal Qureshi(82)
With a height of 6’ 4” , Iqbal Quereshi was quite an impressive personality in the film industry. Like many other music directors, he is another example of an immensely talented composer but now relegated to obscurity. His film Cha Cha Cha had many popular and great songs.
Woh Hum Na The-Cha Cha Cha-1964-Neeraj
The film Cha Cha Cha was a forgettable one but all the songs are masterpieces.
S. Mohindar (76)
One of the last composers from the Vintage Era & Golden Era to have survived till 2020, his one song , Guzra Hua Zamaana , Aaata Nahin Dubaara , sung by Lata is just enough to keep his name immortal. Although he could not achieve much fame in Hindi films, he was a very prominent composer in Punjabi films.
Gussa Fizul Hai -Reporter Raju-1962-Anand Bakshi
One should credit S. Mohindar for giving Rafi a rare yodelling song. Yodelling is usually associated with Kishore and no one would have thought Rafi had ventured into that. But yes, he had done that also!
Khayyam(65)
After starting off his career in the mid 50’s with some of Rafi’s greatest songs like Hai Kali Kali Ke Lab Par, Jane Kya dhoondti rehati hai yeh ankhen, it appears that Khayyam forgot Rafi for a long ten years. Subsequently it was in 1977 , in the Kamal Amrohi film Shankar Hussain that Rafi sang for Khayyam and that one song is considered a masterpiece-Kahin Ek Masoom Nazuk Si Ladki. However, Khayyam and Rafi worked together in an few non film albums dedicated to bhajans and ghazals that showcase Rafi’s immense talent in the non-film genre also.
Aur Kuch Der Tehr-Aakhri Khat-1966-Kaifi Azmi
Observe how Rafi brings out the pleading of the character asking his love to be with him for some more time with that “ tehar.”
Ghulam Mohammad(62)
Apart from being Naushad’s right hand by taking care of his percussion arrangements , Ghulam Mohammad was a great independent music composer . Like many others talented , but unlucky composers of his time, he also remained in the shadows of the other stalwarts who could get commercial success. His last film Pakeezah, is an epic in terms of musical quality, but unfortunately the great composer could not live to see the immense appreciation the film’s music received. As that film was almost a decade in making, some of the songs were not included in the film. I have presented one such unheard song here.
Yeh Kiski Aankhon Ka Noor Ho tum-Pakeezah -1972 ( Not included in the film) -Majrooh Sultanpuri
The film had only Rafi song-the duet Chalo Dildar Chalo, with Rafi repeating only the first line Chalo Dildar Chalo Chand Ke Paar Chalo and that fabulous alaap in the interlude. This unreleased solo is truly a hidden gem.
Ravindra Jain(58)
By the time Ravindra Jain had debuted , it was almost mid 70’s . Yet they worked together for around 60 songs and this one is supposed to be the very first song composed by Ravindra Jain. Once again we see how Rafi had been associated with many upcoming music composers and giving them the boost to their careers with his songs. Truly an institution!
Nazar Aati Nahin Manzil-Kanch Aur Heera-1972-Ravindra Jain
Rajesh Roshan(47)
Son of the legendary music director of the golden era Roshan Lal Nagrath , Rajesh Roshan started his career with Kunwara Baap in 1974 and followed it with a successful film Julie that made him famous. Although Rafi had relatively lesser songs with him compared to other singers, he gave his best to all composers. One such from an obscure film is included here.
Dil Ki Kali Yun Hi -Inkaar-1977-Majrooh Sultanpuri
Sardar Malik(47)
There are many examples in HFM where the father remained unlucky and did not get the recognition he rightly deserved , but the next generation got immense fame. Sardar Malik and Anu Malik represent this . Mukesh had relatively more famous songs with Sardar Malik. Presenting a sweet melody from Sardar Malik & Rafi .
Mujhe Tum Se Mohabbat Hai-Bachpan-1963-Hasrat Jaipuri
Vinod(41)
Born Eric Roberts in the undivided Punjab, he adopted the screen name Vinod. Starting off with the vintage era he, went on to compose music till the late 50’s when he passed away at a young age of 37 due to some illness. His La Ra Lappa La Ra Lappa Layee Rakhda from the film Ek Thi Ladki sung by Lata is popular to this day. He is one among the many pioneers who introduced western music arrangements in HFM.
Puchiye Na Haal Ji Palle Nahin Maal Ji-Mukhda-1951-Aziz Kashmiri
I do not know what was the situation for this song-from the lyrics it appears that Rafi is singing for someone whose business has not gone well! Just listen to that “ hai”…by Rafi! I now realise that my criteria of travelling through Rafi’s journey with his music composers really turned out to be a right one. What an immense variety of songs we get to hear!
Avinash Vyas(38)
The Hindi film music world might not have given much chances to this composer, nor remembered him , but in the Gujarati film world he was a top-notch music composer. Rafi has also sung some Gujarati film songs under his music direction.
Bol Bol Bol Sach Sach Bol-Laxmi-1957-Qamar Jalalabadi
It was really a very pleasant surprise for me to listen to this song for the first time. What a rocking , laugh riot this song is! There are no words to describe this song. The lyrics are absolutely fantastic, the music is typical rock & roll style and in such peppy songs Rafi simply excels .
Vasant Desai(36)
Vasant Desai is one the leading composers from the vintage era to the golden era, who was known for his intricate classical music-based compositions. I have covered his major songs in my blog in this blogsite. He had famously said that Rafi was a ‘shapit gandharva’ , meaning a celestial singer who was sent to earth!
Kehdo Koi Na Kare Yahan Pyar-Goonj Uthi Shehnai-1957-Bharat Vyas
When someone hears this song immediately after listening to the Bol Bol Sach Bol I posted just above, it would be impossible to believe that the same singer has rendered both! What a versatility!
Hemant Kumar(30)
Hemant da, being a good singer himself, had used other singers sparingly and Rafi even lesser.
Hum Laaye Hai Toofan Se-Jaagriti-1954-Rajendra Krishan
Among the many patriotic songs that we hear during our National days, this one is somehow forgotten. A nice composition with Rafi’s usual fervour.
A.R. Qureshi(27)
Many would not know this famous table maestro , more popular by the name Allah Rakha, composed music for many films under the name A.R. Quereshi.
Ram Ki Mahima Nyari Re Manwa-Khandaan-1955-Sarshaar Sailani
A nice bhajan by Rafi , with that typical ease with which he sails through the high notes so effortlessly.
Jamaal Sen(27)
One of the forefathers of music composer Jamaal Sen, Kesar Sen was disciple of the legendary Tansen who was the Royal musician in Akbar’s court! Like many of the unlucky but talented composers in HFM , he never got his dues despite giving some memorable songs. However, his son and grandson Dilip Sen-Sameer Sen became quite popular in recent years.
Sun Sun Meri Kahani-Rangeela-1953-S.H. Bihari
One more quirky song by Rafi, that he has sung so much of variety and tricky , elaborate alaaps . I am sure you would like to listen to this twice or thrice to get a feel of the uniqueness of the tune and rendition.
Dattaram Gaikwad(26)
Just like how Ghulam Mohammad was the percussion expert for Naushad, Dattaram Gaikwad was for Shankar-Jaikishan. The similarity extends to both being independent music directors also. Ab Dilli Door Nahin was his debut film as independent music composer with the song that I have listed here becoming very popular. His songs from Parvarish were also well received.
Chun Chun Karti Aaaye chidiya-Ab Dilli Door Nahin-1957-Hasrat Jaipuri
Salil Chowdhary(26)
If there were two music directors in HFM who apparently did not have much fascination for Rafi , they were Anil Biswas and Salil Chowdhary. I do not have anything to write about the former, as he had hardly worked with Rafi. But Salil Chowdhary did work with Rafi for few songs and most of them were really great songs. The major rift happened during the recording of the song Tasvir Teri Dil Mein for the film Maya. But I do observe there were one or two songs that Salil Da composed for Rafi many years after Maya. Controversies apart, Salil da the composer is one of my all-time favourites and I do not let his apathy towards Rafi come in the way of appreciating his great music. He was a true genius.
Koi Sone Ke Dilwala -Maya-1961-Majrooh Sultanpuri
Maya had some of Rafi’s best songs with Salil da , despite the infamous spat! This is a typical Salil da composition with Rafi’s honey-laced vocals.
Bappi Lahiri (24)
Even I was surprised to note Rafi singing around 24 songs for Bappi Lahiri! In his early years Bappi da gave some great compositions , even classical based ones. Even though he might have worked with Rafi towards the fag end of Rafi’s career, he always held Rafi in great respect.
Bheegi Bheegi Rut Hai -Taqdeer Ka Badshah-1982-Nandi Khanna
This song must have been recorded before or in 1980 and the film released in 1982. When we listen to Rafi’s voice even in 1980 it sounds so young!
Jaidev(22)
Jaidev, a long-time assistant to the senior Burman, got his fame with the film Hum Dono which had three Rafi songs that are eternal. The one I have selected here and Kabhi Khud Pe & Abhi Na Jao Chodkar. Jaidev did not have any “ favourite “ singers and experimented with many. We would have loved to had more of Rafi singing for him.
Mein Zindagi Ka Saat-Hum Dono-1961
Iconic song from the Hum Dono..Sahir’s philosophical lines with Rafi singing with a drawl…duen mein udaaaaa….
Shyamji Ganshyamji (22)
Contrary to popular perception this is not a duo composer team but a single individual! Having changed his name from Ghanshyam to Shyam and then finally Shyamji Ghanshyamji, he achieved fame with this one song from Thokar.
Like many of the olden day songs, there are two versions of this song-one with two antaraa is more commonly heard but the one with the third antaraa is too good with Rafi in his usual elements.
Acknowledgements and Disclaimer:
I sincerely thank the publishers of following blogsites & Internet sources for the information that I could gather for this article. The songs mentioned are from the popular, public domain and have been mentioned & embedded 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.
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