Guest Gyaan - Sachin Dev Burman & The Bards Of Bengal.

My friend, Anindya Roychowdhury, has, very kindly, allowed me to share this insightful article.

Sachin Dev Burman and the bards of Bengal
Anindya Roychowdhury

The Bengal Renaissance started around early 19^th century, with the advent of reformists like Raja Rammohan Roy, who positively impacted every aspect of the Bengali and the wider national psyche through their progressive actions. The movement reached its peak in the late 19^th and early 20^th century, and spawned Bengal’s biggest cultural icons, who were now both enthralling and igniting the masses through art, literature, and music.

While Rabindranath Tagore is undoubtedly the most well-known among them, there were others of significant talent, whose work inspired millions and also played a key role in the freedom movement. These were the legendary poet-composers DL Roy, Atulprasad Sen, Rajanikanta Sen, and the youngest of the lot, Kazi Nazrul Islam. Given the impact and influence they had among Bengalis, it is not surprising that the early Bengali composers of Hindi films would, on occasion, want to ride this bandwagon to conjure dreamy melodies based on original tunes created by these maestros. Tunes that would appeal to the wider masses beyond Bengal, affirming, in the process, that music had no barriers.

The groundwork for transcreating Tagore tunes into Hindi was laid by the leading composers of the ‘30s and ‘40s, Pankaj Kumar Mallik – who was steeped in Tagore’s music and liberally used his songs in Bengali films, while recording Hindi non-film versions of some of his songs, some of them during Tagore’s lifetime – and Raichand Boral, who first showcased “Jana gana mana”, in 1945 (Humrahi), before it became the National Anthem.          

Hemant Kumar’s entire compositional ethos was steeped in Tagore; he wove countless magical ditties by deftly using Tagorian phrases and constructs as his hooklines, apart from also officially transcreating some of Tagore’s tunes in Hindi. 

From Anil Biswas and Salil Chowdhury to Bappi Lahiri and Shantanu Moitra – there is perhaps not a single Bengali composer who has not dived into this gargantuan ocean in search of exquisite Tagorian pearls.

However, in terms of uniqueness and diversity, and sheer over-all, sustained impact on the listener’s subconscious, SD Burman’s is the name that stands tall over others.

SD Burman (SDB) had a deep love for Tagore’s music, though he never recorded any Tagore song in his own voice (various reasons have been attributed to this). Tagore’s tunes surfaced in his work right from his pre-Bollywood days up to the ‘70s. These varied between occasional direct adaptations to clever re-workings of little snatches or phrases from Tagore songs, or tunes that simply invoked a Tagorian “feel”.

The Geeta Roy (Dutt) song, “Mera sundar sapnaa beet gaya”, from Do Bhai (1947), established her as a singer of national renown. SDB deftly reworked the mukhra of Tagore’s “Rodono bhora e boshonto” to create this soul-stirring ballad.  This was likely his first Tagore-usage in Bollywood. SDB did seem to be inspired by a Tagore tune at least once (there could be more) earlier, in a Bengali song from Chhoddmobeshi (1944), one of his last filmy outings in Kolkata before he moved permanently to Mumbai; the intro lines of the song, “Bondor chhaaRo jaatri-ra shobe” seems to have an oblique, yet distinct resemblance with Tagore’s “Baarota peyechhi mone mone”. Such glimpses of Tagore abound in SDB’s compositions, surfacing unexpectedly, almost like an inside joke.

SDB introduced Tagore more decidedly to the pan-India audience in 1950 through the famous Pilu-based Tagore song, “Shedin dujone”, which he recreated as “Naina deewane” (Afsar), sung by Suraya and penned by poet Pt Narendra Sharma[1]. The song, which remains widely popular even today, is a relatively direct interpretation of the original tune, replete with its sanchari[2] (a rarity in Hindi films).

Almost a decade later, for the title music of Bimal Roy’s landmark film, Sujata (1959), SDB got Asha to simply hum a tune, in a loop for about three minutes, that was based on the mukhra of Tagore’s “Kothhao amaar haariye jabaar”; Asha’s honey dripping voice, sustained by minimalist orchestration, created a mesmerizing ambience on screen.

Some other notable SDB songs with a pronounced Tagore influence are “Jaaye to jaaye kahaan” (Taxi Driver, 1954) /”Hey khoniker otithhi”, “Jalte hai jiske liye” (Sujata, 1959)[3] / “Ekoda tumi priye”, and “Tere mere milan ki” (Abhiman, 1973)/”Jodi taare naai chini go”. In the Abhiman song, though, the resemblance ends with the mukhra; SDB created an exquisite and memorable antara which – blasphemous as it may sound – is no less poignant and melodious than that of the original (which of course, has its own charm).

SDB is once said to have jocularly told his friends that he had audaciously ripped off the national anthem for one of his recent hits, as a prank, and challenged his bemused targets to identify it. So cleverly was it done that no one could fathom that the phrase he was alluding to was “Hum ne toh jab kaliyaa.n maangi kaanto ka haar mila” (Jaane woh kaise – Pyasa, 1957), which was an ever so subtle variation of “Punjab Sindhu Gujarat Maratha Dravid Utkal Banga”!

It was perhaps as a homage, or a deep, subconscious connect with Tagore’s tunes, or both, that saw SDB switch to familiar Tagorian phrases, sometimes in the mukhra, or sometimes in the middle of the song, woven seamlessly into the core melody. Some of the more subtle and interesting usages (in no particular order):

·        The phrase “Sabke aangan diya jale re mere aangan jiya” from “Megha chhaye aadhi raat” (Sharmilee, 1971) is a beautiful re-imagining of the mukhra opening line of “Loho loho tule loho neerob beena khaani”

·        The mukhra progression of “Aise toh the dekho” (Teen Deviyan, 1965) somewhat maps on to the mukhra of “Aami tomaaye joto”, with the meter and rhythm pattern altered

·        The recurring tune-phrase “Shey ki bhola jaaye” (“Puraano shei diner kothha”[4]) becomes the guitar bridge that connects the ultra-short mukhra of “Dukhi mann mere” (Funtoosh, 1956) to the first antara

·        “Yehi toh hai woh” (Solva Saal, 1958) connects rather curiously with the folksy “Phagun haawoa-e haawoa-e korechhi je gaan”, the similarity being restricted only to the first line

·        Many believe that the mukhra of “Sach huye sapne tere” (Kala Bazar, 1960) has a strong base in Tagore’s “Epaare mukhor holo keka oi”. According to this author, the apparent similarity is only because both songs/mukhras are based on the very typical chalan (progression) of Raag Kafi and is probably coincidental

There is a particular Raag Bihag-based catchphrase that was the favorite of the bards of Bengal. Rajanikanta Sen and Atulprasad Sen have used it to create the mukhra of their legendary songs “Maa-er dewoa mota kaapoR” (a patriotic song composed in solidarity of the Swadeshi movement, that became a clarion call in every Bengali household) and “Eka mor gaaner tori” (a soulful melody) respectively. Tagore adapted this pattern to create the phrase “Monohoron chopol choron” in his song “Tora je ja bolish bhaai”. SDB masterfully used this phrase to craft the sublime mukhras of the songs “Lehron ke rele sang” (sung by the child artist Hridaynath Mangeshkar in Babla, 1953) and later “Ye tanhaai haye re haaye” (Tere Ghar Ke Saamne, 1971). The ethereal Lata beauty, “Aankh khulte hi tum” from Munimji (1955) also has shades of this signature Bihag progression.

This brings us to the other poet-composers of Bengal of the time.

DL Roy was a playwright, poet and composer extraordinaire; he created mellifluous ditties woven around simple themes which were often a decoy for nationalistic messages, so disguised to avoid the probing eyes of the British administration. One of his beautiful lullabies, “Aaye re amaar shudhaar kona” was the inspiration for SDB’s “Nanhe kali soney chali” (Sujata). Once again, SDB used only the hookline from the mukhra to create a masterpiece, delivered with an EQ that only Geeta Dutt could, that became the go-to lullaby for at least a generation, if not more, of parents across the country.

SDB had a familial relationship with Nazrul. Nazrul and the other giants of Bengali mass-rural composers of the time, Lalon Fakir (a philosopher-poet-composer who inspired great minds including that of Tagore and Nazrul), Jasimuddin (a poet-composer who wrote for SDB seminal songs such as “Nishithe jaaiyo phulobone” and “Rongila rongila”) and Himangshu Dutta (composer of a few early SDB songs that have become a part of folklore, eg Aalo chhaya dola, and “Premero shomaadhi teere”) frequently congregated, and ideas flowed freely. A very young SDB was a part of this league of extraordinary gentlemen; many of these gatherings are said to have taken place at his ancestral home in Comilla. Like Jasimuddin and Himangshu Dutta, Nazrul too specifically wrote and composed songs for SDB, some of which were transcreated into Hindi not just by SDB, but by others like Salil Chowdhury and RD Burman too.

Nazrul’s landmark composition in Ahir Bhairav, “Orunokaanti ke go jogi bhikhaari” was adapted by SDB as “Poochho na kaise maine” (Meri Surat Teri Aankhen, 1963), Manna delivering the song with exemplary style and elegance; the song, despite its complex classical overtones (rendering it out of reach of most amateur and picnic singers) remains one of Manna’s most celebrated and popular hits. It is believed that SDB had a hand in the creation of the Nazrul original (or, it was a collaborative product of one of those informal musical sittings), which is a variant of a traditional bandish in Ahir Bhairav. Thus, this could well be a case of reverse osmosis than adaptation!

“Podmaar dheu re”, a melancholy ditty that Nazrul wrote and composed for SDB, was beautifully adapted as “Pardesi re”, in Afsar (1950). While SDB’s original rendition remains unparalleled (it is simply not possible to recreate the pathos and the emotion that he brings to this song), Suraiya sings it beautifully, in her own special way.

Apart from these, SDB’s adaptations of Nazrul and others were few and far between. One that comes to mind is the mukhra of the Lata song “Mai albeli rumjhum rumjhum” (Buzdil, 1951) which faintly resembles the mukhra of Nazrul “Meghla nishi bhore[5]”, another song the poet-composer is believed to have written for his dear friend.

Thus, unbeknownst to the listeners across the country, SDB had cross-pollinated their musical sensibilities with the melodic creations of Bengal’s greatest bards, whose work (except for a few popular Tagore songs), otherwise remains largely undiscovered outside their native state.

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[1] What is lesser known though is that four year earlier, in 1946, SN Tripathi had composed a song, “Laaj bhare is nainan mein” (Uttara Abhimanyu), sung by actor-singer Ashok Kumar, that sounds strikingly similar to “Shedin dujone”, though the antara was somewhat different. Since SN Tripathi was not a Bengali, did Ashok Kumar (or someone else from the unit) suggest the tune idea to him, or did he hear the Tagore original somewhere and get inspired by it? We will never know.

 [2] The third section of a song, after the mukhra and the antara, a construct derived from the four-part structure of Dhrupad songs, which Tagore imbibed; While sancharis are quite common in Bengali film and non-film music, Bengali composers including SDB generally shied away from it while composing for Bollywood.

 [3] Believed to be Bollywood’s first “telephone song” (the hero serenading the heroine over a landline phone), a genre that became very popular after this. Majrooh narrates in a delightful interview how the picturization idea of this iconic song came from SDB, when Bimal Roy was struggling to fit in a suitable sequence for it, and the song was at the risk of getting chopped. Bimal Roy initially pooh-poohed the idea but SDB was able to prevail upon him

[4] Interestingly, the Tagore song itself is a direct inspiration of Robert Burns’ famous ditty, “Auld Lang Syne”

[5] Salil Chowdhury made a more direct adaptation for Gulzar’s debut film, “Mere Apne” (1971); however, the song, “Roz akeli aaye”, sung by Lata, was not included in the film

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Thank you, Anindya. Here is a medley of songs that will illustrate several examples cited by you.

Medley - Compositions Of Sachin Dev Burman That Are Based On 'Rabindrasangeet'

About the author

Anindya Roychowdhury is a finance professional living in the USA. Music is his passion. He has authored thought-leadership publications on the Indian Entertainment Sector in the past and continues to write on Indian music for various publications. He grew up listening to music of many genres - from Hindustani Classical, Rabindrasangeet, Folk, Devotional, Indian film & non-film music to Western folk, Blues & Hard Rock.