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Reminiscing the legendary Kishore Kumar
Updated on: 01 August, 2016 12:00 PM IST |
It is not easy to write a few words about a legendary actor-singer-musician whose body of work is the ultimate definition of almost half a century of Indian cinema. Yet, we will try. And we will try our best.
Born as Abhas Kumar Ganguly on August 4, 1929, Kishore Kumar was enigmatic, crackling and innovative in his work. Since his brother Ashok Kumar was a famous actor in films, singing and films came naturally to Kishore Da. A self-proclaimed fan of actor-singer K L Saigal, Kishore tried emulating his style since he had no formal training in music.
As a young struggling chorus singer in Bombay Talkies, Dada’s first break came in ‘Shikari’ as a character artiste, where Ashok da played the lead role. Music director Khemchand Prakash gave him his first break as a singer with “Marne ki duayen kyon mangu" for the film ‘Ziddi’ 1947.
With no formal training in music, music director Salil Chaudhary was sceptical about offering Kishore Da, a chance to sing in ‘Naukri’ 1954, a Bimal Roy film where he was cast opposite Sheila Ramani. He was to summon Hemant Kumar to sing for the hero but then, Kishore pleaded him to hear him out. Eventually, Salil saab relented.
However Salil ji admits that it was the legendary S D Burman who took notice of the talent in the young singer. He is quoted to have said, "To Dada Burman goes the credit for having spotted the spark in the boy so early. Each one of us composers otherwise underestimated the tremendous potential of Kishore. Not until the vocal results Kishore gave me, some 18 years later, in Gulzar&39;s Mere Apne, with ‘Koi hota jis ko apna hum apna keh lete yaaron’, did I get a real idea of how totally I had misjudged the depth and dimension of the lad as a singer.”
Kishore Da sang for a splendid seventeen years till ‘Aradhana’ happened in 1970. He saw unprecedented success and his unique style of yodelling had found acceptance in mainstream cinema. He enjoyed a great association with the two generations of the Burmans. While SD Burman extracted the best work out of him, RD Burman simply replicated his father’s instincts in drawing similar success.
Apparently, while SD saab was torn between Mohd. Rafi and Kishore Da, Pancham da minced no words in picking his favorite. A die-hard section among the audience remained Rafi loyalists but the younger crowd then, who could make or break the films in the 70s, had found a new hero in Kishore Da.
"There&39;s no singer like Kishore," Pancham was once quoted, "if you send the tape of the song to him even two days before the recording, Kishore Da would savour it and make it his own before turning up for the rehearsal."
Mentioning about his two breakthrough films, ‘Amar Prem’ and ‘Kati Patang’, Pancham Da added, “In fact, it was with these two films that I truly discerned how much sending the tape, in advance, to Kishore meant -- as he gave matchless results in such songs of mine as ‘Yeh kya hua’ and ‘Kuchch to log kahege’; ‘Yeh jo mohabbat hai’ and ‘Pyaar deewana hota hai’, not forgetting ‘Yeh shaam mastanee."
Once Kishore Da was hailed as the complimenting voice behind the first superstar of Indian cinema, Rajesh Khanna, there was no looking back for the singer. He held on to his fort, singing for all the leading men of the 70s and 80 including Amitabh Bachchan, till he breathed his last on October 13, 1987.
There’s also a fun side about the legend that not many are aware of. Did you know that he was ardently into horror films? Quite a fancy, we must say. Industry insiders would also vouch for how he was unapologetically ambitious and loved the company of beautiful women. That he married four times, is self-explanatory.
Much that he loved his art and passion for films, he loathed the people in the industry. He felt everyone were simply lusting after money and making movies was more about striking the demand-supply balance. He preferred being a loner and talking to trees instead.
Words would be too short to suffice his lucrative career and his carefree attitude. For many, Kishore Da was life and his music was the energy that remains immortal. Even if the history of cinema were to ever be written, a prominent chapter of that book would celebrate the glory of the ineffable Kishore Kumar.
To listen to his evergreen songs, click here.
To know more about the person behind the singer, click here.
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