The voice that could convey tears and laughter An ode to the temperamental singing star Kishore Kumar

Dr Rajiv Vijayakar

He was India's first comic hero. A singing star who made people chuckle as much as his studied over-the-top performances as his fun numbers like Paanch rupaiya bara aana (Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi) and Eena meena deeka (Aasha).

Later as he hit big-time as a playback singer, Kishore Kumar, born Abhas Kumar Ganguly as the temperamentally comic younger brother of superstar Ashok Kumar, also excelled in the romantic numbers of Rajesh Khanna, Rishi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan. Only then, Kishore's immense range, versatility and brilliance at the serious song were, to coin a ironical paradox, 'happily' recognised.

To be honest, the eccentric genius that was Kishore was not himself free of blame about stultifying his growth as singer in the earlier days. From day one, Kishore would willingly sing playback for Dev Anand. He would also --- very rarely --- sing for S D Burman, his favourite composer then. To others, he would reject singing assignments for other artistes, grandiloquently saying, "Main star hoon, singer nahin [I am a star, not a singer]!"

Since his were comic capers, Kishore was, so to speak, never taken seriously.

For Kishoreda was a man of (some say, carefully orchestrated) moods. About 1968, when K-A offered another pathos-laden gem, Dharti ki tarah har dukh she le (Suhaag Raat), he told them loftily, "Haan, ab main singer hoon, main gaoonga [Now I'm a singer, I'll sing]!"

Was it Kishore himself who wanted it that way? Or simply the image fixation rampant in the industry? Why did he have to wait till his post-Aradhana peak to cast his spell as a singer par excellence in the emotional orbit? Or was there a desire within him to crush the comic branding that explained why he composed such soulful songs for himself in his own productions as Koi humdum na raha (Jhumroo) and those lovely nuggets from Door Gagan Ki Chhaon Mein (Aa chal ke tujhe, Jin raaton ki bhor nahin hai and Koi lauta de mere beete hue din)?

We will never know. After all, it was a rare Dukhi man mere (Funtoosh, S D Burman) in which Kishore got an opportunity to break his comic mould then.

Significantly, and curiously, the three top composers who backed him at his peak --- Kalyanji Anandji, R D Burman and Laxmikant-Pyarelal --- began their association with him minus the man's trademark funny grammar. These were not only close friends in real life but also had realised from their career beginnings that they had to cover fresh ground to hold their own against and then eclipse the greats who were calling the shots when they arrived.

So when Kishore Kumar entered RD's music room for the first time in 1964, it was to etch out that haunting Bhoot Bungla cry of pathos, Jaago sonewalo, suno meri kahani. In that same year, Laxmikant-Pyarelal got Kishore to give body and soul to two evergreen numbers, Mere mehboob qayamat hogi (Mr X In Bombay), Yeh dard bhara afsana (Shreemaan Funtoosh) and Ajnabee tum jaane pehchaane se lagte ho (Hum Sab Ustad Hain). And the K-A Suhaag Raat story has been mentioned earlier.

Ironically again, Kishore Kumar hit his winning streak with Aradhana, a film in which he had two breezy and one sensuous number, but nothing in the department of pathos. But it took the L-P litany Khizaan ke phool pe aati kabhi bahaar nahin (Do Raaste) and that wistful Hemant Kumar winner, Woh shaam bhi kuch ajeeb thi (Khamoshi) to actually consolidate the new Rajesh Khanna-KK bond.

As the Kishore wave sidelined competition, Mukesh no longer became the compulsory element of change brought in to sing sad songs, as in the Rafi-dominated scores. In O P Nayyar's last burst of glory, Ek Baar Mooskura Do, it was Kishore who belted out the innovatively fast-paced bewafaa number Tu auron ki kyoon ho gayi and that maudlin masterpiece, Savere ka suraj tumhare liye hai, while Mukesh had two cheerful duets. In L-P's Manchali, Mukesh had a comic song, while Kishore got the poignant Mile kahin do ajnabi.

Probably not aware of where Aradhana and Rajesh Khanna would take him, Kishore had also done some more self-catharsis in his own film, Door Ka Rahi, by composing numbers like Panthi hoon main and Khushi do ghadi ki. But this time, these lovelies proved to be just two drops in an ocean of explosive emotions.

Because now the serious, sad side Kishoreda was being highlighted by a shower of sentimental beauties.

S D Burman switched Kishore's vocals to supreme sadness as he unleashed Dil aaj shaayar (Gambler), Kaise kahoon main (Sharmilee), Duniya o duniya (Naya Zamana), Tere mere milan ki yeh raina (Abhimaan), Yeh laal rang (Premnagar), Badi sooni hai and Aaye tum yaad mujhe (Mili), while Pancham unravelled a cavalcade of jazbaat (emotion) in --- to select only the cream --- the three aces from Amar Prem (Kuch to log kahenge,Yeh kya hua and Chingari koi bhadke) besides O mere dil ke chain (Mere Jeevan Saathi), Zindagi ke safar mein (Aap Ki Kasam),Tere bina zindagi se (Aandhi), Mere naina (Mehbooba) and Rimjhim gire saawan (Manzil).

Kalyanji-Anandji, whose bond with Kishore was deeply personal despite their late professional start, obviously used this phase to adorn the Kishore oeuvre with greats in all genres, and the supreme sad-a-bahaar naghmein (evergreen melodies) that they composed for him included Zindagi ka safar, Jo tum hasogi to duniya hasegi (Kathputhli), Mera jeevan kora kagaz (Kora Kagaz), Apne jeevan ki uljhan (Uljhan) and O saathi re (Muqaddar Ka Sikander) apart from the feelingly rendered sentimental numbers Jeevan se bhari (Safar), Samaa hai suhana suhana (Ghar Ghar Ki Kahani) and Pal pal dil ke paas (Blackmail).

And of course we had Laxmikant-Pyarelal, conveying passion, pain or philosophy with Sui jaa tara (Mastana), Mere deewanepan ki bhi dawaa nahin (Mehboob Ki Mehndi), Yeh jeevan hai (Piya Ka Ghar), Mere dil mein aaj kya hai (Daag), Ruk jaan nahin (Imtihan), Gaadi bula rahi hai (Dost), Aadmi jo kehta hai and Nahin main nahin dekh sakta (Majboor), Mere dil ne tadapke and Na hansna mere gham pe (Anurodh), Har raat ek si hoti hai (Aadha Din Aadhi Raat), Ek rut aaye (Gautam Govinda), Mere hosh le lo (Bandish), and others.

Of course, most other composers pitched in too: Shanker-Jaikishan with Geet gaata hoon main (Lal Patthar), Ravindra Jain with Ghunghroo ki tarah (Chor Machaye Shor), Rajesh Roshan with the passionate paeans Dil kya kare (Julie), Yaadon mein jo Swami), Koi roko na (Priyatama), Aao manaaye jashn-e-mohabbat (Doosra Aadmi) and Chhookar mere man ko (Yaarana), Bappi Lahiri with Chalte chalte (Chalte Chalte), Manzilein apni jagaah (Sharaabi), Khayyam with Hazaar raahein (Thodisi Bewafaai) and even Prem Dhawan with Teri duniya se hoke majboor chalaa (Pavitra Papi).

Indeed for lovers of quality melody, there is a lot to be happy about in the soulful and doleful part of Kishore Kumar's music.