Naushad: Composer of the century
Whether it be singer Mohammed Rafi or song-writer Shakeel Badayuni, Naushad said he zeroed in on them because these were two men who could be trusted at all times to do it precisely the way he wanted it done.
"That is why," went on Naushad, "even in a 1954 Mehboob theme like Amar -- in which Lata is so predominant -- I saw to it that Rafi's only number was the theme song Insaaf ka mandir hai yeh Bhagwaan ka ghar hai. It is 'voiced over' on Dilip Kumar, but see the impact it made in Bhairavi. Try choosing between Rafi's (78-rpm) two-sided Insaaf ka mandir hai, in Bhairavi, and Lata's two-sided Khamosh hai khewanhaar mera, also in Bhairavi. You wouldn't be able to tell who excels whom."
It was during the scoring of Amar that I, obliquely, suggested to Naushad that C Ramchandra was being hailed as being on par with him in shaping the sad song as the piece de resistance in our cinema.
"Is that so?" wondered Naushad. His response was unmistakable as he brought Lata to us in the transcendental Yaman via Na miltaa gham to barbaadee ke afsaane kahaan jaate on Nimmi in Amar. C Ramchandra acknowledged Naushad's mastery, in this specialist segment of composing, when he fleshed out Lata's Mohe bhool gaye sanwariyaa (in Bhairav on Meena Kumari in Baiju Bawra) to be the calibre of Naushadian melancholy melody he wished he himself had composed.
Naushad was left a free bird by wife Aliya. This able lady took the entire family burden upon herself, so that Naushadmian could deliver in each film without fail. Being inside Naushad's Carter Road (in Mumbai's Bandra suburb) music room was an experience. The piano was there in a corner to remind you of how those Mukesh nuggets on Dilip Kumar, ranging from Hum aaj kahein to Tu kahe agar, came to be evoked in Andaz.
Image: Ganga Jamuna, a memorable Shakeel Badayuni-Naushad collaboration.