Lata Mangeshkar, who is the Goddess of melody, has given several chartbuster and mesmerising songs in her glorious career. From Lag Ja Gale to Bahon Mein Chale Aao, these songs are evergreen and still find their ways in the trends. In an earlier interview with Subhash K Jha, Lata Mangeshkar selected her own favourite songs from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s and gave some interesting insights about these classic songs.
Bahon Mein Chale Aao: Anamika (1973)
While talking about ‘Bahon Mein Chale Aao’, she gave the credit to R.D. Burman, Jaya Bhaduri (Bachchan) and Sanjeev Kumar. She shared, “Han, wohgaana bahut achcha hai. The credit must go to R.D. Burman for explaining the entire situation in the film so carefully. He was confident I’d grasp the mood. After every recording Pancham would come and stand in front of me and exclaim, ‘Fantastic! Kya gaaya aapne!’ I must also give credit to Jaya Bhaduri and Sanjeev Kumar for acting so well in Bahon mein chale aao. Since the song is done in the dead of the night I had to sing in a hushed voice.”
Chala Vahi Des (Non-Film, 1974)
Speaking about the song, she said, “I love every single song in my brother Hridayanath Mangeshkar’s Bhajan albums. Meera Bhajans have always been my favourite.” (Lataji refused to sing Pandit Ravi Shankar’s compositions in Gulzar’s Meera, arguing she had already sung Meera Bhajans for her brother).
“When I recorded Chala Vahi Des, I was so ill and could barely stand on my feet. It’s a project very close to my heart. During the recording, we maintained a spiritual atmosphere all around us. While we recorded the Meera Bhajans, neither my brother nor I recorded any film song. We had followed the same pattern when we recorded my brother’s compositions of the Bhagavad Geeta earlier.”
Satyam Shivum Sunderam (Title Song, 1978)
Lata Mangeshkar revealed that hit title track of ‘Satyam Shivum Sundaram’ was done in a single take. She said, “I like the songs in this film because they were written by Pandit Narendra Sharma. I was very close to him. The title song was okayed in one take. I also like Yashomati Miyya Se Bole Nandlala. As an artiste, I had a huge responsibility on me. First, I had to sing the lyrics in a child’s voice (for Padmini Kolhapure) and then as an adult (for Zeenat Aman)”.
Dard Ki Ragini (Pyaas, 1981)
While talking about Dard Ki Ragini, she praised Babbi Lahiri and recalled her bond with him. She added, “Bappi Lahiri could compose lovely songs. Bappi’s father had come to Mumbai to sing for a film called Badshah. But he couldn’t make any headway. We would meet whenever I visited Calcutta. I once visited the Lahiris’ home, Bappi was one year old then. His father clicked a photograph with Bappi on my lap. Bappi still has that photograph framed on the wall of his home. I sang his very first film song. He calls me Aunty.”
Dikhayi Diye Yun Ke Bekhud Kiya (Bazaar, 1981)
Lata Mangeshkar had high praise for this song and talked about the unique style composer Khayyam Saab. She shared, “What a song! I love every word in it. The poet Mir Taqi Mir is among my personal favourites. I didn’t see the film. But ‘Dikhayi Diye Yun’ remains an abiding favourite. I know the composer Khayyam Saab for decades. I liked even his early songs in Footpath, etc. I think the first song I sang for him was ‘Baharon Mera Jeevan Bhi Sawaron’ in Aakhri Khat. He has indepth knowledge of poetry. His songs are composed in a specific style. But it’s a very sweet style. He believes in going into the nuances of a composition. A perfectionist and a gentleman to boot.”
Ae dil-e-nadan (Razia Sultan, 1982)
Even though Lata Mangeshkar has sung many iconic songs, she called ‘Ae Dil-e-Nadan’ one of her best work. She said, “I consider Ae dil-e-nadaan among my best songs ever. I like it so much because of the way director Kamal Amrohi Saab explained the song situation. He made it come alive in front of my eyes. He said my Urdu was very chaste and clear. The day we recorded Ae dil-e-nadaan, I felt very happy. The lovely lyrics were by Javed Akhtar’s father Jan Nissar Akhtar. I’ve sung a number of his lyrics.”
Shri Ram Bhajan Kar Man/Shyam Ghanshyam Barso (Non-film, 1985)
The legendary revealed that she was a little scared before singing this because of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. She recalled, “These were the wto solos I had in my album ‘Ram Shyam Gun Gaan’ with Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. Composer Shrinivas Kale is very popular among Marathi music listeners. I had earlier sung for him in Tukaram, which was a big hit. For this album, I was a little scared to match my vocals with an eminent classical vocalist like Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. I agreed and even spoke to Pandit Narendra Sharma to write the lyrics. A year earlier, I did the historic Ram Ratan Dhan Pao. I understook this project because of Pandit Narendra Sharma, who was a Ram Bhakt. My brother and sister Usha composed some of the tunes. We are all composers in our family.”
Dil Deewana Bin Sajna Ke (Maine Pyar Kiya, 1989)
Recalling the time of recording songs for blockbuster movie ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’, she revealed, “I was ill during the recording of the songs in Maine Pyar Kiya and Chandni. Chandni was specially painful for me. Though I was unwell I recorded 5 songs for Maine Pyar Kiya in one day.”
Suniyo Ji (Lekin, 1990)
She shared, “Yara sili sili mein to chalne wali baat thi. But my favourite in Lekin was Suniyo ji. Dimple emoted so beautifully to the song! Gulzar Saab, who wrote the lyrics, always says my brother Hridayanath is a perfectionist, “Woh aapko nahin chhodte hain.” I know for sure he’d never humour me by okaying an unsatisfactory take. He keeps recording until he gets what he wants. His argument is, ‘We can leave it as it is. But tomorrow people are going to fault your rendition. I don’t want that.’ A lot of rival composers have harmed his career. I feel bad for him. He never wanted me to recommend him to filmmakers. It’s a pity Lekin didn’t run. I like the film. And I love the songs. Even the background music is tremendous.”
Kuch Na Kaho (1942: A Love Story, 1994)
She recalled how R.D Burman called to record the song a few days before his death. She revealed, “Let me tell you how I came to sing this song. Just before his death, Pancham (RD Burman) rang me up. He said there was a background song in 1942 which he wanted me to do. He also told me the rest of the songs were done by Kavita Krishnamurthy. I agreed to sing the song. Then he left for concerts abroad. Soon after, he died. The film’s producer and director came to me and said they still wanted me to sing Kuch Na Kaho, since they felt only I could convey the emotions. Later, Kavita was told I snatched away her song. I’ve never done that. It hurt me that the one who spread this ugly rumour was a playback singer himself. But I must admit Kavita never said anything negative about me.”
