Lata Mangeshkar - The Queen : Part 15 : The dominance continues: Late 60s and Roshan

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The later part of the 60s is an important transition era for Hindi film music. This is when new music directors started entering the field and making a name for themselves. The earlier music directors were slowly fading away. By the 1970s, this transition would be fully complete, but the seeds were sown in the late 60s. R D Burman, Laxmikanth Pyarelal, and Kalyanji Anandji - the three music directors who would dominate a large part of the 70s - had their initial success during this time. The music, too, started changing, and Lata had to adapt herself to the new music the newcomers were putting up. Of course, the earlier masters still made good music, but the trend change was in the air.

Let me initially talk about Lata and Roshan before moving to the other songs of the second half of the 1960s. Like Madanmohan, whose music we heard earlier, Roshan was a genius when at producing great melodies. Lata had great respect for him, and he gave her some amazing songs. Though he was churning out great music in the 50s, his major hits happened in the 60s. Movies like Barsat Ki Raat, Aarti, Mamta, and Tajmahal cemented his greatness. 

The singer's voice took on a wonderful tone whenever they sang for Roshan. There are some songs that I had identified as songs composed by Roshan, hearing only the tone of the singer's voice. Lata's lovely voice became even more melodious when she sang for Roshan. The songs that will follow will convince you of my argument.

Let us hear this brilliant ghazal from 'Tajmahal.' (1963) 'zurm-e-ulfat' is the song. The movie was famous for its duets, but to me, this was the best song of the movie.

Right from the alaap at the start, you can hear that special tone of Lata's voice. The song does take Lata to the higher reaches but does it in such a smooth fashion that you almost feel that the song is sung at the same level. This is an amazing melody that gets enriched by Lata's brilliant voice and singing.

One more excellent song from 'Tajmahal,' 'khuda-e-bartar' 

Another brilliant melody seeped in sadness. Based on the Hindustani raag, 'Todi.' Observe Lata's vocal tone. This song, too, reaches for the skies in certain places, but you don't feel it at all. Lata is brilliantly controlled in her singing, and the tune, too, gives you the right amount of sadness without lapsing into sentimentality. A case of a brilliant collaboration between the music director and the singer. Sahir's lyrics are brilliant as well. 

'Barsat Ki Raat' (1960) was dominated by what is now considered one of the greatest qawali's in Hindi film music, 'yeh ishq ishq hai' and also by Mohammad Rafi. Lata did have 'mujhe mil gaya bhana' in this movie, but to hear her excellent tone, we have to turn to the duet version of 'zindagi bar nahin bhoolege' (And yes, the Rafi version is the more famous one and the one that is oft-played.)

It is such a modern composition, and you realize it right from the prelude. Lata understands the melody of the song and enhances it with her voice. Once again, her tone is something to die for. Here too, she traverses the whole octave but so effortlessly that we don't realize it is happening. Rafi's voice is a good contrast and makes the song even more enjoyable. (Not just Lata but even Rafi and Mukesh sound more melodious under Roshan's baton.)

The joyous 'rahe na rahe hum' from 'Mamta' (1966)

Right from the prelude, Roshan tells us that he is interested in building an outstanding melody, and he goes on to build one. Lata's voice modulation and tone are so central to the beauty of this song. The orchestration is also superbly done to enhance the melody. The effortless way that Lata sings this song is a testimony of her brilliance.

I want to put up another song from 'Mamta' here. The Lata - Hemant Kumar duet, 'chupa lo yun dil mein'. 

The tune is seemingly simple with minimal orchestration, and yet it has the power to reach into the depths of your heart - something that a great tune does. There is a lovely contrast between the two voices, Hemant with his bass and Lata with her soprano voice. Hemant's voice is that of an elderly man, while Lata exudes the energy of a young girl. 

Another late 60s song from Roshan's baton. 'duniya kahe sawal' from 'Bahu Begum' (1967)

To me, the tuning seems to be closer to Madanmohan's tuning for ghazals. Extremely modern tuning and orchestration. This song is in Lata's favorite territory, and she aces it easily. The pace is what is important in this song, and Lata's pacing is inch perfect in this song. 

Let us move away from Roshan to songs of other music directors that became famous during the late 60s. Let us start with Shankar Jaikishen and the 'sayonara sayonara' from 'Love in Tokyo' (1966).

A nice melody based on raga Mohanam. The pentatonic scale is popular in Japanese music and I guess that is why Shankar Jaikishen used it in this melody. From Lata's perspective, this must have been a standard issue melody. There is nothing much in this tune to challenge her. Her wonderful voice ensures this song becomes a big hit.

Laxmikanth Pyarelal were becoming popular in the late 60s and were delivering hits regularly. They started working on many films during this period. They also gave some of the best melodies during this time. One such melody is 'suno sajna' from 'Aaye Din Bahar Ke' (1966)

This is probably one of LP's best melodies. I want you to observe how a music director has an effect on the singer's voice. We just heard a few melodies of Roshan during the same time period. You observed how Lata's voice is modulated in those melodies. In this melody, it is much more open-throated and direct. The modulation exists but not at the level of Roshan melodies. You can hear the loudness in her voice in many places - 'pukarke', 'bahar ke' for example. Something that doesn't happen in Roshan's melodies.

This was also the era where black and white films co-existed with color films. Let's hear a couple of lovely melodies from Black and White films of these times.

First, this lovely melody from the movie 'Anupama' (1966). 'kuch dil ne kaha.' Music of Hemant Kumar.

This is a perfect definition of a soft melody. Lata handles it with extreme care, never to sound harsh anywhere. The vocal dynamics are perfect for this song. Vocal modulation is the USP of this song. The song needs a certain attitude, and Lata provides that attitude without making it too explicit.

Another lovely melody from the 1966 movie, 'Aakri Khat'. 'baharon mere jeevan bhi'. Music of Khayyam.

This is another terrific melody enhanced by Lata's singing. Lata sounds slightly sharp in this, yet it doesn't take away anything from the melody. The lower reaches are pure honey. 

The title song of 'Raat Aur Din' (1967) is another lovely melody crafted by Hemant Kumar.

Another nice melody, but in my opinion, a standard melody that doesn't ask too much from Lata except her melodious voice.

I am not sure how many will agree with me here, but compared to the 1950s and the early 60s, the change in music during the late 60s was not something that took film music to greater heights. There were a lot of 'nice' melodies that people enjoyed when they were released and later forgot. 

As an example, I will give you a hit song from 1970. 'tere karan tere karan' from 'Aan Milo Sajna' 

The song itself is catchy, mainly due to the catchy rhythm. The tune, on the other hand, is fairly straightforward, and there is not much modulation in Lata's voice. Many such songs started appearing. Yes, they were hits no doubts but I would hesitate to put them alongside the melodies of the earlier era in terms of quality. 

The 1970s would see the ascendency of a music director and a singer who would change the course of Hindi film music completely. We will look at the phenomenal changes that happen in the next part.

The link to all parts of this series is given here: Series Links