Shaan was born into a Bengali family on 30th September 1972 . He is the son of the late music director Manas Mukherjee and brother of singer Sagarika. He is married to Radhika and has two sons, Soham and Shubh. He is the grandson of Jahar Mukherjee.As a child, Shaan began his career by singing ad jingles. After giving it up for a brief period, he soon returned to it, and also began to sing remixes and cover versions. In the 1989 movie Parinda, when he was only 15 years of age, Shaan sang a singular line in the song, Kitni Hai Pyari Pyari Dosti Hamari'.
His career began in 1995 with his first release, the remix album called Q-funk. In 2000 he won the MTV Asia Music Award for 'best solo alubum' for his album Tanha Dil. Three years later Shaan launched his album Aksar which was again hugely successful. The album contained songs featuring international stars such as Blue, Mel C and Samira Said. For both the albums Tanha Dil and Aksar, Shaan displayed his great talents by singing, composing and writing the lyrics of his songs. He plans to release an album remaking his father's compositions with his sister.
Apart from his albums, Shaan has sung playback vocals for various Bollywood films, including Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi, Bas Itna Sa Khwab Hai , Lakshya, Dil Chahta Hai, Kal Ho Na Ho, Hum Tum, Dhoom, Dus, Salaam Namaste, Don - The Chase Begins Again, Fanaa and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. He hosted the television show, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa on Zee TV, which won the Music Programme of the Year award at the Indian Telly Awards in 2003. In 2007, he left the host job and then was replaced by 20 year-old Aditya Narayan. At the same awards function, Shaan won Best TV Music Director, for creating the music of the Zee TV show, Lipstick, for friend, Goldie Behl.
He also appeared as the guest in the first episode of the new show Antakshari: The Great Challenge which aired on 9 February 2007 on Star One.
Shaan is now the host of another very popular music show called 'Star Voice of India (SVOI) which airs on Star Plus. He was offered to host Star Voice Of India Lil Champs but opted out to spend time with his family. However, he said he would return to host the next season of SVOI.
Popular songs by Shaan include his first hit, "Musu Musu", as well as "Tanha Dil" and "Bhool Ja" from his albums and the very popular song "Chand Sifarish" from the movie Fanaa. Recently he released a song with MLTR namely "Take me to your heart", which is on his latest album entitled Tishnagi.
Along with singing, Shaan has also acted in the movie, Daman, also starring Raveena Tandon. He has made appearances in his songs in the movies, Zameen and Hungama.
Shantanu(Shan)
Shyamal Mitra was one of the most popular singers of Bengal during the '50s to early '70s. He had a unique voice and was one of the most favourite romantic singers. Nearly all the composers of that time composed some unforgettable songs for him. His interpretation and delivery of songs such as 'Jodi kichhu amaarey sudhaao' and 'Dur noi besi dur oi' is sheer magic. Salil also composed songs for the All India Radio in Calcutta and one of those 'Choley je jaay din', a wonderful composition with rather complex chord progression later became quite a hit (sung by Kishore) in the film 'Annadata'. Another AIR song 'Ogo Surangana' which Salil later used partly to compose the title music of 'Anand' was also a brilliant composition, which unfortunately never became commercially available.There's a Kannada version of this song in the film 'Samsayaphala' sung by Sabita Chowdhury (yes! she sings in Kannada) and P.B.Srinivas.There is also a rare version of "Jodi kichhu aamaare shudhaao" sung by Debabrata Biswas. Shyamal Mitra
Sandhya Mukhopadhyay (1931) is a famous Indian singer and musician, specialising in Bengali music. She was born in Kolkata, India. She is also known as Sandhya Mukherjee.Sandhya started her music training under the direction of Pandit Santosh Kumar Basu, Professor A Kannan and Professor Chinmay Lahiri. However, her guru was Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan under whom she mastered Indian classical music.
Though classically trained, the bulk of her work consists of Bengali modern songs. She began her career in Mumbai singing Hindi songs, starting with a song in the film Anjan Garh at the age of 17. Following her marriage to the Bengali poet Shyamal Gupta she settled in her home city of Kolkata. Gupta went on to write the lyrics for many of her famous songs.
Her most famous collaboration is arguably with the Bengali singer Hemanta Mukherjee with whom she sang numerous duets, primarily as playback for Bengali films produced from Kolkata. Hemanta and Sandhya became known as the voices behind the pairings of the Bengali superstar Uttam Kumar and his numerous heroines. She also sang several of Salil Chowdhury's hit Bengali songs, such as Ujjwal Ek Jhank Payra, regarded as a classic.
During the Bangladesh Liberation War she joined the mass movement among Indian Bengali artistes to raise money for the millions of refugees who had poured into Kolkata and West Bengal to escape the fighting, and to raise global awareness for the cause of Bangladesh. She assisted Bangladeshi musician Samar Das as he set up the Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendro, the clandestine radio station broadcasting to Bangladesh and recorded several patriotic songs for him. On the occasion of the release of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the imprisoned leader of the new country of Bangladesh, she released a famous song Bangabandhu Tumi Phirey Ele. She later became one of the first foreign artistes to visit Dhaka, performing at an open-air concert in Paltan Maidan in Dhaka to celebrate the first Ekushey February after Bangladeshi independence in 1972. She also recorded several songs for Samar Das's film Dhirey Bohey Meghna and Salil Chowdhury's Raktakta Bangla. Shandhya Mukherjee
Rahul Dev Burman, also known as R. D. Burman, and Pancham da, (June 27, 1939 to January 4, 1994) was one of the great music composers of Bollywood. Commonly R.D. Burman is known as Pancham among his fans. He was the only son of singer and music composer Sachin Dev Burman and Meera, and the second husband of playback singer Asha Bhosle. He is credited with revolutionizing the music in Hindi films, and his style and techniques continue to be followed by the composers of today.According to stories, Rahul Dev Burman was nicknamed PANCHAM because, as a child, whenever he cried, it sounded in the fifth note (Pa) of the Indian musical scale. The word Pancham means five (or fifth) in Bengali and Sanskrit. Another version is that when the veteran Indian actor Ashok Kumar saw a newborn Rahul Dev Burman uttering the syllable Pa repeatedly, he nicknamed the boy Pancham. Pancham was born in Calcutta. After coming to Mumbai, he learnt sarod from Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. When he was nine years old, he composed his first song, Aye meri topi palat ke aa, which his father used in the film Funtoosh (1956). The tune of the song Sar jo tera chakraaye was composed by him as a child. His father loved the tune and included it in the soundtrack of Guru Dutt's Pyaasa. As a child, Pancham also played the mouth organ in the famous song Hai apna dil to aawara (from film Solva Saal - 1958, starring Dev Anand). Pancham began his music career as an assistant to his father. His first film as a music director was Chhote nawaab.
He started independent music composing for long. Out of his 331 released movies 292 were in Hindi, 31 in Bangla, 3 in Telugu, 2 each in Tamil & Oriya and 1 in Marathi. RD also composed for 5 TV Serials in Hindi and Marathi. He also scored a large number of non-film songs in Bangla (also known as Pooja songs or modern songs), which are available in different albums. He did a song for a small documentary film called Maa Ki Pukaar too, in 1975.
A good amount of his work, however, is still work in hand (the last 5-6 years of his life), but when he kept composing tunes and stored them.
R D Burman did playback in eighteen movies composed by him. He was famous for unique, grunting bass singing style. He also acted in the film Bhoot Bungla (1965) and Pyar Ka Mausam (1967).
He also used some of the popular western songs to compose his own tunes. His one of the super hit song "Mehbooba Mehbooba" is inspired from the song "Say You Love Me" by the Greek singer Demis Roussos
1950s
R D Burman started his career as assistant to his father, Sachin Dev Burman. He assisted his father in Chalti ka Naam Gaadi (1958) and Kaagaz ke Phool (1959). His first film as a music director was Guru Dutt's Raaz (1959). However the film was shelved after some shooting and recording of few songs.
1960s
R D Burman's first released movie as a music director was Mehmood's Chhote Nawab (1961). Mehmood once said that he gave the movie to R D Burman because he got tired of R D Burman denting his car with the persistent drumming of his fingers! The first song Ghar aaja ghir aaye to be recorded for the movie was sung by Lata Mangeshkar because R D Burman wanted no one but the legendary singer to sing his first composition for movies. The song brought together S D Burman and Lata Mangeshkar who had stopped recording together since 1957.
R D Burman continued to work as his father's assistant in movies like Bandini (1963), Teen Deviyaan (1965) and Guide (1965). Mehmood gave him his second movie as a music director in 1965 - Bhoot Bangla. The soundtrack is notable for Aao twist karein, a Desi version of Chubby Checker's Let's twist. In the movie, R D Burman also acted alongside Mehmood. He also composed the music of Teesra Kaun in 1965.
R D Burman's first hit movie was Teesri Manzil (1966). Burman gave credit to lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri for recommending him to Nasir Hussain, the producer and writer of Teesri Manzil. Vijay Anand also said that he had arranged a music session for him before Nasir Hussain. After hearing his music, Nasir Hussain made him the music director of Teesri Manzil. Initially, Shammi Kapoor (hero of the movie) was unhappy over choice of R D Burman. He wanted the tried and tested Shankar-Jaikishen, who had composed music for most of his films. However, after hearing R D Burman's music, he had no problems. The songs O haseena and Aaja aaja belonged to a genre that Indian music lovers were unaware of. Mohd. Rafi sang all six songs, four of them were duets with Asha Bhonsle. Nasir Hussain went on to sign R D Burman and lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri for six of his films including Baharon Ke Sapne (1967), Pyar Ka Mausam (1969) and Yaadon Ki Baraat (1973).
In 1967, R D Burman composed music for the movies Chandan Ka Palna and Baharon Ke Sapne but neither film did particularly well at the box office, even though Burman's compositions were much liked. Meanwhile, he continued to work as his father's assistant for movies like Jewel Thief (1967) and Talash (1969).
In 1968, Burman had his second major box office hit after Teesri Manzil titled Padosan (1968). His music for the comedy film was much appreciated.
In 1969, Waris and the musical hit Nasir Hussain's Pyar Ka Mausam (where he also acted in a supporting role) were released. For Aradhana (1969), R D Burman was credited as associate composer. When S D Burman fell ill during the recording of Aradhana's (1969) music, Pancham completed the music.
1970s
R D Burman was India's most popular composer in 1970s (Bollywood's superstar era), famous for his peppy tunes. He teamed up with singers Asha Bhosle, Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar and others to churn up some of the biggest hits in the Bollywood music history.
In 1970, R D Burman composed music for six movies, of which Kati patang (a Rajesh Khanna starrer) was a musical hit.
Eleven more movies with R D Burman as music director were released in 1971. Of these, Amar prem, Buddha mil gaya, Caravan, and Hare Rama Hare Krishna were musical hits. Amar prem is noted for intricate songs based on Indian Classical Music such as Raina beeti jaaye (sung by Lata Mangeshkar) and one of the best sad songs that industry ever produced Chingari Koi Badhke was also in this film. Buddha mil gaya had simple, peppy numbers like Raat kali ek khwab mein aayee and Bhali bhali si ek soorat. It also had a classical song Aayo kahan se Ghanshyam?. Caravan had the best Bollywood cabaret ever - Piya tu ab to aaja, picturized on Helen and sung by Asha Bhosle and R D Burman ("Monica! O my darling"). He also received his first Filmfare Best Music nomination for "Caravan." The title song of Hare Krishna Hare Rama sung by Asha became the hip-hop anthem for the youngsters. The song is used in Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories soundtrack, titled Dum Maro Dum for Radio Del Mundo in 2006. Other songs like Phoolon ka taaron ka and Kaanchi re were also popular.
In 1972, R D Burman composed music for nineteen films. Seeta aur Geeta, Rampur ka Lakshman, Mere jeevan saathi, Bombay to Goa, Apna desh and Parichay were musically successful. The high-pitched Asha-R D Burman duet Duniya mein logon ko from Apna desh became popular. Songs like Beeti na beetayi raina and Musafir Hoon Yaron from Parichay marked the beginning of a fruitful association between R D Burman and lyricist Gulzar. Rajesh Khanna's Mere jeevan sathi had beautiful evergreen Kishore Kumar numbers like O Mere Dil Ke Chain. Also released in 1972 Jawaani diwaani was a hit. Songs like Abhi nahi, Jaan-e-jaan dhoondhta phir raha and the title track were all chart-busters that year.
1973 saw fourteen more R D Burman soundtracks, of which the most successful ones were Nasir Hussain's Yaadon Ki Baraat, Shareef badmash, Heera panna and Anamika. In 1974, sixteen movies with R D Burman music were released. Aap ki kasam and Ajanabee were major hits.
In 1975, there were nine movies with R D Burman soundtracks including the superhit Sholay, Deewaar ,Aandhi, Khushboo and Dharam karam. In Sholay, he sang Mehbooba mehbooba, picturised on Helen and Jalal Agha and for which he received his sole Filmfare nomination for playback singing. Aandhi had classic Gulzar songs sung by Kishore-Lata - Is mod se jaate hain, tum aa gaye ho, Tere bina zindagi se koi and others. Khushboo was another R D Burman-Gulzar masterpiece with songs like O manjhi re.
R D Burman also completed the music of Mili (1975) after his father went into coma and died. In 1976, there were 8 movies with R D Burman as music director, of which Mehabooba (1976) was a classic musical film based on reincarnation, where Rajesh Khanna played double role as Singer (Classical and Modern) with a very sophisticated way. Nine more movies were released in 1977. Naam gum jaayega (Kinara, 1977) is another of R D Burman-Gulzar gems, but it was "Kya Hua Tera Wada"(Nasir Hussain's Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin, 1977) that revived Mohd. Rafi's career and became one of the most popular songs ever. Although, Kishore Kumar still continued to be the dominant male playback singer for R.D. Burman's songs, the success of "Kya Hua Tera Wada" enabled Burman to use Rafi more frequently.
In 1978, nine more R D Burman releases, including Shalimar and Kasme vaade. Shalimar included hits like Hum bewafa hargiz na the (Kishore Kumar) and the title track (Asha Bhosle). The title track, Mile jo kadi kadi and Aati rahengi baharein of Kasme Vaade were very popular. The title track and Raju chal Raju of Dharmendra-starrer Azaad were also moderately popular. Ghar was a huge hit for R.D. Burman-Gulzar duo with songs like Tere bina jiya jaaye na, Aaj Kal paon zameen par, Phir Wohi Raat hai.
1979 was a relatively full year for R D Burman, although he composed music for ten films. His biggest hit was Golmaal. The most popular songs were Aanewala pal (Kishore Kumar) and the title track (Golmaal hai bhai sab golmaal hai) sung by R D Burman and his assistant Sapan Chakraborty. Few other R D Burman hit songs in 1979 were Jeevan ke har mod pe (Jhoota kahin ka), Rim jhim gire saawan (Manzil), Saawan ke jhoole pade (Jurmana) and Do lafzon ki hai dil ki kahani (The great gambler, sung by Asha Bhosle and actor Sharad Kumar).
1980s
In 1980, there were ten releases. The film Kudrat ( RD, Majrooh Sultanpuri, 1980) was a musical hit. The song "Humein Tumse Pyar Kitna" was recorded twice with a male singer (Kishore Kumar) and a female singer (Parveen Sultana), who received the Filmfare Best Female Playback Award. R D Burman churned out musical hits like The burning train and Shaan, which were not successful at the box office. The burning train included popular Sahir Ludhiyanvi qawwali sung by Asha Bhosle and Mohammad Rafi - Pal do pal ka saath hamara. The film is also noted for Teri hai zameen, sung by Sushma Shrestha and Padmini Kolhapure as child-singers. Shaan had sizzlers like Pyar karne wale pyar karte hain shaan se (Asha Bhosle), Doston se pyaar kiya (Usha Uthup) and Yamma yamma (duet sung by Rafi and R D Burman). R D Burman also composed for Alibaba aur 40 chor (Приключения Али-Бабы и сорока разбойников in Russian), an Indo-Russian collaboration. Actor Rekha made her singing debut under R D Burman with the songs Kaayada kaayada and Saare niyam tod do in Khubsoorat (1980). The lyrics were penned by Gulzar. Other popular songs included Sun sun didi tere liye (Asha Bhosle) and Piya bavari (Asha and Ashok Kumar). The songs of Abdullah (1980) also became popular. The score is noted for Rafi-song Maine poocha chaand se, in which R D Burman modernised his father Sachin Dev Burman's tune. Mohd. Rafi's death stuns R.D. Burman, as it does the entire nation.
The year 1981 saw R D Burman composing for fifteen films. He created two hit soundtracks with lyricist Gulshan Bawra and Universal Music India (then called Music India) - Satte pe satta and Yeh vaada raha. Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Satte pe satta was a story of 7 brothers and their 7 brides. The songs picturized on the seven brothers were sung by R D Burman, his assistants Basu and Sapan Chakravorty, lyricist Gulshan Bawra, Bhupendra, Anand Kumar C and Kishore Kumar. The songs for the ladies were sung by Asha Bhosle, Annette and Dilraj Kaur. The hit songs include Dukki pe dukki ho, Pyar hamein kis mod pe, Dilbar mere and Zindagi milke bitaayenge. R D Burman's major hit in 1981 was Sanam teri kasam. The hit soundtrack included Kitne bhi tu kar le sitam, Jaan-e-jaan and Dekhta hoon koi ladki haseen among other songs. He received his first Filmfare Award for Best Music for this film, after being nominated for 12 years. received In 1981, R D Burman also composed music for Rocky (Sanjay Dutt's debut movie) and Love story (debut film of Sanjay Dutt's brother-in-law, Kumar Gaurav). The songs from both the movies were popular. However, Rocky bombed on the box office, while Love story was a superhit. Jahan teri yeh nazar hai from Amitabh-starrer Kaalia (1981) also became very popular among listeners.
Fourteen more R D Burman soundtracks were released in 1982. The team of Nasir Hussain, R D Burman and Majrooh Sultanpuri (which had started with Teesri Manzil (1966)) presented Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai in 1982. The songs Poocho na yaar kya hua and Dil lena khel hai dildar ka became fleetingly popular, but the consensus was that Burman didn't deliver as strongly for Nasir Hussain this time as he had done previously. The film wasn't a hit either, and it was the last time the late Mohd. Rafi would be heard in a Nasir Hussain-R.D. Burman-Majrooh Sultanpuri collaboration. Ashok Kumar's last song Chalo haseen geet (Shaukeen, 1982) was composed by R D Burman. Angoor (1982) is noted for R D Burman's spoof on the O. P. Nayyar hit Preetam aan milo, sung by Sapan Chakravorty. Bemisal had good music but the film did not do well. In 1983, there were fifteen R D Burman soundtracks, of which Masoom and Agar Tum Na Hote are considered classics. He also received his second consecutive Filmfare Award for Best Music for "Masoom."
In 1984, fourteen R D Burman soundtracks were released. This year, Gulshan Kumar's T-Series made its entry into the arena of original film soundtracks. The company's first major music rights acquisition were for Pramod Chakravorty’s bi-lingual Jagir(Hindi)/Teen Murti(Bengali). The film's music was composed by R D Burman. This year, R D Burman came with somewhat disappointing scores. But he introduced a plethora of talented new singers in these years. Kumar Sanu was given his first break by R D Burman in Yeh desh (1984) as voice of Kamal Hasan. Abhijeet was given his major break by R D Burman in Anand aur Anand (1984). Although he made his debut a long time ago, Hariharan (singer) was first noticed in a duet with Kavita Krishnamurthy, Hai mubarak aaj ka din (Boxer, 1984), which was composed by R D Burman. Nasir Hussain's Manzil Manzil tanked, and critics commented on decline on Burman's music for the film.
In 1985, R D Burman had only two music hits among his 12 soundtracks, Saagar and Alag Alag. Mohammed Aziz, a popular Rafi clone of 1980s, made his debut with Shiva Ka Insaaf (1985) under R D Burman. Nasir Hussain's Zabardast (1985) became his third flop in a row, along with Burman's music. Hussain defended Burman to the press: "I disagree that RD gave weak music in (Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai (1982) and Manzil Manzil(1984)). He was passing through a lean phase during Zabardast." Hussain stopped directing films and handed the reins over to his son Mansoor Khan, who hired other music directors. Hussain put a positive spin on it at the time by saying, "We did not ‘drop’ Pancham – Mansoor felt that he could not possibly tell Pancham Uncle to change his style for him. Pancham will come back the day I direct again, which I plan to do soon." But that never happened. The partnership between Hussain and Burman which had started so strongly nearly twenty years ago with Teesri Manzil (1966) ended with a thud.
1986 is said to be the worst year of his career. None of his 9 soundtracks made a mark that year. After 1986, he started getting less work. The producers who gave him patronage suddenly seemed to have disappeared. Bappi Lahiri's ' plagiarized ' or lifted, Western Disco tunes had taken their toll on R D Burman. The year 1987 saw only 5 releases including the brilliant Ijaazat, which failed to prevent his downfall. Ijaazat is still considered a matchless score, with classics like Choti si kahani se, Khaali haath shaam aayi hi, Katra katra and Mera kuch samaan (which won Asha Bhosle the National Award as Best Singer).
1988 saw some four more R D Burman soundtracks of which Libaas had good songs, but the producer refused to release the film. R D Burman gave music for 6 more movies in 1989, of which Parinda and Joshilaay were successful.
1990s
R D Burman's last years were not very pleasant. The few films he composed music for flopped at the box office. Subhash Ghai promised him Ram Lakhan but gave it instead to Laxmikant Pyarelal. This greatly upset Pancham. He suffered from a heart attack in 1988 and underwent heart surgery. During this period, he composed many tunes, which were never released.
R D Burman gave music for few mediocre movies in 1990 (two), 1991 (three) and 1992 (six). In 1993, there were four more releases, of which 1942: A Love Story (released after his death) has an unforgettable score. The film won him the third and last of his Filmfare awards. The music of Janam Se Pehle (1994) was also composed by R D Burman. After his death, Ghatak: Lethal (1996) was released.
2000s
After his death, in the late 1990s, the remix versions of R D Burman's hits ruled the Indian music scene. Even today, most of the Indian remix songs are his tunes remixed.
Gang (2000) was released long after R D Burman's death. He was also credited for music of few more films after his death. For example, Monsoon Wedding (credit for Chura liya hai) and Dil Vil Pyaar Vyaar (2002), which had R D Burman songs "recreated" by one of his assistants Babloo Chakravorty.
Jhankaar Beats (2003 movie)starring Sanjay Suri, Rahul Bose, Juhi Chawla & Rinkie Khanna was sort of a tribute to RDB, wherein Suri & Bose play musicians who revere RDB & his music & whose music is influenced by Burman. There was a remixed version of Burmans popular Kishore Kumar number "Humein tumse pyaar kitna" which was integral to the film.
Foreign collaborations and private albums
R D Burman also produced private albums, including one based on the samba. He also collaborated with Boy George. He has also composed music for an album called Pantera produced by Pete Gavankar in 1987 whose lyrics were written by Jose Flores. The 2002 release "Jhankaar Beats" features one of his famous tunes from the movie Kudrat while paying tribute to him. In 2008 on 26th April, 113 Minute documentry Film made by Brahmanand singh named Pancham Unmixed - Mujhe Chalte Jana Hai was premiered at IIFLA (ArcLight Hollywood), in Los Angeles. The film takes an incisive look into the Pancham’s reflective artistry and buoyant-but-also-lonely inner being. Featuring a host of close friends, colleagues and admirers, the film attempts to evoke awe, admiration and nostalgia the way most of his music does, till date.
Pancham married a lady named Rita in 1966, but they were divorced in 1971. He then married Asha Bhoslein 1980. Together, they recorded many memorable tunes and also staged many live performances. After his father died in 1975, he took care of his mother. After Pancham's death, his mother eventually ended up in old-age home but came back to her late son's house to die on October 15, 2007.
Pancham had financial difficulties particularly later in his life. There have been wide discussions about the disconnect between the success of his music and his financial success. Even today, at any given moment there is some radio or television channel that is playing his music. His music has found a new generation of followers. But unfortunately his music and his talent was never recognized during his life leading to financial difficulties.
There have been accusations of plagiarism against Burman claiming that he often copied, or "lifted" tunes and melodies from several different sources such as popular Western or African tunes. Notable examples of plagiarism can be found online.
Pancham was comfortable with all types of music, be it the romantic Raat kali from Buddha mil gaya (1971), the sexy cabaret Piya tu ab to aaja from Caravan (1971), the ultimate hippie anthem Dum Maro Dum from Hare Krishna Hare Rama (1972) or the classical Raina beeti jaaye. It is said that Dev Anand did not include the complete version of Dum Maro Dum in Hare Rama Hare Krishna, as he was worried the song would overshadow the film. At times, R D doubled up as a singer too. His most famous song as a singer was Mehbooba from Sholay. This song is inspired from the song "Say You Love Me" by Demis Roussos.
Pancham was a very creative person. His percussion included a spoon against a glass (Chura liya hai from Yaadon Ki baraat), desks (Masterji ki aa gayee chitthee from Kitaab) a bamboo whistle with a balloon (Abdullah) and bottles filled with water at different levels (O maajhi re from Khushboo).
Some of Pancham's songs were inspired from popular western tunes. For example,Aao twist karein (Bhoot Bangla) was a direct lift of Come lets twist again by Chubby Checker while Tera mujhse hai pehle ka naata koi (Aaa Gale Lag Ja) is said to be a copy of The Yellow Rose of Texas by Elvis Presley. There are many such other examples available at itwofs. "Bhali Bhali Si Ek Surat" (from Buddha Mil Gaya) is inspired by "Jump in the Line" (by Harry Belafonte).
Pancham also adapted folk music from eastern Europe in some of his tunes, such as the songe in movie Satte Pe Satta. There have been discussions regarding the influence of the communist block of the eastern Europe on Pancham's music.
Pancham has also directed music for some regional films, including Bangla, Oriya, Tamil, Telugu and Marathi. He also acted in one of the Bengali film named Gayak (starring Amitkumar and Debasri Roy), where RD plays himself and 'discovers' Amit singing on a beach. Pancham's non-filmi music comprises few albums, including 'Pantera' - the international album for which he shares credit with Latin American composer, Jose Flores.
However, his song "Mil Gaya, Humko Saathi Mil Gaya' is a direct lift from the popular ABBA song 'Mamma Mia'. R.D.Burman
Birth: September 8th 1933 Profession: Playback Singer, Bollywood.
At 60-plus she still dares to challenge the youngsters on the scene, Alka Yagnik, Kavita Krishnamurty, Sadhana Sargam in evocative songs 'Yai Re, Yai Re...' and 'Tanha Tanha...' both from Rangeela or 'Rang De...' from Takshak. She teams with Adnam Sami and 'Ghulam Ali' with the equal ease for private albums of Songs or ghazal.
Asha Bhosle has been a name to contend with in the Hindi film industry since the last four decades, considering that she had to grow up in the shadow of her sister, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha has indeed done very well for herself.Initially she had to face the inevitable – unfair comparisons with her more popular sister. But she did not let that affect her. Perseverance paid off, as she overtook tough contenders, including Geeta Dutt.
Asha Bhonsle, one of the Mangeshkar sisters was born on 8th September, 1933 to the renowed Maharashtrian parent, actor and singer Dinanath Mangeshkar in a small hamlet called 'Goar' in Maharastra. Like her older sister Lata Mangeshkar Asha also initially did a small stint as a child artist. But being trained in classical music by her father Dinanath Mangeshkar it was more natural she too turn to playback singing like Lata did.
In April 1942 her father Dinath Mangeshkar died, causing upheaval in the family which moved from Pune to Kolhapur and in turn to Bombay. Around the age of ten she apparently sang her first film song in the Marathi film Majha Bal. Asha like her other sisters and brother was introduced to music at a very tender age. Asha remembers her birthplace as she says " I still remember my childhood days in sangli, because of me Lata didi use to bunk the school, I cannot forget sangli as it's my birth place ".
In a world so much in awe of elder sister Lata Mangeshkar, s he had to work that much harder. Time has not touched her voice, she can please pop lovers with rap and remix. At the same time, she has the ability to match the tunes of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan.
Playful love songs or lusty cabaret numbers, soulful ghazals or funky pop, Bhosle's trod everywhere, with aplomb. From the early rock 'n' roll Eena meena deeka, to the seductive Burman number Piya tu ab to aaja in Caravan, to the unforgettable ghazals of Umrao Jaan.To a large degree, her success can be attributed to her versatility. She has successfully sung in many different voices and in many different styles.
Asha made her playback debut in 1948 with the film Chunariya. But it took a long, long time for Asha to make it to the top. in the 1950s Asha sang more songs than any other playback singer but the bulk of these were in small films with no distinction.That was the time of Lata Mangeshkar , Shamshad Begum and Geeta Dutt.
1957 was her breakthrough year when O.P. Nayyar used her to sing the heroine's songs in Tumsa Nahin Dekha and Naya Daur. The same year S.D. Burman had his rift with Lata. Also Geeta Dutt’s troubled marriage did not make her easily available . Consequently S.D. Burman chose to groom Asha along with O.P. Nayyar rather than wait for Geeta. The following year Asha made it right to the top with hit songs in films like Howrah Bridge (1958), Chalti ka Naam Ghadi (1958) and Lajwanti (1958). Asha got involved with O.P. Nayyar and thereafter she remained his premier singer till their break-up in the 1970s.
The 1960s saw Asha at her best as she belted out her best songs particularly under O.P. Nayyar's baton - Aankhon se Jo Utri hai Dil Mein from Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon(1964), Jayiye Aap Kahaan Jayenge from Mere Sanam (1965) and Woh Haseen Dard De Do from Humsaaya (1968) to name but a few.
The 1970s also brought her close with R.D. Burman who gave her a new hip and happening sound altogether. Piya Tu Ab To Aajaa (Caravan (1971)), Dum Maro Dum (Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1971)), offered fresh and stimulating challenges to her voice. Jaane Jaa from Jawaani Diwaani (1972) had her switching from the higher scales to the absolute lower ones within the song with ease!
1980’s brought a lucky and prosperous year for Asha as she rocked the show with evergreen ghazals like Dil Cheez Kya Hai, In Aankhon ki Masti, Yeh Kaisi Jagah hai Doston, Justaju Jiski Ki (Umrao Jaan,1981) , a few of the finest singing.Ijaazat (1987) saw her in top form winning a National Award for Mera Kuch Samaan, a most difficult song to sing as the lyrics were more in prose form rather than standard rhythmic verse.
Asha Bhosle has since sung in virtually every Indian language, in Russian and Malay, has sung Rabindra Sangeet (the songs of Bengali poet Tagore), has sung with the bhangra groupAlaap , the Indian rap act Baba Sehgal and Boy George, the former lead vocalist of the British pop group Cassette compilations and recyclings of her work are numerous.
In the 1990s Asha has even further widened her horizon by succesfully coming out with albums in Indipop giving the albums a western touch and beating the Indian pop artists on their own turf. Though she has cut down on her singing now she still makes an Urmila Matonder or Aishwarya Rai sizzle in Rangeela (1994) or Taal (1999).
Today her vocals are in better, more supple, sensuous and inviting shape then ever before. If we listen to her singing R.D. Burman’s Teri meri yaari badi purani, right before going on to Sandeep Chowta’s Kambakht ishq, we notice no perceptible difference in the rendition of the two tracks, even though they are separated by 30 years.
When R.D. Burman arrived, Asha married him. The great composer gave his wife some unforgettable numbers including Chura liya hai tumnein and Mera samaan lauta do. How can one forget Asha in Teesri Manzil and Yaadon Ki Baarat? In Umrao Jaan, Asha sang for Rekha playing a courtesan and created some evergreen numbers.
Her favourite singers include her father Master Dinanath Mangeshkar ,sister Lata Mangeshkar , Mohammad Rafi , Manna Dey , Kishore Kumar,Mukeshji, Hemant Da, Noorjehan,Mehdi Hasan and Gulam Ali.
Awards And Honors:
Award Song - Movie
Filmfare Award - 1968 Garibon Ki Suno - Dus Lakh
Filmfare Award - 1969 Parde Mein Rehne Do - Shikar
Filmfare Award - 1972 Piya Tu Ab To Aa Jaa - Caravan
Filmfare Award - 1973 Dam Maaro Dam - Hare Rama Hare Krishna
Filmfare Award - 1974 Hone Lagi Hai Raat - Naina
Filmfare Award - 1975 Chain se hum ko kabhi - Pran Jaye Par Vachan Na Jaye
Filmfare Award - 1978 Yeh mera dil yaar ka deewana - Don
Filmfare Award - 1996 (Special Award) Rangeela re , Tanha tanha yahan pe jeena - Rangeela
National Award - 1981 Umrao Jaan
National Award - 1986 Ijaazat Mera Kuchh Samaan - Ijazzat
Other Awards:
Dada Saheb Phalke Award
Nightingale of Asia Award - 1987
Lata Mangeshkar Award By Govt.of Madhya Pradesh - 1989
Screen Video Cone Award Janam Samjha Karo - 1997
MTV Award Janam Samjha Ka\o - 1997 Asha Bhonsle
Babul Supriyo (born in Kolkata) is an Indian playback singer. He calls himself a clone (in singing style) of Kumar Sanu.Babul Supriyo's grandfather, NC Boral, was a well-known composer in West Bengal. Under pressure from his father (who worked in a bank), he took up a job with Standard Chartered Bank after securing a Master's degree. In 1991, he came to Mumbai to try his luck in Bollywood. Kalyanji (of Kalyanji-Anandji composer duo) gave him a break, and he soon got noticed by other composers. Besides playback singing, he has also done several stage shows across the globe. Babul is a very talented singer and sang some memorable Hindi songs such as Kaho na Pyar hai(Kaho na Pyar Hai), Pari Pari Hai ek Pari(Hungama), Hum Tum(Hum Tum), Chanda Chamke(Fanaah)etc. He is the anchor of currently hit television show "K for KISHORE". Babul Supriyo's family consists of his wife Rhea and a daughter. Few days ago, he was divorced and used to stay with his daughter only at his Lokhandwalla Flat but now he has reunited with his wife again and leading a happy life. Babul Supriyo
Bappi was born in Calcutta in a family with a very rich tradition in classical music. His father Aparesh Lahiri was a famous singer and mother Bansari Lahiri and musician and singer was also a famous classical and Shyama Sangeet singer.He was their only child. At a very early age he had an ambition to be famous, not only nationally, but also internationally .He began to play the tabla from the age of 3 . His relatives from his mother's side include singer Kishore Kumar and the S. Mukerji clan. Initially he was trained by his own parents after which he got his first opportunity in a Bengali film Daadu in 1972.He came to Bollywood at a very young age of 18. The first film in which he composed music was Nanha Shikari (1973). Still the turning point of his career was S. Mukherji' son Shomu Mukherji hit Tahir Husain 's Zakhmee 1975 . He himself got to sing ‘Nothing is impossible’ with Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar in the same film. The songs of his next film Chalte Chalte, became a rage, ‘Jaana kahaan hai’ sung by Bappi himself and ‘Pyar mein kabhi kabhi’. But for the rest of the decade his music could not do very well.The films he worked for were (Khoon Ki Pukar, Lahu Ke Do Rang, Paapi) , Aap Ki Khatir (‘Bambai se aaya mera dost’), Toote Khilone (‘Maana ho tum’), Dil sey Miley Dil (the title-track and Aflatoon), College Girl (‘Pyar maanga hai tumhi se’), Surakshaa (‘Mausam hai gaane ka’) and Ahsaas (‘Kitne raanjhe tujhe dekh ke’).
In the 80's Bappi Lahiri has come a long way to be one of the most popular music composers in Indian filmdom. His music blasts out of car radios and ghetto blasters wherever Indian popular music is heard. Bappida, as he is more popularly known, will be remembered for at least one reason, he introduced disco music in Indian films. Bappi Lahiri
Hemanta Mukherjee was born on the 16th of June 1920 in Varanasi. From an early age he had developed an everlasting bond with music. In his autobiography "Ananda-dhara" he mentions " I would always be on the lookout for a chance to sing . Be it a religious festival or just a family gathering I would enjoy singing any new song that I had picked up". His talent was soon recognized and Hemanta Mukherjee sang his first song on the AIR in 1933 at the age of 13. Six years later he cut his first gramophone disc for HMV. Recognition soon followed in the elite music circle of India. In 1940 he sang his first Hindi geet 'Kitna dukh bhulaya tumne'. But commercial success was yet to come. In his own words "I would wait at soirees for organizers to call on me, but singers of the stature of Pankaj Mullick and K.L. Saigal would arrive and I would have to remain content listening to them." But a true genius never goes unrecognized. In 1948, a firebrand lyricist and music composer - Salil Chowdhury teamed up with him and gave birth to a completely new form of music - Kavya-geeti (ballad but not necessarily romantic) . It was immediately a smash hit. To this day the song - 'Ga.Nyer Bodhu'remains the symbol of the once properous rural Bengal. Soon Hemanta received offers from the Bombay film Industry. And after that there was no looking back. Hemanta Mukherjee
As a child Shreya won the children's special episode of the Sa Re Ga Ma contest on Zee TV. Kalyanji who also judged the competition, convinced her parents to move to Mumbai. She trained with him for 18 months and continued her classical music training with Mukta Bhide in Mumbai. She came to the attention of film director Sanjay Leela Bhansali when she participated in Sa Re Ga Ma for a second time, this time competing against adults. In 2000, He offered her the opportunity to be the voice of Paro, the lead female character of his film Devdas, who was to be portrayed by Aishwarya Rai. Shreya sang five songs in the film.She got lots of applause for the song 'Mere Dholna' from Bhool Bhulaiya which is very tough. She has since gone on to sing for various music directors including M.M. Kreem, Anu Malik,A.R. Rahman, Ilayaraja, Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Pritam and Vishal-Shekhar. Today Ghoshal is an established industry singer and has recorded in various regional languages, including Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Marathi. Shreya Ghoshal
He was born Abhas Kumar
Ganguly in Khandwa. At the age of 18, he came to Bombay where elder brother
Ashok Kumar was a major star. He got his first opportunity as a singer in
Bombay Talkies Ziddi (1948) where he sang the song Marne ki Duayen Kyon Mangu
for Dev Anand. Being an ardent admirer of KL Saigal, the song was sung in the
style of the legend. But in spite of Ziddi's success, Kishore found few offers
forthcoming and did the odd singing assignment with bit roles making a rather
tepid acting debut as hero in the forgettable Andolan (1951). His voice had matched with many popular actor
like Rajesh Khanna,Amitabh bachchan,Dev Anand.Also the Bengali song by him was
very very important landmark to Bengali song history.Kishore was initially taken quite lightly as a singer and was given mainly lighter songs by Burmanda and other music directors. But with his soulful rendering of Dukhi Man Mere from Funtoosh (1956), Kishore was now taken seriously as a singer. Though he was formally untrained, he assimilated jazz-scat fragmented musical notes into a rhythmic sequence and once its beat was established, departed from the pattern and combined notes and words/ syllables into new kinds of musical harmony. And none could yodel better than he could! Kishore Kumar
The nightingale
of India, Lata Mangeshkar, who has charmed her fans with over 50,000 songs she
has sung as a playback singer in films, has no regrets that she never got
married. Over the last 56 years of her singing career, Lata thought of
retiring several times, but it was the affection of her fans that never let her
call it a day. Lata, whose voice quality retains the freshness and
innocence of a 16-year-old girl, says that in a way it has been good that she
did not get married. "Had I got married, I may have got divorced in a year
or two. It has all been all for the good," she says. It was after India’s losses in the India-China war in 1962 that a young Lata had sung the song, "Ai Mere Watan Ke Logon, Zara Aankh Me Bhar Lo Pani". The song, writeen by Kavi Pradeep, moved the then Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nahru, to tears and he confessed "Beti toone mujhe rula diya." Lata’s reign over the world of playback singing for female characters has been undisputed over the decades and she has lent her voice to heroines from Madhubala to Madhuri Dixit to Kajol. The nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar, who has charmed her fans with over 50,000 songs she has sung as a playback singer in films, has no regrets that she never got married.
Over the last 56 years of her singing career, Lata thought of retiring several times, but it was the affection of her fans that never let her call it a day.
Lata, whose voice quality retains the freshness and innocence of a 16-year-old girl, says that in a way it has been good that she did not get married. "Had I got married, I may have got divorced in a year or two. It has all been all for the good," she says.
Lata wants to now give more attention to singing classical-based songs. She is not very happy with the kind of lyrics that are being written these days and recalls the days of yore when there was emotion in the songs. Everybody very careful that obscenity should not get into the songs even by inference.
It was after India’s losses in the India-China war in 1962 that a young Lata had sung the song, "Ai Mere Watan Ke Logon, Zara Aankh Me Bhar Lo Pani". The song, writeen by Kavi Pradeep, moved the then Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nahru, to tears and he confessed "Beti toone mujhe rula diya." Lata’s reign over the world of playback singing for female characters has been undisputed over the decades and she has lent her voice to heroines from Madhubala to Madhuri Dixit to Kajol. She has surprised even her fans with the range of her singing in the film "Dil to Paagal Hai" whose title song has the same wording. Her song "Tere Bin Nahin Jeena" in the latest venture "Kachhe Dhage" is the last film in which the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan has given the music. It is said that Nusrat insisted that he would score the music for the film only if Lata was the playback singer.
Yes, several female playback singers who could not, perhaps, match Lata’s range and talent, have alleged that during her long career at the top, Lata did not let other talented singers come up. It is not known how much truth there is in such allegations, but it is beyond dispute that Lata is a legend in her lifetime and undeniably the best singer India has produced. Her contribution to making music popular throughout India and the world is incalculable and she has reigned supreme all through the last six decades.
She is the living legend.
Lata Mangweshkar
Lopamudra Mitra, daughter of Late, Shree Pranab Mitra and Shreemati Sumita Mitra, is the most popular contemporary Bengali Singer now. She started learning music from her father in childhood. Then she learnt Rabindra Sangeet from the Gitabitan Cultural Institute. Thereafter she started taking lessons on Indian Classical Music under the tutelage of Smt. Rita Roy and later on from Shri Anon Badhuri. She also had to opportunity to learn light classical music i.e. Bhajan and Nazrulgeeti from Late Shri Sukumar Mitra, Rabindrasangeet from Shri Subhas Chowdhury, Late Subinoy Roy and Aurobindo Biswas. She had won the State Music Academy Scholarship. From her very childhood Lopamudra has been able to display a pleasant flair for singing in group theatre. She was attached with 'Class Threatre1 from the age of twelve under the able guidance of Shri Samir Chatterjee.Since 1996, H. M.V., the pioneer in Audio Cassette Company in India, has released sixteen individual albums of Lopamudra's Bengali modern songs and Rabindra Sangeet. Most of those albums are very much popular among the listeners of Bengali music in India and abroad. She is also a very successful singer in Bengali films also.
She has performed all over India dna four times in U.S.A. including the NABC'99, held in San Francisco and Banga Mela 2005, held in Chicago. She also performed twice in U.K. and once in Canada and Singapore, 2006.
She won many awards for her unique dramatic style of singing, which is fashioned with the classical aid and tenor voice quality. She won the prestigious 'Bengal Film Journalist Award' on her debut playback in the film 'Sedin Chaitramas1. Her album 'Bhalobaste Balo' was honoured as the best puja album, best singer and album of the year in 2001. Her another album 'Ei Abelay1 awarded as the best puja album in 2003 by 'Ananda Bazar Patrika1. Her another album 'Jhor Hole Par!' got the 'ZEE MUSIC AWARD' in 2005.
Lopamudra believes that a 'performer becomes then successful when she and her music cannot be separated from each other'. Lopamudra Mitra
Manna Dey was a flawless singer who could sing any type of song. From Qawwalis (Yeh Ishq Ishq hai) to romantic duets (Pyar hua iqraar hua), fast nubers (Aaoo twist karen, Jhoomta mausam mast mahina) to patriotic songs (Aye mere pyare watan) or prayer numbers (Tu pyar ka saagar hai) -- he was the versatile genius. His mastery over semi-classical geets was something, which even the multi-faceted voice of Rafi could not match.Being the versatile genius he was, he won the Filmfare award for his toe-tapping number "Aae bhai zara dekh ke chalo" from "Mera Naam Joker". The song happens to be one of the most intricate compositions of Shankar-Jaikishen and it was the genius of Manna Dey that made it sound so simple and fluent. Source description: Humma.com
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