As it is well known, I am extremely insecure. I have always suspected that my parents loved my sister more; my teachers liked Pankaj more, and our friends liked my wife more. Devi has always loved her mom more. Let us see what Maa thinks of me.
In January of this year, my parents received a report card from Maalini about Jan's and my performance. While her comments about her mom were good, she told my parents that I interups a lot and watches too much TV! My wife got the ultimate kudo when Maa made a Mother's day card for her even if your just a plane MoM you macke a big difrince. She forgot both Father's day and my birthday - boo hoo.
I couldn't let it go. So I would needle Maa and ask her "Who do you love more amma, akka, or appa". Depending on her mood it would be amma or akka for the first position, but the constant was always, yours truly at the bottom. I expanded the list and added a whole slew of people to the list, grandparents, her aunts and uncles, cousins, and even friends. I found to my chagrin that my position did not improve, they all were inserted into the list somewhere below her mom and her sister but always above me. Wait one person did fare worse than I did, my sister; well she is as strict parent as I am!
I taxed her on her lack of affection for me and her comment was - At least you are above your sister!
I told this to my sister and her reaction was that she was glad that she was at least I am in Maa's list.
I needed perspective. Now I too am glad I am on the list.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Weighing Machine, Weighing Machine on the Floor ...
You know the story of Snow White and Seven Dwarfs. The Evil Queen asks the mirror on the wall the same question everyday, "Mirror, mirror on the wall / Who in the land is fairest of all?". The mirror repetitiously answers "You, my Queen" until one day when mirror tells the queen that Snow White, not the Queen is the fairest of all.
Unlike the queen, most of us men in our mid-life obsess not about our fairness or beauty. Most of us should have no illusion about our looks especially with kids in the teens or older. We instead talk endlessly about how gravity impacts us. How as we have gotten older, there seems to be more gravity around us. We feel heavier.
Each day we wake up in the morning and go to the bathroom where most of us have a weighing machine. We then ask the machine the same question, "Weighing Scale, Weighing Scale on the Floor / who in this land is the slimmest of all". Just like the queen, until the fateful day, we get the same answer.
Not you for sure, Ha Ha!
For the first thirty years of my life this was not a question, I had ever asked anyone or anything. In fact I did not possess a weighing machine. Sometime in my mid-thirties, I made the fatal mistake of getting one and since then my life has been one of misery. As I stood on top of it and wondered what I was going to see, hoping against hope, to see a small number, I got down each time after seeing the needle pointed towards larger and larger numbers.
Recently, the doctor had also started talking about the fried foods I liked to consume. He then talked about the health risks of increased cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides. Even some of my friends had started talking about my expanding waistline.
It got so bad last summer, I swear, I heard the scale whisper "Fatty" as I left the bathroom. Now I know you would say, I have a vivid imagination if I told you that around last Thanksgiving, I heard a groan from my bathroom and a whispered comment, "Is it too much to ask? Why can't you eat less!".
The last one was too much for me to swallow. I had to take matters into my hand. I could take digs from my children and needling from friends. I will be damned if I take sarcasm from a weighing scale. So went and got a new one.
Lovingly I opened it and stood on it for the first time and asked the same question "Weighing Machine, Weighing machine ..." and the strange answer I got was
Fewer chips a day, keeps the doctor away!
Unlike the queen, most of us men in our mid-life obsess not about our fairness or beauty. Most of us should have no illusion about our looks especially with kids in the teens or older. We instead talk endlessly about how gravity impacts us. How as we have gotten older, there seems to be more gravity around us. We feel heavier.
Each day we wake up in the morning and go to the bathroom where most of us have a weighing machine. We then ask the machine the same question, "Weighing Scale, Weighing Scale on the Floor / who in this land is the slimmest of all". Just like the queen, until the fateful day, we get the same answer.
Not you for sure, Ha Ha!
For the first thirty years of my life this was not a question, I had ever asked anyone or anything. In fact I did not possess a weighing machine. Sometime in my mid-thirties, I made the fatal mistake of getting one and since then my life has been one of misery. As I stood on top of it and wondered what I was going to see, hoping against hope, to see a small number, I got down each time after seeing the needle pointed towards larger and larger numbers.
Recently, the doctor had also started talking about the fried foods I liked to consume. He then talked about the health risks of increased cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides. Even some of my friends had started talking about my expanding waistline.
It got so bad last summer, I swear, I heard the scale whisper "Fatty" as I left the bathroom. Now I know you would say, I have a vivid imagination if I told you that around last Thanksgiving, I heard a groan from my bathroom and a whispered comment, "Is it too much to ask? Why can't you eat less!".
The last one was too much for me to swallow. I had to take matters into my hand. I could take digs from my children and needling from friends. I will be damned if I take sarcasm from a weighing scale. So went and got a new one.
Lovingly I opened it and stood on it for the first time and asked the same question "Weighing Machine, Weighing machine ..." and the strange answer I got was
Fewer chips a day, keeps the doctor away!
Monday, May 02, 2011
Am I any longer a Geek?
One of my favorite Wodehouse title is Carry On, Jeeves, a collection of short stories. The first story, Jeeves Takes Charge, introduces us to Bertie and Jeeves and tells the story of how Jeeves came to be Bertie's boss, I mean valet. In this story, Bertie is engaged to the autocratic but beautiful Lady Florence, who wants to improve his mind by feeding him a book titled Types of Ethical Theory that contained this memorable prose.
Of the two antithetic terms in the Greek philosophy one only was real and self-subsisting; and that one was Ideal Thought as opposed to that which it has to penetrate and mould. The other, corresponding to our Nature, was in itself phenomenal, unreal, without any permanent footing, having no predicates that held true for two moments together; in short redeemed from negation only by including indwelling realities appearing through.
Right Ho. Naturally Bertie's engagement did not last much longer. I found this to be a funny story without paying anymore attention to it.
Recently I saw that my friend had posted on Facebook a comment on NP-Complete problems and remembered reading about this in graduate school decade and a half ago and actually doing well enough to get an A on that course. Since I no longer knew what it was, I looked my favorite source, The Wikipedia and, I kid you not, this was what I read.
In computational complexity theory, the complexity class NP-complete (abbreviated NP-C or NPC) is a class of decision problems. A decision problem L is NP-complete if it is in the set of NP problems so that any given solution to the decision problem can be verified in polynomial time, and also in the set of NP-hard problems so that any NP problem can be converted into L by a transformation of the inputs in polynomial time.
Quite lucid you say
I on the other hand am no longer feel smart enough to comprehend such material.
Of the two antithetic terms in the Greek philosophy one only was real and self-subsisting; and that one was Ideal Thought as opposed to that which it has to penetrate and mould. The other, corresponding to our Nature, was in itself phenomenal, unreal, without any permanent footing, having no predicates that held true for two moments together; in short redeemed from negation only by including indwelling realities appearing through.
Right Ho. Naturally Bertie's engagement did not last much longer. I found this to be a funny story without paying anymore attention to it.
Recently I saw that my friend had posted on Facebook a comment on NP-Complete problems and remembered reading about this in graduate school decade and a half ago and actually doing well enough to get an A on that course. Since I no longer knew what it was, I looked my favorite source, The Wikipedia and, I kid you not, this was what I read.
In computational complexity theory, the complexity class NP-complete (abbreviated NP-C or NPC) is a class of decision problems. A decision problem L is NP-complete if it is in the set of NP problems so that any given solution to the decision problem can be verified in polynomial time, and also in the set of NP-hard problems so that any NP problem can be converted into L by a transformation of the inputs in polynomial time.
Quite lucid you say
I on the other hand am no longer feel smart enough to comprehend such material.
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Music I Like
Single place for all the lists that I have published. This article will evolve as I create newer lists.
Asha and Rafi Top 10
Asha and Rafi Next 10
Asha and Kishore Top 10
Asha and Kishore Next 10
Lata and Rafi Top 10
Asha and Rafi Top 10
Asha and Rafi Next 10
Asha and Kishore Top 10
Asha and Kishore Next 10
Lata and Rafi Top 10
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
My first century (of anything)
I have never been associated with the number 100. You know how you finish your exam and when you get it back, the only questions your parents ask you were
Who got first? -- And the answer invariably did not include me. It was always one of the three girls Sangeeta Chandra, Namita Giridhar, Renu Aggarwal! Well no surprise; Sangeeta is a doctor from Maulana Azad and the other two went to DCE with me.
Whom did you leave behind the 5 marks for? It is not like the teachers were asking for some! -- Sarcasm was a wonderful tool. Of course it was always one-way, since talking back was not an option. I have tried and there are a few dents in my head to show for the effort.
Why am I reopening those wounds? This post is all about me reaching a milestone.
This post is my one hundredth!
I have been writing for a little under 5 years. When I started I had no suspicion that I would write for so long. I started writing about the books I read. I found out very quickly that they were not popular, I mean the posts, not the books! The change in focus came when during a trip to India I wrote about my experiences. Some people liked it; a little; and that was encouragement enough for me to keep writing. It was not like I was getting rave reviews and encouragement. Initially it was read by no one, now I have graduated to rarely read!
It is more of, "If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears ....". You know how that goes. No matter. I knew I had many things to say, even if like the proverbial fallen trees, there is no one to hear them.
Today I wanted to explore one of my favorite topic; Bollywood Music, of which I have now written a few posts. But for this one I could think of no two persons worthy of dedicating it, Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar.
I will list here their Top-10 duets (In my not so humble opinion).
1) Dil Pukare, Jewel Thief (Audio|Video)
SD Burman is amazing in this movie. Listen to the complex orchestration combined with great melody.
As is usually the case in all my post, there is a digression. There is another song in this movie where Tanuja literally throws herself at Dev Anand; in this really sexy song, Raat Akeli Hai (Audio|Video) only to be rebuffed! You see the song and tell me if the hero is not totally nuts! There are not many songs even in today that is this sizzling hot! Asha Bhosle's dynamics of voice is amazing. I am sorry I digressed about Asha in a post about Lata!
2) Paaon Choolene Do Phoolon Ko Enayet Hogi, Taj Mahal (Audio|Video)
The singer tells the heroine to let the flowers touch her feet as it will be a compliment to the flowers (as best as I could translate Urdu)! Beautiful sentiment.
3) Tasveer Teri Dil Mein, Maya (Audio|Video)
I noticed a pattern of Dev Anand dominating my lists. Salil Chaudhary was an amazing composer! The only nit I can pick is the heroine. I never liked Mala Sinha, although to be fair, she was one of the most successful female star of her era.
4) Tere Husn Ki Kya Tareef, Leader (Audio|Video)
The hero and heroine praise each others looks but pretend they are scared to say nice things about the other, since they are afraid that it would be mistaken for love. Dilip Kumar is one of the few actors who looks like he is the one who are really singing!
5) Agar Mein Poochon Javab Doge, Shikari (Audio|Video)
A really beautiful song, nice lyrics, wasted on two unknown actors. Who are they?
6) Jhilmil Sitaron Ka, Jeevan Mrityu (Audio|Video)
This movie is a Decently Bollywoodized remake of the Count of Monte Cristo. Dharmedra plays the role of Edmond Dantes and Rakhee plays the role of Mercedes. In a change from the original and to suit the Indian sensibilities, the heroine does not marry unlike in the book. I have always admired Rakhee for her acting, but in this movie she was actually thin! See the video if you do not believe me.
7) Chand Jaane Kahan Kho Gaya, Main Chup Rahungi (Audio|Video)
How the devil did Sunil Dutt make it to the big leagues? Was there such a dearth of male stars in those days?
8) Dekho Rootha Na Karo, Tere Ghar Ke Saamne (Audio|Video)
Nutan won 5 Film Fare Awards for Best Actress. Dev Anand just exists!
9) Do Ghadi Voh Jo Paas Aa Baite, Gateway Of India (Audio|Video)
What a beautiful song? Another hero about whom you wonder, How the devil did Bharat Bhushan make it big? That he was paired with Madhubala is the height of injustice!
10) Jeevan Mein Piya Tera, Goonj Uti Shehnai (Audio|Video)
This song starts rather slowly and feels like onset of some tragedy. The song quickly makes a recovery and never looks back. Lata and Rafi sing with a gusto. I do not know who this actress is either.
PS: If you the impression that I had tough parents, it is not all poor Raag. I was a difficult child too. There never was a punishment I did not deserve and more.
Who got first? -- And the answer invariably did not include me. It was always one of the three girls Sangeeta Chandra, Namita Giridhar, Renu Aggarwal! Well no surprise; Sangeeta is a doctor from Maulana Azad and the other two went to DCE with me.
Whom did you leave behind the 5 marks for? It is not like the teachers were asking for some! -- Sarcasm was a wonderful tool. Of course it was always one-way, since talking back was not an option. I have tried and there are a few dents in my head to show for the effort.
Why am I reopening those wounds? This post is all about me reaching a milestone.
This post is my one hundredth!
I have been writing for a little under 5 years. When I started I had no suspicion that I would write for so long. I started writing about the books I read. I found out very quickly that they were not popular, I mean the posts, not the books! The change in focus came when during a trip to India I wrote about my experiences. Some people liked it; a little; and that was encouragement enough for me to keep writing. It was not like I was getting rave reviews and encouragement. Initially it was read by no one, now I have graduated to rarely read!
It is more of, "If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears ....". You know how that goes. No matter. I knew I had many things to say, even if like the proverbial fallen trees, there is no one to hear them.
Today I wanted to explore one of my favorite topic; Bollywood Music, of which I have now written a few posts. But for this one I could think of no two persons worthy of dedicating it, Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar.
I will list here their Top-10 duets (In my not so humble opinion).
1) Dil Pukare, Jewel Thief (Audio|Video)
SD Burman is amazing in this movie. Listen to the complex orchestration combined with great melody.
As is usually the case in all my post, there is a digression. There is another song in this movie where Tanuja literally throws herself at Dev Anand; in this really sexy song, Raat Akeli Hai (Audio|Video) only to be rebuffed! You see the song and tell me if the hero is not totally nuts! There are not many songs even in today that is this sizzling hot! Asha Bhosle's dynamics of voice is amazing. I am sorry I digressed about Asha in a post about Lata!
2) Paaon Choolene Do Phoolon Ko Enayet Hogi, Taj Mahal (Audio|Video)
The singer tells the heroine to let the flowers touch her feet as it will be a compliment to the flowers (as best as I could translate Urdu)! Beautiful sentiment.
3) Tasveer Teri Dil Mein, Maya (Audio|Video)
I noticed a pattern of Dev Anand dominating my lists. Salil Chaudhary was an amazing composer! The only nit I can pick is the heroine. I never liked Mala Sinha, although to be fair, she was one of the most successful female star of her era.
4) Tere Husn Ki Kya Tareef, Leader (Audio|Video)
The hero and heroine praise each others looks but pretend they are scared to say nice things about the other, since they are afraid that it would be mistaken for love. Dilip Kumar is one of the few actors who looks like he is the one who are really singing!
5) Agar Mein Poochon Javab Doge, Shikari (Audio|Video)
A really beautiful song, nice lyrics, wasted on two unknown actors. Who are they?
6) Jhilmil Sitaron Ka, Jeevan Mrityu (Audio|Video)
This movie is a Decently Bollywoodized remake of the Count of Monte Cristo. Dharmedra plays the role of Edmond Dantes and Rakhee plays the role of Mercedes. In a change from the original and to suit the Indian sensibilities, the heroine does not marry unlike in the book. I have always admired Rakhee for her acting, but in this movie she was actually thin! See the video if you do not believe me.
7) Chand Jaane Kahan Kho Gaya, Main Chup Rahungi (Audio|Video)
How the devil did Sunil Dutt make it to the big leagues? Was there such a dearth of male stars in those days?
8) Dekho Rootha Na Karo, Tere Ghar Ke Saamne (Audio|Video)
Nutan won 5 Film Fare Awards for Best Actress. Dev Anand just exists!
9) Do Ghadi Voh Jo Paas Aa Baite, Gateway Of India (Audio|Video)
What a beautiful song? Another hero about whom you wonder, How the devil did Bharat Bhushan make it big? That he was paired with Madhubala is the height of injustice!
10) Jeevan Mein Piya Tera, Goonj Uti Shehnai (Audio|Video)
This song starts rather slowly and feels like onset of some tragedy. The song quickly makes a recovery and never looks back. Lata and Rafi sing with a gusto. I do not know who this actress is either.
PS: If you the impression that I had tough parents, it is not all poor Raag. I was a difficult child too. There never was a punishment I did not deserve and more.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Top 20 - Rafi and Asha
A year and half ago, I started making lists of songs I like. I started with a Top-10 of my favorite couple, Mohammed Rafi and Asha Bhosle. Recently I had an opportunity to review that list when I discovered two songs that should have been in it. I also discovered that I could easily come up with another 10 songs that were quite worthy of an audience. Here it is.
11) O Haseena Zulfon Vali, Teesri Manzil (Audio|Video)
The first movie for which RD composed music is Teesri Manzil. What an amazing debut!
12) Main Pyar Ka Rahi Hoon, Ek Musafir Ek Hasina (Audio|Video)
It is almost like hit duets come in threes. Here is a movie with three Asha-Rafi duets. Unfortunately I could not find any video.
13) Humsafar Saath Apna, Aakhri Dao (Audio|Video)
Nutan has always been a favorite actress of mine; I do not know the name of the hero. Very touching song and haunting melody.
14) Chura Liya Hai Tumne Jo Dil Ko, Yaadon Ki Baarat (Audio|Video)
Zeenie Baby, Wow! It took 25 more years before the rest of the Indian Film heroines had a figure like that! I am sorry I had to delegate this song so far down the list. I definitely am partial to the classical period of Hindi Film Music, if I may refer to 1950s and 1960s in that manner.
15) Aap Ko Pyaar Chupane Ki, Neela Akash (Audio|Video)
Sounds like the tale of my romance!
16) Haay Re Haay Ye Mere Haath, Kashmir Ki Kali (Audio|Video)
Well another movie with three Asha-Rafi duets.
17) O Mere Sona, Teesri Manzil (Audio|Video)
Do you feel like my comments are sometimes repetitious? Another movie with three Asha-Rafi duets in it.
18) Ye Raat Ye Fizayen, Batvara (Audio|Video)
A very haunting melody. Starts slowly and picks up tempo, barely.
19) Yeh Ladka Hai Allah, Hum Kissi Se Kum Naheen (Audio|Video)
This movie had only two great Asha-Rafi duets! Bummer! I do not know who the hero or heroine are. They could not have acted in many more films.
20) Baalam Tere Pyaar Ki Thandi, Ram Aur Shyam (Audio|Video)
I like this song a lot although it seems to be quite low in the list. Also I prefer the Tamil version of this movie, Enga Veetu Pillai, with MGR in a double role it.
11) O Haseena Zulfon Vali, Teesri Manzil (Audio|Video)
The first movie for which RD composed music is Teesri Manzil. What an amazing debut!
12) Main Pyar Ka Rahi Hoon, Ek Musafir Ek Hasina (Audio|Video)
It is almost like hit duets come in threes. Here is a movie with three Asha-Rafi duets. Unfortunately I could not find any video.
13) Humsafar Saath Apna, Aakhri Dao (Audio|Video)
Nutan has always been a favorite actress of mine; I do not know the name of the hero. Very touching song and haunting melody.
14) Chura Liya Hai Tumne Jo Dil Ko, Yaadon Ki Baarat (Audio|Video)
Zeenie Baby, Wow! It took 25 more years before the rest of the Indian Film heroines had a figure like that! I am sorry I had to delegate this song so far down the list. I definitely am partial to the classical period of Hindi Film Music, if I may refer to 1950s and 1960s in that manner.
15) Aap Ko Pyaar Chupane Ki, Neela Akash (Audio|Video)
Sounds like the tale of my romance!
16) Haay Re Haay Ye Mere Haath, Kashmir Ki Kali (Audio|Video)
Well another movie with three Asha-Rafi duets.
17) O Mere Sona, Teesri Manzil (Audio|Video)
Do you feel like my comments are sometimes repetitious? Another movie with three Asha-Rafi duets in it.
18) Ye Raat Ye Fizayen, Batvara (Audio|Video)
A very haunting melody. Starts slowly and picks up tempo, barely.
19) Yeh Ladka Hai Allah, Hum Kissi Se Kum Naheen (Audio|Video)
This movie had only two great Asha-Rafi duets! Bummer! I do not know who the hero or heroine are. They could not have acted in many more films.
20) Baalam Tere Pyaar Ki Thandi, Ram Aur Shyam (Audio|Video)
I like this song a lot although it seems to be quite low in the list. Also I prefer the Tamil version of this movie, Enga Veetu Pillai, with MGR in a double role it.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Mohammed Rafi
I believe there is a god. There must be. After all Mohammad Rafi lived in this world. Please let me indulge in hyperbole for an instant.
Most popular singer of his era, unarguably the greatest voice in Bollywood, smooth as silk, soft as velvet, a genius, voice like an angel, unmatched versatility, unmatched vocal range, career spanning four decades, still displaying an ability to connect with connoisseurs nearly three decades after his death. His existence cannot be ascribed to chance.
Ergo, there is a god.
Rafi's music definitely has addled my brain; I am sorry; I stand by everything except the last and I am sure you will also agree with me. I mean, about Rafi music being unparalleled not my brain being addled.
So I started making a list of solos that I like and someone pointed that they are all sad melodies. In my opinion happiness does not have the same depth of sadness. I also realized that it is hard for me to mix moods. I cannot listen to Chahe Koi Mujhe Junglee Kahe or Yeh Chand Sa Roshan Chehra after listening to one of the songs listed below.
So without much ado, here is a list of top 10 Rafi sad melodies
1) Din Dhal Jaaye Hai Raat Na Jaaye, Guide (Audio|Video)
The line that leads to this song is "Zindagi bhi ek nasha hai dost, jab chadta hai to poocho mat kya aalam rehta hai, lekin jab utarta hai ....". Very beautiful song.
2) Koi Sagar Dil Ko Behalata, Dil Diya Dard Liya (Audio| Video)
Dilip Kumar does a wonderful job in this song; you get the feeling that it is he who is singing not Rafi!
3) Khabi Khud Pe Khabi Halat Pe Rona, Hum Dono (Audio|Video)
Have a glass of wine in your hand when you listen to this song. It just makes sense. But unless you are a fan of Dev Anand, you will agree that he does not do justice to the pathos Rafi injects into this song.
4) Yaad Na Jaaye Beete Dinon Ki, Dil Ek Mandir (Audio|Video)
I saw this movie at an age when I could not appreciate it. I was 12 and there is nothing worse than a romantic tragedy. No dishoom dishoom.
5) Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaaye To Kya Hai (Audio|Video)
From my favorite director, Guru Dutt. Fifty years later we still do not make such movies.
6) Zindagi Aaj Mere Naam Se Sharmati Hai, Son Of India (Audio|Video)
The next line is "Apni halat pe mujhe khud bhi hasi aati hai".
7) O Duniya Ke Rakhvale (Audio|Video)
Rafi shows amazing range. There is an urban legend associated with this song; that it hurt Rafi so much to sing this song that he spat blood after the recording!
8) Taqdeer Ka Fasaana, Sehra (Audio|Video)
Forget the stupidity of this movie; here is another song where Rafi shows amazing range.
9) Raha Gardishon Mein Hardam Mere Isqh Ka Sitara, Do Badan (Audio|Video)
The number of romances Pran has ruined is countless. Man I hated him so much. Although in this particular movie I do not understand why Asha Parekh is sad. There are worse things than being married to Pran; being married to Manoj Kumar!
10) Hui Shaam Unka Khayal, Mere Humdam Mere Dost (Audio|Video)
Because Dharmendra is a hunk, he is underestimated as a serious actor. He was my favorite hero and for a while it used to bother me that Amitabh was more popular.
This list naturally represents my opinion and it is by no means complete. I was easily able to identify another ten songs that could have reasonably made this list.
Maybe that is for another post. What do you think of this list?
Most popular singer of his era, unarguably the greatest voice in Bollywood, smooth as silk, soft as velvet, a genius, voice like an angel, unmatched versatility, unmatched vocal range, career spanning four decades, still displaying an ability to connect with connoisseurs nearly three decades after his death. His existence cannot be ascribed to chance.
Ergo, there is a god.
Rafi's music definitely has addled my brain; I am sorry; I stand by everything except the last and I am sure you will also agree with me. I mean, about Rafi music being unparalleled not my brain being addled.
So I started making a list of solos that I like and someone pointed that they are all sad melodies. In my opinion happiness does not have the same depth of sadness. I also realized that it is hard for me to mix moods. I cannot listen to Chahe Koi Mujhe Junglee Kahe or Yeh Chand Sa Roshan Chehra after listening to one of the songs listed below.
So without much ado, here is a list of top 10 Rafi sad melodies
1) Din Dhal Jaaye Hai Raat Na Jaaye, Guide (Audio|Video)
The line that leads to this song is "Zindagi bhi ek nasha hai dost, jab chadta hai to poocho mat kya aalam rehta hai, lekin jab utarta hai ....". Very beautiful song.
2) Koi Sagar Dil Ko Behalata, Dil Diya Dard Liya (Audio| Video)
Dilip Kumar does a wonderful job in this song; you get the feeling that it is he who is singing not Rafi!
3) Khabi Khud Pe Khabi Halat Pe Rona, Hum Dono (Audio|Video)
Have a glass of wine in your hand when you listen to this song. It just makes sense. But unless you are a fan of Dev Anand, you will agree that he does not do justice to the pathos Rafi injects into this song.
4) Yaad Na Jaaye Beete Dinon Ki, Dil Ek Mandir (Audio|Video)
I saw this movie at an age when I could not appreciate it. I was 12 and there is nothing worse than a romantic tragedy. No dishoom dishoom.
5) Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaaye To Kya Hai (Audio|Video)
From my favorite director, Guru Dutt. Fifty years later we still do not make such movies.
6) Zindagi Aaj Mere Naam Se Sharmati Hai, Son Of India (Audio|Video)
The next line is "Apni halat pe mujhe khud bhi hasi aati hai".
7) O Duniya Ke Rakhvale (Audio|Video)
Rafi shows amazing range. There is an urban legend associated with this song; that it hurt Rafi so much to sing this song that he spat blood after the recording!
8) Taqdeer Ka Fasaana, Sehra (Audio|Video)
Forget the stupidity of this movie; here is another song where Rafi shows amazing range.
9) Raha Gardishon Mein Hardam Mere Isqh Ka Sitara, Do Badan (Audio|Video)
The number of romances Pran has ruined is countless. Man I hated him so much. Although in this particular movie I do not understand why Asha Parekh is sad. There are worse things than being married to Pran; being married to Manoj Kumar!
10) Hui Shaam Unka Khayal, Mere Humdam Mere Dost (Audio|Video)
Because Dharmendra is a hunk, he is underestimated as a serious actor. He was my favorite hero and for a while it used to bother me that Amitabh was more popular.
This list naturally represents my opinion and it is by no means complete. I was easily able to identify another ten songs that could have reasonably made this list.
Maybe that is for another post. What do you think of this list?
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