Friends,
This is the fourth song in the series from the film 'Taxi Driver' (1954).
This is the fourth song in the series from the film 'Taxi Driver' (1954).
Song #4: ऐ मेरी जिंदगी, आज रात झूम ले ...
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| Image courtesy: Flipkart.com |
Film : Taxi Driver (1954)
Director : Chetan Anand
Cast : Dev Anand, Kalpana Kartik, Sheila Ramani and
Johny Walker
Johny Walker
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| Sahir Ludhiyanvi |
Lyrics : Sahir Ludhiyanvi
Composer : S. D. Burman
Singer : Lata Mangeshkar
Have you
ever heard a song which is kind of all-in-one - full of drama, fight
sequence, romance, anxiety about the loved one, suspense, repeat of a stanza
and a big gap leading to the second part of the song?
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| S. D. Burman |
Another
song which I remember that perhaps comes closest to this one is "See
Le Zubaan Aisa Na Ho Sab Kuch" from another Dev Anand film 'Nau Do Gyarah'
once again composed by S. D. Burman.
While
'Taxi Driver' was released in 1954, 'Nau Do Gyarah' was released in 1957 - if
you hear both the songs you may find them similar in terms of its plot and
composition.
कहानी behind
the song:
Dev Anand (his name in the film is Mangal however he is referred to by his friends as Hero) runs a taxi in the erstwhile Bombay for his living and comes across his real life wife-to-be Kalpana Kartik (as Mala) who is a newcomer into the city. She gets into trouble when she finds herself in the hands of couple of Goondas while looking for a music composer Ratan Lal who has promised to introduce her as a Singer in his films. Hero (Dev Anand) decides to help her out. A seductive Club Dancer/Singer - Sheila Ramani (as Sylvie) - is a silent admirer of the Hero and tries to express her love to him; however Hero is not interested in her as he sees her as a bad girl due to the profession she is in. During his quest of helping Mala (Kalpana Kartik), both get attracted to each other.
Finally,
when Mala finds Ratan Lal, he introduces him to the Film Director and Producer;
however they are looking for some Ramba-Samba song which Mala can't
sing. Thus she takes them to the club to introduce them to Sylvie who has a
flair for the Ramba-Samba type songs. And what you hear thereafter is
a gem of a composition and gaayaki.
This
composition is unusual for someone like S. D. Burman since most of his work was
based on traditional Hindustani Classical music. In my opinion, this particular
composition is more like O. P. Nayyar's or C. Ramchandra's, due to its rhythm,
choice of instruments and orchestration. It's a real masterpiece.
Some of the other compositions are fabulous E.g.
- Jayen to jayen kahan - by Talat Mehmood
- Jayen to jayen kahan - by Lata
- Dil jale to jale - excellent rendering by Lata
- Dil se milake dil pyar kijiye - another gem by Lata
- Jeene do aur jiyo - pleasantly surprised by this gem by Asha Bhosale, amazing voice quality, I am still wondering how could Sachinda have decided Asha to be singing this instead of Lata, and how beautifully Asha has delivered this song!!
USP of the song:
1) The
song starts with anxious expressions of Sylvie since she knows the special
visitors of the Club on that night; however with a turning dance step the mood
of the song changes to lighter one - the change of expressions within seconds
is so eminent and so the change in music - amazing to note the difference here
2) There
is a short pause between the Mukhada and the first Antaraa viz.
'Aaj Hai Duniya Teri', and it's a great one since it does not in any way
disturb the flow of the composition, at least I have not heard such an
effective pause in the song before
3) The
music between the first and second stanzas is so apt to portray the suspense of
the plot and still so honest with the whole composition
4)
There is almost 78 seconds of gap between second and third stanza where the
Hero and villain actually have a fight - and the background music matches the
fight sequence while maintaining the sanctity of the composition
5)
Expressions on Sylvie's face display the anxiety she has for the Hero, while
trying to keep her smile on the face intact being a Club Dancer/Singer
6) The
first part of the song ends after 3rd stanza at 5 min. 25 seconds, and then
there is another fight sequence for about 1 minute; followed by audience
clapping to officially announce the end of the song; however what follows is
dialogues, a gun shoot and restarting the song by repeating the second stanza -
part 2 of the song - and all of this is promptly backed by the background
music; again a totally different experience to listen/watch
Overall,
it's an amazing experience to watch and listen to this song; I was mesmerized by
sheer genius of S.D. Burman da and Lata ji when I heard it for the first time
couple of months back and still hasn't got over the hang over. Hope you will
like and appreciate it too. Enjoy! :-)
पल पल कटती जाए साँस की नाज़ुक डोरी
ऐ मेरी ज़िंदगी, आज रात झूम ले, आसमाँ को चूम ले
किस को पता है कल आए के ना आए, ऐ मेरी ज़िंदगी || धृ
||
आज है दुनिया तेरी झूम ले ओ मतवाले
ये अनमोल ज़माने फिर नहीं आने वाले
देख ये रुत कहीं बीत न जाए,
ऐ मेरी ज़िंदगी || १ ||
पल पल कटती जाए साँस की नाज़ुक डोरी
जलते कंवल बुझाए मौत की सीना जोरी
अगले ही पल जाने क्या हो जाए
ऐ मेरी ज़िंदगी ||
२ ||
आज ठहर ही न जाएं ढलती रात के साये
आज ठहर ही न जाएं ढलती रात के साये
कल किस ने देखा है आए या ना आए
आए भी तो जाने हमें पाए के न पाए
ऐ मेरी ज़िंदगी || ३ ||