A hundred years ago on December 24, 1924, Mohammed Rafi was born. It is needless to add that both the Legend and his Legacy live on, and will continue to do so as long as music exists.
From Amit Trivedi to Mithoon: How Mohammed Rafi lives on in today’s composers
Mohammed Rafi’s voice and artistic mastery has not only hypnotized the world but also enveloped the psyche of younger composers who never worked with him. They have all tried to follow his tenor and tenets. A decade ago, names like Shantanu Moitra, Aadesh Shrivastava, Himesh Reshammiya and Shankar Mahadevan had told me about how Rafi has been remained permanently in their subconscious, often influencing their compositions and work, and how they often wished that “Rafi-saab had been alive to sing certain songs” they had composed.
Bollywood Hungama spoke to the ‘today’ generation of composers for their views., and clearly, the magic continues.
Amit Trivedi, demanding why he should not speak on Rafi-saab when asked if he would, raves, “What a beautiful voice! And what a texture!”
He added, “In my growing-up years, when Rafi-saab had already left us—I was born in 1979 and he passed away in July 1980—he mesmerized me and still does. He gets a ten on ten, with every box ticked! Imagine, he was perfect when there was no machine to help, no auto-tune! He was a real artiste, and I kept discovering him and still do. As I said, I am mesmerized till date.”
He went on, “When I first heard him, I was not even planning to be a composer. But whatever I heard, I was just awestruck as such talents are born once in a lifetime. And each time when I watch his song, I feel as if the actor on screen is singing!”
Did he ever compose something with Rafi in mind? “No, that can happen only when an artiste is alive. I entered this field 28 years after he was no more!” replied Amit. But surely, when scoring for retro assignments like Jubilee and Qala, he must have kept Rafi classics in mind?
He agreed. “‘Saare ke saare akele’ in Jubilee was definitely moulded on ‘Bichhade sabhi baari baari’ from Kagaz Ke Phool, and even with ‘Shouq’ and ‘Rubaiya’ from Qala, I instructed my singers to follow how Rafi-saab would have sung! If the history of film music is kept in mind, we cannot do without Rafi-saab.”
Amit’s top-of-the-mind Rafi favourites remain three classic O.P. Nayyar creations, ‘Deewana hua badal’ (Kashmir Ki Kali), ‘Bahut shukriya’ (Ek Musafir Ek Hasina) and ‘Pukarta chala hoon main’ (Mere Sanam) and Jaidev’s ‘Abhi na jaao chhod kar’ (Hum Dono).
Said Sachin of Sachin-Jigar, “Two songs of Rafi-saab made a very deep impact on my learning of music when I was growing up. The first was ‘Yeh dil tum bin’ (Izzat) and the other was ‘Tum jo mil gaye ho’ (Hanste Zakhm). I had originally wanted to be a singer, and I sensed this strange but magical balance of a filmi andaz and semi-classical in them.”
He added, “For someone to last so long is impossible without humongous talent. Rafi-saab was an absolute legend, and that balance and pitch, and that taiyyar (ready) combination of singing keeping the needs of the song in mind was stunning! In ‘Tum jo mil gaye ho’, there were elements of Jazz and what is known as Blues today, and that song can create an impact even today, over 50 years after it was made, in a Jazz Club, and wherever Blues is heard! Rafi-saab would own a song, and I feel that though it was a new experiment in those days, this song would have come across as fake if he did not own the light sensuousness in it. It was a singing milestone!”
For Jigar, Rafi is also about emotional memories. “My father and his brother were huge Rafi fans and during Navaratri, they would try to sing exactly the way Rafi-saab did, and I would then wonder why this was so! But Rafi-saab has made an impact on every generation that is not less than sheer magic. Bollywood can never be complete without him! Here was a singer who would literally step into the actor’s shoes and modulate his voice. His songs for Shammi Kapoor-saab are rocking examples! After all, what else is playback but playing a role from behind the actor that is as much about pitching as about understanding the director’s point of view. But that needed an intrinsic ability to execute the combined vision for the song of the composer, lyricist and director.”
He raved, “Look, for example, at the pathos in ‘Jo vaada kiya to nibhana padega’ (Bahu Begum). Rafi-saab was an institute who could sing anything! I think even today, no one does not ‘not follow’ him!”
Concluded Sachin: “He is definitely in our subconscious! When Jigar sang our ‘Shaam gulabi’ in Shuddh Desi Romance, there is a definite influence of Rafi-saab in the way he sang the song!”
Mithoon, born six years after Rafi’s death, turns more than a shade philosophical. “In a recent interview, the late Ustad Zakir Husain had stated that when an artiste goes, he leaves a void and so he is remembered. I think a bit differently. An artiste always leaves behind an impression. That is why he is remembered. His legacy, his expressions remain for the world. This so-called void is filled with these expressions, and so it is vital to connect with them!”
Mithoon is amazed that a man whose first teacher and inspiration was a mere fakir who sang in Rafi’s village early in the morning, could become such a giant. “He had the mitti ka, apne culture ka influence. And that’s why he became the Rafi, whose appeal was global, and whose range was all-encompassing, especially under Shankar-Jaikishan and Laxmikant-Pyarelal, who I think not only worked the most but also the best with him!”
Said Mithoon, “He had a natural knack of going with the vision of the director, composer, lyricist and even actor, and had the ammunition to deliver.” Recalling ‘Kaale naina’, the qawwali Mithoon had composed for Shamshera, he stated, “I kept in mind the nazaakat (delicate nuances) and ras that Rafi would clearly add over the briefs he got for his songs.”
“I think that we should all learn from our seniors, celebrate the singers and talents around today and leave something to cherish for the next generations,” declared Mithoon, who adds that Rafi was beyond style and voice. “He was a complete teetotaler, but no one could guess that from the way he sang ‘Chhalkaye jaam’ (Mere Humdum Mere Dost). He never needed to drink to bring in that aura of complete intoxication!”
Mithoon’s father, composer and arranger Naresh Sharma, had worked with the late singer and has told his son a lot about the singer’s ethos and persona. He said, “His demeanour was so gentle! My father had arranged songs for so many small-time composers and recalled more than one incident where Rafi-saab even returned the moneys he got after the recording because they were underpaid!”
And Mithoon rounded off, “As far as India goes, there is little wonder that Rafi-saab is spoken about all over the world much more than the Taj Mahal!”
Also Read: Saira Banu remembers Mohammed Rafi in heartfelt tribute featuring Jawans and Dilip Kumar
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