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| Original illustration by: E.H. Shephard |
It is not that one falls in love only once, and eschews it forever more if that relationship ends - Shahrukh Khan's Pyar bhi ek hi baar hota hain notwithstanding. But if one is lucky enough to find a second love, it is hard to shake off the tinge of jaded cynicism, the feeling that 'nothing lasts forever' that is a legacy of an earlier (broken/ended) relationship. (Once you do surmount that hurdle, however, you may find that this second love is sweeter, stronger, more mature, and perhaps more enduring.)
There is a special place in our poems and literature for pehla pyar. Perhaps it is the implication of innocence. The first realisation that someone else has become so important to your happiness. The hopes that he or she feels the same way about you. The dreams of living together forever. The expectation of happiness.
As always, Hindi films celebrate that first flush of love with songs. Seek, and ye shall find a cornucopia of songs that soak in this emotion. I sought. And found. But when my shortlist itself ran into a couple of dozen songs, the question was, what do I leave out? After hours of rumination (and immersing myself in some lovely, lovely songs!) I finally decided on these songs that express many different shades of the same emotion. In no particular order then...
Mr and Mrs 55 (1955)
Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Music: OP Nayyar
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
What happens when the first sight of a beautiful woman pushes the thoughts of everything else from your mind? An impecunious reporter, Preetam (Guru Dutt), and his equally penurious friend Johnny (Johnny Walker), are in danger of being thrown out of their quarters if they do not cough up the rent by the evening. That day, they are sent to cover a tennis match for their newspaper. There, Preetam runs into Anita (Madhubala), who has come to cheer on the love of her life. Preetam loses his heart to her on the spot. Johnny, who has not had his mental faculties thus hindered, tries desperately to get Preetam to concentrate on more mundane matters. But Preetam is lost in his own world - he is describing his changed world to a worried Johnny:
Zaalim mohabbat bhi kya chaal chal gayi
Sun pyare, sun pyare apni to kismet badal gayi
Dil par hua aisa jadoo
Tabeeyat machal machal gayi
Nazrein mili kya kisi se
Haalat badal badal gayi
2. Ye nayi nayi preet hai
Zaalim mohabbat bhi kya chaal chal gayi
Sun pyare, sun pyare apni to kismet badal gayi
Dil par hua aisa jadoo
Tabeeyat machal machal gayi
Nazrein mili kya kisi se
Haalat badal badal gayi
2. Ye nayi nayi preet hai
Singer: Talat Mahmood, Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Madan Mohan
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan
Two youngsters enjoying the throes of their first love, this song exemplifies just how sweet this feeling is. The fluttering of their hearts, as they hug their precious secret close to themselves, and try to find a place, like thousands of lovers before them, where they can be alone with themselves and their new-found love - with only the Earth and the Sky bearing witness to their innocent passion for each other. There is shyness, there is commitment, there is an quiet wonder at this new emotion that fills their hearts, and above all, there is happiness.
Nazar tumse mili aise ke hum sharma gaye
Pukaara jab tere dil ne to phir hum aa gaye
Kasam tumhein pyar ki isi iqraar ki
Nazar tumse mili aise ke hum sharma gaye
Pukaara jab tere dil ne to phir hum aa gaye
Kasam tumhein pyar ki isi iqraar ki
Na jaane koyi saajna ye teri meri dastaan
Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Music: Naushad
Lyrics: Shakeel Badayuni
'Love at first sight' may be a cliché, and possibly does not happen in real life, but it is a scenario that Hindi films have dealt with rather beautifully. In this case, our hero hasn't even really seen his beloved; well, not properly, at any rate. All he has seen is a pair of beautiful eyes behind a hijaab, and a fair, slim hand that stretches out from under a burqa. What is worse is that this is the last day of college and he might never see her again, much less find out her name, or who she is. What is he to do? Well, says his friend, he is a poet, isn't he? Perhaps he should write an ode to his beloved, and sing it at the farewell function. Not entirely convinced, but with nothing to lose, he does so, pouring out his emotions...
'Love at first sight' may be a cliché, and possibly does not happen in real life, but it is a scenario that Hindi films have dealt with rather beautifully. In this case, our hero hasn't even really seen his beloved; well, not properly, at any rate. All he has seen is a pair of beautiful eyes behind a hijaab, and a fair, slim hand that stretches out from under a burqa. What is worse is that this is the last day of college and he might never see her again, much less find out her name, or who she is. What is he to do? Well, says his friend, he is a poet, isn't he? Perhaps he should write an ode to his beloved, and sing it at the farewell function. Not entirely convinced, but with nothing to lose, he does so, pouring out his emotions...
Yaad hai mujhko meri umr ki pehli voh ghadi
Teri aankhon se koi jaam piya tha maine
Meri rag-rag mein koi barq-si leheraayi thi
Jab tere marmari haathhon ko chhua tha maine
and his frustration:
Dhoondhta hoon tujhe har raah mein har mehfil mein
thak gaye hain meri majboor tamanna ke kadam
Aaj ka din hai meri ummeed ka aakhri din
Kal na jaane main kahan aur tu kahan ho sanam
Do ghadi apni nigaahon ka sahara de de
4. Kali ghata chhaye
Sujata (1959)
Meri rag-rag mein koi barq-si leheraayi thi
Jab tere marmari haathhon ko chhua tha maine
and his frustration:
Dhoondhta hoon tujhe har raah mein har mehfil mein
thak gaye hain meri majboor tamanna ke kadam
Aaj ka din hai meri ummeed ka aakhri din
Kal na jaane main kahan aur tu kahan ho sanam
Do ghadi apni nigaahon ka sahara de de
4. Kali ghata chhaye
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Music: SD Burman
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
When you have no one to call your own, have always felt alone despite having a family (of sorts), when you have always been 'beti jaisi', never 'beti', always been on the outside looking in, it is nothing short of a miracle to find that someone actually likes you for who and what you are. The eponymous Sujata cannot quite believe it herself. There is a sense of surprise that someone found her worthy of being loved, mingled with conflicting emotions of a shy happiness, and a feeling of wanting to let the chips fall where they will - because why should the world care about her happiness, when it didn't care about her unhappiness?
Hoon main kitni akeli woh yeh jaante
Mere berang jeewan ko pehchaante
Mere haathon ko thaame, hase aur hasaaye
Mera dukh bhulaaye kisi ka kya jaaye
Kaali ghata chhaaye mora jiya tarsaaye
5. Leke pehla pehla pyar
C.I.D (1956)
Singers: Shamshad Begum, Mohammed Rafi
Music: OP Nayyar
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
What happens when the woman you love is angry with you? And if she is not willing to listen to your apologies? Well, if you are the usual Hindi film hero, you could try to sing yourself into her good graces. After all, the roothna-manana trope is a huge part of being in love. But what if you, the hero, are a CID officer, and can't sing? It is not that hard to resolve if you are resourceful. And our hero is nothing if not resourceful. So he hires itinerant street singers (Shyam Kumar and Sheila Vaz) to get his beloved to forgive him his lapses. The ploy does work.
Sun sun baatein teri gori muskaayi re
Aayi aayi dekho dekho aayi hasi aayi re
Haai kheli hothon pe bahaar
Nikla gusse se bhi pyar
Jaadu nagri se aaya hai koyi jaadugar
How can it not, especially when our hero is walking along with them, smiling his gap-toothed grin at his beloved?
6. Ek haseen shaam ko
Hoon main kitni akeli woh yeh jaante
Mere berang jeewan ko pehchaante
Mere haathon ko thaame, hase aur hasaaye
Mera dukh bhulaaye kisi ka kya jaaye
Kaali ghata chhaaye mora jiya tarsaaye
5. Leke pehla pehla pyar
Singers: Shamshad Begum, Mohammed Rafi
Music: OP Nayyar
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
What happens when the woman you love is angry with you? And if she is not willing to listen to your apologies? Well, if you are the usual Hindi film hero, you could try to sing yourself into her good graces. After all, the roothna-manana trope is a huge part of being in love. But what if you, the hero, are a CID officer, and can't sing? It is not that hard to resolve if you are resourceful. And our hero is nothing if not resourceful. So he hires itinerant street singers (Shyam Kumar and Sheila Vaz) to get his beloved to forgive him his lapses. The ploy does work.
Sun sun baatein teri gori muskaayi re
Aayi aayi dekho dekho aayi hasi aayi re
Haai kheli hothon pe bahaar
Nikla gusse se bhi pyar
Jaadu nagri se aaya hai koyi jaadugar
How can it not, especially when our hero is walking along with them, smiling his gap-toothed grin at his beloved?
6. Ek haseen shaam ko
Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Music: Madan Mohan
Lyrics: Raja Mehdi Ali Khan
This is the small ray of light in a rather bleak film. (Well it's based on Tess of the D'urbervilles, so what did you expect?) When Ashok (Dharmendra) and Nirmala (Nutan) meet accidentally, there is an immediate attraction. However, bad things can happen to good people, as Nirmala is about to discover. When she gets another chance, however, she has obviously changed, but Ashok is just the same, and miraculously, still feels the same about her. There is a lot that is left unsaid, and things don't always go according to plan, but for the moment, she is happy as Ashok sings:
Muddaton se aarzoo thi zindagi mein koyi aaye
Sooni sooni zindagi mein koyi shama jhilmilaaye
Woh jo aaye toh roshan zamaana ho gaya
Ek haseen shaam ko dil mera kho gayaa
Sooni sooni zindagi mein koyi shama jhilmilaaye
Woh jo aaye toh roshan zamaana ho gaya
Ek haseen shaam ko dil mera kho gayaa
7. Kaun aaya ke nigaahon
Singer: Asha Bhosle
Music: Ravi
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
She's known him for ages; they are family friends after all. But she hadn't quite realised just how much she cared for him until she learns that he is soon moving to her city. And when he arrives, it is clear that he reciprocates that feeling. He has promised to visit her that evening, and she is eagerly awaiting his arrival. It is hard, that anticipation... and she whiles away the time playing a few notes on the piano. Then restless, she moves around the house, singing, straightening the curtains, playing with the flowers in a vase... (The
irony, perhaps, lies in the fact that there is someone else listening
to her song, who thinks she is singing for him, about him...)
Kiske aane ki khabar le ke hawaayen aayee
Jism ke phool chatakne ki sadaayen aayee
Rooh khilne lagi
Rooh khilne lagi saanson mein mehak jaag uthi
Dil ke soye huye taaron mein khanak jaag uthi
8. Pehla pehla pyar ka ishaara
College Girl (1960)
Singers: Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Shankar-Jaikishen
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan
Can I have a list without at least trying to include a Shammi song? Here, he and Vyjayanthimala are exulting in the freedom of being alone, as they sing about the experience of being in love and confess to their reciprocal affections. As always, Shammi is on the move; it is not enough that the horse is trotting along quite nicely, he has to throw himself about as well. And of course, if it is Shammi, then there can be no bashful admission of love. His is an outright declaration of the chaos that takes place when one is in love -
Kiske aane ki khabar le ke hawaayen aayee
Jism ke phool chatakne ki sadaayen aayee
Rooh khilne lagi
Rooh khilne lagi saanson mein mehak jaag uthi
Dil ke soye huye taaron mein khanak jaag uthi
8. Pehla pehla pyar ka ishaara
Singers: Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Shankar-Jaikishen
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan
Can I have a list without at least trying to include a Shammi song? Here, he and Vyjayanthimala are exulting in the freedom of being alone, as they sing about the experience of being in love and confess to their reciprocal affections. As always, Shammi is on the move; it is not enough that the horse is trotting along quite nicely, he has to throw himself about as well. And of course, if it is Shammi, then there can be no bashful admission of love. His is an outright declaration of the chaos that takes place when one is in love -
Dil ka kaam dhadakna hai
Ye yoon toh roz dhadakta hai
Haay woh dhadkan jis din shola
Pyar ka dil mein bhadakta hai
Jo bas na chale
Toh dil ye kahe
O haara main haara
Haay woh dhadkan jis din shola
Pyar ka dil mein bhadakta hai
Jo bas na chale
Toh dil ye kahe
O haara main haara
However, he is not so lost in love that he doesn't remember to sound a note of caution - they should speak softly, or the winds will hear; the flowers in the garden will whisper of of their secret to each other, and the bees will gossip about it.
9. Sajna mera dil tera dil
9. Sajna mera dil tera dil
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Salil Choudhary
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishen
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishen
Main hoon teri ye kasam le tu hai mera ye kasam de
Hum na badle chaahe badle ye zameen ye aasmaan
Sajna mera dil, tera dil, gaya mil
Kisi se mat kehna o sajna... long time Hindi movie watchers will know what happens next.
An absolutely lively and melodious Salilda composition, sung beautifully by Lata.
10. Kaisa jaadu balam tune daara
Singer: Geeta Dutt
Music: OP Nayyar
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
She (Bani) has just joined Ajay's (Guru Dutt) office. He is a solicitor, she joins as receptionist/secretary, and Ajay is soon besotted by her beauty and her personality. He takes her out to meet clients, and while there, a friend of his draws their portraits, which she is quick to beg of him. She is also quick to tease Ajay (who she is aware has fallen for her) about a supposed rival (Rehman). They part in a miff, but that night, after she bids Ajay goodnight (he climbs up the stairs to wish her), Bani admits to herself that she loves him. (The sketch helps, as well.) And she cannot help but burst into song. There is happiness, there is a shy wonder at how charmed she is by him, and she sings about all her conflicting emotions.
Hosh bhi thoda thoda nasha bhi
Dard bhi thoda thoda maza bhi
Teer saiyyan, teer saiyyan
Teer saiyyan ajab tu-ne maara
Kho gaya nanha sa dil hamara
Kaisaa jadoo balam tu-ne daara
Kho gaya nanha sa dil hamara...
11. Bade armaanon se rakha hai balam, teri kasam
Malhar (1951)
Singers: Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh
Music: Roshan
Lyrics: Indeewar
One of the two films produced by Mukesh (the other was Anurag in 1956), Malhar boasted a stellar score by music director Roshan, himself just a few films old at this time. (His first recorded score was Neki aur Badi in 1949, followed by Bawre Nain in 1950. Malhar was either his third or fourth film - Hum Log was also released in 1951.) Malhar also saw the debut of actress Shammi (her first 'heroine' role - as Rashmi), as well as Arjun, who played the male lead, Rattan, and Moti Sagar, who played Anand. Childhood sweethearts Rattan and Rashmi have grown up and fallen in love. This song comes as the scene segues from the two of them as children into their young adulthood. Of course, once they sing...
Meri naiyaa ko kinare ka intezaar nahin
Tera aanchal ho toh patwaar bhi darkaar nahin
Tere hote huye kyun ho mujhe toofaan ka gham
Pyar ki duniya mein ye pehla kadam
Bade armaanon se rakha hai balam teri kasam
O balam teri kasam
Pyar ki duniya mein ye pehla kadam
...you know things can't end well.
12. Pehla nasha pehla khumar
Hosh bhi thoda thoda nasha bhi
Dard bhi thoda thoda maza bhi
Teer saiyyan, teer saiyyan
Teer saiyyan ajab tu-ne maara
Kho gaya nanha sa dil hamara
Kaisaa jadoo balam tu-ne daara
Kho gaya nanha sa dil hamara...
11. Bade armaanon se rakha hai balam, teri kasam
Singers: Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh
Music: Roshan
Lyrics: Indeewar
One of the two films produced by Mukesh (the other was Anurag in 1956), Malhar boasted a stellar score by music director Roshan, himself just a few films old at this time. (His first recorded score was Neki aur Badi in 1949, followed by Bawre Nain in 1950. Malhar was either his third or fourth film - Hum Log was also released in 1951.) Malhar also saw the debut of actress Shammi (her first 'heroine' role - as Rashmi), as well as Arjun, who played the male lead, Rattan, and Moti Sagar, who played Anand. Childhood sweethearts Rattan and Rashmi have grown up and fallen in love. This song comes as the scene segues from the two of them as children into their young adulthood. Of course, once they sing...
Meri naiyaa ko kinare ka intezaar nahin
Tera aanchal ho toh patwaar bhi darkaar nahin
Tere hote huye kyun ho mujhe toofaan ka gham
Pyar ki duniya mein ye pehla kadam
Bade armaanon se rakha hai balam teri kasam
O balam teri kasam
Pyar ki duniya mein ye pehla kadam
...you know things can't end well.
12. Pehla nasha pehla khumar
Singers: Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik
Music: Jatin-Lalit
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
This is from a later period than the songs that usually populate my 'My Favourite' lists. But this song is one of my favourites from an era where songs were mostly noise. It was fresh, it had a simplicity that appealed to me, and the picturisation was so full of the joie de vivre of young love - the unabashed enthusiasm, the complete un-selfconsciousness of the very young who feel that love is theirs by right. It is the age when you feel that nothing is impossible, that the world is just there for you to conquer.
Udta hi firoon in hawaaon mein kahin
This is from a later period than the songs that usually populate my 'My Favourite' lists. But this song is one of my favourites from an era where songs were mostly noise. It was fresh, it had a simplicity that appealed to me, and the picturisation was so full of the joie de vivre of young love - the unabashed enthusiasm, the complete un-selfconsciousness of the very young who feel that love is theirs by right. It is the age when you feel that nothing is impossible, that the world is just there for you to conquer.
Udta hi firoon in hawaaon mein kahin
Ya mein jhool jaaoon in ghataaon mein kahin
Ek kar doon aasmaan zameen
Kaho yaaron kya karoon kya nahin
Pehla nasha, pehla khumaar,
Naya pyar hain naya intezaar
Kar loon main kya apna haal
Ae dil-e-beqaraar
Mere dil-e-beqarar, tu hi bata...
What are your stories of first love? Which songs would you add to this list? Feel free to share both stories and songs in the comments.
What are your stories of first love? Which songs would you add to this list? Feel free to share both stories and songs in the comments.
