The Masters: Hemant Kumar

16.06.1920-26.09.1989

This post has been a long time coming. I first intended this to be posted on Hemant Kumar’s birth anniversary in June, but blogging has been, of necessity, an intermittent affair this year. But it is rather baffling that in my many years of blogging, except for one post, I’d never written a standalone post for a man who was not only a great singer, but also a music director, producer, and a major exponent of Rabindra Sangeet. It is an unintended error that begged to be rectified. But, the question was, what should I focus on? His career as a singer? Or as a composer? He had been eminently successful in both fields. Since I don't know enough about his work in Bengali films (and non-film music), this post will only focus on his Hindi film output.

Hemanta Kumar Mukhopadhyay, better known to the Hindi film music world as Hemant Kumar, was born in Banaras (Varanasi) on 16 June 1920. His paternal family hailed from Baharu, a town in the South 24 Paraganas district in West Bengal. When he was eight, his father moved the family to Calcutta. It was in Calcutta that young Hemanta became more closely acquainted with the world of music – from hearing the songs of the travelling musicians to becoming part of a group of friends who enthusiastically supported his burgeoning talent. One of them, Subhash Mukhopadhyay, was instrumental in arranging for an audition at the All India Radio (then known as the Indian Broadcasting Corporation). The year – 1935. Hemanta was only 15 years old.

A couple of appearances on IBC made the teenager a local celebrity but did nothing to further his career ambitions. Hemanta passed his Intermediate and, in accordance with his father’s wishes, joined Bengal Technical Institute at Jadavpur (now Jadavpur University) to study engineering. Meanwhile, he also tried his hand at writing, even publishing a few short stories in prestigious magazines. Finally, ill health and his own desire to make it in the world of music led to him abandoning his studies. Though disappointed, his father did not stand in the way of his son’s dreams. Indeed, it was one of his colleagues who offered to introduce Hemanta to Sailesh Duttagupta, a famous musician and radio artist. The meeting led to Hemanta being offered two songs to sing. In 1937, Hemanta recorded two (non-film) songs – Janite jadi go tumi and Balogo balo more for Duttagupta, both written by Naresh Bhattacharya. This was just the beginning.

Duttagupta became both mentor and trainer to Hemanta and the latter continued to sing not only for Columbia Records and HMV but also for The Gramophone Company of India and All India Radio as well. Duttagupta also introduced Hemanta to the vast soundscape of Rabindra Sangeet. Hemanta’s grounding in music also came from Phani Bhusan Ganguly and Anadi Ghosh Dastidar.

In 1941, Hemanta sang for his first film, Nimai Sanyas, and followed it up with two songs for Rajkumarer Nirbasan, in the same year. Hemanta was now earning a decent amount of money through playback singing, non-film recordings and frequent broadcasts over AIR. This last stint introduced him to Pankaj Mullick, a man he considered his idol. Indeed, Mullick’s influence was so strong that Hemanta’s initial forays into singing showed a pronounced tendency to mimic his idol's singing style. So marked was this imitation that Hemanta was nicknamed ‘Chhoto Pankaj’.  However, by the time he began playback singing, he had adopted his own style.

By now, he had already composed several Bengali non-film songs, and his first self-composed disk with two songs was released in 1943. He'd earlier recorded several non-film songs in Hindi; now, he sang his first Hindi film song in Meenakshi (1942) for Pankaj Mullick, and followed it up with a two solos and a duet for Irada (1944) under Pt. Amarnath’s baton. Meanwhile, he also recorded several film songs and non-film songs in Hindi for Kamal Dasgupta. By 1950, Hemanta had worked with almost all the stalwarts of the Bengali music industry. 

It was a busy decade. Hemanta’s career was taking off; he married Bela Mukherjee, whom he had met at AIR; he joined the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA ), an association that was formed in the aftermath of the tragic consequences of the Great Bengal Famine of 1943 and to protest against the administration's indifference to the plight of the common people. IPTA gave voice to the grievances of the common man.

It was at IPTA that he would meet Salil Choudhury; their collaboration beginning with an iconic 6-minute song – Kono ek ganyer bodhu – written and composed by Salil Choudhury and sung by Hemanta. The song, recorded on a double-sided 78rpm became a runaway success. Hemanta was now a household name. [Ironically, Salilda was in hiding at the time and couldn’t profit from the song’s popularity.] However, the collaboration between the two men was only beginning.

Pic: Courtesy Silhouette Magazine

Another acquaintance was proving beneficial – his association with director Hemen Gupta. When Gupta moved to Bombay a few years later, he called upon Hemanta to compose the music for his first Hindi directorial venture – Anand Math (1952). The film was an average success.

The next couple of years were a struggle, but Shashadhar Mukherjee, the owner of Filmistan Studios was reluctant to release Hemanta from his contract. His faith was vindicated – 1954 saw Hemanta compose for six films, out of which four were produced by Filmistan.  Of which, Nagin (1954) would become a blockbuster. Hemanta's use of the clavioline (played by Kalyanji) to mimic the been was a stroke of genius. It became the leitmotif of the film. The songs became hugely popular and many viewers came to see the film for the songs. Hemanta Kumar Mukhopadhyay had now become ‘Hemant Kumar’, a successful Hindi film music director.

Hemant Kumar with SD Burman
Pic Courtesy: SM Ausaja [in Silhouette Magazine]

Alongside, Hemant Kumar was also cementing his reputation as a playback singer. While he had been singing in Hindi films, it was Jaal (1952), under SD Burman’s baton, that would establish Hemant Kumar the Hindi film industry as a playback singer of repute. The success of the romantic ode Ye raat ye chandni phir kahaan served to cement Hemant Kumar's position as Dev Anand's 'romantic voice'. 

All along, Hemant had also been composing for films, both Bengali and Hindi. His melodies were filled with an innocent sweetness that bespoke his affinity towards simplicity.  He was a well-known exponent of Rabindra Sangeet, a famous singer and composer. If these weren’t enough, he also ventured into film production – his first film was Neel Akasher Neeche (1959), based on Mahadevi Verma’s short story Chini Feriwala.  

A still from Neel Akasher Neechey

The film has the unique distinction of being the first film to be banned by the Government of India and winning the President’s Gold Medal for Best Feature Film.

Over the next few decades, Hemant Kumar would continue to sing and compose music for many Bengali and Hindi films, television serials, and one English film – Siddhartha (1972).  Today, on his 35^th death anniversary, as a tribute to a great singer-composer, a (very subjective) list of the songs composed by Hemant Kumar, in no particular order. (Though my favourites tend to cluster on top.)

Koi door se awaaz de
Sahib Bibi aur Ghulam (1962)
Singer: Geeta Dutt
Lyrics: Shakeel Badayuni

 

This song was the crown jewel in a score that boasted a bouquet of wonderful melodies. As the haunting notes begin, it sets the mood for the tale that's about to unfold before our eyes. The pathos in Geeta Dutt's voice heightens the suspense. Hemant Kumar keeps the orchestration minimal to allow Geeta's voice, with its wealth of pain and longing, to hold our attention. Cinematographer VK Murthy worked his magic to highlight the shadows thrown by the lighted windows of the haveli as the doomed Chhoti Bahu's voice echoes through its long corridors. 

Hum ne dekhi hai in aankhon ki mehakti khushboo
Khamoshi (1969)
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Lyrics: Gulzar

Khamoshi, a remake of Deep Jwele Jaai (1959), had three outstanding numbers; this one, written by Gulzar at his poetic best; Kishore's Woh shaam kuch ajeeb thi and the haunting Hemant solo, Tum pukar lo. My personal favourite is Humne dekhi hai in aankhon ki mehakti khushboo, as much for its lyrics and context as for its melody. 

  

As an emotionally distraught Nurse Radha (Waheeda Rehman) hears this song on the radio, she realizes that it is the same song that Arun (Rajesh Khanna) had written and composed. Arun is now a patient in her care, deeply traumatised by his girlfriend Sulekha's (Snehalata) rejection. Adding salt to his already wounded soul is the fact that she had stolen this composition, using it to scale the ladder of success. Hemant's music and Lata's vocals elevate Gulzar's lyrics to an emotional high. 

Zara nazron se kehdo ji
Bees Saal Baad (1962)
Singer: Hemant Kumar
Lyrics: Shakeel Badayuni

I must confess that while I love this song, I don't quite think that Hemant managed to express the playful flirtatiousness that the lyrics convey. I do love how the lyrics are alternately sung and recited, though, and there's a sweetness to the melody that's to Hemant Kumar's credit as the composer. There's a gentleness and serenity to the way the hero (Biswajeet), besotted by this lovely young woman, approaches her. 
Qaatil tumhe pukaaroon ke jaan-e-wafaa kahoon
Hairat mein pad gaya hoon ke main tum ko kya kahoon... he says, before continuing to praise her beauty. 

Ye nayan dare dare
Kohraa (1964)
Singer: Hemant Kumar
Lyrics: Kaifi Azmi

Like many other Bengali music directors, Hemant Kumar often adapted his earlier Bengali compositions in Hindi films. Here, he reuses his haunting Ei raat tomaar amaar from Deep Jwele Jaai to great effect, turning it into a quietly romantic ode.Biswajeet, whom Hemant Kumar had introduced in Bees Saal Baad, stars as De Winter, while Waheeda Rehman is Rebecca in this not-so-great adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's famous novel. However, Kohraa had a wonderful soundtrack, including the haunting Jhoom jhoom dhalti raat and the quietly exuberant O beqaraar dil, both of which have appeared on my earlier lists.  

Chhup gaya koi re
Champakali (1957)
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan

This is a song that I have liked for a long time, having heard it for the first time on an old cassette of 'rare' Lata Mangeshkar songs that my father had in his collection. Strangely enough, it came to mind because I recently heard Hemant Kumar's O banshi te daake she (Surjomukhi, 1956) and immediately recognized the basic melody. The film is a mess but with Suchitra Sen, Bharat Bhushan and Hemant Kumar's music, it managed an average run at the box office.

Kuch dil ne kaha
Anupama (1966)
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Lyrics: Kaifi Azmi

Hemant preferred simple tunes, saying that the simpler the music, the more people would appreciate it. The enduring popularity of his compositions prove him right. And one of his greatest virtues as a composer was in knowing how to tailor his music to the lyrics and the context. Here, for example,Kaifi's lyrics reflect the aching loneliness of a young woman who has only ever received rejection from her father. She is timid and submissive and only gives voice to her emotions when she's sure no one is around to hear her. Hemant's melody is equally gentle, providing just the right framework to cradle the words. Lata's voice, similarly, is soft yet expressive of the sadness that is implicit in the lyrics.

Kaisi laagi karejwa kataaar
Ferry (1954)
Singer: Ratna Gupta
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan

 This is a song that I came across quite recently and I'd a hard time believing it was composed by Hemant Kumar - it's quite unlike his usual style. But, as was his wont, the music is very subdued even though the song (in both versions) is a mujra. The singer is Ratna, Hemen Gupta's wife. 

Hum laaye hain toofan se kashti nikaal ke
Jagriti (1954)
Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Lyrics: Kavi Pradeep

Jagriti, coming just a few years after India attained independence, was a film that took its responsibilities seriously, focusing on nation building even as the country's leaders tried to ease the trauma of the Partition. Here, Abhi Bhattacharya is the idealistic teacher who exhorts his students to take care of their hard-won freedom.

It was an endearing trait of Hemant as a composer that he didn't automatically insist upon singing all the male solos and duets he composed. In Jagriti, for example, Hemant does not sing a single song. (The other male solo is sung by Pradeep.)

Ek roz hamari bhi daal galegi
Bandi (1957)
Singer: Kishore Kumar

Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan

Kishore Kumar's comic songs are a laugh riot as opposed to his antics on screen. But here, for once, his crazy vocal calisthenics is complemented by his comic acting and Hemant cutting loose and giving us a wonderfully zany melody. Rajinder Krishan's lyrics only up the ante; the song begins with Kishore blowing the embers into flame as he proclaims that 'Haldi Devi' (turmeric) is his daughter-in-law while 'Shrimati Mirchi' (chillies) is his mother-in-law. Everything that can go wrong has gone wrong, but he still holds out hope that one day, his lentils will also cook well. 

Rahne ko ghar do 

Biwi Aur Makaan (1966) 

Singer: Manna Dey

Lyrics: Gulzar 

Hemant's preferred male singer, after himself, was Mohammed Rafi. He also used Kishore Kumar and Manna Dey sparingly (Talat Mahmood and Mukesh have only sung duets under his baton). But this song, from Hrishikesh Mukherjee's satirical take on housing issues, allows Manna Dey to showcase his full range as a singer. Picturised on Mehmood (who often lip-synced to Manna's songs on screen), who does full justice to Manna's vocals.

Main mar gaya toh likhna ye kabhi mere afsaane mein 
Laalten (1956) 
Singer: Balbir 
Lyrics: Shewan Rizvi

I had neither heard of this film nor any of its songs until I began writing this post. I was looking for male singers who sang under Hemant's baton and came across this delightful qawali sung by Balbir (and some videos says music director Ravi as well - by this time, Ravi was assisting Hemant). All I can glean from my research is that the film starred Geeta Bali and Motilal. 

Kise khabar kahan dagar jeevan ki le jaaye
Do Ladke Dono Kadke (1979)
Singer: KJ Yesudas
Lyrics: Yogesh

Produced by Hemant Kumar and directed by Basu Chatterjee, Do Ladke Dono Kadke did not live up to its potential as a coherent film. However, this song, composed by Hemant and sung by Yesudas is a delightful one. As always, Hemant kept things simple and instrumentation to the minimum allowing Yesudas's voice to do the needful. 

The songs listed above are all solos. But there are many duets that he composed that have been my absolute favourites. Some of them are listed below.

Saanwle salone aaye din bahaar ke
Ek Hi Raasta (1956)
Singers: Lata Mangeshkar, Hemant Kumar
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

Such a lovely, joyous duet! It is as light and frothy as the Springtime it speaks of, and a very-unlike-Hemant-Kumar tune as can be. The music complements the movement of the tandem bicycle on screen, and the harmonica cheerfully punctuates the break between the antaras. It's a 'pretty' song as well, if one includes the visuals - a happy, loving family on a bike ride through the countryside, extolling the beauty of nature and the signs of Spring. 

Sakhi ri sun bole papiha
Miss Mary (1957)
Singers: Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle
Lyrics: Rajinder Krishan
A semi-classical number sung by two of the most accomplished female vocalists of the era. Asha matches her elder sister, note for note, verse for verse in this lovely jugalbandi between teacher (Meena Kumari) and student (Meenakshi).  Lata begins the song, sans accompaniment and soon, a tabla joins in, muted. The only other instrument to be heard is the tanpura. Even as the song gathers steam, the instrumentation is minimal in keeping with the location - a student's home. Lovely!

 

Ye mehfil sitaron ki raat ye bahaaron ki  

Arab Ka Saudagar (1956)

Singers: Asha Bhosle, Hemant Kumar

Lyrics: Ravi 

Another song that I haven't heard before from a film that I hadn't heard of. From what I can gather, the film, an Arabian Nights-themed fantasy starred Pradeep Kumar in the eponymous role and Shashikala as the beautiful princess, Niloufer. Be that as it may, this lovely romantic duet was a revelation. The lyricist 'Ravi' is none other than music director Ravi, who was Hemant's assistant during this period. 

 

Hare Muraare… Jai Jagdeesh hare  

Anand Math (1952) 

Singers: Geeta Dutt, Hemant Kumar 

Lyrics Jayadeva

The collection of hymnal verses known as the Dashavatar Stotram are from Jayadeva’s Geeta Govinda. (The cinematic version uses five of these verses, depicting only five incarnations of Vishnu – Meena (fish), Vaamana (dwarf), Rama, Buddha and Kalki.) What is interesting is the way it is sung –the voices of Geeta Roy (as she was at the time) and Hemant Kumar continuously overlap each other. Hemant Kumar’s recital of the shlokas begins faintly (he is singing for Prithviraj Kapoor, who is at some distance from the camp) and then, Geeta Roy holds forth for Geeta Bali with ‘Keshava, dhrita meena shareera…’; so far, it’s like a conventional recitation-song duet, but this is where it becomes quite unusual:  there is no line from here on, where the two singers are not singing – only, they are singing completely different lines all through. It is almost as if there are two songs – two completely different songs - being sung simultaneously.

 

For Hemant Kumar, like many other music directors, Lata Mangeshkar was the obvious choice for the female voice. In his debut film, however, it was Geeta Dutt who had the lion's share of female vocals - two duets and two solos, while Lata Mangeshkar came in only for Vande mataram. 

 

A gentle luminary, Hemant Kumar holds the distinction of having refused both the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan – civilian honours bestowed by the Government of India. However, his legacy does not depend on awards or honours – it lives on in the songs he recorded and composed. As Salilda famously said, “If God ever decided to sing, he would do so in the voice of Hemant Kumar.” That is his legacy. 

Thank you, Hemantda.