{"id":4799,"date":"2019-04-10T00:19:48","date_gmt":"2019-04-09T18:49:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/?p=4799"},"modified":"2019-06-08T10:48:49","modified_gmt":"2019-06-08T05:18:49","slug":"incomparable-sachin-dev-burman-and-yesterdays-melodies-todays-memories-launched","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/incomparable-sachin-dev-burman-and-yesterdays-melodies-todays-memories-launched\/","title":{"rendered":"Incomparable Sachin Dev Burman and Yesterday\u2019s Melodies Today\u2019s Memories Launched in Mumbai and Delhi: A Report"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

Dil ka bhanwar kare pukaar\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

Before you break out into pyar ka raag suno<\/em>, pause for a moment. Did you know that the santoor that gently builds up the romance in the background just before the song starts was played by Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma? As Dev Anand woos Nutan on the terrace of Qutab Minar, the music heightens the mood and creates a situation ripe for Dev to break out into\u2026 you guessed it, Dil ka bhanwar kare pukaar, pyar ka raag suno<\/em>. <\/em>For Jeevan ki bagiya mehkegi<\/em>, Burman Dada did not have a structured plan. He invited Shiv ji and flute exponent Pt Hariprasad Chaurasia to play as they liked and backed them up with just a tabla.<\/p>\n

As Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma wrote in his Special Foreword for Incomparable Sachin Dev Burman, <\/em>\u201c<\/em>I played the santoor in many of his films like Guide, Tere Ghar Ke Samne <\/em>to name a few. Particularly in the film Guide<\/em>, the song sung by Lataji, Mose chhal keeye jaaye, <\/em>Pancham persuaded me to play the tabla which I had stopped playing long back. This is the genius of the Musical Maestro.\u201d<\/p>\n

Little do we realize the finer nuances that go into each composition – in the orchestration, the prelude, interlude and postlude – and how each of the sounds adds a new dimension to the final product, i.e. the songs.<\/p>\n

The pyar ka raag<\/em> created by the legendary SD Burman where he was ably supported with the santoor by Pandit ji, the haunting melodies composed by Pandit ji himself for various films became the cause for celebration in this unique musical book launch in the premises of the historic Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Auditorium, at Chowpatty, Mumbai.<\/p>\n

Aptly titled Dil ka bhanwar kare pukaar<\/em>, the audio-visual presentation prepared and presented by noted musicologist-author Manek Premchand explored these evergreen songs with new insights into their making, opening up a new world, particularly for those who love Hindi film music of an era when melody ruled.<\/p>\n

\"Pt

(L to R) Manek Premchand, Antara Nanda Mondal, HQ Chowdhury, living legends Pt Shiv Kumar Sharma ji and Ameen Sayani, actor Sadhana Singh, author Lata Jagtiani, Nirubhai of Bhavans, Joint Director of BVB Yogesh Kamdar, radio presenter Yunus Khan and Sundeep Pahwa.<\/p><\/div>\n

Two outstanding music books were released formally by Padma Vibhushan Pt Shiv Kumar Sharma and Radio\u2019s iconic host Ameen Sayani. HQ Chowdhury, author of Incomparable Sachin Dev Burman<\/em>, who had flown down from Dhaka, Bangladesh, especially for the book launches and\u00a0Manek Premchand, noted musicologist and author of Yesterday’s Melodies Today’s Memories (YMTM)<\/em> were warmly appreciated by the living legends for the untiring effort and passion that led to the creation of the books.<\/p>\n

\"Pandit

Santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma speaking about SD Burman<\/p><\/div>\n

Shivji welcomed HQ Chowdhury to Mumbai warmly, saying \u201cjinhone laajawab kitaab likhi hai Burman Dada pe. Aur aap log zaroor padhein usko. Jin logon ne Burman Dada ka music suna hai, Burman Dada kya shakhsiyat thhe, kahaan se aaye thhe, kaise woh bane, unke bare mein aapko bahut jaankari milegi<\/em>\u201d (HQ Chowdhury, the one who has written a marvelous book on Burman Dada. People who have heard Burman Dada\u2019s music would be able get a lot of information on what kind of a person he was, where he came from and how he made himself the legend he became.)<\/p>\n

Elaborating on his own personal experiences with Burman Dada, many of which are unpublished, Shivji recalled wonderful instances that reflected many shades of Burman Dada\u2019s personality, his sense of humour and his deep passion towards his music. Read Burman Dada Had a Great Sense of Humour\u2019: Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma<\/a><\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n

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Radio icon, the legendary Ameen Sayani<\/p><\/div>\n

Radio icon, the legendary Ameen Sayani highlighted the unique qualities of Hindi film music, saying the songs light the lamp of unity, spread love and peace and turn the Autumn of life into green monsoons. He recalled how he had started the Binaca Geetmala<\/em> with a budget of only 25 rupees for each episode where he had to write the script, play the anchor, produce the programme and also check the mail. The top broadcasters shied off because the budget was peanuts and Ameen Sayani took up the challenge. The maiden Binaca Geetmala<\/em> was a hit from the word go and attracted a deluge of 9,000 mails (they were expecting 150-300 at the most)! It kept growing in popularity till a time when the mail wave reached 65,000+ letters in a week! One must remember that it was the pre-mobile, pre-email era when only snail mail prevailed and fans duly sent their recommendations through postcards or inland letters.<\/p>\n

Hailing Manek Premchand as a \u201cpath nirdeshak<\/em>\u201d, Ameen Sayani hailed the \u201ckhoobsurat<\/em>\u201d books written by him.<\/p>\n

Ameen Sayani appreciated HQ saying \u201cbahut gazab ki kitaab likhi hai<\/em>\u201d. Mentioning how he is a huge admirer of SD Burman, having met him several times, having been to his house and managed the publicity of his films, Ameen Sayani said, \u201cMaine sirf 60-70 pages padhe ab tak aur main chhod hi nahin saka kitaab<\/em>.\u201d (I have read about 60-70 pages till now and I was not able to put down the book.) He explained how the book traces the life of SD Burman right from his birth and childhood as a prince and how classical music and Bangla folk music came into his life and so on.<\/p>\n

\"HQ

HQ Chowdhury speaks about Incomparable Sachin Dev Burman as Younus Khan looks on<\/p><\/div>\n

HQ Chowdhury admitted that he had never written a book earlier, just a few articles here and there. \u201cIt was my guru Manek Premchand\u2019s book, Yesterday\u2019s Melodies Today\u2019s Memories<\/em> that inspired me to write,\u201d he said.\u00a0 He spoke about how it had taken 6 years for him to write the book and he consolidated the material available in public domain. \u201cMy only contribution was the Bengali chapter of SD Burman\u2019s life which was very tough for me. I had to travel long distances, looking up 80-90-year olds, take their interview, validate the material I got and that\u2019s how I proceeded. I am not a writer, I am a man from science and technology. So it was tough for me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Manek

Manek Premchand, author of Yesterday’s Melodies Today’s Memories<\/p><\/div>\n

Manek Premchand said, \u201cWhen people had said santoor does not have a glissando and that is why it is not a classical instrument, Shivji had said something that has stayed with me. He said, \u2018A musical instrument has a personality of course but it has a lot to do with the person behind the machine.\u2019 Just as Dada Burman had left his comfortable royal heritage to struggle and carve out his place in music and eventually the Bombay film industry, Shiv ji too had turned away from a cushy job to come to Bombay, struggle and single-handedly give santoor the position of eminence in music\u2026I don\u2019t know if you realize the enormity of what he has done. Today we have santoor musicians, santoor restaurants, santoor soap\u2026\u201d added Manek Premchand.<\/p>\n

The two books were formally released by Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Ameen Sayani along with author Lata Jagtiani, actor Sadhana Singh, Yogesh Kamdar among others. The 600+ audience that included many music and cinema connoisseurs enjoyed an evening when the Golden Era of music came to life once more.<\/p>\n

The Musical Book Launch in Mumbai<\/strong><\/h2>\n