{"id":6247,"date":"2021-08-30T00:00:10","date_gmt":"2021-08-29T18:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/?p=6247"},"modified":"2025-08-30T13:38:57","modified_gmt":"2025-08-30T08:08:57","slug":"amla-shailendra-remembers-her-father-kaviraj-shailendra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/amla-shailendra-remembers-her-father-kaviraj-shailendra\/","title":{"rendered":"‘If Raj Uncle Liked a Song, He Would Give Baba a Gold Coin’: Amla Shailendra Remembers Her Father ‘Kaviraj’ Shailendra"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Shailendra<\/p><\/div>\n

Antara:<\/strong> Poets specialise in certain kind of poetry \u2013 some are romantic, some metaphysical, some spiritual, some radical and some plain humorous. But when you talk of Shailendra, it is impossible to slot him into a genre, a style, a mood or a philosophy. On the face of it, Shailendra\u2019s lyrics are simple. You don\u2019t need to dive for the dictionary every now and then to search for meanings of unknown words when you hum his songs. His songs affect the core of my being, my everyday existence.<\/p>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> Yes, it is because his songs are so easily understood. You don\u2019t need to be a pundit or highly educated intellectual to understand his songs. I am a simple human being and for me, poetry should touch me in the first reading or not at all.<\/p>\n

Antara:<\/strong> Simplicity is his hallmark. Shailendra is disarmingly simple and yet cloaked behind that simplicity are thoughts, views, beliefs, faith and aspirations. His outpourings are universal truths, slices of life and reality and thus they transcend generations.<\/p>\n

\"amla

Amla Shailendra Mazumdar<\/p><\/div>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> Dil ka haal sune dilwala<\/em>. It is the biggest satire anyone could write. Nothing has changed since the time he wrote it:<\/p>\n

Boode daroga ne chashme se dekha<\/em>
\nAage se dekha peechhe se dekha<\/em>
\nUpar se dekha neeche se dekha<\/em>
\nBole ye kya kar baithe ghotaala<\/em>
\nHaaye yeh kya kar baithe ghotaala<\/em>
\nYeh to hai thaanedar ka saala<\/em><\/p>\n

Even today you have to be connected to the right people to escape the vicious cycle.<\/p>\n

But the biggest line that escapes notice is Main bhi hoon Ma ke naseeb ka beta.<\/em><\/p>\n

I may be poor, I may be a chor<\/em> (thief), a dacait<\/em> (dacoit) whatever. But I am my mother\u2019s naseeb<\/em>, her destiny. She got me. Whatever I am, however I am, that is what my mother has brought in her naseeb<\/em>. I don\u2019t think anyone has put the mother-son relationship this way on the block. We can run away by saying \u2018hamara kya, hum to unke naseeb ke hain\u2019<\/em>. He finds ways of escapism. Whatever I am, however I am, that\u2019s what my mother has brought me in her naseeb<\/em>. He doesn\u2019t say she loves me despite everything. He says, it\u2019s her fate that she got me.<\/p>\n

Watch the video: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Shailendra’s Seedhi si Baat<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"Shailendra<\/a><\/p>\n

Antara:<\/strong> The family hailed from Bihar, settled in Rawalpindi and then in Mathura. So where did Shailendra spend his childhood? A TV documentary names a Bihar village the family originally belonged to.<\/p>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> I don\u2019t think my father ever lived in Bihar. He didn\u2019t move from Bihar to Rawalpindi. We are originally from Bihar, my Dada-Dadi<\/em> (grandfather-grandmother) might have lived there at some point but the family moved to Rawalpindi. My Dadaji<\/em> had a job in the Army and he was stationed in Kho-Mari, in the foothills of the Himalayas. My father was born in Rawalpindi, brought up in Kho-Mari and went to school there. I have been to Rawalpindi and Mari, which is a hill station. My father would often recall how as a child he would watch the Army parade. This was before independence. Then they moved to Mathura.<\/p>\n

Even after I was born, we would go and visit relatives and friends together. But there was no trip to Bihar. My first ever trip to Bihar was to attend the Patna Lit Fest in 2019. I did drive up to see the villages but I never felt any connection. There was no one there I knew.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Antara:<\/strong> Hum bigde dil shehzaade.<\/em> That\u2019s Shailendra in 4 simple words. Penury could not crush him. We all know the now famous story about how he had the courage of conviction to say an outright NO to Raj Kapoor\u2019s generous offer of buying his powerful poem \u2018Jalta Hai Punjab\u2019 which he had heard Shailendra recite in a poet\u2019s gathering held by IPTA \u2013 the Indian People\u2019s Theatre Association.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not for sale, Shailendra said simply. This was at a time when he was earning a meagre income in the Railways. It was a golden opportunity for money, fame and recognition. But no, not for Shailendra.<\/p>\n

Later, when he badly needed money, when his wife Shakuntala ji was expecting their first child, he approached Raj Kapoor for a loan. Those 500 rupees he borrowed to send his wife off to Jhansi, he tried to return to Raj Kapoor at the first opportunity. An amused Raj Kapoor said, I don\u2019t deal in money lending. Write the two songs for Barsat that are pending. And the rest, we all know is history. Barsat mein hum se mile tum<\/em> is billed as the first title song in Hindi films. But more importantly, it became a rage. Not surprisingly, Shailendra catapulted into stardom and also became a title song specialist. Raj Kapoor gave him the title of ‘Kaviraj’.<\/p>\n

\"title

Title songs written by Shailendra<\/p><\/div>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> Those 500 rupees was Baba\u2019s steady salary all through the years from Raj Uncle. Whether he wrote one song or five songs or no song, he would get that 500 rupees every month. Baba didn\u2019t raise that issue even once that why you are paying me only 500, why you are not increasing my salary. Remember, he was the highest paid lyricist. He was not the type who wanted a lot more than he needed. He was getting ample. He was happy with what he had, nice house, car, all comforts, money. And he would share the money with whoever wanted it. And that\u2019s where my mother would step in to try and save some of it. But if Raj Uncle liked a song, he would give Baba a gold coin. And I am wondering which song of Baba he didn\u2019t like.<\/p>\n

Mummy had a velvet pouch, it was filled with gold coins. And on 13th<\/sup> of December, 1966 the day she took Baba to hospital, she took those gold coins and some of her jewellery to this koelewala<\/em> (coal dealer) who used to do some money lending. You know the girvi rakhna<\/em>. She got the money from him, whatever he gave, I don\u2019t know how much. The next day Baba was no more. But those gold coins and jewellery we never saw again.<\/p>\n

\"Shakuntala,

Shakuntala (2nd from Left), Shailendra and Raj Kapoor at a dinner to celebrate music director Jaikishan and Pallavi\u2019s marriage<\/p><\/div>\n

Antara:<\/strong> There is another very interesting incident about how Shakuntala ji helped him with the money she had saved when Shailendra ran short of funds during the making of Teesri Kasam<\/em>. Were you witness to that?<\/p>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> I remember it very clearly. I had even talked about it in an interview to BBC Hindi. Baba was basically a very generous and large-hearted person. And he couldn\u2019t bear to see the poor musicians \u2013 they had their problems and they would approach him. Those days recordings were cash in hand. It wasn\u2019t like it would go to your bank account or you would get a pay check later. It was then and there. After the recording, everyone got their money \u2013 the musicians, writers, etc. When Baba would return home, he would leave his wallet on the table and go and change. There would be a good chunk in the wallet and Mummy would take out some. The next day Baba would ask, \u2018Shakun I am sure there was more. Aur thode zyada paise thhe.\u2019<\/em> (I am sure there was some more\u00a0money) And Mummy would say, \u2018Kavi aadmi ho. Bhool jaate ho. Sabko to baant aaye hoge.\u2019<\/em>\u00a0(You are a poet. You keep forgetting. You must have distributed it) She would hide it in the folds of her sari. The sari would be 3-fold. She had stacks and stacks of saris.<\/p>\n

During that time when Teesri Kasam<\/em> was under production, Waheeda Rehman had refused to go for the shooting until she was paid. Baba\u2019s face was totally downcast. He didn\u2019t know from where the money was going to come. And that\u2019s when Mummy started pulling out her saris. She would take out one, shake it and hundred rupee notes would fall. That was her saving. That was how they could pay Waheeda Rehman. I don\u2019t know how much but there was definitely lakhs in those savings. Imagine the kind of savings my mother had. And she wiped it clean that day, gave everything to Baba.<\/p>\n

\"SJ,

Hasrat Jaipuri, Jaikishan, Raj Kapoor, Shankar and Shailendra – the coming together of amazing talents in perfect symphony (Pic: Cinema Sangeet)<\/p><\/div>\n

Antara:<\/strong> We find that supreme confidence to stand by what he believed in even when his cherished dream was in the making. But people he banked on, they did not support him, isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> People blame Raj Kapoor and I feel so upset. They say, oh, but he did not give him dates. Tell me Antara, you have your commitments and I have mine, isn\u2019t it? \u00a0If Raj Uncle is busy with his films, he is a businessman, he is a producer-director long before Baba stepped in with Teesri Kasam<\/em>. If he did not give Baba dates it\u2019s not because he is sitting at home and giving Baba a lesson. Aisa to tha nahin.<\/em> He was looking after his interests and Baba was looking after his own. It may have happened that he did not give dates, I don\u2019t even know if it actually happened. But he was a businessman. He has to look after his business first before he looks at anyone else.<\/p>\n

\"Raj

Raj Kapoor and Shailendra (Pic courtesy: Apnaorg)<\/p><\/div>\n

Antara:<\/strong> Why did Raj Kapoor want to change the ending of Teesri Kasam<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Amla Shailendra:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0You see, Raj Uncle had made Aah<\/em> and the ending was that Raj Kapoor dies. The film was released and it flopped. Raj Uncle told Baba, don\u2019t let them separate, I have already burnt my fingers. He had to reshoot the Aah<\/em> ending to show that the hero goes to a sanatorium, gets better and gets married to Nargis. So it\u2019s a happy ending.<\/p>\n

Raj Uncle was only trying to help him. I do know that Baba and Raj Uncle had this dialogue.\u00a0 And Baba himself said, Yeh to teesri kasam ho hi nahin sakti<\/em>. How can it be teesri kasam<\/em> if there are only two vows in it? Raj Kapoor said change the ending because you\u2019re going to be doomed financially. It was only after Teesri Kasam<\/em> got the President\u2019s Gold Medal, the National Award given to the best film, that people started looking at the film. It was a classic but in terms of public response it was a commercial flop. Of course after the second release we got our money back but there were so many dues that had to be paid off.<\/p>\n

Baba had done a lot of research on the village, on the music. He had gone to Patna, just that once with Basu (Bhattacharya) Uncle and my Mamaji. They recorded all the music \u2013 the background music in the village temple and so on and brought back the tapes. It was a lot of work done. The film was his passion, he gave his life for it.<\/p>\n

Antara:<\/strong> True that. It was poetry on screen!<\/p>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> Absolutely. The tagline was love lyric on celluloid.<\/p>\n

Antara:<\/strong> The masters of symbols in Hindi cinema to me are Bimal Roy and Vijay Anand. And Shailendra\u2019s evocative poetry made it easier for the filmmaker to create lyrical shots. For example in Bandini, Bimal Roy uses amazing symbols to give an added dimension to Shailendra’s words that are loaded with meaning.<\/p>\n

\"Bandini-imagery-symbols-shailendra-bimal-roy-sd-burman\"

Classic symbols in Bandini<\/em>: Footprints on the sands in O jaanewaale ho sake to laut ke aana<\/em> (R) The steamer whistle and bellowing smoke in O re maajhi<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

Parakh<\/em> has two beautiful symbols in its classic songs. The flame of the lamp at the altar as the sindoor <\/em>(vermillion) signifies complete surrender to Him and to love in Mere man ke diye. A radiant Sadhna twirling a fresh flower as a jhumka <\/em>(earring) is one of the finest and yet most subtle expressions of new found love. The flower is as precious as jewellery.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Symbols in Bimal Roy’s Parakh<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

Amla Shailendra:<\/strong> Talking about imagery \u2013 you have taken a different angle. Bimal Roy of course is able to depict the images that Baba writes. Baba would paint pictures with his words like an artist.<\/p>\n

Yeh gori nadiyon ka chalna ucchalkar<\/em>
\nKe jaise alhar chale pi se milkar<\/em><\/p>\n

He compares someone who is newly in love, the excitement and the swag in her walk with a flowing river. Madhumati<\/em> songs have got the best imagery.<\/p>\n

Woh aasman jhuk raha hai zameen par<\/em>
\nYeh milan humne dekha yahin par<\/em><\/p>\n

When you go to a hill station, you can see the clouds coming down and you actually walk through them.<\/p>\n

\"suhana

Classic shots in Madhumati<\/em>: (Left) Yeh gori nadiyon ka chalna uchhalkar<\/em> (R) Woh aasman jhuk raha hai zameen par<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

You gave the example of Vijay Anand\u2019s Guide<\/em>. Wahan kaun hai tera, musafir jayega kahan<\/em> \u2013 the renunciation is forced on to him, he is not renouncing on his own.<\/p>\n

And the example of Mere mann ke diye<\/em>, look at the imagery here:<\/p>\n

Aag ke phool aanchal mein daale huye<\/em>
\nKab se jalta hai woh aasman dekhle<\/em><\/p>\n

Have you ever thought of the sky as the aanchal<\/em> and the moons and the stars as aag ke phool<\/em>?<\/p>\n

SYMBOLS in Shailendra’s Songs | Vijay Anand & Bimal Roy | SD Burman & Salil Chowdhury<\/strong><\/h3>\n