NEW DELHI: A documentary film ‘Rafi-Tum Bahut Yaad Aaye’ made by Kuldeep Sinha, the Chief Producer of Films Division, was launched in the capital recently.
The documentary relates the story of the legendary singer through interviews with his son and several music directors and singers, sequences from his recordings, and song sequences from many memorable films. The event was held to coincide with his 85th birth anniversary which falls on 24 December.
A biography on the life of a contemporary of Mohammed Rafi and a beauty queen of yesteryears, ‘Madhubala: Dard ka Safar’ by Bhartendu Harishchandra awardee Sushila Kumari in Hindi was also released on the occasion by member of Parliament Rashid Alvi. The book has been published by Sachi Prakashan, which had earlier published ‘Meri Awaaz Suno’ by Vinod Viplav, whose organization ‘Rafi Smriti’ organized the event.
“Madhubala is generally remembered for her matchless beauty and seductive smile, but very few people know that her life was full of pain and struggle”, the author said.
On this occasion, Sinha said that the making of a film on Mohammad Rafi was an old dream come true since he had contemplated doing this when Rafi died on 31 July 31 1980. He had actually discussed the issue with the renowned composer Naushad, but was unable to make the film all these years.
A seminar on the songs and different aspects of the singer's life was also organised. Speaking on the occasion ‘Sakha’ and ‘Yaadgar-e-Rafi’ Chairman Amarjit Singh Kohli said Rafi still had a great fan following even among upcoming singers because of his versatility. The possibility of training young singers through a course of Rafi’s songs (classical, light and others) selected by music researchers could be seriously explored.
Former Doordarshan Deputy Director General Sharad Dutt said the genius of Rafi can be gauged from the fact that Shanker Jaikishan used Rafi’s voice in song “Ajab Hai Dastaan Teri Aie Zindagi” (from the film ‘Shararat’) for singing hero Kishore Kumar.
Music expert Dr Mukesh Garg said Rafi’s popularity is increasing with time and he has defied age. Singer Priyamvada Vashisht, daughter of music director Husan Lal (of Husan Lal-Bhagat Ram fame) said Rafi’s range was matchless.
She said Rafi’s song “Suno suno aie duniya walo, Bapu ji ki amar kahani” composed by her father Husan Lal after the death of Mahatma Gandhi had become a rage in those times. Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal in a message read out on the occasion “I am a great fan of Rafi Sahib for he epitomized the human excellence in the field of music blended with the finest qualities of man. I would be happy to be part of any such programme anywhere and anytime”.
Writer and Journalist Vinod Viplav, author of the first biography of the singer in Hindi said the contribution of Mohammad Rafi had been neglected on various levels. People usually remember him as the best singer or the best human being, but he was much more than that: he was the symbol of communal harmony, secularism, and national integration.
Rafi, whose career spanned four decades, sang in many Indian languages including Hindi, Urdu, Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Bengali, Marathi, Sindhi, Kannada, Gujarati and Telugu. He also recorded English and Persian songs.
His first public performance came at the age of 13, when he was allowed to sing at a concert featuring legendary singer K L Saigal.
The singer is still famous for songs like 'Ae gulbadan ae gulbadan' ('Professor'), 'Chhoo lene do nazuk hothon ko' ('Kaajal'), 'Pardah hai pardah' ('Amar Akbar Anthony') and 'Dard-e-dil dard-e-jigar' ('Karz'), among others, and is a source of inspiration for upcoming singers.
This article has been publishe on Radiomusic
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