The Unforgettable Kishore...

It was such a delight to see the beautiful doodle of Kishore Kumar on Google today as a gesture of respect on his birthday. Kishore Kumar, the prodigy, the genius, the person who god blessed with multiple gifts and someone who left such a strong impression on the world that even after his death, those who are born much after his time are also die hard Kishore fan. Listening to Kishore can change your mood and can completely turn over your mind. You may become very sad from being happy or you may get cheered up when you are sad. Such is the magic of Kishore, he can make you laugh, he can make you cry, he can make you sing and he can make you dance. A complete entertainment package who was miles ahead of the era he was born.

Kishore Kumar excelled in every department be it singing, acting, direction, production, screenplay or whatever. Whether the role of a friend cum guru in padosan, the movie with melodious songs like “Kehna hai Kehna hai” and “ Mere Samne wali khidki mein”, Kishore Kumar tried his best to help his apprentice cum friend Sunil Dutt to get the girl of his dream and he also helped him to fight the powerful classical singer “Mehmood”. We all remember the epic singing fight “ Ek chatur Naar”. Kishore Kumar’s acting brilliance can be seen in movies like Pyar Kiye Ja, Chalti Ka Naam Gadi, Half Ticket and many more but Kishore was made for singing, we can only wonder that someone who was not trained in classical singing or any form of singing has generated such beautiful and memorable songs that continue to remain in people’s heart forever.

It is said that Kishore had a very harsh and unpleasant voice in the childhood but once he was punished and made to stay outside and he cried for a very long time and after that the quality of his voice was suddenly improved a lot. There is another version of this story which says that Kishore used to prank a lot in the childhood and once he accidently got injured by a knife during playing a prank on his mother, cried a lot and ended with his magical voice. Though his elder brother Ashok Kumar has already established himself in the industry, Kishore made his own path. Earlier he used to copy KL Saigal a lot but SD Burman suggested him to develop his own style and that’s how he came to his signature style “yodeling”.

Kishore had his own identity and style in the era where there were many great contemporary singers like Rafi, Mukesh, Manna De, Mahendra Kumar.  I think the best part of Kishore was the way he inserted pain into his songs, one can literally feel it. If you have ever loved someone deeply and ended up being hurt then just listen to 2 of the songs “ Mere Mehboob Qayamat Hogi” and “ Meri bheegi bheegi si palako mein rah gaye”. For the young hearts he has sung “ Mere Sapno ki raani kab aayegi tu” and “ Roop tera mastana “. For those in love he has “ Hame tumse pyar kitna ye hum nahi jante” and for the heart broken he has “ Mere naina saawan bhaado”. For all the brothers he has “ Phulo ka taro ka sabka kehna hai” and “ Meri pyari beheniya jab banegi dulhaniya”. His tribute to life in “ zindagi ek safar hai suhana” and “ Musafir hu yaaro”. For the love at first site he has “ ek ajnaabi hasina se yun mulaqat ho gayi”. The list is long, so is the diversity and the variation of songs with only one conclusion that Kishore was a versatile genius.

Kishore+ Rajesh Khanna, was the ultimate form of romanticism. In fact, Rajesh Khanna rose to stardom only after Aaradhana and Kishore’s magical voice and great songs has the biggest part in Aaradhana’s success. Kishore has an immense contribution in almost all of Rajesh Khanna’s biggest hits like Daag, Namak Halal, Aaradhana, Do Raaste, Amar Prem etc. Amar Prem has the legendary songs like " Chingari Koi Bhadke", " Kuch to log kahenge logo ka kaam hai kahna", " Ye kya hua kab hua", Kishore literally lived the pain and thoughtfulness of all these deep songs. Rainy season is perhaps the best to listen to Kishore’s song be it the deep and heart touching “ Rimjhim Gire Sawan” or the delightful “Bheegi Bheegi Raato mein “ or the playful “ Aaj Rapat jaye to “. Kishore has also given the voice of both male and female in a song “Aa Ke Dil Pe Lagi Jaise Seedhi Najarai, Hai Gujaria “, such was his brilliance, fit in all form.

Despite all the magic and masti he created on the silver screen, Kishore was lonely deep inside. He used to create lots of funny scene on the sets of those director who hadn't paid him. Also, he was eccentric and used to stay away from human and preferred talking to his trees. Some says he used to call them his closest friend and has named them also. He married 4 times still there was a stark loneliness in his life and we can feel it in each of his songs. The man who created magic on silver screen lived a tragic life but he would continue to rule the generations ahead. Immense respect and tribute to this iconic genius, the unforgettable Kishore.

alvida to ant hai aur ant kisne dekha

ye judai hi milan hai jo humne dekha

yaado me aakar tum yuhi gaate rahna

kabhi alvida na kahna, kabhi alvida na kahna