The people of India have celebrated the season of ‘Saavan’ in song and dance, in ritual and religion, it is a season of hope, love and longing since ages. We may be unique in the’ Pan – India’ celebration of ‘Saavan’ through centuries - music( various raags; malhar, megh etc) poetry ( Kalidas’s Meghdoot ) Drama( Aaashad ka ek Din ) Dance and Cinema where it is represented in grand abundance. It is an emotional therapy which keeps our Emotional Quotient stimulated. Manifesting in various celebrations embedded in the cultural calendar and daily lives. Customs passed down from generation through oral tradition. Many filmmakers ,song writers , singers and actors have contributed over the period to this pool of our Grand culture which we often accept as routine.
Though Indian Cinema shows the various shades of the season in songs and scenes , I
intend to write about Bimal Roy the
great film maker who inspires us still.
Bimal Roy has made many landmark movies and given the film industry many great talents- Hrishikesh Mukherjee,
Gulzar , Salil Chowdhry. His cinema was rooted in reality and yet was middle of
the road. Simple, tender and progressive without any melodrama with strong story line.
He was perhaps one of the most awarded filmmakers ( 11 filmfare awards) both as
producer and director- ‘Do beegha Zameen’ , ‘Parinita’, ‘Biraj Bahu’, ’Madhumati’,
’Devdas’ ‘ Sujata’, “Parakh’, ‘ Bandini’.
His body of work is immense and
relevant till date. Bimal da as he was fondly addressed gave much emphasis to
music as is evident in his films and had
this deep attachment to ‘Saavan’ ( the monsoon ) which he portrayed through
songs in his films ,the various facets of ‘Saavan’, sung in different styles
and settings. Here I endeavour to highlight five of his ‘Saavan’ songs from his
five films – ‘Do Bigha Zameen’ ‘ Sujata’ ‘ Parakh’ ‘Prem Patra’ and ‘ Bandini’.
‘Haryala Saavam Dhol Bajata Ayya’ - Do beegha Zameen.
This 1953 film starred Balraj Sahni and Nirupa Roy. It
tells the story of a small farmer who is
compelled to leave his village as he has borrowed money from the landlord and
his land is mortgaged. He is compelled to leave for Kolkata to work as Rickshaw
puller to earn money in order to release his ‘Do Beegha Zameen’ but returns to see that on his land
construction of a factory was in
progress .
However; there is this Jubilant Saawan song
which the peasants sing in joy as the first showers of monsoon are received , the song uplifts them for a while from the
drudgery of life and belied expectations. “ Haryala saawan dhol baja ta
aaya , dhin tak tak man mein mor nacha
ta aaya, mitti mein jaan lagata aaya,
dharti pehni hai hari chunariya banke dulhaniya,…..ek aagan bujhi ek aagan
lagi, man magan huwa ek lagan lagi…..” .
( the song heralds the monsoon which arrives with the sound of the drums, the
mind is dancing as peacock in the season
and enriches the soil , makes it fertile , the surrounding have become green
akin to a bride wearing a green sari. The heat of the earth has been quenched
and the passions have aroused. The mind is engrossed with this togetherness .) The song is written
by Shailendra and composed by Salil Chowdhry. Among the many things it talks of
the recurring theme of ‘Saavan’ ; fulfilment and arousing of passions. This
song is of hope in adverse conditions , cultural
richness despite economic depravity .
How ‘Saavan’ enriches fraternity and strengthens human bonds.
Kali ghata chhaye mora jiya larjaye -Sujata.
The film
depicts the life of an untouchable girl( Nutan ) who is brought up in a high
caste family . She grows into a beautiful girl along with the daughter ( Shashikala)
of her adopted parents. The conflict arises when the boy( Sunil Dutt ) who is
to marry the daughter falls in love with Sujata and is adamant to marry her . The
‘Saavan song‘ in this film depicts the
latent desires of Sujata which are aroused by the setting of the dark clouds as she is all alone in the house . “ kali ghata chaye mora jiya larjaye, aise mein koi kahin mil jaye, tau kisi ka kya jaye re kya jaye,
kali……,hun mein kitni akeli woh ye jaante mere berang jeevan ko pehchante, mere haton ko thame hanse
aur hansaye,mera dukh bhulaye kisi ka
kya jaye, kali ghata.. ( the
dark clouds have set in and my heart is kindled , in such a time if I find love; how does It bother anyone?
Finding that how lonesome I am and how
colourless is my life, if someone holds my hand and makes me laugh and thus I
forget my sorrows; how does it bother anyone? ). The style is questioning and
taunting, at the end of each stanza she repeats the same line ; how does it
bother anyone? The dark clouds not only have provoked her natural desire for man but this docile untouchable has become
a sort of revolutionary! Songs are therapeutic and reveal the inner
feelings natural to man and woman which
they may not be able to express in open , the season of ‘Saavan’ kindles those
inner submerged and subjugated emotions
in this memorable song. These settings in cinema are also ploys to make
the viewer know what the heroine is feeling , it is a sort of convention. The song is written by Majrooh Sultanpuri,
composed by S D Burman and sung by Geeta Dutt.
O Sajna Barkha Bahaar Aayi Ras ki Puhar layi -Parakh
Parakh film was made in 1963 and has story by Salil
Chowdhary along with the music. It is a
unique film in that the two principal characters are Motilal and Nazir Hussain
which has ‘honesty’ as its theme. Sadhna is the heroine and daughter of the post master ( Nazir
Hussain ), the role of the post man is played by Motilal in his easy going
style. The ‘Saavan’ song in the film is sung by Sadhna who is in love with a
young school teacher. The only similarity this song has with the ‘Sujata ‘song
is that both are sung by the heroine
longing for their lover , however in
‘Parakh’, Sadhna is much open and bolder .as the song itself conveys; “ o sajna barkha bahar aayi ras ki phuhar layi ankhiyon
mein pyar layi o sajna, tumko pukare mere man ka papihara mithi mithi agni mein jale mora jiyera , o
sajna barkha… ( o love! the rainy season has arrived and has brought joyousness
and love in our eyes, my heart yearns like cuckoo for you and the sweet
sweet passion has aroused me). Unlike Nutan in Sujata here Sadhna is already in
love and she wants to be together with her lover as “mithi mithi agni mein jale mora jiyera”( the rains have aroused her passion ). Bimal
Roy has employed the ’ Saavan’ settings
to convey the otherwise subdued feelings of his protagonists and perhaps
to convey that such desires are natural , though curbed and controlled by caste
and social circumstances. Another notable subtle difference between Sujata’s
song and this is that there the dark clouds have set in and aroused Nutan
whereas in Parakh the rain is falling and so the joy is accordingly expressed .
The song is sung by Lata Mangeskar, written by Shailendra and composed by Salil
Chowdhary. Some experts rate this song as one of the great Lata numbers and of
course the finest Saavan Song. All lyricist of that golden era have given many
Saavan songs but Shailendra remains supreme as each of his Saavan song is
immersed in richness starting from the historic ‘ Barsaat’ of Raj Kapoor ‘ Barsaat mein humse mile tum sajan tum se mile hum barsat
mein ‘ and immortalised by Nimmi on screen.
Saavan ki Raton Mein Aisa BhI Hota Hai - Prem Patra
The
film starred Shashi Kapoor and Sadhna and was released in 1962. As the
name suggests the film is woven around a misunderstanding created over a love
letter ( prem patra) . This song is played in background whilst the rains sway
the palms and brighten their life. “ saawan
ki raton mein aisa bhi hota hai, rahi koi bhula hua toofan mein khoya
hua raah pea a jata hai, aisa bhi hota hai,… teri nazar se ise dekh loon
mein dil se tum ye mehsus karlo, toofan
ye mere dil mein utha hai, chaho tum ise apne daman mein bhar lo …” ( it
happens during the rainy nights that a traveller lost in storm finds his way home … it happens… I can see the season through
your eyes if you feel it in your heart! The storm of emotion that has arisen in
my heart you may embrace ; if you desire ! ). This is a duet in background conveying the emotional
state of Shashi Kapoor and Sadhna. The
theme is of reconciliation evoked by the rains
( rahi bhula hua ). Saawan unites lost lovers! As Shashi is blind he
says that he may see this season if she feels the same . Further ; there is
desire for physical intimacy ( apne daman mein bhar lo ) ignited by the rains. This
song is another shade of ‘Saavan’ presented – meeting of lost lovers, coming
home after a long wait .The song is written by Gulzar ,composed by Salil
Chowdhary and sung by Lata and Rafi. It is not a very popular song as the film
did not do well but conveys the leanings of
Bimal Roy.
Ab ke baras bhej Bhaiyya ko Babul, Saawan mein lejo bulaye re -Bandini
This 1963 film was Bimal Roy’s last big hit
before he was struck by throat cancer at relatively early age of 55. Bandini
was a women oriented film like his many earlier -
Parinita, Biraj Bahu, Madhumati, Sujata. Nutan played the role of
Kalyani who is a convict . The jail Doctor ( Dharmendra) falls in love
with her and she too responds. But there is conflict as she was married to a
revolutionary ( Ashok Kumar ) in young age. On her release she has to decide
between love and destiny! ( o re mazhi! mere sajan hein us par mein is
paar ). However the Saavan song is completely different here not only
among Bimal Roy’s earlier versions but among the wide ranging Hindi film Saavan
songs. This song is sung by another female convict whilst grinding wheat as
part of labour in jail. Nutan is mainly shown in long shots at a distance along with
other female convicts. The camera stays most of the time on the singer but
occasionally pans Nutan and other inmates. It presents there longing for home
and normal life which is accentuated by the Saavan song . The festival of ‘Raksha
Bandhan’ falls during monsoon season ( August mostly ) and at this time women
visit their parents to tie Rakhi to their brothers and thus meet childhood
friends . The song is extremely melancholic and haunting and invokes memory of
the lost home: ” Ab ke baras bhej Bhaiyya ko Babul, Saawan
mein lejo bulayere, lautein gi jab meri
bachpan ki Sakhiyan dejo sandesa bhijayere, ab ke baras…, ambua talae
phirse jhule parenge –rimzhim parengi phuharen, lautengi tere angan mein Babul
Saawan ki thandi baharen, chalke nayan
mora kaske re jiyara bachpan ki jab yaad
aye re, ab ke baras….” ( o’
father this year do send brother to fetch me during Saavan, when my playmates return home do send
word for me this year . Again the swing would be fixed to the mango tree as the
rains fall during season, the cool breeze shall return to your premises o’
father ; my eyes are moist as I long for
the childhood memories ). Many motifs of Saavan are mentioned in the song- the swing, the
ripening of mangoes, the meeting of playmates
, the cool breeze as it explores new perspective of the season. The song is
written by Shailendra, sung by Asha Bhosle and composed by S D Burman, but the
unmistakeable genius of Shailendra is stamped on it. His Knowledge of eastern
UP , Bihar folk dialect and songs comes into play here.
Thus Bimal Roy’s Saavan songs reveal the
various shades of the season – arousing of passions for physical intimacy among
otherwise conservative and docile youth. The return of the estranged lovers,
economic prosperity among farmers. Meeting with one’s parents and childhood friends.
It remains as the great season of hope and longing—economic, physical and
spiritual.
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