2014

Down the memory lane with ‘Anil Da’

Anil Biswas with Sharad Dutt December 25, 2014

Wishing Merry Christmas to all with guest article by Sharad Dutt concluding Anil Biswas Centenary Celebrations (SoY celebrated 2014 as the Centenary Year of Anil Biswas with a guest article by his daughter, Shikha Biswas Vohra on the New Year Day, remembering him as a father and a maestro. This was followed by singer-specific posts on […]

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Best songs of 1951: Final Wrap-Up 5

Anil Biswas-_Shankar-Jaikishan_SD Burman_C Ramchandra December 13, 2014

And the SoY Award for the Best Music Director goes to? This is the third series of detailed year-wise review of songs. Mid-way I had a feeling that this exercise might appear monotonous and uninteresting. I am very happy to note that my fears were unfounded. Rather, the readers’ participation has been more intense and […]

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Best songs of 1951: Wrap-Up 4

1951 films December 1, 2014

And the award for the best duet goes to? We are now nearing the end of the Review of the songs of 1951, with the penultimate wrap-up – of the best duets – before the final wrap-up of the best music director. The wrap-up of the best solos, especially of the male solos, caused some […]

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The revolutionary music genius: Salil Chaudhary

Salil Chaudhary November 19, 2014

A tribute to Salil Chaudhry on his birth anniversary (November 19) by guest author Sadanand Warrier (SoY regulars are familiar with a more famous Warrier – Anuradha or Anu. Her husband, Sadanand, prefers to keep his immense knowledge hidden under the Nom de plume “SSW”. Now that the cover is blown, readers are familiar with […]

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Anil Biswas’s songs for Bombay Saigal: Surendra

Surendra and Anil Biswas November 11, 2014

A tribute to Surendra on his 104th birth anniversary as a part of Anil Biswas’s Centenary Year series I have mentioned a few times that because of contractual difficulties inherent in the Studio Era, Anil Biswas could not compose for KL Saigal, even though their careers overlapped for over a decade, half of which was […]

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The Doyenne of Vintage Era: Khursheed

Khursheed November 1, 2014

A tribute in her Centenary year I realised somewhat late that Khursheed’s Birth Centenary (b. 14 April 1914, d. 18 April 2001) fell this year. But she is such a prominent singer of the Vintage Era that I had to pay my tribute with her selected songs. Vintage Era refers to not only a period […]

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Best songs of 1951: Wrap Up 3

Lata Mangeshkar October 23, 2014

Songs of Yore Award for the Best Female Playback Singer goes to Lata, Lata, Lata…Lata Mangeshkar, with Happy Diwali greetings to all All superlatives fall short of describing Lata Mangehkar’s dominance in 1951, just as we saw in 1955 and 1953. Mahesh even said that the best female playback singer other than Lata Mangeshkar is […]

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Kishore Kumar’s duets by SD Burman

SD Burman and Kishore Kumar October 13, 2014

A tribute on Kishore Kumar’s death anniversary October 13 It is befitting that I am completing my (renewed) series on SD Burman with the singer he was most fond of. With 115 songs, he gave Kishore Kumar more songs than any other (male) singer. Surjit Singh’s site indicates that out of this only 53 were […]

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The Lonely Ghazal Queen: Begum Akhtar

Bregum Akhtar October 7, 2014

A tribute on her Birth Centenary, October 7 A legend in her lifetime, who achieved enormous fame at a very young age, and gave joy to millions of listeners of many generations, including doyens like Mehdi Hasan, Talat Mahmood, Madan Mohan, Pt. Jasraj and Pt. Ravi Shankar, Begum Akhtar’s own life seems to be full […]

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The Swar-Saamraagyi and the the Sangeet-Maartand: Best of Lata Mangeshkar by Anil Biswas

Anil Biswas and Lata Mangeshkar September 28, 2014

Continuing Anil Biswas Centenary series, his best songs for Lata Mangeshkar as birthday greetings to her Anil Biswas occupies an important place among the music directors who played a major role in grooming and developing Lata Mangehskar. She was an artiste par excellence, but Anil Biswas taught her the craft of playback singing: the importance […]

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