2019

The real mesmeriser Talat Mahmood: His best non-film songs

Talat Mahmood February 24, 2019

A tribute to Talat Mahmood on his 95th birth anniversary (24 February 1924 – 9 May 1998) Never before could a reader foretell what I would write on nine months in advance. But like anything in old film music, nothing can be said in absolute terms about SoY. In May last year, a new reader […]

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MADHUBALA: The Bewitching Beauty of Bollywood

Madhubala February 14, 2019

Guest article by DP Rangan as a tribute to Madhubala on her 86th birth anniversary (14 February 1933- 23 February 1969) (The regular readers of Songs of Yore are aware of the tremendous enthusiasm of DP Rangan for writing on various themes and artistes associated with old film songs. After covering themes like Horses, Tonga, […]

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Tujhe chaand ke ‘bahaane’ dekhun ki ‘chhat’ par aa ja goriye

Ude jab jab zulfein teri February 5, 2019

Today’s young generation would scarcely believe the stratagems the lovers in the earlier days had to adopt to set up a rendezvous. ‘Atariya’ was one favourite place going back to the days of Romeo and Juliet. As we have seen earlier, its vantage position at the back of the house made it an appropriate place […]

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Romancing the Pardesi

Ghar aya mera pardesi January 26, 2019

Wishing the readers a very happy 70th Republic Day As you read this, the pardesis who had gathered at the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (15th PBD celebrated from 21 to 23 January 2019 at Varanasi, instead of January 9, meant to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India from South Africa), would have either returned home, or stayed […]

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Greatness in the shadow of the giants: Pandit Shyam Sundar

Shyam Sundar January 14, 2019

At the historical concert on the occasion of Noorjehan’s return to Bombay after 35 years, in 1982, Saajan ki galiyan chood chale was Lata Mangeshkar’s reply to her Didi’s Aawaaz de kahan hain. It was difficult to say which song excelled the other. No list of the best songs of Lata Mangeshkar is complete without […]

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Swing a song of sixpence

Raagmala painting_Raag Hindol January 1, 2019

Swing into the New Year with guest article by Ashwin Bhandarkar (A promise made is a debt unpaid. When Ashwin Bhandarkar wrote his first guest article on 6 May 2017, titled Beena madhur madhur kachhu bol, I had indicated he would be writing more articles for SoY. Here he makes good his promise, and I […]

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