Kalyanji-Anandji 2.0: Their best songs for ‘other’ male singers

After I had covered the best songs of Kalyanji-Anandji for Mukesh and Rafi, I once browsed through their songs for ‘other’ male singers for a lark. I was amazed to find an enormous variety of singers they had chosen. Though all the songs were well-known it had not registered in my mind instantly. The result was a post on Kalyanji-Anandji’s best songs for ‘other’ male singers. That was, of course, KA1.0 (up to 1970).

Now I have started exploring KA post-70s. Now their main singer was Kishore Kumar, naturally! From Chaand si mehbooba ho meri kab to Kahike paan Banaraswala was a tectonic shift in their style. KA 2.0 and Kishore Kumar were made for each other. I had initially thought that in the same post I would cover other male singers too. But It was a pleasant surprise to notice that they maintained the same diversity in their choice of male singers. Only the boxes of the ‘Main singer’ and ‘Other singers’ were reshuffled. Now everyone else other than Kishore Kumar was relegated to the ‘other’ category. But it is interesting to take a look at these songs for the sake of diversity. They also happen to be of outstanding quality. I would include their duets too with female singers.

KA1.0 had composed some everlasting songs for Lata Mangeshkar and other female singers. I can’t say the same for KA2.0, though they have composed some good songs for Lata Mangeshkar and other female singers.

Mukesh

1. Zuban pe dard bhari dastan chali aayi by Mukesh from Maryada (1971), lyrics Anand Bakhshi, music Kalyanji-Anandji

KA 2.0 continued to create some excellent songs for Mukesh.

2. Tere hothon ke do phool pyare pyare by Mukesh and Lata Mangeshkar from Paras (1971), lyrics Indivar, music Kalyanji-Anandji

A nice romantic duet with a delightful beat. The lady’s lips are like two beautiful flowers, what does he need from a garden now? For her, his eyes are like two bright starts, what does she care about the sky?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SQfzg7lYi4

3. Do kadam tum bhi chalo do kadan hum bhi chalein by Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh from Ek Haseena Do Deewaane (1972), lyrics Qafil Azar, music Kalyanji-Anandji

This song has the unique feature that Sivanandam Palamdai pointed out in a discussion. The first line Lata Mangeshkar sings without any instrumental music or prelude at a slow pace, thereafter KA’s signature orchestration starts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tasAl07U2cI

4. Kya khoob lagti ho badi sundar dikhti ho by Mukesh and Kanchan from Dharmatma (1975), lyrics Indivar, music Kalyanji-Anandji

Dharmatma was the first movie shot in Afghanistan, in Godfather style. But it could not get rid of Bollywood entirely. Here is a nice romantic duet.

5. Behna O behna teri doli main sajaunga by Mukesh from Adalat (1976), lyrics Gulshan Bawra, music Kalyanji-Anandji

KA 1.0 had composed a chartbuster in Kishore Kumar’s voice, Meri pyari bahaniya banegi dulhaniya. KA 2.0 too created a song for a brother singing on his sister’s marriage – now in the voice of Mukesh. The brother Amitabh Bachchan’s happiness is palpable.

Rafi

6. Aao tumhein main pyar sikha dun by Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar from Upasana (1971), lyrics Indivar, music Kalyanji-Anandji

Rafi was a very prolific male singer for KA 1.0, but their songs came down significantly. But even in that small number they managed to compose some nice songs.

7. Main tujhse milne aayi mandir jaane ke bahaane by Lata Mangeshkar and Rafi from Heera (1973), lyrics Indivar, music Kalyanji-Anandji

I now follow the practice of mentioning the singer who comes first in a duet. That makes a big difference in the impact the song creates on you – for example, this song feels like a Lata Mangeshkar solo.

https://youtu.be/gs6P01RM0Iw?si=TjDjq-a5_Uv6YUZU

8. Badi door se aaye hain pyar ka tohfa laayein hain by Rafi and Mukesh from Samjhauta (1973), lyrics Varma Malik, music KA

Rafi sings for Anil Dhawan, and Mukesh for Shatrughna Sinha. Mukesh’s part is very brief; hence the song impacts us as Rafi-solo.

9. Tumse door rahke humne jana pyar kya hai by Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar from Adalat (1976), lyrics Gulshan Bawra, music Kalyanji-Anadji

Another song from several hits from this film.

10. Saare shahar mein aapsa koi nahin by Rafi and Asha Bhosle from Bairaag (1976), lyrics Anand Bakhshi, music Kalyanji-Anandji

The decline of Naushad couldn’t be clearer. In this Dilip Kumar-helmed movie Kalyanji-Anandji was the chosen music director.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=101mgW-lGe4

Premnath

11. Dagar chalat dekho Shyam kar guiyan by Premnath from Raja Kaka (1973), lyrics Anjaan, music Kalyanji-Anandji

Premnath as a singer? It seems he was a trained classical singer. Here he sings an excellent light classical song.

Manna Dey

12. Yaari hai iman mera, yaar meri zindagi by Manna Dey from Zanjeer (1973), lyrics Gulshan Bawra, music Kalyanji-Anandji

This film came at a critical point in Amitabh Bachchan’s career as it created the Angry Young Man image for him. Gulshan Bawra wrote some of the best songs for KA – both in 1.0 and 2.0. Pran played an endearing pathan who started off with activities on the wrong side of the law. The initial encounters between the righteous cop and the crooked pathan do not go well. But impressed by the cop’s honesty and fearlessness he gives up all his illegal activities. In this superhit song with Arabic music, he wants to cheer up the serious cop, now his friend. As the song is nearing the end it brings a sliver of smile on his face.

Manhar Udhas

13. Hum tumhein chaahte hain aise by Anand Kumar and Manhar Udhas from Qurbani (1980), lyrics Indivar, music Kalyanji-Anandji

Qurbaniwas the smash hit of the year because of Firoz Khan’s style. Many stories circulated about the movie, such as he smashed a real Mercedez Benz in the movie. This must be a real waste, because for most of us a prop or a real thing does not make a difference. It had a groundbreaking Aap jaisa koi meri zindagi mein aaye, a pre-existing chartbuster by Nazia Hassan, which was composed by her brother Biddu, but KA’s own compositions were also superhits. A turning point in Manhar’s career came courtesy Kalyanji-Anandji with his song Aapse humko bichhade huye ek zaman beet gaya (Vishwas(1969), meant to be finally sung by Mukesh. Hum tumhein chaahte hain aise is an equally outstanding song. Manhar can’t help if his voice is so similar to Mukesh.

Amit Kumar

14. Laila main Laila aisi hun Laila, har koi chaahe mujhse milna akela by Kanchan and Amit Kumar from Qurbani (1980), lyrics Farooq Kaiser, music Kalyanji-Anandji

KA 2.0 hit parade continues, now with Kishore Kumar’s son Amit Kumar and Kanchan. During this period we often come across a female singer named Kanchan in KA’s music. She was the wife of Babla, the youngest brother of Kalyanji-Anandji.

15. Oye, oye, tirchhi topiwale babu bholebhale by Amit Kumar and Sapna Mukherjee from Tridev (1989), lyrics Anand Bakhshi, music Kalyanji-Anandji

This song is the best proof of KA’s complete transformation and reinvention from the 50s, 60s style of music making to the late 1980s. The song is funky, Naseeruddin Shah also adapts himself from middle-of-the-road serious cinema to an out and out commercial project with his lip-synching of Oye, oye in a weird dress.

Amitabh Bachchan

16. Mere angane mein tumhara kya kaam hai by Amitabh Bachchan from Laawaris (1981), lyrics Traditional, music KA

This song perhaps represents the Big B’s first appearance as a proper singer and the song became a superhit. It also had a twin female version in the voice of Alka Yagnik picturised on Rakhi. There cannot be a better vindication of my theory of Twin songs: A front-runner and a laggard, though the male version is sung by a non-singer, and the female version by the top playback singer of the time.

Suresh Wadkar and Anwar

17. Haathon ki chand lakeeron ka by Suresh Wadkar and Anwar from Vidhata (1982), lyrics Anand Bakhshi, music Kalyanji-Anandji

By this time many top projects fell to the lot of KA. This landmark film had two thespians, Dilip Kumar and Shammi Kapoor, playing the role of engine drivers and playfully arguing their points of view about destiny and hard work.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

The song links from the YouTube have been embedded only for the listening pleasure of the music lovers. This blog has no commercial interest. It claims no copyright over these songs which vests with the respective copyright owners.