Nathli se toota moti re: Manna Dey’s Non-film Hindi Gems

Guest article by Ashok M Vaishnav as a tribute t0 Manna Dey on his 103rd birth anniversary (1 May 1919 – 24 October 2013)

(Manna Dey has been described by some as an enigma among singers. That was a reference to his apparent defensiveness about his place among the contemporary playback singers, despite having the most solid training in classical music. I take it as his modesty and accepting the reality that singing in films is different from classical music, and that there was something in Rafi which he didn’t have. I contrast it with the public grumbling by the later era Suresh Wadkar, how thorough was his training in classical music, yet Bollywood has been so unfair not to give him his due. 

Manna Dey was a man of many parts, and he was a singer of many parts. One important part of his singing – non-film songs – has not yet been covered on this blog. Ashok M Vaishnav identified this omission and fills the gap by this article.

Ashokji is a retired engineer, and now a freelance management professional. He is a keen lover of different forms of music and a prolific writer on this blog. Thank you Ashokji for this comprehensive article – AK)

Among his contemporaries of the 1950s Manna Dey was considered as versatile as others.  His voice had unique strength even when being inherently soft. Devoid of any jerks, his voice radiated a feeling of eternal peace despite the extreme passion embedded in the rendition. As such the connoisseurs of film music fondly credited his voice to be capable of delivering the poetry along with music and melody. He was considered artist among fellow artistes and a singer of singers. It was perhaps his being so respectfully perched on a high pedestal that kept him away from being considered as ‘popular’, ‘mass’ singer.

However, I was lucky that my awareness, and in turn liking, for Manna Dey’s voice occurred during the very early years when I was unconsciously getting groomed to liking the films songs, much before I started reading about those divergent views about Manna Dey’s singing. As a result, all that I read about his singing never affected my very own liking for that enchanting voice.

That period was the years 1966 to 1968, my second/third years of graduate level engineering studies. The elder brother of my close classmate had recently joined in an executive position with a leading textile group of Ahmedabad after completing his MBA at IIM, Ahmedabad. His liking for Hindi film music had yielded into a hobby of purchasing vinyl records. We were quite raw in that field; however, being ‘good’ friends of his younger brother, we were granted special privilege of listening to his records at my friend’s home. My friend’s brother was curating the collection of the records from the Hindi films of late 40s and 50s. As such, that opportunity introduced me to the voices of Suraiya, Shamshad Begum, Geeta Dutt. Interestingly, my induction to the voices of Manna Dey, Talat Mahmood and Hemant Kumar was through their non-film songs which we could get to listen in these visits. I particularly liked the non-film songs of Manna Dey so much that I would insist playing those couple of 45-RPM EP records every time we paid a visit to my friend’s place.

The three non-film songs of Manna Dey that got so etched onto my mind that when I started collecting records, in 70s, the EP records of these songs were among my first few purchases of records. These songs are:

1. Sajani….Nathli se toota moti re, kajarari akhiyan rah gayi roti re, lyrics: Madhukar Rajasthani, music: Manna Dey

It is not at all surprising that our raw minds were totally impressed with the way Manna Dey flows into the song from the very first note.

2. Ye aawara raatein ye khoyi si baatein, ye uljha sa mausam ye nazaron ki ghaatein, kahan aa gaye hum, kahan ja rahe the, lyrics Madhukar Rajasthani, music V Balsara

When I heard this song first time I used to surreptitiously look  closely on the cover of the record every time when we played the record, to ensure that that the singer was indeed Manna Dey, for I could not believe that he is the same singer who has rendered Nathli se…..I was to realize much later about the versatility of voice and of his diverse range of singing styles.

3. Nazaaron mein ho tum khayalon mein ho tum, nazar mein tum jigar mein tum jahaan mein tum hi tum, lyrics Chandrashekhar Pandey, music V Balsara

The song had made so deep impression on my mind that after I purchased the record myself, I would keep playing it at night after putting off the lights. In the process, I unconsciously started appreciating the nuances of different elements of a song.

I would have very easily continued with other ‘popular’ non-film Hindi songs of Manna Dey which I used to listen through those records or cassettes or CDs that I had curated during 80s and 90s. However, when I broached up my intention of writing this article to my son, Tadatmya, he sent me across a link of YT channel of Archisman Mozumder and urged me to listen to Manan Dey’s non film songs curated there. I listened to around ten fifteen songs over next couple of weeks. That was my re-incarnation to the Manna Dey’s non-film Hindi songs.

I then searched YT in greater depth and could get hold of more than forty or so songs that I had either heard for the first time or had heard so rarely that those songs had totally vanished from my memory (what a shame!)

So, I will now present here, in no particular order, Manna Dey’s non-film Hindi songs from my that newfound treasure. I have limited the choice to one song per lyricist. I have also remained within the geets and ghazals genre only.

4. Tum jaano tumko gair se jo rasm-o-raah ho, mujhko bhi puchhate raho to kya gunah ho, lyrics Mirza Ghalib, music Manna Dey

Commencing the mukhada in lower octaves, Manna Dey easily slips into higher octaves during the interludes, thereby portraying the emotions so sensitively.

We will observe during this episode that many of the non-film songs have been competently composed by Manna Dey himself, perhaps to give more space to his creativity that Hindi film songs did not offer, quantitatively as well as qualitatively.

5. Tum mere dil meri chahat pe bharosa kar lo, ye haqeeqat hai haqeeqat pe bharosa kar lo, lyrics Kafeel Azar, music Murli Manohar Swaroop

Just as we listen to the song, the emphasis on Mere dil, Meri chaahat or Ye haqeeqat or the first line of interludes, we effortlessly get intertwined into the mood of the song.

6. Tumhari jafayein hamari wafayein barabar ki chotein barabar ki sadayein, lyrics Beena Naaz, music Murli Manohar Swarup

One big advantage of listening to non-film songs is to get to know so many poets / lyricists who generally remain away from the glare of film music.

In the present case, we also get to listen how Manna Dey has so effectively conveyed the feeling of resignation as lyrics build up the case of neglect that the protagonist has been subjected to by his ladylove.

7. O yaad phir aayi dard sang laayi woh na aaye jaan jaaye, haye kaisi ye wafa, lyrics Chandreshekhar Pandey, music V Balsara

The sheer force of a V Balsara composition has led me to present one more song from the same pair of lyricist and music director.

As I listen to non-film compositions of V Balsara, I simply wonder what sort of constraints he must have felt when he set the music to his film songs that such depth, such feelings, could not be created in those songs!

8. Ruk ja ke subah tak na ho ye raat aakhri shayad zindagi ke lamhaat aakhri, lyrics Irfaan Warsi, music Yunus Malik

The way song unfolds we feel that we are deep into the night of a ghazal mehfil.

9. Shaam ho jaam ho suboo bhi ho, khud ko paane ki justjoo bhi ho, lyrics Zameer Kazmi, music Yunus Malik

If the mood of the previous song drew us into the atmosphere of late night mehfil, here the lyrics help accentuate that feeling.

10. Chandrama ki chandni se bhi naram aur ravi ke bhal se garam, hai nahin aur kuchh kewal pyaar hai, lyrics Ramnath Awasthi, music Satish Butani

Lost in his own world of imaginations, Manna Dey’s voice also pulls us into that world and the way he pronounces Woh nahi aur kewal pyar hai in the end firmly leaves us wandering in our world of imagination.

11. Do panchhi bechain nayan ke do panchhi bechain kho baithe hai chain nayan ke, lyrics Laxman Shahabadi, music Shyam Sagar

The uploader of this clip has put a photograph of Manna Dey as if he is in a trance while singing the song. Whether he meant it that way or not is, obviously, not known, but that image so aptly conveys how Manna Dey must have got so completely involved while rendering such a song.

12. Humse achhi to farishton ki basar kya hogi, gham ki raunak idhar hai udhar kya hogi, lyrics Gulzar, music Deepak Chatterjee

Gulzar at his vintage best mood as a poet is so aptly reflected in Manan Dey’s pensive rendition.

13. Nach re mayura, lyrics Narendra Sharma, music Anil Biswas

Only Anil Biswas can so perfectly create the feeling of drizzling rain outside and only Manna Dey can so deftly present such a difficult composition with so deceptive ease.

14. Sunsaan jamuna ka kinara, pyar ka antim sahara, chandani ka kafan odha so raha kismat ka maara, kis se pucchuN main bhala ab dekha kahin Mumtaz ko, meri bhi ek Mumtaz thi, lyrics Madhukar Rajasthani, music Manna Dey

If Madhukar Rajasthani and Manna Dey swept us into the pensive mood in the opening song of this episode, they draw us into this total mood of pure pathos as we draw curtains to the present episode.

Disclaimer and Acknowledgement
1. The song videos have been embedded from the YouTube only for the listening pleasure of the music lovers. This blog does not claim any copyright over these songs which vests with the respective owners, such as Saregama India Limited and others.