Naushadnama

Last updated

Naushadnama
Naushadnama cover.jpg
Author Raju Bharatan
CountryIndia
LanguageEnglish
Subject Naushad
GenreBiography
Published2013
Publisher Hay House
Media typePrint
Pages356
ISBN 978-93-81431-93-1
OCLC 861739511

Naushadnama is a 2013 biography of the Indian composer Naushad by the journalist and critic Raju Bharatan. Consisting of 21 chapters, the book predominantly focuses on Naushad's musical career from his debut in 1940 with Prem Nagar , his rise to stardom, up to his final release Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story (2005). It also slightly covers his personal life, such as his birth on the Christmas day of 1919, his two-time marriages, and his death due to cardiac arrest in 2006.

Contents

Bharatan got to know Naushad in 1949 and, after their first meeting in Bandra six year later, developed an interest on the composer's work. Although Naushad had asked Bharatan to write a biography on him during his lifetime, the writing, however, was started only after his death. Naushadnama was met with varied reviews from critics, who praised the book's comprehensiveness but criticised it for giving an extra focus on Naushad's career rather than his personal life.

Summary

Naushadnama is a biography of the Indian music director Naushad, primarily focuses on his career and divided into 21 chapters. He was born into a conservative Lucknow-based Muslim family on 25 December 1919, married two times, had nine children (three sons and six daughters), and died on 5 May 2006 by cardiac arrest. Naushad began his debut with the 1940 film Prem Nagar , and composed soundtrack to several commercially and critically successful films, including Baiju Bawra (1952), Mother India (1957, the first Indian film nominated at the Academy Awards), Mughal-e-Azam (1960, one of India's highest-grossing films of all time), Gunga Jumna (1961), Ram Aur Shyam (1967), and Pakeezah (1972).

Development and writing

Raju Bharatan was a magazine editor, journalist, columnist, and historian who focused on cricket and Bollywood music. He first knew Naushad in 1949, but it was only in end-1955 that he met him at his studio in Bandra. He described the visits as his pivotal experience, helping him to know more about the Indian classical music. Writing for the book's foreword, Bharatan admitted that Naushad caught his attention to the type of music, and added, "Soon I divined that, without ever saying so, Naushad had begun making my music listening classically oriented. In this sense, he was my mentor. The fact that, even before we embarked upon such a journey, he was my favourite music director helped." [1]

Naushad asked Bharatan to write him a biography before his death in 2006 Naushadsaab1.jpg
Naushad asked Bharatan to write him a biography before his death in 2006

"For Naushad was something more than his music. His personality presented a study in career management. He worked like a beaver to sustain the status that he had attained as the number one music director in our films. Such a meteoric rise had to be backed by solid all-round effort to stay at the summit. Here Naushad never once relaxed his grip. He worked with the same assiduity on his career as he did on his music."

— Raju Bharatan on Naushad [2]

Naushad had asked Bharatan to write him a biography, but the request was fulfilled only after his death. According to Bharatan, it took him 50 years since their first meeting in Bandra "to fathom the full strength of his music". [3] His motivation of writing the book is to surpass anything that had been written on the composer. For his research, Bharatan was helped by the historian Harish Raghuwanshi, whom Bharatan described as "close to being the best film historian in India today". [3] Bharatan's book more focuses on Naushad's work rather than his personal life, [4] but he claimed in its foreword that there is "not a single facet of Naushad’s life and times have I left unexplored". [3]

Critical reception

Naushadnama generated mixed reviews from literary critics. [5] Writing for The Hindu , M. O. Badsha wrote that the book is full of anecdotes of Naushad's life and added that it deserves to be praised. [6] The critic of Indo-Asian News Service complimented the book's "comprehensive and enthralling narrative—studded with rare nuggets of information", saying, "This volume, by one of India's greatest film critics, also throws light on the relations and interactions between him and his singers; his songwriters, and his unsung instrumentalists. The author draws upon his vast and varied experience to come up with a revelatory work which will evoke a medley of memories." [7] Suresh Kohli, who reviewed Naushadnama for The Tribune , referred to it as "a mine full of authentic redeemed nostalgia: Carefully catalogued, nurtured and memorised." [8]

In the Hindustan Times , Narendra Kusnur criticised the book for lacking information of Naushad's personal life, but commended its inside look at his musical career. "Tales like these make Naushadnama a must for fans of old music. Though the excessive detail may get taxing for those less familiar with his work, the hardcore fan will find plenty to pick up. Bharatan's analysis and depth, and the trivia, make this an extremely readable book", Kusnur concluded. [4] Shreekant Sambrani of Business Standard found the book to be dull and panned Bharatan's "meandering and murderous" writing style. [9] The critic from Frontline called it "a mine of information not only on the great Naushad but also on his professional colleagues and their respective attitudes towards him and each other in an environment as susceptible to gossip as it was conducive to the making of memorable film songs". [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naushad</span> Musical artist

Naushad Ali was an Indian composer for Hindi films. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest and foremost music directors of the Hindi film industry. He is particularly known for popularising the use of classical music in films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohammed Rafi</span> Indian singer

Mohammed Rafi was an Indian playback singer and musician. He is considered to have been one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. Rafi was notable for his versatility and range of voice; his songs varied from fast peppy numbers to patriotic songs, sad numbers to highly romantic songs, qawwalis to ghazals and bhajans to classical songs. He was known for his ability to mould his voice to the persona and style of the actor lip-syncing the song on screen in the movie. He received six Filmfare Awards and one National Film Award. In 1967, he was honored with the Padma Shri award by the Government of India. In 2001, Rafi was honoured with the "Best Singer of the Millennium" title by Hero Honda and Stardust magazine. In 2013, Rafi was voted for the Greatest Voice in Hindi Cinema in the CNN-IBN's poll.

Events in the year 1919 in India.

<i>Pakeezah</i> 1972 film by Kamal Amrohi

Pakeezah is a 1972 Indian Hindustani-language musical romantic drama written, directed, and produced by Kamal Amrohi. The film stars Meena Kumari as the eponymous lead, alongside Ashok Kumar and Raaj Kumar. It tells the story of Sahibjaan, a Lucknow-based tawaif. While asleep on a train, Sahibjaan receives a note from a stranger praising her beauty. Later, evacuating from a broken boat, she takes shelter in a tent and finds out its owner, a forest ranger named Salim, wrote the letter. Sahibjaan and Salim plan to get married, causing conflicts with Sahibjaan's professional background.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdur Rashid Kardar</span> Indian film actor and director

Abdur Rashid Kardar (1904–1989) was an Indian film actor, director and producer. He is credited with establishing the film industry in the Bhati Gate locality of Lahore, British India.

<i>Anmol Ratan</i> 1950 film

Anmol Rattan is 1950 Bollywood drama film directed by M. Sadiq. The film was produced by Jaimani Dewan for his Dewan Productions banner, with music composed by Vinod. The film starred Karan Dewan, who was known as a "jubilee star" with most of his films becoming box-office successes. He was the younger brother of producer Jaimani Dewan. Karan's co-stars were Meena Shorey, Nirmala, Gope, Madan Puri and Gulab.

<i>Chambal Ki Raani</i> 1979 Indian film

Chambal Ki Raani is a 1979 Bollywood action film directed by Radhakant. The film stars Mahendra Sandhu, Amjad Khan and Dara Singh.

Dard (Pain) is a 1947 Bollywood drama film directed by Abdul Rashid Kardar. The film was produced by Kardar Productions. It was a surprise "musical hit" at the box office as it had an ordinary star cast. Suraiya played the second lead, with Munawwar Sultana as the main heroine. The film was Suraiya's first "big hit", becoming a popular singing star following the success of the film. The hero of the film was Kardar's brother Nusrat (Kardar), who shifted to Pakistan following Partition in 1947, where he acted in a few films.

<i>Dillagi</i> (1949 film) 1949 film from India

Dillagi is a 1949 Indian Bollywood film. It was the fourth highest grossing Indian film of 1949. The film was produced and directed by A. R. Kardar for his "Kardar Productions", and had music composed by Naushad. The film starred Suraiya, and the actor Shyam,. The film co-starred Chandabai, Sharda, Amar and Amir Banu.

<i>Dulari</i> (film) 1949 film from India

Dulari is a 1949 Indian Hindi-language romantic musical film directed by A.R. Kardar. The film stars Madhubala, Geeta Bali and Suresh, and its music was composed by Naushad. Dulari revolved around Prem (Suresh), a rich man who falls in love with the eponymous gypsy girl (Madhubala).

Dina Nath Madhok was a prominent lyricist of Bollywood in the 1940s to 1960s. He started his career with the 1932 film Radhey Sham. He wrote over 800 songs in his career spanning four decades and was regarded as one of the top lyricist in the 1940s earning himself the soubriquet "Mahakavi Madhok". Madhok is cited as one of the three "First Generation" of lyricists along with Kidar Sharma and Kavi Pradeep. Apart from writing lyrics, he wrote screenplays and directed films. He directed almost 17 films like Baghdad Ka Chor (1934), Mirza Sahiban (1939), Biwamangal (1954) and the Madhubala-starrer Naata (1955).

<i>Ram Rajya</i> (1967 film) 1967 Indian film

Ram Rajya is an Indian 1967 Hindi religious film based on Valmiki's Ramayana and directed by Vijay Bhatt. The film was produced by Shankarbhai Bhatt. The music director was Vasant Desai with lyrics written by Bharat Vyas. The cinematographer was Pravin Bhatt and the film starred Bina Rai, Kumar Sen, Badri Prasad, Kanhaiyalal, Farida dadi, Anil Kumar, Jay Vijay.

<i>Jadoo</i> (1951 film) 1951 Indian film

Jadoo (Magic) is a 1951 Hindi psychosocial melodrama film directed by A. R. Kardar. The story writers were S. N. Bannerji and Jagdish Kanwal, with dialogues by Zahur Raja and Bannerji. The music director was Naushad, with lyrics by Shakeel Badayuni. This was the second to last film in which Naushad was to be the music director for Kardar. After an association of fourteen films, Naushad composed one last time for Kardar in Deewana (1952). Prior to this Kardar had already approached composer S. D. Burman for Jeewan Jyoti (1953). A "Musical Pictures Ltd." presentation, the film starred Nalini Jaywant, Suresh, Shyam Kumar, Sharda, and Ramesh.

<i>Dil-E-Nadaan</i> (1953 film) 1953 Indian film by Abdur Rashid Kardar

Dil-E-Nadaan is a 1953 Hindi romantic drama film produced and directed by A. R. Kardar.

"Kuchh Na Kaho" is a romantic Hindi song from the film 1942: A Love Story. The song was composed by R. D. Burman with lyrics by Javed Akhtar and vocals by Kumar Sanu. It was the swan song of R. D. Burman, released three months after his death. It is composed in the Dadra taal. Ronu Majumdar played the flute. Along with Ek Ladki Ko Dekha from the same movie, the song represented Kumar Sanu's peak as a singer. He also said on interview, this song "kuch na kaho" is used as treatment for cerebral palsy patients.

J.B. Petit High School is a private all-girls school in the Fort neighbourhood of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India established in 1865. The school currently offers the ICSE board.

Jagmohan Sursagar, born Jaganmoy Mitra (1918-2003), was an Indian singer and music composer, best known for his composition, "Pyar Ki Yeh Talkhiyan", sung by Lata Mangeshkar in the 1955 Hindi language movie, Sardar. He sang several film and non-film songs for Kamal Dasgupta, renowned Bengali music composer, "O Varsha Ke Pahale Badal" from Meghdoot (1945), being the most notable among them. He performed on many stages, including the Yadein show, organised by Sangeet Manjari, in 1971, and sang alongside many old time singers. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian award of the Padma Shri in 1999. Saregama, the Indian music company, has brought out a collection of his songs, under the title, The Best Of-Sursagar Jagmohan, which features 21 of his tracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raju Bharatan</span> Indian journalist (1934–2020)

Raju Bharatan was a journalist and writer on Indian cricket and Bollywood music. He worked for a weekly features magazine, The Illustrated Weekly of India, and an Indian films weekly newspaper, Screen. He also directed The Victory Story (1974), the first full-length Indian cricket documentary.

Pakeezah is a 1972 Indian Hindustani-language musical romantic drama film written, directed, and produced by Kamal Amrohi. The film focuses on a dejected courtesan, who seeks a solution to her grief by attempting to run away from her kotha. The rest of the film follows the romance story between her and a forest ranger, and her marriage which is rejected by his family because of her professional background.

References

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.