I remember it as if it was yesterday. In the dark hours of the evening of 13th October in 1987, came a bolt from the blue in the form of some tragic news to all music lovers – Kishore Da, that versatile musical genius, had suddenly passed away in Mumbai at the untimely age of 58 and at the height of overwhelming popularity as the vibrant, majestic singing voice of almost all actors of past and present era, for more than three decades !
Much has been penned about his acting, singing & film career, life’s high and lows and comebacks, a maverick of unconventional ways and personal life-styles with prodigious musical talent sans formal training and amazing legacy of melody that he’s left behind ! Interestingly, barring one dear friend (an avid Mukesh fan) I’ve not met anyone who didn’t love his songs & not tried to croon his style. His clones are a legion themselves.
For me like others of my generation, 1970-80’s was the ‘coming of age’ era of dreams, aspirations, distractions and heartbreaks and bouncing back with resilience against the odds that came our way. It was also the ‘best of times’ in early 70’s when Kishore da was making a glorious comeback under Dada Burman. With Aradhana’s exuberant opening song ‘Mere Sapno Ki Rani’ he was the voice of Rajesh Khanna, later crowned superstar !
In our teens, we identified with all the emotions of romance, mirth, comedy, sorrow & pathos that magically emerged from Kishore da’s incomparable repertoire. My perpetual nostalgia remained with ‘Woh Sham Kuch Ajeeb..’ as I recalled numerous heartbreaks, ‘Jeevan Se Bhari Teri Ankhen..’ gave poetic resonance to love, ‘O mere dil ke chain..’ oozed romance and ‘Zindagi Ka Safar..’ spelt out inevitability of life and death. When I got my first rural posting and travelled by an old bus to the branch with trepidation, my heart sang ‘Musafir hoon yaaron, na ghar hai na thikana..’ but a voice within said to me ‘Ruk jana nahi tu kahi haar ke..’. Songs that brought solace and strength at every stage.
Fortuitously, my genes were inclined to love music and songs because my parents were avid music loving Bengalis and my Dad was an ardent Saigal ‘Bhakt’. After I started my addiction to Kishore songs, Dad grudgingly admitted that some of his soulful songs reminded him of Saigal Saab. My Mom also got into the fan club and had her own set of favourite songs which included ‘Panthi Hoon Main Us Path Ka..’ that was composed by and sung by Kishore himself for film’Door Ka Rahi’ and is considered one of his finest. What better than sing it, remembering Mom and paying a humble tribute to the legend.
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