Mujhe Jaan Na Kaho – Anubhav – Beloved Life

There’s something sensual about the monsoon. Not the heavy downpour but about the soft pitter patter on your window panes or the fuzzy drizzle throughout the day. The parched Earth is delighted to seep in all the water slowly. The thundering of the clouds, the cool monsoon breeze, the happily swinging branches, the swaying leaves, the raindrops on those dark green leaves all add up to the provocativeness of this season called Monsoon. A yearning heart, just like the parched earth, is delighted to be with his/her beloved. The effect of the rains on the mind is such that the heart toys with the ecstasy of being together. Rains give a fresh spurt to romance, tugging you lazily into the world of dream and love. Moments of togetherness spent humming the songs you love, watching the drizzle outside. Does any such song come to your mind?

Meri jaan, mujhe jaan na kaho
Meri jaan, meri jaan…

There’s something sensual about Geeta Dutt’s voice. It provokes you to listen to the song intently. The spontaneity in her voice takes you to another realm of romance altogether. That slight nasal tinge and the clarity, ups the quotient of sensuality. It is just like the evocative monsoon. Her voice has the capacity to make you experience an entire spectrum of feelings in just a couple of minutes. Crisscrossing through those maze-like lyrics by Gulzar, Geeta Dutt’s voice and Tanuja’s smile on screen take you to the apex of emotion.

Jaan na kaho anjaan mujhe
Jaan kahan rehti hai sadaa
Anjaane, kya jaane, jaan ke jaaye kaun bhalaa
Meri jaan…..

How many times can one play with a single word, giving that word its own identity and each time emerge with a different meaning! Look at the use of this word ‘Jaan’ by Gulzar. In this song, Jaan = life, beloved, to know, intentionally.
Life is temporary but love is eternal and hence that entreaty to consider her as love and not life.
Don’t call me your life, dear one, for it is temporary. The ignorant ones say it without knowing. Who would go that way (of calling someone his/her life) intentionally?

Sookhe sawan baras gaye
Itni baar inn aankhon se
Do boondein na barse, inn bheegi palkon se
Meri jaan…..

Tears of loneliness, that wait with dry eyes, the agony and pain of living a desolate life even when living together. The line sums up the life this couple had been living. A typical urban couple, with a loveless and passionless life of a workaholic husband and a stay-at-home but modern wife. Meeta (Tanuja) is lovelorn. Her life is imbued with gloominess, since Amar (Sanjeev Kumar) has no time for her. Do boondein na barse, inn bheegi palkon se – yet she doesn’t complain. Instead she decides to take matters in her hands and recreate the marital bliss and intimacy and make their life a beloved one.
Anubhav (1971), is a part of director Basu Bhattacharya’s trilogy on marital discord. The other 2 being Avishkar (1973) and Grih Pravesh (1979). Though it went on to win the National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film, it is mostly known for Geeta Dutt’s swan song. Her singing prowess, her abilities are beautifully showcased in these songs composed by Kanu Roy. Even with her declining health, her songs from Anubhav represent one of her finest works.

Honth jhuke jab hothon par
Saans uljhi ho saanson mein
Do judwa hothon ki, baat kaho aankhon se
Meri jaan….

Of entangled breaths and lips and the language of eyes. That searing intimacy brought by Geeta Dutt’s rendition, that seductive, soft laugh in between the lines and the way Gulzar describes their intimacy. Gulzar once again brings out that imagery of eyes doing the talking (just like fragrance of eyes). If that wasn’t enough, the on-screen chemistry of Tanuja and Sanjeev Kumar is utterly sensual.
Meeta brings back the passion, chemistry and love in their life by cooking for her husband and pampering him. This song is the depiction of their new found passion and contentment.
Black and white cinematography by Nando Bhattacharya is worth mentioning. It is delightful to see the couple in love and the raindrops outside their window. Light and shadows accentuate romanticism and sensuality. There’s another thing in the song which accentuates romance and sensuality. Vibraphone by Burjor Lord. That instrument is as if echoing Geeta Dutt’s voice and resonating with Tanuja’s feelings. Vibraphone sensually hums in your ears for a long time, giving a lingering feel. Just as the trail of those raindrops on the window pane.