Song Sketch
The Peerless Evenings – Roz Shaam Aati Thi – Imtihaan
Sometimes you meet a person and the mere presence of this man/woman makes you feel good. It makes you feel special. It enhances your inner growth. You need not talk/laugh with that person on skillful or even trivial topics. Its the feeling of rejoice, the welcoming of spring in your life. It is soothing and calming yet it sends those thrills all over you. Just as this song does. It is a soothing song which sends those thrills around you with the high pitched notes by Lata Mangeshkar.
Daali mein ye kiska haath karen ishaare bulayen mujhe
jhoomti chanchal hawa chhooke tan gudgudaye mujhe
haule haule dheere dheere koyi geet mujhko sunaye
preet man mein jagaye
khuli aankh sapne dikhaaye
dikhaye dikhaye dikhaaye
khuli aankh sapne dikhaaye
ye aaj meri zindagi mein kaun aa gaya..roz shaam aati thi
Magar aisi na thi
The evening is here, but there’s something special about it today. The nature tells me so. These gestures by the branches of the trees, the breeze, evoke feelings of love. The heart hums a song. Am I daydreaming? Or is this a real dream seen with open eyes?? That presence of someone in my life is so appealing. The evenings are transformed like never before.
A conventional Lata number from Imtihan (1974). Picturised on the very modern and chiselled Tanuja. She plays the role of a lame girl in the film. Based on the 60s Hollywood flick To Sir With Love, Imtihan has Vinod Khanna playing the sober professor and Tanuja, the lame daughter of the college principal, his love interest.
Armaanon ka rang hai jahaan palken uthati hun main
hans hanske hain dekhtin jo bhi moorat banati hun main
jaise koi mohe chhede jis or bhi jaati hoon main
jagmagati hoon main
deewani huyi jaati hoon main
deewani deewani deewani
deewani hui jaati hun main
ye aaj meri zindagi mein kaun aa gaya
Desire starts making way into your heart. Teasing your own thoughts, building them up in mind wherever you go. Driving you crazy till you glow with love for that person. The repetition of words by Majrooh Sultanpuri give it a haunting effect. The effect doubles when you listen to the French horn which mesmerises you from the very beginning. And it also has the Iranian Santoor which tingles in between the stanzas. They synchronize well with Lata’s voice. Lata’s high pitched voice gets on you inch by inch, as if climbing all over you, giving you goosebumps. Hear the way she says aati thi in a quick way, as if its a single word. Though in the interludes the beats and the rhythm give you a Panchamish effect, kudos to Laxmikant Pyarelal for the orchestration.
Experience the peerless evening which is sublime, sweet and surreal!!
Ajay
September 24, 2017 at 8:25 pm
Good Write Up ! BUT not agreeing to the statement ”’Though in the interludes the beats and the rhythm give you a Panchamish effect, kudos to Laxmikant Pyarelal for the orchestration”””
IT IS PURELY AND PURLY Laxmikant-Pyarelal ORIGINAL rhythm and Orchestra arrangement in “interludes”, as well. Laxmikant-Pyarelel were the first music directors to introduce the Irani Santoor and French Horn in Hindi Film Music. Both these instruments are melleflously executed in the “prelude” and second “interlude”.
Mesmerizing Melody and Rhythm with enrich orchestra arrangements. Having a privilege of witnessing an LP (Laxmikant-Pyarelal) era right from 1963 onwards. The beauty of Laxmikant-Pyarelal’s composition was that for the ordinary words they will create a very simple & melodious tune and will decorate it with wonderful rhythm and mellifluous orchestra arrangements. Laxmikant-Pyarelal would also understand the situation, location and the timing of the song being filmed and also on whom it would be filmed etc. This song is one such song. The song is fully on western style orchestra.
Prior to this song the unique combo of Lata Mangeshkar and Laxmikant-Pyarelal have already given many western style songs in “Lootera” 1966, “Night In London”, 1967, “Baharon Ki Manzil” 1968, “Intaquam” 1968, “Abhinetri” 1970 and many….
Laxmikant-Pyarelal have used or repeated the same rhythm in “Saudagar” 1992 song …”Ilu Ilu Kya Hai” .
Ajay Poundarik
September 23, 2020 at 4:57 pm
“PRELUDE”:: 0.15 seconds, TWEETING of BIRDS, Than GUITAR glimpses starts, FRENCH HORN (0.34 to 0.44), IRANI SANTOOR ( till 0.55) and then Lataji’s ‘alalap’ till 1.06 and the “pause”…giving the feel of ‘sunset’. Just brilliant. It sets the mood of the song.
Powerful “RHYTHM” of ‘BONGO / KONGA DRUMS” and it’s “PAUSES”. Lataji stops after singing ‘roj sham aati thi’ (1.11…1.14) just listen to the “rhythm”, again at 1.16 ….1.19…This gives an “ear-pleasing” moment to listen to the rhythm only. You will again find such “pauses” in the song.
“INTERLUDES”:- Both the interludes are beautifully decorated in western style orchestra arrangements with use of VIOLINS, CELLOS, IRANI SANTOOR and FRENCH HORN.
Not to forget to listen to the mind-boggling “POSTLUDE”..
The song is written by Majarooh Sultanpuri.
The unique combo of Lata Mangeshkar and Laxmikant-Pyarelal have given many memorable songs in sixties ( closed to 179 songs). It was also expected to deliver the best in seventies too. The song is popular even today. On the top of everything the ‘Chemistry’ of Lata Mangeshkar and Laxmikant-Pyarelal did the miracle again.