Relishing The Combination Of S D Burman And Majrooh Sultanpuri

When a common person is given just 2-3 ingredients, he/she would not know what should be done with it. But if you give the same to a good cook or a masterchef, he/she will certainly make a new dish out of it. A well stocked cupboard or a refrigerator to a chef will be like an invitation to a party. And it’ll always be different if it is a royal chef. You are in for a treat with exquisite and mouth watering dishes. S D Burman is certainly that royal chef, who film after film has been presenting delectables, no matter what the ingredients are!! I had read somewhere that he said – give me Lata and a harmonium and I’ll make music. Irrespective of whether he said that or not, he was capable of doing that. He definitely had oodles of confidence on his knowledge of music. If we look at his repertoire, we notice that he really didn’t belong to any group or camp of artists (singers, lyricists and musicians). Of course we all know that Kishore Kumar was the apple of his eye and yet he did not vouchsafe everything to him. If Paying Guest (1957) belonged to Kishore Kumar, then Tere Ghar Ke Saamne (1963) belonged to Rafi. If Guide (1965) belonged to Lata, Kala Paani (1958) was Asha’s. Keeping these 4 ingredients intact, he also peppered his meal course with Shamshad Begum, Geeta Dutt, Hemant Kumar, Manna Dey, Talat Mahmood and even Mukesh. Sometimes he surprised everyone by pouring some molasses in form of Suman Kalyanpur and Sudha Malhotra. Being a thorough royalty, he served 7 course meal and seldom repeated his recipe. His dishes also comprised of different flavours – Sahir, Shailendra, Hoshrat (Hasrat Jiapuri) and the beloved Muzru (Majrooh Sultanpuri). He also served a mixed menu – different singers for same actor/actress. Of course he brought out the best in them. Yet when it came to exotic dishes like Bandini, Guide, Aradhana, Sujata, he himself churned out some vintage stuff. His primitive voice makes you turn inwards. The virile, rustic quality which went beyond the fences of Hindi film music. Voice like his sifts through the walls straight into the heart.
Rok sakta hamein zindan-e-bala kya ‘majrooh’
Hum toh aawaz hain deewar se chhan jaate hain

Bring in another chef de cuisine on the scene – Majrooh Sultanpuri. His meal course was out of the world. From tidbit appetizers to amuse bouche, soup to salad, main course to desserts. An extravagant serving of lyrics from this Gourmet, cutting and folding words to the tunes of Anil Biswas, Madan Mohan, Naushad, O P Nayyar, Laxmikant Pyarelal and others. From mushairas to film songs this connoisseur ruled with his expressions blended with pure poetry in Urdu. Be it the solemn Hum hain mataa-e-koocha or the frothy Haal kaisa hai janaab ka, his recipe too like SDB was never repeated and yet people savoured song after song,are still savouring. Writing songs for almost 50 years with changing times and tastes, Majrooh Sultanpuri redefined the art of lyric writing. His association with the Burmans became a treat for music lovers. SDB had deep affection for his Muzru (Majrooh). And to top it all both these connoisseurs shared their birthdays. The whisking and blending of their art forms together made us fall in love with their work and appreciate it still after so many years. From Paying Guest (1957) to Abhiman (1974) Muzru and SDB gave lavish delicacies to savour.
Here are a few of them –

1. Paying Guest
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kT3WKSb1q_Q

2. Solva Saal

3. Sujata

4. Lajwanti
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcoMkXZMjFo

5. Manzil
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tskaGIXBD7c

6. Bewakoof

7. Dr. Vidya

8. Talaash

9. Phagun

10. Abhiman