Swindled – Duniya Mein Logo Ko – Apna Desh

Lights are dim, focus is on weird red herring Rajesh Khanna….accordion and trumpet rivet attention and jab andhera hota hai, aadhi raat ke baad….ye aawaz aati hai…Sweeteeeetheaaaaaart

Thus Rajesh Khanna announces his arrival in the villain’s den posing somewhat like Helen on the stair railing. And the raw, raunchy voice repeats again, through the drum fever which is about to begin!!

Sweeeeetheeeaaart tara tara tara tara…para para para para (this tara tara para para gives the feeling of just sliding down the staircase)
Beeraa beeraa taratarataratara tararu….

As if Pancham is announcing….Bewaaarrreeeee tara tara tara…..para para para
Why beware? He’s warning you. Please don’t try exercising your vocal chords in this manner. Sehat ke liye haanikaarak hai!! Moreover it is a Pancham copyright.
With trumpets and electric guitar joining in the frenzy, the raw, raunchy voice suddenly becomes raw and mushy. Lights, camera, action –

Duniya mein ha ha ha
Logon ko ha ha ha
Dhokha kabhi ho jaata hai
Aankhon hi aankhon mein
Yaaron ka dil kho jaata hai….

Don’t miss the monotonous but catchy percussion in the background. That’s the backbone of this song.
Enter the mermaid Mumu –
While following a guitar piece Asha shakes her voice as brilliant as Mumu shakes her legs, Pancham matches it with the brilliant breathless ha ha ha ha ha….
With a shimmery dress like Mumu’s who needs disco lights?
Further we have some flanger working up to match with Mumu’s steps. Saxophone notes slither on your ears, passing on all those disco vibes to you. While guitar and percussion bring you back to Mumu’s carnival as she alerts you with her snake-wriggle –

Nagin si meri chaal
Rakhna dil ka khayal
Mere deewanon ka
Ho jata hai haal

And the chorus goes berserk aaaaaaaaaa….
Asha further exercises her vocal chords

Jaagi main and Pancham goes ha ha ha
Saari rain….ha ha ha
Sara jahan so jaata hai…hooo
Aankhon hi aankhon mein haha haha
Yaaron ka dil kho jaata hai

The guitars sizzle on the disco floor with the dancers and the villainous trio going hysterical. A suave, effortless trumpet smoothens the atmosphere. But guitar is not to be yielded yet to some smooth atmosphere. It still goes strumming crazily along with the blonde beauty. Gyrating with the fellow dancers. The mermaid now is at an apt place – the fish tank. She is on a prowl. And as SRK says in one of his movies – from the epiglottis, Pancham does just that. He sings with his epiglottis blazing.

Kehti hai ye nazar
Kab kya hoga khabar
Duniya mein chand log
Hote hain jaadugar (I bet he’s one of them)
Suniye jee
Unpe bhi
Jaadu kabhi ho jaata hai
Aankhon hi aankhon mein haha haha
Yaaron ka dil kho jaata hai

Boy, this blonde has brains for sure.
The interludes for this song have been brought up in a feisty way. They bubble up with 3 different instruments. Saxophone for the first interlude, trumpet for the second and mixed percussions for the 3rd. Creativity peps up when Pancham’s around.
Now the red herring is also making you cautious about his intentions. He is here to grab the villains.

Pinjre mein chalke aap
Aa jaata hai shikar
Qaatil pe bhi kabhi
Aa jaata hai yun pyaar
Baaton hi baaton mein
Hona hai jo ho jaata hai
Aankhon hi aankhon mein haha haha
Yaaron ka dil kho jaata hai

This mermaid is Madame Popololita from Apna Desh (1972) and she’s here to set a trap for the swindlers – Om Prakash, Madan Puri and Kanhaiyya Lal, with the help of her beau Akash (Rajesh Khanna). Anand Bakshi’s lyrics set the trapdoor for the listeners. Pancham along with his Madame, gives us a proper Saturday night swizzle!! And they say disco arrived in Hindi cinema in the 80s?