Twilight Flavours – Parbaton Ke Pedon Par – Shagoon

As the evening sets in, the sun begins to hide behind the line of horizon, the nippy weather adorns a romantic look and the heart begins to harmonize with it. Singing, humming, crooning!!
Parbaton ke pedon par
Shaam ka basera hai
Surmayi ujala hai,
Champayi andhera hai

Sahir Ludhianvi paints an amazing picture of this evening in the mountains for this song from Shagoon (1964). He paints such picturesque words – Surmayi ujala hai, champayi andhera hai

The evening is gently enveloping the mountains and the trees on it. The day becoming darker and the night is lit by the moon and the stars. Oh what metaphors!!
The song begins with the humming of Suman Kalyanpur and Mohammed Rafi. And then Rafi croons –
Parbaton ke pedon par
Shaam ka basera hai
Surmayi ujala hai,
Champayi andhera hai

While Suman Kalyanpur joins him –

Dono waqt milte hain
Do dilon ki surat se
Aasman ne khush hokar
Rang sa bikhera hai

The day and the night meet in this evening, merge into each other at the horizon, as the 2 hearts have merged forever to the farthest skyline. The sky is scattered with joyful colours announcing the happiness.
Waheeda Rehman with her future husband to be Kamaljeet (Shashi Rekhi). Both look so much in love. Their body language says they are in love. She is all glowing, her eyes brighter than ever. While Kamaljeet is not able to take his eyes off her. They share a gentle and gracious chemistry on screen. Khayyam’s music is in harmony with all these things – Sahir’s words, the atmosphere, the couple on screen and love. He enhances the song by setting it in Raag Pahadi. The Raag sets the mood and takes you to the hilly areas instantly. Unlike the usual Khayyam style of using minimum instruments, he has made use of more instruments – the violins, tabla, the flute and the Chinese temple blocks.

Thehre thehre paani mein
Geet sarsaraate hain
Bheege bheege jhonkon mein
Khushbuon ka dera hai

The melody soughs, whooshes in the still waters, sending ripples like love does to the heart. The moist air around which is full with the fragrance of love, is diffusing the same.

Khayyam uses heavy orchestration in the interludes while during the antaras or stanzas it becomes softer and the singers take over.

Kyun na jazb ho jaayein
Iss haseen nazaare mein
Roshni ka jhurmat hai
Mastiyon ka ghera hai

Why not get impassioned? (Who would not?) When the weather is intoxicated with beautiful surroundings and gossamer/cluster of stars (Roshni ka jhurmat!! Only Sahir can think of these words) Just look at glow on Waheeda Rehman’s face when she sings through these lines. It intensifies her beauty.

No wonder Kamaljeet says further –
Ab kisi nazaare ki
Dil ko arzoo kyun ho
Jab se pa liya tumko
Sab jahan mera hai

His heart doesn’t long for any beautiful surrounding, since he has won her, the whole world seems to be his.
Tantalize your senses with the aroma of this twilight flavour spreading across in the air with the voices of Suman Kalyanpur and Rafi, a subtle music from Khayyam and Sahir at his pervasive best!!