Throwback: RD Burmanâs music should not be remixed

On RD Burman’s death anniversary today, Filmfare brings you an explosive interview with late singer Bhupinder Singh. In this interview from 2016, Bhupinder, who was known for tracks Hoke Majboor Mujhe Usne Bulaya Hoga, Aane Se Uske Aaye Bahar, Kisi Nazar Ko Tera Intezar Aaj Bhi Hai and many other classics, speaks extensively about RD Burman and their 40-year association. This is a must read…

Bhupinder Singh’s residence in Bandra is not lived in anymore. But it resonates special memories for him. One of them is of spending long evenings jamming with close friend and maestro RD Burman. “Whenever Pancham (as RD Burman was fondly addressed) had a tune to share, he’d come here, holding two glasses of whisky as he got out of his car!” he recalls.

RD Burman not only gifted Bhupinder an enduring friendship but he also made him sing everlasting numbers. “I’m surprised when the GenNext enjoys these numbers. They were not even born then,” says the singer whose songs Beeti na beetai raina and Nam gum jaayega have outlived generations. The dichotomy takes you by surprise. Someone who was synonymous with plaintive numbers like Kabhi kisiko muqammil jahan (Ahista Ahista), Karoge yaad to (Bazaar) or Ek akela iss shaher mein (Gharonda), also strummed the guitar for groovy tracks like Dum maaro dum (Hare Rama Hare Krishna), Chura liya (Yaadon Ki Baarat), Mehbooba mehbooba (Sholay) and even the title track of Satte Pe Satta as part of RD Burman’s orchestra.”

In fact, Bhupinder began as a guitarist and then moved to playback singing and ghazals. His sensibilities were hurt when he heard the cult Dum maaro dum being ‘cut and operated upon’ by composer Pritam for Rohan Sippy’s remix in Dum Maaro Dum. Not to mention the lyrics Potty pe baithe nanga! “It pains me when classics are remixed. Why remake what’s already been made? How can you remix Pancham’s music? It was modern even 30 years ago. Why tamper with and distort someone else’s tunes?” he rants. “Apparently, Dev saab (Dev Anand) had asked them not to touch the song. What majboori (helplessness) must have pushed the director and the composer to go this far? Tampering a classic disturbs the souls of those who are no more.” Plagiarism is not limited to domestic shores, he states. He reveals a rap group called Def Jam has based its track What’s happening on Dum maaro dum.

He recalls how the original number filmed on Zeenat Aman was composed in the 1970s. “I remember Dev saab explaining the scene to Pancham. He had a way of providing ‘live’ visuals… psychedelic lights, ganja, chillum, smoke! I was sitting behind them and listening. I started playing a tune on my electric guitar. Soon everyone stopped talking and began listening to it. Pancham exclaimed, ‘This is it!’ And the rest is history.”

Bhupinder and RD Burman had a 40-year-old personal and professional relationship. “Those days Pancham didn’t have much work. So we’d hang out together. He’d be composing some tune or the other. I’d be playing the guitar.”

His career hit a high note when he sang the classical numbers in Gulzar’s Parichay, which he got by sheer luck. “I was playing the guitar for Pancham’s Musafir hoon yaaron when Kishoreda said, ‘Bhupi se is film ke classical nagme gawa. Mujhse nahin.’ The trinity of Bhupinder-Gulzar-Burman then went on to give gems like Beeti na beetayi raina (Parichay) and Naam gum jayega (Kinara) during the ’70s.

He admires the late actor Sanjeev Kumar for whom he sang a few numbers including Madan Mohan’s Dil dhoondhta hai (Mausam). “He could express the emotion and effort involved in the singing. He made lip synching look natural with the manner in which the veins on his throat and the lines on his forehead became prominent.”

He adds, “Dharmendra too gave such beautiful expressions to Ek hi khwab in Kinara. The song had random breaks, it had prose, it had poetry and even Hema ji (Malini) singing in between.” He further revealed, “Pancham and I, both liked hearing music at full volume, exchanging the latest music records, going around town in his Fiat… We addressed each other with gaalis (abuses). He never praised me openly but if some composition sounded better after I had tweaked it, he’d throw anything he could lay his hands on at me, even a matchbox, to show his appreciation. Sadly, all his producer friends deserted him when he was not doing well. But 1942 – A Love Story made him immortal.”

Late singer Bhupinder Singh spoke to Filmfare in 2016 about classic songs being remixed. Continue reading …Read More