A voice that lives on
If a voice blender-mixer existed, an ardent music enthusiast like myself would be tempted to combine the best of all worlds. Imagine blending the rich, nasal baritone of Kundan Lal Saigal with the dulcet tones of Hemant Kumar. Add a touch of Talat Mahmood's velvety smoothness, a dash of Manna Dey's classical flair, and finally, the deeply emotional depth of Mukesh. The resulting concoction? Undoubtedly, the one and only, the legendary singer with the soul-stirring voice – Mohammed Rafi.
Rafi’s singing career spanned four decades, during which time, he recorded, a guesstimated 25,000 songs, a feat matched only by Lata Mangeshkar.
Thomas Carlyle said that music is well said to be the speech of angels, in fact, nothing among the utterances allowed to man is felt to be so divine. It brings us closer to the Infinite. I couldn’t agree more.
Is it a wonder then that in Rafi’s vocal cords, there is a strong presence of pristine purity that reflects the divinity within. His voice can crack up a savage heart, while it can soothe weary souls. The softness of his voice refined the compositions of the numerous music directors, he sang for.
Rafi’s voice continues to be a euphoric opiate, for his millions of fans across geographies, generations and cultures. His voice is a constant source of comfort, whether he's singing joyous geets, soulful ghazals, powerful qawwalis, devotional bhajans, or uplifting naats. A man of faith, his voice embodies the same reverence and serenity.
Rafi's songs act as a bridge between past and present, and transcend time. A single note can transport us back to a cherished moment, a forgotten memory brought vividly to life.
A legend was born
Only 13, Rafi found himself in Lahore at an All-India cultural festival. A power cut had frustrated the crowd, who were eagerly awaiting the legendary K.L. Saigal. To calm the restless audience, Rafi was called upon to perform as an interregnum act.
Rafi mesmerised the crowd with his singing, the frustrated energy was replaced by rapt attention and thunderous applause. They craved more. Unbeknownst to Rafi, the legendary K.L. Saigal, whose performance had been delayed by the power outage, was also listening backstage. Hearing Rafi's raw talent, Saigal is said to have remarked, "This young man will one day become a big singer."
Rafi came from an orthodox family that considered music as an evil; hence it was frowned upon. But with his brothers’ encouragement, he started learning music under the tutelage of Ustad Barkat Ali Khan, the younger brother of Ustad Barray Ghulam Ali Khan.
When Rafi had sung in public the first time, Shayam Sunder, a renowned music director was present in Lahore. He invited Rafi to Bombay and gave him the first playback opportunity, to sing a duet with Zeenat Begum in 1941.
The same year the legendary music director Naushad gave Rafi a chance to be part of a chorus for a song in Pehle Aap (1944) Their initial encounter sparked a bond that would only be broken by death years later. Rafi went on to collaborate extensively with Naushad, singing a total of 149 songs for him, 81 of them being solo numbers.
Turning point
Rafi's big break finally arrived in 1946. The renowned composer Feroze Nizami offered him to sing a duet alongside the Madam Noor Jehan for Jugnu (1947), a film she also starred in with Dilip Kumar. The duet Yahan Badla Wafa Ka with Noor Jehan became an instant hit. From then on, for the next four decades, he reigned supreme on the airwaves.
Rafi sang for all the top actors of his era, with his amazing knack and control to modulate his voice to match with the character/actor upon whom the song was shot. In Ram aur Shayam (1967), he sang Aaj Ki Raat Mere Dil Ki Salami Lele for the romantic Dilip Kumar. When one compares his song Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaye (Pyaasa 1957) picturised on Guru Dutt, one finds a different tonality representing the yearnings of a distressed soul.
Rafi sang 190 songs for Shammi Kapoor; 155 for Johnny Walker, 129 for Shashi Kapoor, 114 for Dharmendra, 115 for Dev Anand and only 77 for Dilip Kumar. Naushad thought that it was Talat’s voice that suited Dilip Kumar most, while, O.P. Nayyar thought otherwise and gave Rafi Maang Ke Saath Tumhara for Naya Daur (1957).
To ensure the perfect capture of the song and nuances on the screen, Shammi and Shashi Kapoor would attend all his song recordings if they were to be picturised on them. For An Evening in Paris(1967) , Shankar-Jaikishan recorded the song in Shammi’s absence. On his return to Bombay, Shammi insisted on re-recording to which Rafi had no issues. “I look at Shammi and decide how he would deliver the lyrics/ melody,” said Rafi. The re-recorded result was Aasman Se Aya Farishta, an instant hit!
The only time, Rafi took a back seat was when, Kishore Kumar became the playback voice for Rajesh Khanna even though, Rafi did the hit song Yeh Reshmi Zulfein (Do Raaste 1969) for Khanna.
Both Rafi and Kishore are legends and cannot be compared. They respected each other greatly and sang some hit duets too, their last being Yaadon Ki Baraat Nikli Hai (Yaadon Ki Baaraat 1973). Rafi also sang duets with Manna Dey and Talat Mahmood — Gham Ki Andheri Raat (Sushila 1963) being a personal favourite.
Rafi is credited with bringing a new style and expression to playback singing. His voice became a patent for Biswajeet, Rajendra Kumar, Jeetendra or Dharmendra. You could listen to a song and figure exactly who it was picturised on. His voice even perfectly fitted the late Rishi Kapoor (only 27 at the time), as in Dafali Wale Dafali Baja for Sargam (1979).
For Shankar Jaikishen, Rafi sang 341 songs, 149 for Naushad, 379 for Laxmikant-Pyarelal, 170 for Kalyandji-Anandji, and for O.P. Nayyar, he sang 197 of which 56 were solo. Madan Mohan was a Rafi loyalist, and gave him amazing songs such as Baad Muddat ke ye gharri ayi (Jahan Ara 1964) and Aap Ko Pyaar Chhupaane Kee Buree Aadat Hai (Neela Akash 1965).
Interestingly, the music duo Kalyandji-Anandji, weren’t associated with any known actor, as other music directors were, but they got Rafi to sing their best compositions such as Pardesiyon Se Na Ankhiyan Milana (Jab Jab Phool Khile 1965), Akele Hain Chale Aao (Raaz 1967) filmed on Rajesh Khanna. For Haseena Maan Jayegi (1969), Rafi sang soulful Bekhudi Mein Sanam and the lilting Chale Thay Saath Milke.
Those actors who weren’t in Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand’s league, owed their screen presence and success to Rafi— the unforgettable, Pukarta Chala Hoon Mein (Mere Sanam 1965) on Biswajeet, Aap Ke Pahloo Mein Aakar (Mera Saaya 1966) on Sunil Dutt, Zindagi Bhar Nahin Bhoolegi (Barsaat Ki Raat 1960) on Bharat Bhushan, Barre Miya Deewane (Shagird 1967) on Joy Mukheerji, and Zulfon Ko Hatale Chehre Se (Sawan Ki Ghata 1966) on Manoj Kumar.
Finally, the award-winning duet Jo Wada Kiya Woh Nibhana Parrega (Taj Mahal 1963) with Lata filmed filmed on Pradeep Kumar and Bina Rai. This was the first duet recorded after the patch up with Lata after a dispute over royalties.
During the dispute, Suman Kalyanpur replaced Lata and some amazing duets emerged such as Agar Teri Jalwa Numai, Dil Ki Kitab Kori,
Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya, Itna Hai Tumse Pyar
Ke Jaan Chali Jaye and more.
The swinging sixties belonged entirely to Mohammed Rafi. He belted out superb renditions of the many music directors, who got fame through him — O.P. Nayyar was an incomplete music director without Rafi. If Guru Dutt gave him opportunities, in return Rafi lent his voice to Dutt’s success. In 1954, Guru Dutt released Aar Paar, followed by Mr & Mrs 55, both resounding musical hits. Dil Pe Hua Aisa Jadoo and Mohabbat Karlo Ji Bharlo remained on the charts for a long time. For CID, O.P. Nayyar created hits like Aankhon Hi Aankhon Mein Ishara Hogaya and the likes of Lekke Pehla Pehla Pyar.
When the lead Dev Anand heard Lekke Pehla Pehla Pyar, a duet with Asha Bhonsle, he couldn’t wait to shoot the song and was heartbroken to find out from Dutt who hesitated to tell him that it was to be picturised on a street singer while Dev and Dev and Shakila were to walk along the promenade at Juhu sea front.
Several other O.P. Nayyar-Rafi films did that did exceedingly well at the box office because of the music — Ek Musafir Ek Haseena, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Mere Sanam , Kashmir ki kali (Deewana Hua Badal is an all-time favourite), etc.
Rafi respected his fellow singers, and made new comers like Sharada very comfortable. He sang four hundred duets with Lata; 900 with Asha Bhonsle, and over 100 with Suman Kalyanpur. Of the overall 2000 duets he rendered, about 7% were with Geeta Dutt and roughly 6% with Shamshad Akhtar. Sharmila Tagore and Saira Bano also sang with Rafi.
Among the accolades and awards, he received, Rafi was Singer of the Millennium in a Stardust magazine poll, included in the list of the Greatest Indian after Gandhi in a CNN-IBN poll, his song Baharon Phool Barsao was voted the most popular Hindi song in a BBC-Asia Network poll commemorating 100 years of Hindi Cinema. He won the prestigious Filmfare Award for six times, with Kishore bagging two more awards, but then he got seven more years of singing until 1987.
It is extremely difficult, in fact next to impossible to prepare a favourite playlist of Rafi, as all his songs are unique and different, with individual appeal.
Rafi sahib passed away on 31st July, 1980 at a relatively young age; at 56. Forty-four years down the road, his voice remains on the airwaves, as the young and old hum and sing his songs to mark happy and sad moments. At this point his epic song, Abhi Na Jay Chorr Kar, Ke Dil Abhi Bhara Nahin inevitably comes to mind. Yes, Rafi sahib, dil abhi bhara nahin [the heart is not fulfilled yet].
Sirajuddin Aziz is a freelance contributor.
All facts and information are the sole responsibility of the writer