It’s near impossible to think of Hindi movies without music. Whether it’s taking the story forward, becoming the perfect dance number, or defining the soul of the film, music is intrinsic to most Hindi movies.
But, there’s a lot that goes behind making the perfect score. Here are some of the most amazing, crazy, unbelievable stories from the world of Hindi music industry:
1. Lata Mangeshkar sang the song Pyar Kiya Toh Darna Kya, from Mughal-e-Azam, in three different places to create the ‘echo effect’.
Mughal-e-Azam released in 1960, at a time when we did not have the technology to create an ‘echo effect’ like the kind used in the song Pyar Kiya Toh Darna Kya. The only way to create that effect was to record the song at different places, and overlap the recordings – which is exactly what music director Naushad ji had Lata Mangeshkar do.
Though certain rumors suggest that Naushad ji made Lata Mangeshkar sing the song from a bathroom, she has repeatedly denied the rumor.
There is a false mythology surrounding my rendition of Pyar kiya toh darna kya . That Naushad Saab and I got the echo effect in the song by making me sing in the bathroom of the recording room. No such thing happened. During those days when songs were recorded with a huge live orchestra, the studios were stuffy enough. Singing from the bathroom would have been impossible.
-Lata Mangeshkar to IWM Buzz
2. Agar Tum Saath Ho, from Tamasha, was not the original song that A.R. Rahman composed for the situation/scene in the film.
In Film Companion’s Inside A Scene series, director Imtiaz Ali shared that the scene had already been shot with a different song (since there is little to no lip-sync) when A.R. Rahman suggested a different track. And that’s how Agar Tum Saath Ho came to be.
It was the fourth song, that ultimately became the final track. Deepika Padukone, in fact, loves the other (unreleased) song far more than Agar Tum Saath Ho.
3. The song Chhi Chha Ledar, from Gangs of Wasseypur, was sung by Durga, a child artist who sings in trains in Mumbai.
In order to ensure authenticity, music director Sneha Khanwalkar discovered multiple regional artists, visiting small villages and towns to create the perfect sound. And thus, each song in the film actually has a story behind it.
Like MP Manoj Tiwari has sung a song for the film, Bihar Ke Lala. And the tune of O Womaniya was composed on the spot, with Varun Grover immediately penning the lyrics, once Sneha finalized a singer.
The film won the National Film Award for the Best Audiography and has 27 songs, co-written by Varun Grover and Piyush Mishra.
4. Director Aditya Chopra rejected at least 50 mukhdas by lyricist Anand Bakshi, before finalizing the lyrics for the song Mere Khwabon Mein Jo Aaye.
5. Renowned lyricist Gulzar confessed that the lyrics, especially then opening lines, for the famous dance-number, Kajra Re from Bunty Aur Babli, were actually inspired by the quirky, funny quotes written on the trucks.
6. Music director Amit Trivedi composed six songs of Dev.D, including Duniya, Paayaliya, Dhol Yaara Dhol, and Nayan Tarse, even before he had read the script.
It took Trivedi 6 months, after his first meeting with director Anurag Kashyap, to compose the first six songs for the film. During the same time, Kashyap worked on the script for the film. Before this, Kashyap had only given Trivedi an idea of how he wanted to adapt the story of Devdas.
In the same interview with The MJ Show, Amit Trivedi also confessed that Nayan Tarse was his favourite track from the film. Amit Trivedi won the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for Dev.D.
7. The Dil Chahta Hai album was composed in just 3.5 days, and the recording was completed in three weeks.
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy composed the music for one of the most defining sounds of the 2000s – Dil Chahta Hai. The trio, along with lyricist Javed Akhtar, director Farhan Akhtar, and producer Ritesh Sidhwani went to Khandala and finalized six songs in three and a half days.
8. Vishal Bhardwaj had composed the tune of the song Jhelum in the year 1985, after the demise of his father. The tune was used in 2014, in his film Haider.
In the film, the song plays in a similar situation. Haider (Shahid Kapoor) has been searching for his lost father, captured by the police, only to discover that he actually passed away in captivity.
9. Abhay Deol was very reluctant to sing Senorita from Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. Music composers Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy ‘tricked’ him into singing a rough draft, which they ultimately used in the final composition.
The director Zoya Akhtar wanted all three actors to sing the song themselves but Farhan was the only singer among the three. And the other two actors, Hrithik and Abhay, had to be convinced to record the song.
The song also marked the film debut of Spanish flamenco singer Maria del Mar Fernández, who performed the Spanish vocals for the song.
10. Music composer Sneha Khanwalkar attended an all-night Ragini competition to discover the singer and sound for the song, Tu Raja Ki Raj Dulari, from Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!. The song has been sung by two young boys.
Director Dibakar Banerjee had heard the song 10 years before he made the film, but he was adamant that it should be a part of the film. The song is a type of folk Haryanvi song (Ragini).
Thus, music composer Sneha Khanwalkar went to Haryana and attended an all-night Ragini competition where only men participated and created music in unconventional ways, using tyre tubes, tying matkas with rubbers, etc.
That’s where she discovered her singers, adolescent boys – one of whom was aged 12 at the time.
It was a similar trip to the inner lands of Punjab that allowed her to discover singer Des Raj Lakhani, who ultimately sang the song Jugni for the film.
11. The song Zinda, from Lootera, was originally composed for the scene where Shikayatein plays.
After hearing the song, director Vikramaditya Motwane told Amitabh Bhattacharya that the lyrics work better for the climax. It was thus recomposed and restructured, though the melody remained the same.
Also, the opening lines (and thus, the thought behind the song), was actually provided by composer Amit Trivedi, and lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya then completed the song. The song has also been sung by Amit Trivedi.
12. The song For Aisha, from The Sky Is Pink, was composed by Aisha Chaudhary’s elder brother, Ishaan Chaudhary. It took him a year to create the song.
The Sky Is Pink was based on the life of inspirational speaker and author Aisha Chaudhary, who passed away at the age of 18 because of pulmonary fibrosis.
It’s not easy getting the perfect score!