Reference:

Afzal sahib recently posted a message in another thread. I did not want to take away from the main topic of the other thread, so am starting this new thread by copying Afzal sahib's original message. I will then post my reply here.

Afzal sahib's post copied:
................................................................................................................................
Mukarramee,

As you know, I cannot access old threads on my browser.

However, I think you had (previously) posted a more or
less complete list of all participants in our Newsgroup,
including a great many who no longer grace our NG.

****************

Is munaasibat se maiN aap ki KHidmat-e-'aali men ek
filmi gaane ka Havaala dene ki jur'at kar raha hooN.

****************

In 1968, a film was released in India. Its title was
"Saathi". It starred Vyjayanthimala and Rajendra Kumar.
Music was provided by Naestro Naushad Ali Saheb.

Arguably, it was the last movie for which Naushad had
composed the music. To be sure, there was a further
movie later on, starring Govinda, but its songs were
a sort of re-hash of his original songs that had figured
in his previous movies.

****************

"Saathi" had a song based on the classical raag Bhairavi :

MaiN to pyaar se tere piya maaNg sajaauNgi
Tere aNg'na yeh saari 'umariya bitaauNgi

****************

But the film had another song which wold seem quite appropriate
for our purpose --- that is, about those ALUPers who have since
bid "al'vida'" to our NG. :

Jo chala gaya, use bhool ja
Woh na sun sakega tiri sada

Yeh Hayaat to maut ki hai Dagar
Koi KHaak men, koi KHaak par

Yehi jaan le, woh koi na tha
Woh GHubaar tha, tira hum'safar

Use door le ke gayee hawa
Use bhool ja, use bhool ja

Koi iltija, koi baNdagi
Na qaza se haath chhuRa saki

Kiye aad'mi ne baRe jatan
Magar us ke kaam na aa saki

Na koi du'aa, na koi dawa
Jo chala gaya use bhool ja

Hai mujhe bhi GHam kisi yaar ka
Ke looTa nagar mire pyaar ka

Huwa dar~ba'dar maiN to is qadar
Na KHizaaN ka hooN na bahaar ka

Mujhe dekh le mujhe kya mila
Jo chala gaya use bhool ja

Use bhool ja, use bhool ja

Lyrics were penned by MajrooH Sultanpuri.

****************

Afzal

> However, I think you had (previously) posted a more or
> less complete list of all participants in our Newsgroup,
> including a great many who no longer grace our NG.

> Is munaasibat se maiN aap ki KHidmat-e-'aali men ek
> filmi gaane ka Havaala dene ki jur'at kar raha hooN.
>
> ****************

aadaab Afzal sahib,

As I was reading your message, a few things came to mind. Just wanted to jot them down before I lose my thoughts.

> In 1968, a film was released in India. Its title was
> "Saathi". It starred Vyjayanthimala and Rajendra Kumar.
> Music was provided by Naestro Naushad Ali Saheb.

I think I watched the movie "Saathi" on TV once. I remember it also starred Simi Garewal, who still looks amazing after all this years.

> Arguably, it was the last movie for which Naushad had
> composed the music. To be sure, there was a further
> movie later on, starring Govinda, but its songs were
> a sort of re-hash of his original songs that had figured
> in his previous movies.

Afzal sahib, do you remember the name of this Govinda movie? Just curious. Incidentally, I recall that some of composer Madan Mohan's unused tunes were provided by his son Sanjeev Kohli for use in the Yash Chopra movie 'Veer Zara'.

> ****************
> "Saathi" had a song based on the classical raag Bhairavi :
>
> MaiN to pyaar se tere piya maaNg sajaauNgi
> Tere aNg'na yeh saari 'umariya bitaauNgi
The one song from this movie that I have always personally liked is sung by Mukesh:

"husn-e-jaanaaN idhar aa".

> ****************

> But the film had another song which wold seem quite appropriate
> for our purpose --- that is, about those ALUPers who have since
> bid "al'vida'" to our NG. :

I guess I am in my she'r-o-naghmaa mood! However, please allow me to point out a couple of 'vazn' issues before I move on to the asha'ar that this song reminded me of.

> Yeh Hayaat to maut* ki hai Dagar -----> *yeh Hayaat-o-maut .....
> Koi KHaak men, koi KHaak par
> Hai mujhe bhi GHam kisi yaar ka
> Ke looTa* nagar mire pyaar ka ----> *ke luTaa nagar.......
>
> Use bhool ja, use bhool ja
>
> Lyrics were penned by MajrooH Sultanpuri.

> Afzal

Afzal sahib, this song immediately made me think of one of the more popular ghazals written by the eminent poet, my friend Amjad Islam Amjad sahib.

bilkul yahii radiif hai. maiN is vaqt sirf ghazal kaa matl'a aur ek she'r post kar rahii huuN, vaise yeh puurii ghazal hii bahut Khuub hai:

kahaN aa ke rukne the raaste, kahaN moR thaa use bhuul jaa
voh jo mil gayaa use yaad rakh, jo nahiiN milaa use bhuul jaa

voh tire nasiib ki baarisheN kisi aur chhat pe baras gaiiN
dil-e-be_Khabar miri baat sun, use bhuul jaa use bhuul jaa!

And so it goes.......
Great advice, but hard to follow.

_______Zoya

On 4/30/2021 2:24 PM, Zoya wrote:
>
>> However, I think you had (previously) posted a more or
>> less complete list of all participants in our Newsgroup,
>> including a great many who no longer grace our NG.
>
>> Is munaasibat se maiN aap ki KHidmat-e-'aali men ek
>> filmi gaane ka Havaala dene ki jur'at kar raha hooN.
>>
>> ****************
>
> aadaab Afzal sahib,
>
> As I was reading your message, a few things came to mind. Just wanted to jot them down before I lose my thoughts.
>
>> In 1968, a film was released in India. Its title was
>> "Saathi". It starred Vyjayanthimala and Rajendra Kumar.
>> Music was provided by Naestro Naushad Ali Saheb.
>
> I think I watched the movie "Saathi" on TV once. I remember it also starred Simi Garewal, who still looks amazing after all this years.
>
>> Arguably, it was the last movie for which Naushad had
>> composed the music. To be sure, there was a further
>> movie later on, starring Govinda, but its songs were
>> a sort of re-hash of his original songs that had figured
>> in his previous movies.
>
> Afzal sahib, do you remember the name of this Govinda movie? Just curious. Incidentally, I recall that some of composer Madan Mohan's unused tunes were provided by his son Sanjeev Kohli for use in the Yash Chopra movie 'Veer Zara'.
>
>> ****************
>
>> "Saathi" had a song based on the classical raag Bhairavi :
>>
>> MaiN to pyaar se tere piya maaNg sajaauNgi
>> Tere aNg'na yeh saari 'umariya bitaauNgi
>
> The one song from this movie that I have always personally liked is sung by Mukesh:
>
> "husn-e-jaanaaN idhar aa".
>
>> ****************
>
>> But the film had another song which wold seem quite appropriate
>> for our purpose --- that is, about those ALUPers who have since
>> bid "al'vida'" to our NG. :
>
> I guess I am in my she'r-o-naghmaa mood! However, please allow me to point out a couple of 'vazn' issues before I move on to the asha'ar that this song reminded me of.
>
>> Yeh Hayaat to maut* ki hai Dagar -----> *yeh Hayaat-o-maut .....
>> Koi KHaak men, koi KHaak par
>
>> Hai mujhe bhi GHam kisi yaar ka
>> Ke looTa* nagar mire pyaar ka ----> *ke luTaa nagar.......
>>
>> Use bhool ja, use bhool ja
>>
>> Lyrics were penned by MajrooH Sultanpuri.
>
>> Afzal
>
> Afzal sahib, this song immediately made me think of one of the more popular ghazals written by the eminent poet, my friend Amjad Islam Amjad sahib.
>
> bilkul yahii radiif hai. maiN is vaqt sirf ghazal kaa matl'a aur ek she'r post kar rahii huuN, vaise yeh puurii ghazal hii bahut Khuub hai:
>
> kahaN aa ke rukne the raaste, kahaN moR thaa use bhuul jaa
> voh jo mil gayaa use yaad rakh, jo nahiiN milaa use bhuul jaa
>
> voh tire nasiib ki baarisheN kisi aur chhat pe baras gaiiN
> dil-e-be_Khabar miri baat sun, use bhuul jaa use bhuul jaa!
>
> And so it goes.......
> Great advice, but hard to follow.
>
> _______Zoya

Z. S.

{Warning : Long Rambling Post}

The name of the Govinda movie was, I think, "Teri Paayal
Mere Geet". His co-star was Meenakshi Seshadri. It was
released towards the end of 1993.

Mohammed Rafi had passed away in July 1980. So, it was
S.P. Balasubramanyam who gave his voice for Govinda.

Sadly, this gifted singer (who had sung numerous songs
for Salman Khan) died recently due to Covid.

****************

Actually, I had posted references to two movies (and one song
from each) with reference to the unexpressed or perhaps latent
sadness of our worthy friend Naseer Saheb about so many ex-ALUpers
who are no longer active in our NG. Quite possibly (and it is with
great sorrow that I am writing this), one or two may have passed
on. Maybe Mirza Fuzuli Saheb was one of them. Also, I wonder what
happened to Shri Anil Kala. He too has disappeared. I hope he is
safe and happy.

****************

What I meant to convey to Naseer Saheb was simply that we should
make do with whoever is still participating in our NG. The two songs
from "AaKHri Daao" and "Saathi" were the "medium" through which this
humble message from me was conveyed.

****************

You have mentione Simi Grewal. I don't know why. Perhaps because
she too professes the Sikh faith.

She did star in the above film {"Saathi"} and also got the Filmfare
Award for the Best Supporting Actress. It was an author-backed role.
She got another Supporting Actress Award for "Do Badan", where Manoj
Kumar played the male lead. That too was an author-backed role.

I shall write a little more about her, a while later, in this post.

****************

This film "Saathi" had another actress in a minor role. Her filmi
name was Shabnam. She was the "discovery" of Music Director and
Producer Hemant Kumar. I believe her first film was "Faraar" which
was made in 1965. And Shabnam. as the leading lady, was paired
opposite a fine Bengali actor Anil Chatterjee in that film. The
latter is now no more.

This actress Shabnam had a quick fall from stardom and soon became
a non-entity.

She was originally from Hyderabad (Deccan). I believe her mother
was Muslim and her father was hindu. Her original name was
Khursheed Ramaiyyah. She was a medical student and was in her
third year of medical studies, when filmdom beckoned.

Next year, 1966, she was cast in another movie "Biwi Aur Makaan",
that was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and music was composed by
Hemant Kumar. Sadly, both these great film personalities are no
more.

****************

This film {"Biwi Aur Makan"} starred Biswajeet Chatterjee and Mehmood
along with Shabnam and Kalpana (who began her career opposite Shammi
Kapoor in "Professor", a 1962 film.

This film {"Biwi Aur Makaan"} had a very melodious song which was
penned, I think, by Gulzar :

Dabe laboN se kabhi jo hoi salaam le le

MaiN aasmaaN ki tarah se gooNjooN, jo naam le le

Excellent orchestration. Worth a listen.

****************

I don't know if this actress (Shabnam) is still around.
Kalpana, I think, is no more.

****************

And now, back to Simi Grewal........

I believe her first film was "Son of India" that was released
around December 1962. It was made by the late Mehboob Khan.

Earlier, he had made the colossal hit "Mother India" in 1957.
In the 1962 film, he cast his adopted son Sajid in the title role.
The film failed abysmally at the Box Office.

The film's leading lady was Kumkum. Music was provided by Syed
Naushad Ali Saheb. It had a fine song, again based on Raag
Bhairavi :

Diya na bujhe ri aaj hamaara
chale ri pawan --- sananan sanan
Thar thar kaaNpe jiya ra

The leading man was Kamaljeet whose first film, I think, was
"Shagoon". His co-star was Waheeda Rehman. Kamaljeet, I believe,
was also a Sikh. Waheeda Rehman eventually married him in 1974.
He passed away in 2000. They had two children. Waheeda Rehman
lives in Bengaluru these days. It was reported that, at the insist-
ence of WR, Kamaljeet converted to Islam and his new name was
perhaps Saleem. One doesn't really know.

****************

IIRC, Simi Grewal had also acted in this film "Shagoon".
Kamaljeet's name in the movie was perhaps Kishore.

****************

BTW, I had seen Simi at close quarters at some filmi function in
1965. IIRC, the function was on the occasion of the release of
a Dev Anand film "Teen Devian".

****************

Simi used to host a TV programme "Rendezvous", where she interviewed
personalities from different fields. I remember one such programme
where she had interviewed the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister
Jayalalitha.

****************

Simi had also acted in two films where there was considerable
controversy over certain 'bold' scenes.

One was an American film-maker Conrad Rooks' film "Siddhartha" ---
released in 1972.

The other was Satyajit Ray's film "Aranyer Din Ratri", released the
next year, 1973.

On Saturday, May 1, 2021 at 11:41:10 AM UTC-5, Afzal A. Khan wrote:.

> {Warning : Long Rambling Post}

Afzal sahib,

Warning: Long Rambling Reply :)

Thanks for the detailed response. I am ok with rambling, in fact I myself have occasionally been guilty of indulging in it!

> The name of the Govinda movie was, I think, "Teri Paayal
> Mere Geet". His co-star was Meenakshi Seshadri. It was
> released towards the end of 1993.

Hmm, I don't remember anything about this movie, not even the title. Will check out the songs. Thanks.

> Mohammed Rafi had passed away in July 1980. So, it was
> S.P. Balasubramanyam who gave his voice for Govinda.
> Sadly, this gifted singer (who had sung numerous songs
> for Salman Khan) died recently due to Covid.

Very sad. S.P. was indeed a very gifted singer, huge loss.
> ****************
> Actually, I had posted references to two movies (and one song
> from each) with reference to the unexpressed or perhaps latent
> sadness of our worthy friend Naseer Saheb about so many ex-ALUpers
> who are no longer active in our NG. Quite possibly (and it is with
> great sorrow that I am writing this), one or two may have passed
> on. Maybe Mirza Fuzuli Saheb was one of them. Also, I wonder what
> happened to Shri Anil Kala. He too has disappeared. I hope he is
> safe and happy.

I don't think I ever had any interaction with Mirza Fuzuli sahib, maybe he was active before my tenure on Alup. However, I too have been wondering about Anil Kala sahib. He was a constant on Alup for a long time and I always enjoyed his 'musings' and other contributions, hopefully he is doing all right. Another long time member about whose extended absence I have been a little concerned about is Vijay Kumar sahib, hope all is well with him.

I try to check with Sarwar sahib regularly. He has been dealing with some health issues, I worry about him. Sometimes I start crying when I talk to him, he has always been very kind and generous towards most group members, me in particular.

Well, that is life though. The pandemic has reinforced that fact that everything is transient. Change is the only constant.

> What I meant to convey to Naseer Saheb was simply that we should
> make do with whoever is still participating in our NG. The two songs
> from "AaKHri Daao" and "Saathi" were the "medium" through which this
> humble message from me was conveyed.

I don't think you mentioned the 'Aakhri Daao' song here, maybe it was a different thread?
> You have mentione Simi Grewal. I don't know why. Perhaps because
> she too professes the Sikh faith.

Perhaps. For some reason, Simi's name came to my mind even before Vaijanti mala's when I thought of the movie 'Saathi'.

> She did star in the above film {"Saathi"} and also got the Filmfare
> Award for the Best Supporting Actress. It was an author-backed role.
> She got another Supporting Actress Award for "Do Badan", where Manoj
> Kumar played the male lead. That too was an author-backed role.

I watched 'do badan' on TV a long time ago. It is a pretty gloomy movie. I recall Asha Parikh singing the sad song 'jab chali ThhanDi hava' fairly early in the movie.
> ****************
> This film "Saathi" had another actress in a minor role. Her filmi
> name was Shabnam. She was the "discovery" of Music Director and
> Producer Hemant Kumar. I believe her first film was "Faraar" which
> was made in 1965. And Shabnam. as the leading lady, was paired
> opposite a fine Bengali actor Anil Chatterjee in that film. The
> latter is now no more.

> This actress Shabnam had a quick fall from stardom and soon became
> a non-entity.

> She was originally from Hyderabad (Deccan). I believe her mother
> was Muslim and her father was hindu. Her original name was
> Khursheed Ramaiyyah. She was a medical student and was in her
> third year of medical studies, when filmdom beckoned.

Never heard of Shabnam, not even her name.

> Next year, 1966, she was cast in another movie "Biwi Aur Makaan",
> that was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and music was composed by
> Hemant Kumar. Sadly, both these great film personalities are no
> more.

> ****************
> This film {"Biwi Aur Makan"} starred Biswajeet Chatterjee and Mehmood
> along with Shabnam and Kalpana (who began her career opposite Shammi
> Kapoor in "Professor", a 1962 film.
>
> This film {"Biwi Aur Makaan"} had a very melodious song which was
> penned, I think, by Gulzar :
>
> Dabe laboN se kabhi jo hoi salaam le le
> MaiN aasmaaN ki tarah se gooNjooN, jo naam le le
>
> Excellent orchestration. Worth a listen.

Thanks Afzal sahib, I listened to this song for the first time yesterday. A rare Lata and Asha duet, very melodious as you said.

> ****************
> I don't know if this actress (Shabnam) is still around.
> Kalpana, I think, is no more.
I think we have talked about 'Professor' previously and I had actually asked you about Kalpana. This was one of those old movies screened in the auditorium on the University campus I grew up in. I watched it as a child and still remember most of it clearly. Even now, I can visualize Shammi Kapoor singing 'khuli palak meN jhuuTaa ghussa'! Intersting how we retain some of the childhood visuals but lose others.

> ****************
> And now, back to Simi Grewal........
>
> I believe her first film was "Son of India" that was released
> around December 1962. It was made by the late Mehboob Khan.
>
> Earlier, he had made the colossal hit "Mother India" in 1957.
> In the 1962 film, he cast his adopted son Sajid in the title role.
> The film failed abysmally at the Box Office.

> The film's leading lady was Kumkum. Music was provided by Syed
> Naushad Ali Saheb. It had a fine song, again based on Raag
> Bhairavi :

> Diya na bujhe ri aaj hamaara
> chale ri pawan --- sananan sanan
> Thar thar kaaNpe jiya ra

Never saw 'Son of India', but watched 'Mother India' on big screen in a Ludhiana theater when it was rereleased many years later. True classic.

> The leading man was Kamaljeet whose first film, I think, was
> "Shagoon". His co-star was Waheeda Rehman. Kamaljeet, I believe,
> was also a Sikh. Waheeda Rehman eventually married him in 1974.
> He passed away in 2000. They had two children. Waheeda Rehman
> lives in Bengaluru these days. It was reported that, at the insist-
> ence of WR, Kamaljeet converted to Islam and his new name was
> perhaps Saleem. One doesn't really know.

> IIRC, Simi Grewal had also acted in this film "Shagoon".
> Kamaljeet's name in the movie was perhaps Kishore.

Kamaljeet's real name was Shashi Rekhi. I have not seen 'Shagoon', but this movie contains one of my all time favorite duets, written by Sahir:

"parbatoN ke peRoN par shaam kaa basera hai". Exquisite lyrics. I really love this song.

> ****************
> BTW, I had seen Simi at close quarters at some filmi function in
> 1965. IIRC, the function was on the occasion of the release of
> a Dev Anand film "Teen Devian".

I have watched some songs from this movie on TV. Sounds like a fun movie.

> ****************
> Simi used to host a TV programme "Rendezvous", where she interviewed
> personalities from different fields. I remember one such programme
> where she had interviewed the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister
> Jayalalitha.

Yes. She always wore white outfits as the host and looked very classy. I have seen reruns of some of the episodes.

> ****************
> Simi had also acted in two films where there was considerable
> controversy over certain 'bold' scenes.

> One was an American film-maker Conrad Rooks' film "Siddhartha" ---
> released in 1972.
>
> The other was Satyajit Ray's film "Aranyer Din Ratri", released the
> next year, 1973.
>
> I had seen both these films when they were originally released.
>
> But, today, if you see the two films, you may not, perhaps, be able
> to see those 'bold' scenes. I think they have been completely
> deleted from the two films.

I have heard about Simi's 'Siddhartha' controversy, but not about Satyajit Ray movie. Haven't seen either one.

> Afzal

Afzal sahib, now I want to share something special with you. During our phone conversation yesterday, my dad (in Ludhiana) told me that he had just finished watching a 1937 movie on YouTube, "duniya na maane". That's even before his time! He really loved it and narrated the story to me. He mentioned the leading lady's last name as Ms Apte, did not remember the full name.

I told my dad that I will definitely discuss this with my Alup friend Afzal sahib, and bet that you will be able to give us more info about this movie and its actors. Do you know anything about it? If yes, please share, I would love to pass on your comments to my dad.