Mohammad Rafi(1924-1980)
- Music Artist
- Music Department
- Actor
Mohammed Rafi, whose voice brought to life hundreds of melodies, was
born in a village Kotla Sultan Singh near Amritsar long before India
attained its independence. But music training beckoned him to Lahore
where he cut his musical teeth under the hawk-like eye of Ustad Ghulam
Ali Khan. He made his singing debut in the Punjabi film Gul baloch by
rendering a duet with Zeenat Begum, 'Soniye Ni Heeriye Ni' composed by
Shyamsunder.
Wadia Movietone was a prominent film company and it was Homi Wadia who
saw the talent in Mohammed Rafi and insisted that he sing for his
forthcoming film Sharbati Ankhen under the Music directorship of Feroz
Nizami. The voice of Mohammed Rafi encompassed a tremendous range,
which is unparalleled. The peculiar trait that separates a playback
singer from a classical vocalist is not the range or ability as a
singer but the voice quality. With Mohammed Rafi it was the ultimate
combination that helped him reign supreme in the field of playback
singing. His voice quality combined with his unsurpassed range made him
stand apart from his contemporaries.
His voice suited any genre of music be it a moving ghazal like Aap Ke
Pehloo Main Aakar Ro Diye, a plaintive bhajan like O Duniya Ke
Rakhawale, or a wild and whacky Shanker-Jaikishan composition like
Chahe Koi Mujhe Jungle Kahe. Mohammed Rafi added his delectable nuances
to the melody and made it immortal. His voice had this unique feature
of screen adaptability and when it merged with his intelligence as a
singer it helped him to tailor his voice across an array of faces that
remain entrenched in our memory books. Comedian Johnny Walker had a
voice that was queerly rounded. Mohammed Rafi's take on him was
phenomenal in songs like Sar Jo Tera Chakraye under S D Burman in Pyasa
and Aye Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yaha from CID. Mohammed Rafi managed to
sound exactly like Johnny Walker would if he sang the song himself.
Rafi summoned Johnny Walker a day or two prior to the song
picturization and then contributed his bit to add to the character
Johnny Walker played on screen.
Honestly speaking it would not be in any way an overstatement to say
that heroes like Biswajit (Pukarta chala hoon main), Bharat Bhushan
(Zindagi Bhar Nahin Bhoolegi Woh Barsaat Ki Raat), Joy Mukherjee (Bade
Miyan Deewane) are remembered more for the songs that were picturised
on them with Rafi lending his golden voice to their average acting
abilities.
Mohammed Rafi was known for his altruistic behavior, which was
exhibited on several occasions. He has been known to charge just a
token amount as his fees for singing songs of Music Directors who could
not afford his regular charges. Many a times Mohammed Rafi has sung
songs without charging a single penny to the Music Directors. A case in
point is the film Aap ke Deewane with which actor Rakesh Roshan began
his phase as a Producer-Director. Rafi sang the title song of the film
but did not charge any money because he felt that he liked the song a
lot and after all it was only a line, which he had to render. Very few
singers were known to be so good at heart. This innate goodness in him
came to the fore when he sang most of his songs.
In his glorious career Mohammed Rafi won the coveted Filmfare Award of
best playback singer no less than six times. He was also decorated with
the Padmashri by the Government of India. With the advent of Kishore
Kumar as a major singing sensation Rafi sahab's career received a
slight jolt in the late 60s and the early 70s but he bounced back with
verve in films like Sargam, Karz, Hum Kisise Kam Nahin, Poonam and his
last song under the baton of Laxmikant-Pyarelal for the film Aas Paas.
He succumbed to the dreaded heart-attack on the 31st of July 1980
-ironically the man was a teetotaler and a non- smoker. He was in his
mid fifties.
His funeral procession was one of the largest that the city of Mumbai
has ever witnessed. The world of Music lost one of its brightest
luminaries on 31st July 1980 but his melodious voice still stops music
lovers in their tracks. Notable Films: Aar Paar, Baiju Bawra, Barsat Ki
Raat, Dosti, Ek Musafir Ek Haseena, Hum Dono, Pyasa, Shaheed, Teesri
Manzil
born in a village Kotla Sultan Singh near Amritsar long before India
attained its independence. But music training beckoned him to Lahore
where he cut his musical teeth under the hawk-like eye of Ustad Ghulam
Ali Khan. He made his singing debut in the Punjabi film Gul baloch by
rendering a duet with Zeenat Begum, 'Soniye Ni Heeriye Ni' composed by
Shyamsunder.
Wadia Movietone was a prominent film company and it was Homi Wadia who
saw the talent in Mohammed Rafi and insisted that he sing for his
forthcoming film Sharbati Ankhen under the Music directorship of Feroz
Nizami. The voice of Mohammed Rafi encompassed a tremendous range,
which is unparalleled. The peculiar trait that separates a playback
singer from a classical vocalist is not the range or ability as a
singer but the voice quality. With Mohammed Rafi it was the ultimate
combination that helped him reign supreme in the field of playback
singing. His voice quality combined with his unsurpassed range made him
stand apart from his contemporaries.
His voice suited any genre of music be it a moving ghazal like Aap Ke
Pehloo Main Aakar Ro Diye, a plaintive bhajan like O Duniya Ke
Rakhawale, or a wild and whacky Shanker-Jaikishan composition like
Chahe Koi Mujhe Jungle Kahe. Mohammed Rafi added his delectable nuances
to the melody and made it immortal. His voice had this unique feature
of screen adaptability and when it merged with his intelligence as a
singer it helped him to tailor his voice across an array of faces that
remain entrenched in our memory books. Comedian Johnny Walker had a
voice that was queerly rounded. Mohammed Rafi's take on him was
phenomenal in songs like Sar Jo Tera Chakraye under S D Burman in Pyasa
and Aye Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yaha from CID. Mohammed Rafi managed to
sound exactly like Johnny Walker would if he sang the song himself.
Rafi summoned Johnny Walker a day or two prior to the song
picturization and then contributed his bit to add to the character
Johnny Walker played on screen.
Honestly speaking it would not be in any way an overstatement to say
that heroes like Biswajit (Pukarta chala hoon main), Bharat Bhushan
(Zindagi Bhar Nahin Bhoolegi Woh Barsaat Ki Raat), Joy Mukherjee (Bade
Miyan Deewane) are remembered more for the songs that were picturised
on them with Rafi lending his golden voice to their average acting
abilities.
Mohammed Rafi was known for his altruistic behavior, which was
exhibited on several occasions. He has been known to charge just a
token amount as his fees for singing songs of Music Directors who could
not afford his regular charges. Many a times Mohammed Rafi has sung
songs without charging a single penny to the Music Directors. A case in
point is the film Aap ke Deewane with which actor Rakesh Roshan began
his phase as a Producer-Director. Rafi sang the title song of the film
but did not charge any money because he felt that he liked the song a
lot and after all it was only a line, which he had to render. Very few
singers were known to be so good at heart. This innate goodness in him
came to the fore when he sang most of his songs.
In his glorious career Mohammed Rafi won the coveted Filmfare Award of
best playback singer no less than six times. He was also decorated with
the Padmashri by the Government of India. With the advent of Kishore
Kumar as a major singing sensation Rafi sahab's career received a
slight jolt in the late 60s and the early 70s but he bounced back with
verve in films like Sargam, Karz, Hum Kisise Kam Nahin, Poonam and his
last song under the baton of Laxmikant-Pyarelal for the film Aas Paas.
He succumbed to the dreaded heart-attack on the 31st of July 1980
-ironically the man was a teetotaler and a non- smoker. He was in his
mid fifties.
His funeral procession was one of the largest that the city of Mumbai
has ever witnessed. The world of Music lost one of its brightest
luminaries on 31st July 1980 but his melodious voice still stops music
lovers in their tracks. Notable Films: Aar Paar, Baiju Bawra, Barsat Ki
Raat, Dosti, Ek Musafir Ek Haseena, Hum Dono, Pyasa, Shaheed, Teesri
Manzil