Yahan Badla Wafa Ka ..... Jugnu (1946)
This was the most popular song of my young days and was my favourite too ,though I could appreciate it being sung by almost everybody in those days including Balakrishnettan , who sang Hindi songs rather very nicely , because , he knew Hindi from the navy.
I don't think that all those who sang it had the faintest idea of it's meaning .
The lyrics used to come printed in Malayalam script in a booklet distributed along with cinema notices by the van / bullock cart coming to advertise it's show in nearby cinema talkies ( the one in Cherpulacherry had leaking thatched roof when it rained ) .
We used to collect the freely distributed printed song books and the printed leaflets containing the cinema story which always stopped short of the most critical part of the story with the words " the rest , come and see on the silver screen " .
The songs played on gramophone records playing from inside the vehicle, were blared loudly thru the mikes fitted on the van or bullock cart with big colourful advertisement boards fitted on both sides of the vehicle , exciting the crowd stopping to collect the notices and song books .
The junta went to see the cinema on the strength of the lilting music , to hear it being sung on the silver screen for it's full enjoyment and , in context , with appropriate actions ( just waving of hands, twisting of eyebrows, etc only from mostly a stationery position ) by the actor and actress. If the heroine or the hero move around too much while singing , the camera technology and the lighting arrangements wouldn't be able to catch up with them.
In the theatre , the lilting music of Hindi songs held the audience in enthralling rapture . As there was no other way of listening to these songs ( personal gramophone and records were a rarity in villages ). Just to listen to the songs in their authentic sound, the cognizanti in music used to to go to these movies as many times as they can afford.
It was the hindi songs that were selling the movie more than the story. More number of songs means more points for the movie. Since the villagers didn't know Hindi , or the correct meaning of the song they sung , they had to capture the tune perfectly to sing the songs with some fidelity of tune.
Check out this video on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
This is one of the first songs of Mohd Rafi , sung with the most famous accomplished singer of this times, Noorjehan , who migrated to Pakistan after independence .
Enjoy the song !
Dad.
