A tribute to the living legend-lata

Lata turns 80:
No single artist in Hindi cinema has arguably a sweep as encompassing as Lata Mangeshkar. Her amazing stay in reckoning has almost defied time and age and surely been an exception to the Friday syndrome. When she said :Mujhe dar lagta hai, for Dimple in Bobby, for someone approximately 30 years her junior, she had made her musical statement (note?) of being eternal . Her magic continued further. She then went on to sing for the likes of Kajol, Priety Zinta and the like. Strictly speaking when she sang for Karishma Kapoor it was for third generation since she started. Lataji has been the voice of four generations and arguably the most melodious one at that.
To pick 20 gems from a crowded crown is near impossible. We all have our own favourites and our own reasons for picking them. Given here is mine.


Intaqam: “Aa jaane jaa”. To those who believe that Lata did not add enough oomph to her repotire, this is the final answer. LP chose Lata for this Helen number and Lata silenced her critics once and for all.
Mujhe Jeene Do: “Raat bhi hai kuch bheegi bheegi”. This Jaidev number was framed on Waheeda and a classic example of how Lata can start on a high note even a classic mujra and lets her voice match the dance with the grace that Waheeda brought to it.
Bees Saal Baad: Kahin deep jale kahin dil ” haunts you not just bees saal baad, but continues to haunt even after four decades. The song must be seen in the context of a time when even eco recording was not easy and still Lata gives it the eerie feel through the magic of her rendition.
Parakh : “O sajna”. Try singing this Salil Da number and you will realise how Lata can make simple a complex tune. She often had something special for Salil Chowdary as he held out the most complex tunes for her . This combination has added a whole genre of melodies to the archive.
1942-A Love Story: “Kuch naa kaho”. R.D. Burman’s swan song. The great master of melody could not have picked a more soul stirring tune to bid adieu and even less surprising his choice of Lata to add soul to the tune. She in turn gave it her all. Brilliance par excellence.
Taj Mahal: “Zulm-e Ulfat pe”. For the Marathi girl to sing songs in Urdu was a great challenge but beyond diction was a feel that was Lata which was stamped in this aching melody. Still early days in the career, she disproved the cynicism of Dilip Kumar and reiterated the confidence of Naushad.
Aakhri Khat: “Baharon mera jeevan bhi.” This Khayam-Lata combination places both artists in perspective. The music director has a great sense of melody and out classed himself in this experimental film for Chetan Anand. Lata seems to be taking advantage of her rare talent and talking to even Nature with this number.
Bahu Begum: Duniya kare sawal”. You can well do a list of greats of Lata for Senior Roshan. Lata was truly the melancholic voice of the tragedy queen Meena Kumari. The defiance in love, was then, an emotional revolt and who but Lata could have placed it in the precincts of sheer melody !! This song gets its place at the cost of kabhi to Milenge (Aarti), nagma o sher (ghazal) etc.
Hamrahi: “Man re tu hi bata”. Lata’s voice was a match to Shankar Jaikishan’s orchestra. The rich orchestra added value to the voice and vice versa. Rafi Saab handled the orchestra with his melody, Lata her versatility and the timbre in her voice. The combination added a rich texture to the credibility of commercial music. Shankar Jaikishen and Pancham thereafter were truly the trailblazers of great orchestra. Those who followed sure may have had more international success, but notice how the orchestra silences the singer and even the lyrics and places rhythm over everything else.
Manzil: “Rim Jhim gire sawan”. For sheer effervescence, this song has no match. Lata’s range in the Antara of this song is in perfect tandem with the monsoon and the music of the waves on a sea coast!! Don’t even attempt to compare this vibrant version with Kishore’s male sober version. They speak different energies, different takes . A true tandem
Bhabhi ki Choodiyan: “Jyoti kalash chalke”. This must go down as one of Lata’s most difficult renditions. Strong in its classic connectivity, Lata displays hidden places into which a song can move in, navigate and return to base.
9. Kohra: “Jhoom jhoom dhalti raat”. The Hemant-Lata combine gave us some haunting melodies. Look above (number 18). In the pre RGV era melody monopolised even thrillers. Whether it was Hemant’s music or Lata’s delivery, at this point in time is a mute question. This melody as a combination is a product to savour.
8. Baiju Bawra: “Mohe bhool gaye sawariya”. Even by the standards of such high quality combination (Lata-Naushad) it is difficult to get an encore of this level. This film with classical music had great numbers, great musicians and above all- Mohe bhool gaye sawariya. Unforgettable for any self respecting music lover.
Haqeeqat: “Zara si aahat”. Lata has confessedly reserved something special for her Madan bhai. The ghazal king touched words as if they were made of velvet. Notice how Lata leaves a quasi question: “Kahin yeh who to nahin” and you will understand Lata’s mastery over her art.
6. Baharon ke Sapne: “Kya jaano sajan”: Pancham decides to experiment the technology, decades later the salutation comes in Dil Vil Pyaar Waar. The one constant feature is the brilliance of RD Burman’s soul caressing melody and the perfect execution by Lata. There is as much perfection there as there is in a Ganguly cover drive. Grace all over!!
5. Rudali: “Dil hoom hoom kare”. No one could have played the musical hook better. Bhupen Hazarika surely threw at Lata a song that only she could have rendered with such vigour in the context of tragedy. This is not contradiction; this is art at its sublime; In short it is: Lata.
4. Amrapali: Tujhe yaad karte karte. This Shankar-Jaikishen album had four gems-each vying for a place in eternity. Eternity does not brook repetition. The sole ticket in the tough competing category is this high pitched melody. At the highest level of the song, Lata journeys with characteristic felicity of a colourful kite on a breezy morning transcending the costume beauty and height of Vyjantimala.
3. Annadata: Raton ke saye. This grossly underrated Salil Chowdary number points yet again to how Lata can pitch without scream. Also the complicated tune and beat leave you gasping as to how she makes it effortless. In case you hear this some day, even by accident, it is one song that will remain in the labyrinths of your psyche for days on end till another from another genre displaces the inertia of its being.
Anupama: “Kuch dil ne kaha”. Its four decades since I saw this black and white movie. Even as I recall with clarity, the dainty La-Tagore picking flowers on a mist filled morning, all coy and dimpled, Lata’s whiff of fresh air voice comes with photographic exactitude. What more can a song do than hum itself involuntarily on your lips, four decades after you first saw it on screen!
Lehkin: “Yara sili”: Is this Lata’s best? Can there be ‘a Lata’s best’?. In a tapestry so rich in texture, so vast in sweep, so timeless in creation can there be a singular precipice ? If there be one, is it one by popular choice or is there a science that can matrix the nuance of the art and place one piece at the top? We may debate thess issues, but in my dying moment, I would crave for a couple of minutes to listen to this melody in my last mortal moments. Like MS’s “Kurai Onrum Illai”, this is Lata’s signature. Only an avtaar of Saraswati can execute the complexity of such a piece with such clarity, poise, command and reach. Truly to be placed in the archive of all time great art.

LRC