Madhubala: It was through “Aayega Aanewala…”, picturised on this actress, that Lata Mangeshkar’s voice came to the forefront, around seven years after her debut, and the Madhubala-Lata combine went on to produce magical melodies in classics from “Chalti Ka Naam Zindagi” to “Mughal-e-Azam”.īut, given Madhubala’s effervescent screen persona, let us choose the melody that shows her in a hapless and sombre situation, and shows the inclusive nature of Bollywood, and of India, the ‘hamd’ (a song composed in the Prophet’s praise) “Bekas par karam kijiye, o sarkar-e-Madina”, written by Shakeel Badayuni and composed by the illustrious Naushad. Which one for Nutan, for Mala Sinha, for Rekha? Let’s try. Warbling her way into our hearts with the haunting and ethereal strains of “Aayega Aanewala” in “Mahal” (1949), Lata Mangeshkar became the definitive voice of several generations of Indian film heroines - from Madhubala to Madhuri Dixit, Kamini Kaushal to Kajol, Padmini to Preity Zinta, Sharmila Tagore to Sridevi, and countless others - in a wide range of melodic songs that will reverberate for all ages.įilling the void left by singing superstars such as Noor Jahan and Suraiyya as a result of emigration or retirement, she overcame what Dilip Kumar once gently mocked as the “dal-chawal” flavour of her Urdu, to achieve perfect diction in that expressive language to fashion magic in the thousands of songs she rendered for scores of gifted music composers and inspired lyricists.Īs the inevitable fate of humans stills the golden voice that was long an essential ingredient of a Bollywood film for seven decades, and helped many of these to be successful - Raj Kapoor, till the end of his life, was convinced that it was her absence that made his cherished “Mera Naam Joker” a flop - let us revisit Lata Mangeshkar through her songs for over the years, restricting it to one song per actress.Įven if we keep it to solos, leaving out the duets as far as possible, so as to focus on her superlative voice, which still makes it a tough task, not to mention highly subjective, given the range of her contribution.ĭo we choose the pensive “Zindagi Bhar Nahi Bhoolegi Woh Barsaat ki Raat” or the daring “Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya” for Madhubala, the soothing “Ghar Aaya Mera Pardesi”, the carefree “Panchi Banu Mast Phiru Mast Gagan Mein”, or even the redemptive “Jago Mohan Pyaare” for Nargis, the playful “Toone O Rangeele”, or the sparkling “Mere Naseeb Mein Tu Hai Ki Nahi” for Hema Malini?
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