Last month, I published the first part of the Car songs from Hindi films.
As usual I divided the songs into several categories, and the first part was about Open Car songs. That is roofless cars or cars with retractable roofs.
And continuing the series, let me present today the second and final part with the songs in Roofed cars. I again want to add that Jeep songs would be covered later and wouldn’t be a part of this post.
When I started looking for the songs for the series, I was a little surprised to find more of the open car songs than the roofed ones. I was expecting the opposite. Or perhaps I wasn’t able to recollect the songs from the latter category.
The situations in the songs are varied, the commonest being the hero himself is a driver by occupation. Or it could be just a drive with the heroine. I of course have added a few variations of the theme also. And not all the songs are in joyous mood, melancholy and philosophical songs are also on the list.
Without a further ado, let’s begin the car journey…..
1. Ye Lo Main Haari Piya – Aar paar (1954) Geeta Dutt / O P Nayyar – Majrooh
As I said in the beginning, we face the most common scenario. The hero is a driver by occupation. He’s head over heels in love with Shyama. In the song, Shyama, in an earnest attempt to woo back her beloved, is ready with her weapons. Starting with apologies and pleading, she tries emotional blackmail to end up threatening him to be angry and expressing faux anger. She also uses a few seductive gestures.
And, to add a note on the picturisation, it must be a studio shoot with only long shots being on real streets.
2. Haay Unki Woh Nigaahen – Aakhri Dao (1958) Asha Bhosle / Madan Mohan – Majrooh
Very beautiful and charming Nutan with Shammi as passengers in the car. Shekhar drives the car with weird expressions, perhaps fearing about his identity getting revealed to her. Nutan sings playfully and carefree with Shammi helping her with her whistling. The song talks about the magical effects of his eyes on Nutan, though it’s hard to believe, she’s talking about Shekhar. And the close up shots seem to be inside the studio, while the long shots are obviously on real streets, a feature most commonly observed in the Hindi films of the 50s and even a few of the films from the 60s.
3. Jaise Kahin Leherake Pawan – Afsana (1966) Lata Mangeshkar / Chitragupt – Majrooh
I love this song a lot, as it has the typical touch of Chitragupt. All his melodies have a sweet tune and his signature orchestration. Padmini drives the car herself in a carefree mood, singing the song declaring, she does not know where she is going, she does not know whom to trust, she has no clear destination. Yet she still has to move forward. There’s a touch of rebellion, yet it’s not explicit. Even though the song sounds cheerful, there are undertones of loneliness and uncertainty. But she’s confident about her decision.
And for the picturisation, again the close up shots seem to be studio ones, while the long shots are on real locations, which look very beautiful, the clean roads, the beautiful bridge with the arcs etc.
4. Choodi Nahin Yeh Mera Dil Hai – Gambler (1971) Lata Mangeshkar & Kishore Kumar / S D Burman – Neeraj
A popular romantic duet picturised on Dev Anand and Zaheeda. The song compares bangles and its fragility with sentiments of heart and adds that it needs a gentle handling to avoid breaking. Quite a likeable song! In the entire song, there are no real streets or locations at all. The running car closeups are obviously studio setup and the way he sings, offers her chocolate etc, clearly shows it. The last verse opens on a beach, which is again a studio beach. The real heroes in the song are Kishore Kumar and Burman da’s tune, both enchanting! Lata’s late entry sounds good too.
5. Tum Jo Mil Gaye Ho – Hanste Zakhm (1973) Rafi & Lata Mangeshkar / Madan Mohan – Kaifi Azmi
An unusual song by Madan Mohan, not at all in sync with his routine compositions. Yes, the beginning does sound like his usual style, but past the first verse, with the entry of rain in the song, the fast and intense orchestration is mind blowing. The song is picturised on Naveen Nishchal and Priya Rajvansh in a car, the former perhaps plays a driver, or so appears from his attire. As far as the shooting goes, the same story continues, the sea shore scenes and shots of clouds and thunder showers are real, the close up shots are studio setup ones. But a great song to listen to. Here’s the link for the video.
6. Kai Baar Yun Bhi Dekha Hai – Rajnigandha (1974) Mukesh / Salil Chowdhury – Yogesh
Here’s an interesting situation, the song is not lip synched by anyone and runs in the background as the passengers, Vidya Sinha and Dinesh Thakur, travel in a taxi on the streets of Mumbai. The song portrays confusion in Vidya Sinha’s mind. She’s in love with Amol Palekar, and planning to marry him. She runs into her ex boyfriend, Dinesh Thakur, while attending an interview in Mumbai. Her emotions are revived and now she’s torn between the two men. The dilemma of her mind, the nature of mind to break its boundaries and seek an unknown hope.
And the entire song is shot on real streets in Mumbai. No studio shots at all. So the song shows a transition from studio driven shooting to a real location shoot. Of course I don’t want to claim it to be the first Hindi film song to do so.
7. Ruk Jana O Jana Humse – Waarant (1975) Kishore Kumar / R D Burman – Anand Bakshi
This popular song portrays a theme variation. The singer is not in the car at all. A flirtatious Dev Anand follows Zeenat Aman, the latter driving a car. He constantly teases her, follows her and irritates her a lot. But what a cute way to tease! A gentle and persistent request to stay back and talk for a while, as the weather feels crazy. In contrast to the earlier song, the entire sequence is an outdoor affair!
8. Janeman Janeman – Jaan e Man (1976) Kishore Kumar / Laxmikant Pyarelal – Anand Bakshi
I came across the film and the song for the first time while researching for the post. The song combines various emotions like melancholy, longing, romance etc in different verses. The song perhaps has two parts, as the last slow part does seem to be a second part. The song features Dev Anand, who’s definitely past his prime and Hema Malini. I am not sure, but he plays a driver in the film. And the picturisation combines the studio portions and outdoor location portions, the latter showing long shots of the car passing through roads.
9. Jeevan Mein Humsafar – Taxi Taxie (1977 ) Kishore Kumar / Hemant Bhosle – Majrooh
It was my first encounter with the song, though I already knew the film. The song is picturised on Amol Palekar who plays a taxi driver in Mumbai and Rama Vij. The song talks about companionship in the journey of life.
And now for the last post, a leap into the 90s.
10. Aaye Ho Meri Zindagi Mein – Raja Hindustani (1996) Udit Narayan / Nadeem Shravan – Sameer
Amir Khan plays a guide cum driver, with his sidekick played by Kunal Khemu. Karisma Kapoor hires his services for a vacation in Palankhet. Amir Khan portrays his singing abilities to her and he’s smitten by her beauty. The song has beautiful and meaningful lyrics that celebrate the arrival of a beloved in an otherwise dull and lackluster life and how that changed his life. The song has a touch of qawwali, with clapping sounds and somewhat suggestive orchestration.
Would you add a song to the list?
Disclaimer –
Mehfil Mein Meri, claims no credit for any image, screenshots or songs posted on this site. Images on this blog are posted to make the text interesting. The images and screenshots are the copyright of their original owners. The song links are shared from YouTube, only for the listening convenience of music lovers. The copyright of these songs rests with the respective owners, producers and music companies.
