Guest article by DP Rangan as a tribute to Bharat Vyas on his 37th death anniversary (18 December 1918 – 4 July 1982)

(One oft-repeated complaint against Songs of Yore is that it does not give due importance to the lyricists. I have given my reasons from time to time, which may not be very convincing. I do not know whether DP Rangan was guided by altruistic motives to come to the rescue of the blog, but his offer to write on Bharat Vyas came as a big surprise. By now we are aware of his tremendous enthusiasm and capacity to write on different themes – this is his 19th guest article – but one thought familiarity with the language was necessary for writing on lyricists. For Mr Ranagn, no challenge is too great to deter him. The result is a comprehensive write-up on Bharat Vyas, one of the most respected lyricists for elegance of his language. The two Excel sheets he has prepared of Bharat Vyas’s Filmography would challenge anyone priding himself as a number-cruncher. My compliments and thanks to Mr Rangan for a very painstaking article. – AK)

Invention of moving films for single viewer by Edison of USA and its further enhancement by Lamar brothers of France for simultaneous view by many in a sort of theatre had added new dimensions to entertainment for the people and the fever grew exponentially from then on. The epoch of silent movies started at the turn of the last century, but introduction of talkies in 1927 in the USA revolutionised picture viewing throughout the world and India joined the bandwagon almost from inception. The first talkie, Aalam Ara, was released in Mumbai in 1931 to a riotous start with the necessity of police intervention for control.

Film music made a dramatic entry and, thus, was born the trio of music directors, singers and lyrists. The three can be viewed as three vertices of a triangle with the Music Director as phylarch. The average viewer was primarily attracted by the rendering of the song by male/female singers and appreciation of lyrics by a handful came later on. The role of importance of this wing can be set down as – singer, music director and lyricist – in that order. Perfect fusion of the three vertices produced immortal songs which overcame the ravages of time. Notwithstanding personal preferences and bias, many songs produced thus were held in universal reverence by one and all.

Bharat Vyas belonged to the illustrious club of great lyricists and reigned in the field from 1940s to 1980s. He had the unique talent to achieve all that was possible for one in the film line – Director, Music Director, Singer and Lyricist. Many others like Manna Dey, Mukesh, Hemant Kumar were music directors/singers in films, but he alone seems to have been involved in all (with the exception of Kishore Kumar in later years). His main deportment was as a lyricist. He entered this world as a hapless waif, probably with a wail of indignation at being held by his feet upwards and soundly slapped by the midwife who assisted in delivering him on 18 December 1918 in Churu, Bikaner state, now part of Rajasthan. After going through the process of growing up like many newborns, he burst into adulthood with a degree in commerce, i.e., B Com from Calcutta. He drifted to Bombay and started his career as a writer with the producer director VM Vyas, (related or not, an unresolved conjecture). His initial ambition was to be a film director, but his talents were honed to song writing and he gradually drifted to that field. Yet he did direct a film in Hindi and a few in Rajasthani in addition to singing self-composed songs, solo and duet, at the beginning of the films.

His first venture as a lyricist was Duhai released in 1943 under the direction of VM Vyas. He composed 9 songs in all. WZ Ahmad, a producer director and owner of Shalimar Pictures, Pune had gathered together several prominent lyricists of the day. Sensing a rising talent, he enticed Bharat Vyas to join him with a tempting salary. Bharat Vyas wrote 12 songs for the film Prem Sangeet (1943) and sang a solo. Next in line was Man Ki Jeet (1944), based on a Thomas Hardy novel. He composed just two songs and sang a duet. The film was a success because of the excellence of its music. In 1945 he acted in the film Ghulami, composed 5 songs and sang a duet with Renuka Devi, titled ‘Oh Geeta ke Bhagwan’ and a solo ‘Is nashwar sansar mein’. None of these songs are available. Prithviraj Samyukta was the next film produced by this banner in 1946. He acted in the film and wrote one song set to music by SK Paul – Chand sa mukhda muskaye. The last picture of Shalimar Pictures was Meerabai (1947), directed by WZ Ahmed. Meerabai’s compositions were adapted in song form by Bharat Vyas. All the 13 songs were sung by Tara Bai, alias Sitara Devi of Kanpur.

Ahmed and his actor wife Neena left for Pakistan after partition, abandoning the studio and leaving the staff in lurch. Bharat Vyas was forced to join Gemini Studios in Chennai, probably like an exile to Kaala Paani for sheer survival. He assisted Pandit Indra in the song department for the film Chandra, Hindi version of Chandralekha, then under production by SS Vasan, head of the studio. No songs from the film are attributed to him. Fortunately it was a brief self-imposed banishment from Bombay filmdom for survival. He returned to his native turf in 1949. His long cherished ambition to direct a film was realized in the film Rangeela Rajasthan in 1949 itself. This was produced by the marooned staff of Shalimar Pictures, but it was not a success.

By now Bharat Vyas had realised his future lay in penning lyrics for film songs. He never wavered from this precept thereafter. His prodigious output from 1950 onwards was truly outstanding. I will reproduce some data in this regard.

I went through the data on films he wrote lyrics for and could place 173 films only. I created an excel document covering all aspects as I understood, which may not be acceptable to many. A summary of his songs as classified is placed below. I quantified films under four categories and posted the balance to social.

In several films he had shared song writing with other lyricists, which was the prevalent practice in the early days. In a few pictures he had written just a solitary song and was the sole composer for all songs in very many films. He had a long spell of nearly 40 years in the field turning out more than 1000 songs. His forte was using chaste Hindi in all the songs, not a very common figure in this genre of writing. He did not have a clean field for himself but had to compete with many veteran lyricists. His unique style and ability to pen songs for many variety of films stood in good stead. From the 1950s to the 1970s his lyrics composition covered all the 5 categories (123/173). He was unjustly typified as biased towards devotional and mythology films when facts indicate otherwise. The overall record shows that social and all other type of films were 49:51. Lyricists tend to get attached with certain music directors and identified as a team. Lots of films produced in the 1950s and beyond were historical-devotional/mythology group and his writing skill flowered to deliver the songs. Alas a majority of the films were B grade and below and he suffered a fate similar to Madan Mohan. The songs he wrote for such films were exemplary. When I see the title of such films, I admire the courage of producers to invest in them with poor returns. It could be a bevy of film makers and I am sure they would have lost. Of course there were many good films, such as Sant Gyaneshwar. In fact a separate post can be written on such kind of films lyrics he penned.

During his long innings he worked with about 36 music directors. It is merely an approximation. He started teaming with Khemchand Prakash from ‘Rim Jhim’ in 1949 and continued till the former’s demise. With some music directors he worked in more films.

With both Vasant Desai and SN Tripathi he had a successful run and penned lyrics for many songs which became a hit in their days and a few of them defied time and are still enjoyed by current generation of listeners. His association with producer Shantaram from Toofan Aur Diya (1956) to Chaani (1977) lasted for 8 films. Four of them, Toofan Aur Diya, Do Ankhen Baarah Haath, Navrang, and Stree, were music gems and the quality of his lyrics spoke for itself.

I start with a crippling disadvantage of having to present mere audios in the guise of videos as uploaded on the YouTube. Possessing a rudimentary knowledge of Hindi, my comments on songs merely scratch at the surface. I would request the expert blog followers to gloss over my inadequacies.

1940s

Duhai, 1943: Bharat Vyas started on his journey as a lyricist and wrote all the 9 songs. Shanta Apte and Noorjehan acted in the film. No video or songs are available. I was able to grab two of the songs both duets by Shanta Apte and Rafiq Ghazanavi, Maan gaye abhi and Mohe neend na aaye. I will try to upload in my Sound Cloud account and upload link. Video is possible with stills of actors and lyricist. I am not sure whether it will not be opposed if posted on the YouTube. He also wrote a patriotic song for the film School Master in the same year, Hamara Pyara Hindustan, set to music by Neenu Majumdar.

SoundCloud link of Mohe neend na aaye by Shanta Apte and Rafiq Ghazanavi from Duhaai (1943), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Rafiq Ghazanavi

https://soundcloud.com/user-151743896/mohe-haay-neend-na-aaye?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=email

SoundCloud link of Maan gayi main, O sainya re ab maan gayi by Shanta Apte and Rafiq Ghazanavi from Duhaai (1943), lyrics Bharat Vyas, music Rafiq Ghazanavi

Now I present a selection of Bharat Vyas songs from later films, some of which are also sung by him. .

1. Main Agra se joota laya re Ho Raniji by Bharat Vyas and Shanta Thakkar from Prem Sangeet (1943), music by S. K. Pal

This was the first film under the banner of Shalimar Pictures with which Bharat Vyas had a long association as a lyricist and he wrote all the ten songs for the film. This is a parody song making fun of some earlier songs. [This song is one of the earliest parodies of some well-known vintage songs. I can recognize ‘Main to Dilli se dulhan laya re’, ‘Aaj Mausam salona salona re’ (Jhoola, 1941); ‘Saawan ke nazaare hain’ (Khazaanchi, 1941); ‘Hua kya qusoor jo humse hain door’ (Basant, 1942). I am missing a couple of songs, it would be fun for the readers to try to remember those songs – AK].

2. Ghayal kar ke humse poochhate ho dard hota hai by Bharat Vyas from Prem Sangeet (1943), music SK Pal

The hero is lamenting at the indifferent attitude of his love and is broadcasting this to the world calling all love a mirage. The song is in slow but steady tempo and in pure Hindi.

3. Chhip chhip kar mat dekho ji, bhanwar ji by Shanta Thakkar and Bharat Vyas from Man Ki Jeet (1944), music SK Pal

The second film under the same banner was a big hit because of its music. Bharat Vyas penned two songs, a solo and a duet. This duet is a love song sung in a light vein, each trying to pull down the other. The other solo, Ai chand na itrana aate hein mere sajan, was sung by Sitara Kanpuri.

4. Ae chaand na itarana by Sitara Kanpuri from Man Ki Jeet (1944)

5. Aa ja re O Geeta ka Bhagwan by Renuka Devi and Bharat Vyas from Ghulami (1945), Music by SK Pal

Bharat Vyas wrote five songs out of a total of nine. He sang a solo, Is nashwar sansaar mein, and also the above song as a duet. Renuka Devi is beseeching Bhagwan Krishna to release her from slavery and reciting how he came to the rescue of Draupadi. The film seems to reflect the feelings of Indian populace under alien rule at that time.

6. Jagmag jagmag karta nikala chaand punam ka pyara by Kishore Kumar from Rimjhim (1949), music Khemchand Prakash

Bharat Vyas (one out of four lyricists) composed lyrics for 6 out of 10 songs. Kishore Sahu and Ramola were the main actors. A young Kishore Kumar, who made his debut in ‘Ziddi’ in 1948, sings in such a melodious voice, rather difficult to believe. Hero is pining for his love and Kishore conveys this in an appropriate intonation. (Kishore Kumar’s debut as a solo singer was in this film, but he had debuted as one of the voices in a song by many singers in ‘Shikari’ (1946) – AK)

7. Ek do teen chaar baaghon mein ayi bahaar by Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar from Muqaddar (1950), music by James Singh

Kishore Kumar and Nalini Jaywant were the lead stars. As was custom of the day, four lyricists and three music directors handled music component. Bharat Vyas wrote two out of nine songs and the above duet was one of them. The other, ‘Madhur pyar ka taar kabhi ye toote na’, was sung by Arun Kumar and Asha Bhosle. A joyous love song with the lovelorn couple roaming and singing. Kishore Kumar is in his element with his trademark yodeling (, which must be his earliest.

8. Saanwariya Bansiwala Nandlala matwala by Ameerbai Karnataki, Mohammad Rafi & chorus from Janmashtami (1950), music Shyam Babu Phatak

All the nine songs were written by Bharat Vyas. Bharat Bhushan and Shobhana Samarth were the leading lights. The song is about Gokul Nandlala of Nandgaon, and the title itself indicates what sort of songs would figure in this film.

1950s (86 films, 568+ songs)

This decade was a busy one for him. His song writing covered almost 50 per cent of his career. Social theme pictures accounted for a shade over 50 percent followed by Devotional Category (20%). He was lyricist for three films on the life of saints: Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Jagatguru Shankaracharya and Sant Raghu. Some of the prominent films for which he penned lyrics were: Parineeta, Toofan Aur Diya, Do Ankhen Baarah Haath, Janam Janam Ke Phere, Rani Roopmati, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Kavi Kalidas and Nav Rang.

Presenting a few songs out of 568 is a daunting task and my choice may not be a representative one. I will list a few songs that appealed to me, i.e. not heard often. I will try to avoid all the great films like Parineeta, Toofan Aur Diya, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Navrang, Pyar Ki Pyas, Stree and will deal with them separately.

9. Armaano ki nagri ujad gayi by Lata Mangeshkar from Tamasha (1952), music by Manna Dey

A social film with leading roles by Dev Anand and Meena Kumari, as also Kishore Kumar and Ashok Kumar. Three music directors handled eight songs, Manna Dey taking a major part, and all written by Bharat Vyas. Meena Kumari is in her tragedienne role singing in anguish and the lyrics of Bharat Vyas are in consonance.

10. Raat mohe meetha meetha sapna aya re by Geeta Dutt from Tamasha (1952), music Manna Dey

Meena Kumari is in a joyous mood reliving in her dreams about her loved one and his approach towards her.

11. Preetmay sansaar pyare by Talat Mahmood from Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1953), music by RC Boral

Talat Mahmood had sung two songs and I choose this one emphasising the role of divine love in human life.

12. Daulat ke jhoote nashe mein ho choor by Mohammad Rafi from Oonchi Haveli (1955), music Pandit Shivram

Brimming with philosophy the song depicts the follies of mankind and how they follow wrong goals and will go empty handed when their time to depart the world comes. The song by Rafi was in the top of Binaca Geetmala for several weeks.

13. Zara saamne to aao chhaliye by Mohammad Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar from Janam Janam Ke Phere (1957), music by SN Tripathi

This song was composed in a mood of grief. Bharat Vyas’s son disappeared from house after a quarrel with his father. The grief-stricken father was approached by a producer to write a song about father and son. He was shown the door by the lyricist, but later on he composed this song highlighting how he is upset with his son’s absence. The following lines will bear it out:

Hum tumhen chaahein tum nahin chaaho, aisa kabhi nahin ho sakata
Pita apane baalak se bichhad ke, sukh se kabhi nahin so sakata

14. Meri godi mein Gopala by Lata Mangeshkar from Mausi (1958), music Vasant Desai

A nice lullaby by Lata Mangeshkar uplifting the wonderful lyrics. There is a well-known duet by Talat Mahmood and Lata Mangeshkar in this film: Tim tim tim taaron ke deep jale.

15. Sham bhai Ganshyam na aye by Lata Mangeshkar from Kavi Kalidas (1959), music SN Tripathi

The picture has many great songs and I chose this one sung by Lata Mangeshkar in her inimitable style. Another is a dance song: Main to janam janam ki pyasi re.

1960s (37 films & 267+ songs)

Having reached a zenith in the previous decade, it was now a downward slide and the figures speak for themselves. There were a few notable films, like Angulimal, Hum Hindustani, Saranga and Stree. Fiftenn of the films could be classified as Mythology.

16. Buddham Sharanam Gacchhami by Manna Dey, Meena Kapoor and Chorus from Angulimal (1961), music Anil Biswas

A thief who used to cut thumbs of wayfarers was made to realize the error of his ways by Gautam Buddha and became a disciple. A well-known song and lyrics of Bharat Vyas is the soul behind it.

17. Jyot se jyot jagaate chalo by Lata Mangeshkar from Sant Gyaneshwar (1964), music Laxmikant Pyarelal

The film was a musical hit and this was a popular song. There is another more familiar version by Mukesh. The song is about the power of love and how it can conquer everything.

18. Ye kaun chitrakar hai by Mukesh and chorus from Boond Jo Ban Gayi Moti, music by Satish Bhatia

Bharat Vyas showcased his immense talent in writing this song which is in praise of nature and the Creator who made everything possible. Mukesh rendering in his inimitable manner uplifted the song to great heights.

1971-84 (27 films & 134+ songs)

After such a long and glorious innings as lyrist, the clock was winding down. There were no films of note.

Famous films for which Bharat Vyas wrote lyrics

I will now present a list of his famous films enriched by his all-conquering lyrics. An abridged list would cover films, such as – Toofan Aur Diya, Do Ankhen Baarah Haath, Rani Roopmathi, Goonj Uthi Shehanai, Navrang, Saranga and Stree. The definition is highly subjective and there could be a myriad opinions about what to include or omit. Two music directors, Vasant Desai and SN Tripathi were associated with them. I cannot devote more detail as the post is already a lengthy one. I would expect someone with far better talent than me to attempt a second post on this lyrist.

Bharat Vyas figured as lyricist in some landmark V Shantaram pictures. I would rate Shantaram’s Do Aankhen Baarah Haath (1957) as an all-time great in all aspects – story, direction, acting, lyrics and music by Vasant Desai. I will present a few songs out of a total of six.

19. Main gaaon tu chup ho ja by Lata Mangeshkar

What an enticing song inducing sleep as one hears it. Lyrics are superb. Lata’s rendering is exquisite. One of the great loris one can listen.

20. Ai Maalik tere bande ham by Shanta Ram and chorus

Shantaram as a reformist jailor is taking the lead in singing this song in praise of Almighty and his boundless compassion along with the six convicts in the process of transforming them into good souls.

21. Ai Maalik tere Bande Ham by Lata Mangeshkar

The great jailor loses his life while fighting a bull in rampage. This version is sung at the bier and is heart-wrenching.

After reigning over the field in all capacities as actor, singer, film director and finally choosing lyrics as his avocation, Bharat Vyas ruled the roost from 1943 to 1981 compiling more than a thousand songs. He was an undisputed winner in his field of song writing for mythologies, saint’s biographies, devotional and historical movies. He also scored many hits in films based on social themes. He left for heavenly abode on the 4^th July, 1982 in Mumbai.

I hope I have done a fair job of outlining the life and achievements of this illustrious lyricist whose mastery in writing songs in Hindi made him an equal to other lyricists of his days whose main forte was compiling in Urdu.

Here is Bharat Vyas’s detailed Filmography and Song breakup, and here is his Filmography decade-wise and genre-wise

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer: The songs links have been embedded from the YouTube only for the listening pleasure of the music lovers. Some information has been taken from Wikipedia or other sources from the Internet, which have been appropriately acknowledged in the post.