Why Jawaharlal Nehru met lyricist Shailendra

Rana Siddiqui Zaman | NT

Bengaluru: The nation celebrates 100th birth anniversary of finest lyricist Shailendra who wrote songs for Hindi and Bhojpri films between 1949 and 1966, still relevant for their sheer humane content.

After the China War, in 1963, on the request of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the film fraternity of the then Bombay, organised a musical evening at the National Stadium in New Delhi.

This programme was going to be the biggest of its kind. Mehboob Khan, the director of iconic film Mother India, took the responsibility of organising it. It saw the presence of who’s who of the Hindi film fraternity including actors, lyricists, singers, musicians, producers and directors.

An eminent name in this gathering was lyricist Shailendra. In the show, singer Mukesh sang Shailendra’s famous patriotic song “Honthon pe sachchai rehti hai, jahan dil main safai rehti hia; Hum us desh ke vaasi hain, Dis desh main Ganga behti hai (Our lips speak truth, our hearts pure, We reside in a nation that inherits Ganges).

Hearing this song, Jawaharlal Nehru asked who penned that one. He was told about Shaliendra. The first Prime Minister of Independent India wanted to meet him immediately but by then, a tired lyricist had retired to Hotel Ashok, where he was hosted.

He was instantly sent a message that Pandit Nehru wanted to meet him. Shailendera came rushing, in a suit and a tie. Nehru greeted him with all his warmth and told him that his song had won his heart.

A picture of the duo shaking hands filled the newspapers’ front page next day. That happened on January 27, 1963. Following year, Nehru passed away and Shaliendra three years later in 1966.

Why lyricist Shailendra was a notch above his contemporaries has two main reasons, experts say; among his well-read contemporaries like Kaifi Azmi, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Shakeel Badayuni and Sahir Ludhiyanvi etc, who used lot of Urdu and Persianised words in Hindi film lyrics that elated the stature of their songs, he wrote in layman’s conversational language (for instance, Kisi ki muskurahaton pe ho nisaar, kisi ka dard mil sake to le udhaar (Fall prey to someone’s smile, borrow their pain…), Or Duniya banana wale, kyat ere mann main samayi, Kahe ko duniya banayi, (O’ Almighty, why did you make this world, what had come on you?), and brought folk-touch (Paan Kahye sayyan hamaro,(my beloed chews betal leaf) Or chalat musafir moh liya re pinjre wali muniya (A dame allured a traveller), etc.

Well known television writer and General Secretary, General, Screen Writers’ Association (SWA), Zama Habib, who recently organised a tribute on the lyricist in Mumbai and titled it Tu Zinda Hai, (You are live) culled from lyricist’s famous inspirational song, says, “Shailendra’s style became a trend.

It instantly popularised him among the non-Urdu knowing people. He was heavily followed by lyricists like Aanad Bakshi, Yogesh later.

His contemporaries would still bring metaphors or examples from the Persian for instance; many would still speak of Yusuf and Zulaikha in their lyrics, not understood by non-Urdu knowers.”

A humorous “Cheel cheel chilla ke” (1962/Half Ticket) and “Aawara Hoon” (1951, Awara) also add to Shailendera’s instant hits. Categorising “cheel” as a cult song, actor and singer Piyush Mishra wonders “how this song could be written in such melodious and still hilarious way and how Kishore Kumar performed it so entertainingly”.

A Dalit identity

Born in Rawalpindi in 1923, Shailendra came from a Dalit family of then untouchable or chamaar community. He had lost his one sibling and mother at an early age.

He was from Aara, Bihar and lived in Mathura, U.P. Immensely fond of hockey, it is learnt that he ones had gone to play at a stadium, where upper caste players mocked at him saying, “Now they will also play with us?”

The incident made the poet at heart, move to (then) Bombay in 1947. He joined Indian Railways as an apprentice at Matunga workshop. He would loiter around with activists and artistes of IPTA (Indian People Theatre Association) and Leftists.

He would write slogans and songs for IPTA plays. As legend goes, one of his songs, “Jalta Hai Punjab” was being recited in a play which, incidentally Raj Kapoor had come to watch.

Kapoor wanted Shailendra to write for his film but the latter refused for he thought it would be “frivolous” to write for commercial cinema. Kapoor had left saying he would wait for him.

However, when the lyricist saw his pregnant wife in need of medication, he had to change his decision. He went to Kapoor, who offered him Rs.500, in lieu of whi