Melody, Thy Name Is Madan Mohan

The story of one of the greatest Music Directors is a one that tugs at our heart.
Born on June 25, 1924 at Baghdad where he lived till his 5th year. Even as a child of 2, he used to sit near the gramophone listening to the records. On his second birthday, Madan was gifted a small drum by his parents. Just at that time the Iraq Police Band was marching down the streets outside his house. Madan took his little drum, joined the band and started marching with the musicians. When his absence from home was discovered, his parents set out on a vigorous search and after two hours, the missing child was located at the police depot!
When the family shifted to Bombay, they stayed at a building on Marine Drive, very close to Chatteau Marine, the famous abode of Jaddan Bai and later, of her equally famous daughter Nargis. Madan had his own opinion about learning music. "Though, knowledge of the principles and basic rules of music is essential, it is not necessary to learn music in a conventional way, at the feet of a master. I believe that music can be learnt by the ear, provided one has the desire to learn. Music, much more than any other art, can never be hammered into reluctant pupils or doled out in daily tuition classes. The opportunity of working with stalwarts of classical music gave me a closer knowledge and understanding of music. Very subtly but insidiously, music strengthened its grip on me. Without quite knowing when or how, my ears began to echo with the rich melodies I heard everyday. And that was how I actually learnt music."
Subsequently, when he started composing for films, Madan Mohan lent his voice to some screen characters to fulfill his wish of becoming a full-fledged playback singer. He had sung four film songs, all composed by him; one each in Ankhen (1950), Shabistan (1951), Dhoon (1953), and Fifty Fifty (1956) Though he sang all these songs very well, he did not gain any recognition as a playback singer.
His greatest desire was to act in films but that never took off. It is our good fortune!
As a Music Director he rose to fame very fast. He would never accept too many movies to work on. He would just accept three or four films a year. He produced outstanding music in his films.
In spite of producing such outstanding work consistently over a period of time, Madan Mohan had very few assignments on hand at the end of his career. He was victimized by the politics of the industry prevailing at that time. During that period, only three to four studios were available for song recording. Many top music directors used to book the studios for months together in advance, not allowing their rivals any opportunity to work. If any music director needed a studio, he had to beg the so-called music barons for the favour. This hurt Madan Mohan immensely. A man of a high sense of self-esteem he got frustrated and preferred to spend time by himself rather than beg for studio dates. This had affected his domestic life too, and in desperation, he turned to the bottle. Soon he developed medical problems, only to succumb to cirrhosis of lever.

The King of Melodies, who was at the peak of his popularity, died at the age of 51. He became the third member of his family, after his brother and mother, to die in the month of July. Death is the end of life, but in the case of Madan Mohan it cannot be so. Madan lives in our hearts and will continue to entertain us for all time to come. -Sourced from articles in the net.

My favourite songs of Madan Mohan are:

From Anpadh. Can you see imagine Dharmendra so young?


Movie Woh Kaun thi Lata singing for Sadhna. This song has had 94 million views!


Film Sanjog Stars: Pradeep Kumar, Anita Guha


Movie Adalat (1958). Lata singing for Nargis.

I have a thousand ore to add but will leave it to you!

 

@Rajijb
Thanks for the first response Raji with excellent pick from the masterpieces of Madan Mohan.
Of the songs you have forwarded, have you heard the male version of Dil Dhoondhta Hai Phir Wohi sung by Bhupinder Singh? Here it is:

 

@GeetaKashyap
Lata always gave her best for Madan Mohan. They had a special understanding that resulted in some heavenly music. The collection that you have sent took me to my youth.
Writing about Salil Choudhury needs special inspiration. I am waiting for it.

 

@Greenbay
Here is a presentation by Gulzar about the making of music of Veer Zaara:

 

@Greenbay
Recently a movie was made on the tragic life of Savitri a famous South Indian actress. It's doing very well. A similar movie must be made on the life of Madan Mohan