Choosing a favourite Kishore Kumar song, for some who were introduced to Bollywood because of him and for the rest who still go back to Bollywood because of him, is as difficult as cracking a calculus paper. In a pleasant way of course.
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Hardcore fans, several of who call themselves devotees, would easily be torn between Roop Tera Mastana (Aradhana) and Samne Woh Kaun Aya (Jawani Deewani) or Mere Naina (Mehbooba) and Anamika (Anamika). While it’s no different for us, we list five songs that we think consummately sum up all that Kishore Kumar stood for as an artist par excellence.
1. O Majhi Re (Khushboo, 1975): For newer Kishore Kumar addicts, this one might be swamped under his peppier numbers or the more celebrated, cited numbers. However, this one number not only exploits Kumar’s range unapologetically but can easily be any aspiring singer’s text-book for vocal emoting.
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2. Chingari (Amar Prem, 1972): This one is a Kishore Kumar classic, one that all trained, wannabe singers try replicating in vain. With its painstakingly beautiful lyrics, Chingari is your go-to Kishore Kumar song, always.
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3. Musafir (Parichay, 1972): With its easy pace and writing, Musafir is probably one of Kumar’s most sung, most celebrated numbers. With good reason too – with Gulzar, RD Burman and Kumar at the helm of things, you expect nothing less than magic.
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4. Bindu (Padosan, 1968): Meri Pyaari Bindu shows Kishore Kumar in full glory. This is one song, which coupled with its picturisation in the film starring Sunil Dutt and Kumar himself, is almost iconic.
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5. Khaike Paan Banaraswala (Don, 1978): Unlike Padosan, where Kishore Kumar’s physical presence confirms the genius that he is, you can almost visualise the singer recording this song and having a ball while at it when you listen to this Don classic. Humour, drama and rhythm – Kumar rolls all into one and delivers one song that has rightly gone down in history.
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