City of the Holkar kings...Indore, Madhya Pradesh. The year was 1975...or was it 76 ? A speeding auto with two schoolchildren, from Snehalata ganj, was heading towards St. Paul's H.S. School on Boundary Road. Suddenly it comes to halt on Yeshwant Niwas Road near Lantern Hotel. The reason was a traffic jam in front of the hotel. A film crew with a few stars from bollywood, who had been staying in this hotel, were leaving and were heading for Mandu, a small historical town perched on the vindhya ranges, about a 100 kms from Indore. They were going to shoot a movie with Mandu Palace in the backdrop.The older of the two kids in the auto was eager to have a glance of a 'bollywood star' and he wasted no time in jumping out of the autorickshaw and dashing straight to the gates of Lantern Hotel. He managed to push through the crowd and the first glimpse he got was of a white kurta-pyjama clad
man wearing spectacles. It was only a year later he got to know that this person whom he had seen in front of Lantern Hotel was named Gulzar and was the director of the movie named "Kinara" which was shot partly in Mandu. It was much later when he got to see this movie which had excellent songs. But the best one in his opinion was "Naam Ghum Jayega, Chehra Yun Badal Jayega...".
man wearing spectacles. It was only a year later he got to know that this person whom he had seen in front of Lantern Hotel was named Gulzar and was the director of the movie named "Kinara" which was shot partly in Mandu. It was much later when he got to see this movie which had excellent songs. But the best one in his opinion was "Naam Ghum Jayega, Chehra Yun Badal Jayega...". That kid was me.
Surprisingly in this case the song is associated with Lantern Hotel on Yeshwant Niwas Road of Indore. Though the Lantern Hotel experience had nothing to do with the song. Only that I had for the first time seen Gulzar Ji here who incidentally was the director of the movie, which there again had the song. Strange....and not only this, later on in my life in two situations I had the opportunity to meet Gulzar Ji and there too in this two cases, it reminded me of Hotel Lantern. Which actually makes sense. But how Naam Ghum Jayega got associated with this picture, I do not know. Even I dont remember the day when I first heard the song or the day when I first saw the movie. Wierd is the mind which behaves strange at times.
Even this day, when I hear this song, I see a misty morning in Indore...a small kid in the crowd....trying hard to get a glimpse of a bollywood 'star' without knowing that one day he would be a die-hard fan of this person.
4 comments:
Besh... Satti ebhabei ek ekta gaan ek ekta chobi toiri kore moner bhitor...theke jaay aajibon...
Very nice! Written like a memoir!
Thanks for sharing and your kind words!
This has happened with me.Not exactly the way it did keep penetrating you.but some other way. During 80's a small half small town boy used to listen "o i je dur pahar" followed by the unforgettable flute complement.....used to run cross the green lash lying lazily in front of his dad's quarter for ages, and comes to a small hillock....to witness...kanchanjangha..everytime we used to come back to out ancestral home at Tollyginge during vacations..everytime.I heard the same song and the moment first interlude starts it carried me straight down foothill...tears rolled down once when heard this at midnight (taking last train from churchgate to dadar..) in december 2000.(sound coming from some unknown chawl at lower parel)..for reasons as unknown as beauty of composition...or kanchanjangha..or memories of my childhood..Thanks sutirtha da..
ooopsss... i had goosebumps... :)
but this kind of nostalgic feeling is possible only when you meet legends... i had met the starcast of Shakalaka Boom Boom but i don't get even 1% of the feeling that you had...
such moments make life worthwhile, indeed!!!
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