The Art of Song Picturisation

Though much of Shantaram's early cinema was socially relevant and did not lend itself easily to the song-n-dance routines that were so inevitably a part of Indian cinema, song picturization was a special area of attention for Shantaram. Unfortunately early directors like him did not have the luxury of hiring specialised dance directors because there were none. However, V Shantaram was not above shaking a leg to show his artistes what exactly he wanted.

The film Duniya Na Mane (Hindi)/ Kunku (Marathi) has no songs but Shantaram makes use of the poetry recitation to relieve the tedium of the "heavy" theme and to underline the progressiveness of the heroine who can recite an English poem. Significantly, his choice of poem is H W Longfellow's "A Psalm of Life", which urges individuals to live full eventful lives -- a theme Shantaram returns to in his later films.

In the film Aadmi (Hindi)/Manoos (Marathi) has several songs which are notable but the song which exemplifies the complex theme of the film is Bai Sundarabai's bhajan (devotional song) "Man Paapi Bhoola" which externalises the protagonist's inner conflict and sets up the sharp contrast between her own dubious past and the religiosity and piety of the household she is set to enter.

The light-hearted "Premi premnagar mein jaaye" (Hindi)/"Lootuya premacha Bazaar" (Marathi) from Aadmi/Manoos is not only a satirical look at how filmi songs of the 1930s were shot but also serves two purposes: one, to create a lighter moment in an otherwise "heavy" film; and two, to chart the growing intimacy between the two unlikely lovebirds by taking them far away from their normal milieu - a place where the policeman and prostitute can just be man and woman unburdened by social roles.

The group dance sequence "Kaisa Chhaya Hai Ujala Rasiya" in Padosi and "Lakh Lakh Chanderi Saari Duniya" in Shejari was shot at night using available light and with an overhead camera (also glimpsed at in "Karte Rehana Masmar Duniya" in Amar Jyoti) -- so reminiscent of Busby Berkeley’s flamboyant dance fantasies of 1930s Hollywood. It made for a beautiful sight and hinted at the new song picturization techniques which would be the norm in the Hindi cinema of the 1950s.

This song underlines the strong bond between mother and son. As he lies dying in the final scene the poet-son hears the strains of the psalm signifying his imminent death.

In the film, the choreographer cleverly uses the restrictions of the drawing room space to craft a lavni which is both performance and histrionics and thus, an unusual experience.

Shantaram’s deft song picturisation used Vasant Desai’s innovative music track (integrating the sound of the claps to draw attention) and the architecture of the palatial drawing room, thus taking the diwankhana lavni to an entirely new dimension. Note how Shantaram uses the prop of a handheld fan to denote the increasing passion of the lavani clintele.

Being a dance musical Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje is full of memorable musical moments from the classical "Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje" to the pseudo classical "Nain Se Nain Nahin Milao" to the folksy "Suno Suno Suno More Rasiya". The film is also filled with Gopi Krishna's dances such as his pirouette-pillar dance, the Kathak dance competition (against his own uncle Chaube Maharaj) and his energetic Shiv Tandava (with Sandhya).

The song to note in Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje is "Murli Manohar Krishna Kanhaiya" not only for the exquisiteness of Gopi Krishna's fluid effortless choreography but also because it gently advances the story line by drawing attention to the as yet nascent but budding romance between two young people through small gestures like their subconscious holding of hands, being lost in thoughts.

Do Aankhen Barah Haath is another Shantaram film which does not easily lend itself to the conventional song-and-dance routine but composer Vasant Desai does wonders and never do the songs seem obtrusive to the main story. The obvious choice is the perennial favourite "Aie Malik Tere Bande Hum" which appears twice in the film: once, when Shantaram uses it as a pre-meal prayer dubbing his own spoken voice on the Manna Dey song and again, when the toyseller uses it to invoke God to bring the jailor out of coma.

Do Aankhen Barah Haath has many other cute numbers like "Tak Tak Dhoom Dhoom Tak" and "Saiyan Bada Jhoothon Ka Sartaj Nikla" but the one song worth quoting is the little known celebratory "rain dance" "Ho Umad Ghumad Kar Aie Re Ghata" which denotes the first success that the jailor and his motley band of serving criminals taste. According to Chief Assistant Prabhakar Pendharkar, the song was filmed in an impromptu fashion when the rains came pouring down without notice and the ever-alert Shantaram just picked up the dhol and went out into the rain calling out to cameraman Tyagraj Pendharkar and the crew to come out and film the song.

Like in Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje there is no denying that, much of Navrang's power comes from the song picturizations rather than the narrative scenes. Navrang has 12 songs -- perhaps the highest in a Shantaram film -- and each picturised in a unique manner: whether it is the "Arre Ja Re Hut Nutkhat" with its quick male/female interchange played out against the background of Holi or the heartbreaking climactic "Tu Chhupi Hai Kahan" which reveals the crux of the film: that the poet's muse is none other than his simple wife.

Nine songs to choose from in Geet Gaya Patharo Ne but the one that memory retains is the film's title track "Saanson Ke Taar Par". Neither the song nor the dance is any different from what prevailed in that era but what gives it verve and catches attention is Kishori Amonkar's fluid singing and Rajshree highly glamorised presence. It is probably this dance alone that won her a million fans and guaranteed her Bollywood stardom. (The song also exists in a Asha Bhosale-Mahendra Kapoor version.)

Any of the innovative (some would even say experimental) dance forms in Jal Bin Machchli Nritya Bin Bijli (1971) could have found a place here but the dance that takes the honours is undoubtedly the sensational snake-peacock fight which preludes the song "Kajra laga ke". The film sealed Sandhya's reputation as an innovative dancer. It was the first Indian film with stereophonic tracks recorded by sound wizard Mangesh Desai. Sadly, music, dance and technical wizardry were no substitute for good old-fashioned story-telling.

Choreographer Ranjan Salvi's use of props in many of the numbers adds to the innovativeness. Lyricist Jagdish Khebudkar claimed that he wrote up to six different songs for every situation so that one could be selected. The same was true for composer Ram Kadam. It was a film which not only brought back audiences to theatres but reinstated the tamasha format in Marathi cinema.