JEWELS OF JALANDHAR
Here we will be profiling some of unknown jewels as well as internationally recognised jewels of Jalandhar . If you want to see someone's profile who has contributed to Jalandhar's fame or has been instrumental in betterment of society, please email us admin@jalandhari.com Thanks
Kundan Lal Saigal
Hazaroon Saal Nargis Apni Be-noori Peh Roti Hai
Bari Mushkil Se Hota Hai Chaman Main Deedavar Paida
Kundan Lal (K.L.) Saigal (April 11, 1904 – January 18, 1947) was an
Indian singer and actor who is considered the first superstar of
Bollywood, the Hindi film industry centered in Bombay, but at his time
in Calcutta.
Although he is a famous Jalandhari and has his ancestral home in
Jalandhar, Kundan Lal was born at Nawa Shahar in Jammu, located in the
present-day Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir. Kundan was the fourth-born
child of five and his formal schooling was brief and uneventful. Saigal
dropped out of school and started earning money by working as a railway
timekeeper. Later, he worked as a typewriter salesman for the Remington
Typewriter Company, which allowed him to tour several parts of India.
His travels brought him to Lahore where he befriended Meharchand Jain
(who later went on to start the Assam Soap Factory in Shillong) at the
Anarkali Bazaar. Meharchand and Kundan remained friends when they both
moved to Calcutta and had many a mehfil-e-mushaira. In those days Kundan
was a budding singer and Meharchand encouraged him to pursue his talent.
Kundan Lal often remarked that he was what he was because of
Meharchand's encouragement and early support .He also briefly worked as
a hotel manager. Meanwhile, his passion for singing continued and became
more intense with the passage of time.
Career at New Theatres
In the early 1930s, he was hired by B.N. Sircar, head of the
Calcutta-based film studio, New Theatres. Here, Kundan met R.C. Boral,
the highly respected music composer of the pioneering film company. R.C.
Boral took an instant liking to his talents. Saigal was employed by New
Theatres on a contract basis of Rs. 200/month. There he came into
contact with contemporaries like Pankaj Mullick, K. C. Dey and Pahari
Sanyal. In a short span of time, he stood tallest among them with his
brilliant singing and popularity.
The first film in which Saigal had a role was the Urdu film Mohabbat Ke
Ansoo, followed by Subah Ka Sitara and Zinda Laash, all released in
1932. However, these films did not do very well. It was in 1933 that his
four bhajans for the film Puran Bhagat created a sensation throughout
India; thereafter, Saigal never looked back. Films that followed were
Yahudi Ki Ladki, Chandidas and Rooplekha. As a youngster, India's melody
queen herself, Lata Mangeshkar, is alleged to have said that she wanted
to marry K.L. Saigal after seeing his performance in Chandidas. In 1935,
Saigal played the role that would come to define his acting career: that
of the drunken title character in Devdas, based on Sarat Chandra
Chattopadhyay's novel of the same name and directed by P.C. Barua. His
songs in the film, Balam Aaye Baso Moray Man Mein and Dukh Ke Ab Din
Beetat Naahi, became feverishly popular throughout the country.
Saigal picked up Bengali very well and acted in seven Bengali films,
produced by New Theatres. Rabindranath Tagore first heard Saigal before
giving consent for the first time to a non-Bengali singing his songs.
Saigal endeared himself to the whole of Bengal through his 30 Bengali
songs.
Saigal's association with New Theatres continued to bear fruit in
subsequent films that became all the rage, which created success after
success with films such as Didi (Bengali)/President (Hindi) in 1937,
Saathi (Bengali)/Street Singer (Hindi) in 1938, and Zindagi in 1940,
with Saigal in the male lead. These films were lapped by audiences
mainly for Saigal's songs. There are a number of immortal songs of this
era which form the rich heritage of film music in India. Also, it is
well-known that in Street Singer, Saigal rendered the song Babul Mora
live in front of the camera, even though playback was becoming the
preferred method of singing songs in films.
The move to Bombay and Death
In December of 1941, Saigal moved to Bombay to work with Ranjit
Movietone. Here he acted and sung in a number of hit films. His voice,
music and songs took him to even greater heights. Bhakt Surdas (1942)
and Tansen (1943) were huge hits during this period. The latter film is
still remembered for Saigal's amazing performance of the song Diya Jalao
in Raga Deepak. In 1944, he returned to New Theatres to complete Meri
Behen. This film contained such Saigal gems as Do Naina Matware and Ae
Qatib-e-Taqdeer Mujhe Itna Bata De.
By this time, alcohol had become a predominant factor in Saigal's life.
His dependence on alcohol and begun affecting his work and his health.
It was said that he could only record a song after having being
fortified with liquor. He survived ten years of drinking, however, his
alcoholism was too advanced for even a single attempt at abstinence, and
Saigal died in his ancestral city of Jalandhar on January 18, 1947, at
the age of 42. However, before his death, he was able to churn out three
more hits under the baton of Naushad for the film Shahjehan (1946).
These are Mere Sapnon Ki Rani, Ae Dil-e-Beqaraar Jhoom, and of course,
the immortal Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya. He released his last film, Parwana,
in 1947. Saigal was survived by his wife Asha Rani (whom he married in
1935) and three children, one son and two daughters, who are, Madan
Mohan, Nina (b. 1937) and Bina (b. 1941).
In a career of fifteen years, Saigal acted in 36 feature films - 28 in
Hindi/Urdu, 7 in Bengali, and 1 in Tamil. In addition, he acted in a
short comedy Hindi/Urdu film, Dulari Bibi (3 reels), released in 1933.
After Saigal's death, based on the life and times of K.L. Saigal, B.N.
Sircar released a documentary film called Amar Saigal in 1955. In the
film, G. Mungheri performed the title role of Saigal. The film contained
19 songs lifted from Saigal's films. In all, Saigal rendered 185 songs
which includes 142 film songs and 43 non-film songs. In the film songs
category, there are 110 in Hindi/Urdu, 30 in Bengali and 2 in Tamil. In
the non-film category, there are 37 in Hindi/Urdu, and 2 each in
Bengali, Punjabi and Persian. His non-film songs comprise of Bhajans,
Ghazals and Hori. He has rendered the creations of legendary poets such
as Ghalib, Zauq, Seemab and others.
Saigal's distinctive singing voice was so melodious and popular that he
was idolized by the first generation of post-independence Bollywood
playback singers, including Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammad Rafi, Mukesh, and
Kishore Kumar. Even today, the name K.L. Saigal conjures up images of
the great Indian singing film star of the 1930s and 1940s with the
unmatched golden voice
Top 25 songs of Kundan Lal Saigal
1] Balam aaye baso more manmen – Raga Sindhura (Devdas)
2] Dukhake din aab bitat nahin – Raga Des (Devdas)
3] Radhe rani de daro na – Raga Yaman (Puran Bhakta)
4] Ek bangala bane nyara – (President)
5] Duniya rang rangili baba – (Dharati Mata)
6] Jhulana jhulao re – raga Devgandhar
7] Karun kya aas niras bhai – (Dushman)
8] Main kya janun kya jadoo hai – Raga Yaman (Zindagi)
9] Rumjhum rumjhum chal tehari – Raga Shankara (Tansen)
10] Diya jalao – Raga Deepak (Tansen)
11] Sapta sur teen taal – Dhrupad (Tansen)
12] Nis din barsaat nain hamare – (Bhakta Surdas)
13] Madhukar shyam hamare – (Bhakta Surdas)
14] Maiyya mori main nahi makhan khayo – (Bhakta Surdas)
15] Aae dile bekarar kyun – (Shah Jahan)
16] Chaha barbaad karegi - (Shah Jahan)
17] Gam diye mushtakil kitana najuk hai dil - (Shah Jahan)
18] Jab dil hi toot gaya - (Shah Jahan)
19] Do naina matwale – (My sister)
20] Kya maine kiya hai – (My Sister)
21] Panchi kahe hota udaas / Suno suno he krishna kala - Geets
22] Duniyamen hun duniyaka talabgaar nahin hun – Ghazal
23] Kaun viranemen dekhega bahar – Ghazal
24] So ja rajkumari so ja – (Zindagi)
25] Babul mora naihan chhoto hi jay – (Street Singer)
A day before his death, Saigal's health suddenly took ugly turn. His niece, Durgesh, then 15, read Bhagwad Gita by his bedside throughout the night. Early in the morning, Saigal breathed his last. He was 42 when he passed on 18th January 1947 in Jalandhar, his hometown. K. L. Saigal had expressed his last wish to play his song "Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya, Hum Jee Kya Karenge" a song composed by Naushad. The admirable part of Saigal was that till end he remained a simple man. Fifty years since his demise Saigal still lingers in the memories of music lovers as K. L. Saigal the immortal singer.A great artist, a great man, Saigal belongs to the class of human beings who defy death. He is immortal.
To commemorate his work, a trust named K.L.Saigal Memorial Trust has been formed in Jalandhar, which conducts musical competitions every year in the memory of K.L.Saigal. A hall named after the immortal K.L.Saigal has also been built which has many interesting facts about K L Saigal stored in it.