When I think of movies made in the subcontinent, almost all turn out to be musicals. In the 50s there was a trend of having eight to ten songs in an Indian or Pakistani film, different to the present day with only four to five songs per movie. Film songs that have been artistically shot tend to leave a mark and linger with the viewer. Following are three such examples of masterfully filmed Pakistani film songs that stood out in terms of location, choreography and acting.
‘Kahan Ho Tum Sahelio’ from ‘Humraaz’ (1967)
Khwaja Khurshid Anwar’s 1967 film ‘Hamraaz’ is a mystery thriller, starring Shamim Ara, who does an admirable job of playing a double role.
‘Hamraaz’ is made in a different manner as compared to other Pakistani thrillers and has been produced by Sheikh Abdur Rashid and Khwaja Khurshid Anwar. The latter also directed and composed the music of the film.
Other than Shamim Ara, the movie’s cast includes Mohammad Ali, Nabila, Lehri, Tariq Aziz, Meena Shorey, Rangeela, Changezi, Ajmal and Talish. The songs are penned by Qateel Shifai.
The film begins with a girl (Ara) clad in modern attire running in the forest, while holding a piece of paper in her hand. She is rescued by Muhammad Ali (who plays a doctor) and a friend (Lehri), but her pursuers (Talish and an accomplice) capture and take her away. Ara leaves the piece of paper in Ali’s car that discloses the secret that she is the princess of Qaiserabad. It is later revealed that the kidnappers have trying to extract this very secret from the captured girl by injecting her with small doses of morphine. Under the influence of morphine, Ara sings the happy birthday song for her imaginary friends and the beautiful song ‘Kahan Ho Tum Sahelio Jawab Do’, sung by Nurjehan begins. The set, lit with candles and the use of fog and bells in the background is a hallmark of Khwaja Saheb’s films. In this song, the lighting, the candle settings, their being lit and fused provide excellent piece of artistic filming. The choir of girls adds to the mysterious black and white lighting and foggy atmosphere. This song is a masterpiece among Khwaja Saheb’s mastery on filming.The lighting reminds me of the songs pictured by Raj Kapoor in the film ‘Barsaat’. Khwaja Saheb’s direction highlights the conflict generated by a man’s demoniacal lust for possession and power which he disguises as a mission to preserve the values inherited from his feudal forefathers.
‘Raahon Pei Thaari Main Nazrain Jamaye, Koi Aye’ from ‘Ghoonghat’ (1962)
As luck would have it, my other choice is once again a Nurjehan-Khwaja Khursheed Anwar collaboration. The song is from the 1962 film ‘Ghoonghat’ starring Santosh Kumar and Nayyar Sultana, supported by Laila, Neelo, Ghulam Muhammad, Razia and Bibbo. The film was selected as the Pakistani entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 36th Academy Awards. Back home it won four awards at the 1962 Nigar Awards ceremony held in Pakistan.
The brief storyline is that Shahid (Santosh Kumar) is betrayed by his wife who ran away at the first night of their wedding. After this incident he becomes a lonely person and an alcoholic. He then visits a hill station with his best friend in an attempt to move on but instead is haunted by the spirit of Usha Rani.
This song is filmed on Nayyar Sultana who poses as Usha, a Hindu Devi in front of a small temple. Nayyar’s hand and body movements on the line ‘Kab Ayein Gey’ add to the mystery of the sinister atmosphere.
‘Sajna Door Terian Rahwan’ from ‘Teefa in Trouble’ (2018)
This song is sung by Ali Zafar and Aima Baig for the 2018 movie ‘Teefa in Trouble’. It is the directorial debut of Ahsan Rahim, who is otherwise famous for directing music videos and television commercials. Sajna Door Terian Rahwan is a soft melody filmed on Zafar and the beautiful Maya Ali. Zafar imagines himself doing a slow dance with Ali on the surface of a lake. This is a modern and novice filming approach in Pakistani Cinema. The music is given by Zafar and brother Daniyal.The dance sequence on the surface of the lake was earlier tried by Rohit Shetty in the song ‘Gerua’ filmed on Shahrukh Khan and Kajol in the film ‘Dilwale’. In both songs love is in the air and Pritum’s music for the latter song uses Arijit Singh and Antara Mitra’s voices. I give more credit to Ali Zafar as technically and artistically it is stronger in its contents.
The writer is the recipient of the prestigious Pride of Performance award. He can be reached at [email protected]
Published in Daily Times, February 17th 2019.