First Death Anniversary Tribute

KHAYYAM tells JYOTHI VENKATESH

If he were alive today, he would have turned 90. To mark his first death anniversary, we reproduce this interview of KHAYYAM by JYOTHI VENKATESH from Hindustan Times issue dt April 29, 2008 

What attracted you to take up the task of composing for a serial like Bikhri Aas Nikhri Preet for Doordarshan?

 First of all the serial Bikhri Aas Nikhri Preet is based on the literary classic Vyavdhaan written by the late Smt Shanti Kumari Bajpai , who incidentally happens to be the mother of the producer Trinetra Bajpai, who gave me what I asked and did not even bargain though most of the TV serials have budget constraints. Another reason is that the veteran director Lekh Tandon is directing the serial. I had composed for his TV serial Milan 

What is Bikhri Aas Nikri Preet all about?

It is a 52 episode family serial based on Hindi novel Vyavdhaan, produced by Kanika Mutliscope Pvt Limited. The 52 episode serial depicts an emotional saga epitomizing boundless love and unfathomable devotion exuded by true to life and down to earth real characters ably portrayed by handpicked talents. The serial has been conceived as a saga of love and loss displayed through the passion and perils of two families and their bond, which carries across different generations. The Hindi novel penned way back in 1963 was one of the literary classics of that period. The serial will give an opportunity to the people to watch classic drama against the ongoing trend of senseless and ''exhausting'' Saas-Bahu serials. 

How would you describe today’s music?

There has been an overall decline in music as well as lyrics and there is more of gandagi, nangapan and ashleelta in lyrics. All that I can say is that today’s music is nothing but semi -pornography. Today’s music lacks strength. It has become like a bubble which is on the verge of bursting. Today’s music is like a balloon which needs air in the form of promotion to survive. To promote music, producers pump in crores. No wonder the music is short-lived and people remember it only as long as it is promoted visually through TV channels day and night. 

Would you blame the public for today’s decline in music?

No. The public chooses what we churn out provided they like it. I’d state that even today the public continues to prefer melodious music like in the days of yore. Till today people remember my songs in Phir Subah Hogi, Trishul, Noorie, Umrao Jaan and Kabhi Kabhi, as they have stood the test of time since they were composed with passion. 

Is it true that you are moody and arrogant and refuse every offer to compose for films?

Yes. I am moody but not arrogant. Though I have composed for very few films in all these years, I have always preferred quality over quantity. I do not accept an offer to compose if I do not get a good subject. Only if I am sure that I would be able to do justice to the subject do I agree to compose music for a film, not just to fill the coffers of my pocket with hardcore currency notes like some contemporary music directors do, because I do not want to be dishonest. 

Why didn’t you become a permanent fixture with Raj Kapoor after Phir Subah Hogi?

Raj was so thrilled when he heard my compositions for Phir Subah Hogi that when my wife Jagjit and I met him at Mukesh’s daughter’s wedding, he invited us to their cottage for dinner the next evening. After we reached his cottage, when Rajji excused himself and went to the bathroom to wash his hands before we could dine together, Jagjit pointed out to me that Jaikishen, who was also seated with Rajji there, had turned pale watching Rajji getting close to me. Immediately I chose to walk out without even informing Rajji and Krishnaji, as I did not want to deprive Jaikishen of his chance though I needed work at that point of time, because Shankar and he were composing music for almost every film of Rajji then. Rightly Rajji became angry and never asked me to compose for him ever again. 

Has competition ever scared you?

Till date, I have never ever been scared of any music director because I have never ever been insecure as far as my kaabiliyat is concerned. I have always felt that I have to compete with myself and measure up to what I had done in my earlier films like Phir Subah Hogi, Kabhi Kabhie and Umrao Jaan. 

What was your reaction when J.P. Dutta signed on Anu Malik to compose for his Umrao Jaan though you had composed for the original version by Muzaffar Ali?

I did not feel bad at all, because Anu Malik also had tried his level best to compose the best for the new Umrao Jaan. Though J. P. Dutta had spent a lot of money, the film misfired by chance. However I was hurt when J.P. Dutta lied that he had not seen the original version of Umrao Jaan. How could he have decided to make his version of Umrao Jaan if he had not seen Muzaffar’s film in the first place? 

In what way are directors today different from the earlier lot?

When I set out to compose music for his film Razia Sultan, Kamal Amrohi not only gave me the screenplay of the film but also the details of the camera movement, though I was only the music director, because he wanted me to ‘feel’ the situations when I composed the music. 

What do you think about the new trend of making remixes of vintage songs?

I feel that remix is akin to blue murder in broad daylight in a crowded street. There are several victims who have been thrown on the roads because of remixes but no one is listening to our cries, including the government which has failed to stop this legal piracy. The sooner remixes are stopped the better it will augur for the music industry. 

Why do you feel that you have been deprived of your credit as a music director?

Though it was I who had made Asha Bhosle sing her first ever cabaret number for the film Footpath in which I’d also made her sing for the heroine too, people have forgotten that and it is only R.D. Burman and O.P. Nayyar who are being given the credit for having made Asha sing a cabaret number. It really hurts you when you are not given the credit for what you have achieved, since both Nayyarsaab and R.D. Burman had come to the music industry only after I did. 

Though it is over 60 years since you have made your debut as a music director, you have composed only for 57 films till date. Why?

I am 81 today. I have given over 60 years of my life to music. I have always listened to my heart and not my brain. I have never commercialized my status as a music director to amass wealth. I have always believed that there is no point in running after wealth and storing it in your ‘safe’ because it will only ‘rot’ there. I and my wife Jagjit Kaur have always led a very frugal life and I never wanted to compose for 400 films because I have always strived to concentrate on quality and not quantity, because I do not have to prove my talent to anyone. 

Why did you disappear from the scene for some time?

If I did not compose for films it does not mean that I had done the vanishing trick. I was busy for some time recording the great works of great lyricists. I composed over 200 songs and was glad when they were sold in great numbers too, proving that people still accept good stuff. 

Why are you not taking up any offer to compose after Gautam Ghose’s Yatra?

I will be composing for a film called Main Phir Aaonga directed by Krishnakant Pandya. I am looking forward to the release of the film Benares 1918 A Love Story directed by Ajay Mehra for which I have composed music. I am ready to take up new offers for composing songs for films. If at all I take up an offer, I should be sure that it would be one step above as far as I am concerned. Though I want to record till my last breath, the day I feel that I have come one step down, I’d gladly retire from the scene too.