Dilip Kumar's Lunch Memories on 'Aag Ka Dariya' Set

In Bollywood, famous singer and actor Arun Bakshi is counted as a cheerful, cheerful and soft-spoken person. He doesn't like to speak bitterly. Working with honesty, dedication, and complete honesty, Arun Bakshi has now acted in more than a hundred films and sung more than three hundred songs. It is his good fortune that he got the opportunity to work with veteran musicians, directors, and artists. Even after 42 years, he is one of the busiest singers and artists in Bollywood. Now, Arun Bakshi is going to be seen in the important role of an editor in producer Rajiv Chaudhary, Surendra Jagtap, and director Ashok Tyagi's film 'Fire of Love Raid', which is being released on 15 December 2023.

Presenting a conversation with Arun Bakshi about his career so far...

You have completed forty years of career in Bollywood. Where did you get your musical inspiration from?

-If I say that the voice in which I sing is mine, it would be wrong. This voice is of my mother. My mother was a great singer. She used to sing jagran and bhajan kirtan. I used to watch her singing with eyes closed for three to four hours every day. She used to improve her singing by practicing herself. I learned a lot from my mother. Seeing her singing, I used to think that mother is mine, but how does she do Riyaz? Apart from this, I went to many people to learn music, but everyone ignored me. Then I kept practicing music considering Mother Saraswati as my guru and learned music/singing like Ekalavya. I got the real inspiration for music from my mother only. My mother has gone to be with God, but she is still in my heart. So my first guru is my mother. After that, I came to Mumbai. So Mumbai became my teacher. The pace of Mumbai became my teacher. After three months in Mumbai, the play 'Bakri' came in my bag, which had twenty to twenty-one songs. In this play, my character was that of a singer who tells people about the situation in the country at that time by singing. So, he was doing both acting and singing in the play ‘Bakri’.

One song in this drama was very loud. This was the first step in my music career. After this, I got the second play “Safed Kundli”, which had 55 songs. The beauty of this play was that all of us actors used to sing songs. There was no social media or social networking at that time. But the film people had their eyes on the theater people. After that, composer Laxmikant Pyarelal Ji made me lose four lines. This was a big excitement for me and this excitement is still alive even today. If such talented people allow a person who has not learned singing, to sing, then there is bound to be excitement. On top of that, that song had to be recorded live, until then I didn't know the ABCs of Mike Culver.

I think it was due to my mother's blessings and the blessings of Mother Saraswati that I was able to sing four lines under the direction of Laxmikant Pyarelal. There were four lines in my music exam - "Jaat Na poochhe, pant na poochhe, tera dharma na poochhe, tera banda ik din..." I sang these four lines and got them recorded and forgot. Because Laxmikant Pyarelal ji did not tell why he had sung these four lines. In those days, it was a tradition in Bollywood to get a song sung by one singer and then get it sung by another singer. After a year, director Ashok Tyagi came to me and told me that I had sung a song in Subhash Ghai's film 'Karma' and my name was also there.

It was written in the film – “Karma Induction by Arun Bakshi”. When I saw it, I naturally got excited and that excitement is still there today. That music became a hit that song became a hit, the film became a hit and I had four lines with Dilip Kumar Sahab. After that, I realized for the first time what success is. What does it mean to be a superhit? Suddenly people from the film industry started behaving well towards me. People who earlier used to stay away from me also started talking. Then this city gave me very good people. Director Ashok Tyagi gave me a great role in his directorial debut film “Surkhiyaan”. Since then I have been in almost every film of Ashok Tyagi. After a long time, Ashok Tyagi wrote and directed the film 'Fire of Love Raid'. In this too, he has been allowed to play the very beautiful character of an editor. This film is going to be released on 15 December 2023.

You were in Punjab. How did you come to Mumbai from Punjab?

-I was a cricketer, a medium pacer. Had completed graduation degree. The condition of Punjab in those days was such that clerks were born with bachelor's degrees. Once in a while, someone becomes a sportsman, so be it. The educated youth had no way of moving forward. Although Ludhiana is a very lovely city, at that time I felt that living here does not have a very bright future. By the way, it is also written in my horoscope that my work area will be Mumbai. Interest in acting and singing had increased. But we did not have enough money to go to the National School of Drama. When the resources at home are lesser but your parents are with you, it is fun to take risks.

After reaching Mumbai, how did you become associated with the play 'Bakri'?

-Mumbai city was completely new for me. After reaching Mumbai, I bought an English newspaper and found out where plays were held in this city. Meanwhile, someone whispered the name of 'IPTA' in my ear. It came to light from that newspaper that a play of 'IPTA' was being staged in Tejpal Hall of Gwalior Tank. I reached there and met Ramesh Talwar. Today, Ramesh Talwar Sahab is my teacher, I respect him a lot. He is a very big personality. Even today he is doing theater like a child. It was there that Ramesh Talwar introduced me to MS Sathyu Saheb. Who was directing the play 'Bakri' in those days? From there my work started in Mumbai. I also acted in the film 'Masoom' along with singing. According to me, life has never been without reason for me. There was always some reason in life. Life has taught me to wait a bit and keep working hard. And it will take care of you.

Laxmikant Pyarelal got you started singing in films. So how did you meet him for the first time?

-We used to go to the Hotel Holiday Inn and play Scotch and Tennis there. Prayers and greetings were received from Laxmikant ji every day. One day after playing tennis, I was sitting and relaxing and while relaxing, I started humming Talat Aziz's ghazal 'Koi paas aaya savere savere..', after hearing which Laxmikant ji praised my singing and rhythm. My friends sitting next to me told me that I sing in the theatre. Laxmikant ji called me to his house saying that he wanted to listen to me. But I went to his house twice, but he was busy. The third time when I went to meet him at his house, he heard me singing. I believe that Mumbai gives you an opportunity and you should grab that opportunity. The opportunity should not be missed. So I got the opportunity to sing the same four lines of 'Karma'. Many years later I came to know that these four lines were written by Anand Bakshi Sahab and he was the one who was going to sing it. But perhaps these lines were written in my destiny that is why I was made to sing them. When I sang, I did not even realize that my film career was starting from there.

What kind of change did you feel after the four lines sung by you in 'Karma'?

-In those days, I was shooting the film 'Aag Ka Dariya' with Dilip Kumar in Ooty. A jeep had to be driven in a scene of the film. Dilip Kumar Sahab himself was driving the jeep. I was sitting at the back. Padmini Kolhapuri was also there. Dilip Sahab spoke very beautifully and I enjoyed listening to him. Suddenly he said that he had sung a rap in the film 'Karma'. Some dialogues are also very well-spoken. I have to do that again now. So I gathered courage and said that I had sung four lines in it. Dilip Sahab was shocked. When I sang the lines, I came to know that he had come after filming the scene with these lines. Then he talked about my music education. Since then his behavior changed. Then he started having lunch with me.

When you started singing songs in films, in those days the actor used to get his favorite singer to sing the song. Did something like this happen to you?

-No...Earlier film producers used to call me to sing songs. After that musicians started calling me to sing songs. After that, the work started working together. To be honest, I have sung the first 10-20 songs for free. Didn't even take money for the song 'Tunna Tunna…' I used to eat paan only instead of singing songs. I wanted to dedicate those songs to my mother. Secondly, sometimes the ego of money also has to be broken. Well, everyone knows that Goddess Lakshmi rarely comes to the devotees of Saraswati. But when Goddess Saraswati's prayer rings, all the Gods and Goddesses follow her. Another name for Mother Saraswati is - 'Swar Stuti'. Till now I have sung 332 songs. These are fewer, but out of these 332 songs, 95 percent are superhit. For example - 'Jhoole Jhulelal Mast Kalandar', 'Bade Kaam Ka Bandar, Naache Dharmendra', the song from director Mohinder Batra's Punjabi serial - 'Bol Mitti..'. I had worked hardest as a singer - 'Yeh Duniya Kya' whether money money. 'On the song. This song was written by the late Maya Govind Ji. In this, I had given some input from the theatre. The music composer was Bappi Lahiri. It took 22 days to prepare this song, but I recorded it in one take. This song was a hit at that time and is a hit even today.

How was the song “Tunna Tunna...” made?

-There is a very interesting story of its making. I went to the film's producer Nitin Manmohan to ask for my remuneration. But since I am a respectable person, I was not able to ask for my cheque. One day when I reached him, after talking about this and that, he said to me, 'Come with me. 'While I was thinking in my mind that he should give my cheque. Well, I went with them. He took me to musician Anand Milind. Anand Milind is like a brother to me. Many people including Javed Siddiqui, and lyricist Sameer Anjan were sitting there. Anand Milind had made one half of a song very beautiful. But I was asked to make the second part of this song. After thinking for some time I made it. The song was made in two minutes. But Anand Milind and Nitin Manmohan are such honest people that they have induced a new voice. Javed Siddiqui said who will sing this song? Nitin Manmohan took my name. Then a person said that if Arun could not sing, we would lose so and so. I said that I would sing it and I would sing it in one take. This song is 'Tunna Tunna…', the first part of which is sung by Amit Kumar, and the second part is sung by me. The first part has been shot on Sanjeev and the second part has been shot on Shakti Kapoor. When the song became a hit, people were surprised. There is an interesting story behind every successful song. Pahlaj Nihalani ji makes me sing songs in every film.

Is the trend of remake songs of classic songs increasing?

-The reason for this is bankruptcy in our country. When there is no way forward, then old songs are remakes. It is made by speeding up the beat of an old song. But people like it. I want that good classical music should not be tampered with.

These days you are in a lot of discussion about the film “Fire of Love Raid”?

-This is the wonder of director Ashok Tyagi, who became my first friend in Mumbai. We both first met in Mumbai in 1978. I remember well that I was going home in the first class compartment of the local train after performing my first musical play 'Bakri' at Prithvi Theatre, and in the same compartment, I met Ashok Tyagi. He had seen this play, and he liked my acting, so he recognized me on the train and talked to me. Ashok Tyagi is a very different kind of person, whenever you talk to him, you will learn something. He allowed me to act in his first film 'Surkhiyaan' in 1985 and now gave me work in the film 'Fire of Love Raid'. I have a tremendous monologue in this.

Will you explain this monologue in detail?

-This is a wonderfully written monologue and playing it on screen was the biggest challenge for me. It is because of this monologue of mine that the hero of the film gets motivated. Before that, he had faced a lot of humiliation. Its dialogues are of very different types. It talks about Marxism. The hero of the film is the writer. At one point my character says to him – “What have you written? You are nothing.' After this scene, he feels so humiliated that he suddenly changes.

-Shantiswarup Tripathi

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