Even today Golden Era songs are popular in ‘Antakshari’ Game!
“Baithe baithe kya karein, karna hai kuch kaam.
Shuru karo antakshari leke prabu ka naam“
‘Antakshari’ the musical game is as old as the mountain but even today, when family members unite the best game to pass time is ‘Antakshari’ but ever wondered that even today when we play Antakshari the songs that we sing are maximum from the Golden Era of the 60’s and 70!
Do you recollect when you played Antakshari last and how many of your friends sung the present-day songs, or how many present-day songs you have sung? Well, the truth is the movement the musical game of Anatakshari starts you are blank to remember modern-day songs and mostly recall super hit songs of Lata Mangeshkar, Mohd Rafi, Mukesh, Asha Bhosle, and Kishore Kumar. Yes, you also sing Manna Dey, Jagjit Singh, or for that matter even singer of the ’90s like Kumar Sanu, Udit Narayan, and Sonu Nigam but it is the tragedy that Bollywood music has nose driven in the past 10 to 15 years!
Just listen to the songs like Lungi Dance… (Chennai Express), Chaar Botal Vodka… in (Ragini MMS 2), Chikni Chameli… Mere photo ko seene se yaar Chipka le Saiyan Fevicol Se (Dabangg 2) …. While these bawdy verbal’s may sound to be the tapori discourse of roadside ruffians, the truth is that they are some of the chartbuster lyrics of Bollywood. Worse are the hot steaming, Item Numbers, oozing with sex and vulgarity that have become a – MUST in Hindi cinema these days. Indian Film Industry (IFH) this week analyses at the degradation of Bollywood music and why the standard of film music of the Golden Era cannot be revived?
When we look in the past we find Bollywood was gifted with great music directors like Naushad, Shanker-Jaikishen, S.D. Burman and had lyricist with command over Adibi (Intellectual) poetry. That is the reason why eminent poet Sahir Ludhianvi, unarguably the most competent Hindi film lyricist, wrote these lines …………….
Kal koi mujhko yaad kare, kyon koi mujhko yaad kare,
Musroof zamana mere liye kyon waqt apna barbad kare!
Interestingly, Sahir Ludhianvi did not realize that with changing times, the quality of Hindi film lyrics would nose-drive so low that the coming generations, however ‘Musroof‘ (busy) would be forced to recall great poets like him and like to guide the new generation of so-called — ‘Shayars‘– who don’t even delve into thoughts before coming up with mindless verses! That’s the reason akin to the fairy-tale of the four blind men who express their diverse and ridiculous views on spotting an elephant similarly, we have lyricist of today speculating about – Ishq (Love) — where one describes Ishq as ‘Kambakht’ while the other ‘Nikamma’ the third ‘Kameena‘ and the fourth ‘Mirchi’!!!
In stark contrast to the present day poets, Sahir Sahab’s version of ishq is worth praising. He wrote – Yeh Ishq Ishq Hai … (Barsaat Ki Raat – 1960). In this song, he defines Ishq (Love) to be Almighty and as pious as God!!! Read the lines –
Allah rasool ka farmaan ishq hai;
Yaanii Hadith ishq hai, Quraan ishq hai
Gautam kaa aur Maseehaa kaa armaan ishq hai
(Allah’s messenger Mohammed preaches love
His teachings are love, the Quraan is love
Buddha and Christ wish for love)!
So now you realize the difference between Golden Era Music and present-day music!
