Apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
Posted on: August 14, 2012
This article is written by Raja, a fellow enthusiast of Hindi movie music and a regular contributor to this blog. This song is Hasrat Jaipuri’s 400th song in the blog
Today is the first death anniversary of Shammi Kapoor, one of Hindi cinema’s most loved actors of all-time.
I choose my adjectives carefully, especially when I use them in their superlative form. I rarely use the superlative form unless I am comfortable with the assertion I’m making. And in the case of Shammi Kapoor, I feel very comfortable saying that he was one of our most loved actors of all-time.
There’s a lot – and I really mean a LOT – about Shammi Kapoor available out there on the net. Understandably a lot of it is from his huge fan base – but there’s also much to be mined from Shammi Kapoor’s own contribution to content on the net.
For Shammi Kapoor was possibly the first celebrity in India to truly embrace the internet – as he has himself said, long before most of India got net connectivity, he was connecting to the internet. And long before blogging became pretty commonplace, Shammi Kapoor set up his blog. (I remember when I first came across it one evening many years ago, I was hooked to it all night :).
And then there are various interviews of Shammi Kapoor available on the net – he has thankfully left for posterity a lot of material to cherish. Till his very end, he was an extremely popular person – and the Indian media realized that. His easy and friendly nature, his accessibility, his being very young at heart despite his advancing years – all of this actually helped to make him a youth icon in India when he was in his late 70s! There’s a lesson in this for some (supposedly national leaders maybe?) who are in their 40s. 🙂
I have the feeling that Shammi Kapoor’s popularity increased with every passing day. During his acting heydays, the late 50s and through the 60s, he was hugely popular, no doubt. He had carved out his own identity for an alternative Hindi film hero, one very different from the images of the then-reigning stars, Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand. And the audience loved him – his swagger, his dancing, his “yahoo” image became the most enduring image of Hindi cinema of the Swinging Sixties.
By the end of the 60s, he was ready to hang up his boots – at least as a leading man. He had dominated the decade like no other actor – but by the end of it, his body, which had taken more than its fair share of beating, needed to take a break. And so he took a break, finishing off just the pending assignments and spending time with his parents (his father passed away in 1972).
I will not bore people here with facts they already know – about Shammi Kapoor’s return to films, this time in a different avatar. He came back as a character actor, producer – and even directed a couple of films.
The most important thing I DO want to mention though is the person behind the role. And that is as big a reason for me to be Shammi Kapoor’s fan than anything else.
Every actor has at least two faces – one he presents in front of the camera, the other his off-screen personality. The one in front of the camera is what we all get to see – sometimes we like what we see, sometimes we don’t.
What we don’t always get to see is the off-screen personality. And fair enough, each person is entitled to his or her life and we have no business peeking or prying into another’s life. Even if he or she happens to be a celebrity. (I don’t subscribe to a commonly-held viewpoint that the public has a right to know about a celeb’s private life because “that is the cost of being a celebrity”. I think EVERYBODY has a right to his or her private life – and what he or she wants to share is upto him or her).
Having said that, I think those celebrities who DO choose to be in the public eye walk a tightrope. Their actions will get analysed, they will get judged, they will get talked about – now THAT is the price of being a celebrity.
And THAT can be a burden to bear. There are celebrities who seem to struggle to carry this burden. They’ve become role-models for some in society (admittedly, the impressionable type – their numbers run into millions) and they are not necessarily comfortable with the responsibility that this brings with it. They may not have chosen to be role-models – but they chose to be celebrites – and fame and at least a certain degree of public conduct and responsibility would seem to go hand in hand. The way a Sachin Tendulkar or a Rahul Dravid conducts himself, does inspire a whole generation of youngsters – and not just in sport.
I cannot speak for how Shammi Kapoor was during his younger days (I wasn’t there then) but I can certainly speak for how he seems to have conducted himself in his last 20-odd years.
And it is difficult to think of a better celebrity role-model for somebody in his advancing years. It is easy to fall for Shammi Kapoor’s charm because most of us have his gung-ho “yahoo” image in mind, something that he always carried till the very end. Yes, till the very end he seemed to be in the pink of mental health – but what we also need to remember is the reality of his physical health. That he used to go for dialysis three times a week – and anybody who has been through this will tell you it takes a LOT, really a LOT, from you.
Never once did he rant or complain or sound depressed about it. On the contrary he would say “The hospital may have three of my days of the week, but I still have the remaining four”.
And THIS is the reason I really, really, REALLY love Shammi Kapoor. Of course I absolutely love his movies – if I’ve ever wanted to watch a fun movie, I’ve just got to switch to any of more than a dozen of his movies and the moment I see his face, I see his steps on the dance floor, I see him serenading the heroine with a Rafi number on his lips, my face brightens up and the day suddenly feels much better than it otherwise did.
But beyond all this, the Shammi Kapoor I will remember – and respect – is the man, the one who, till his last days, was an inspiration for generations of youth. Who, through his personal videos and lifestyle (so not just preaching but also practising), always made people realize that life needs to be lived to the full. Spreading love and goodwill always through his ever-interesting anecdotes about life – no ill-will, no rancor. If a man in his late 70s could be so active, so full of life, inspite of failing health – what possible reason can those of us, much younger, have to complain about? Just think about it.
Ok, that was a bit of a philosophical journey – I tend to go off on these sort of journeys quite often. 🙂 Am not sure this blog is quite the place for this.
Anyway, coming to this blog – and the song for today.
It is “apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo” from Budtameez (1966).
This is a film which I’d always wanted to see but finally got to see only a couple of years ago. My memory being what it is, I’ve already forgotten large parts of the film, so I will not be able to narrate too much of it here. What I do remember is Sadhana being some sort of a rich spoilt brat and Shammi Kapoor being employed in the services of her family to try to drill some sense into her. 🙂 There are the usual nakhras, the serenading and all that (there’s a nice car song) – then the inevitable situation where she falls in love with him. There’s a misunderstanding later (I don’t remember what causes it) but all works out well in the end, as it usually does. Sorry, I don’t remember any more than this.
I think (though I may be wrong) that this song is where Sadhana wants to humiliate Shammi Kapoor. So she gets him drunk and he makes a fool of himself. I won’t say more than this – hopefully somebody else will give a better explanation of the situation.
I’ll just leave it now and let everybody enjoy the song.
And on his first death anniversary, I’d just like to thank Shammi Kapoor for giving us all those wonderful moments on the screen AND for being such an inspiration for so many. I’m sure he’s happy up there, sitting with Rafi saab and Shankar-Jaikishen, singing “yahoo” or “suku suku”. 🙂
Song-Apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo (Budtameez)(1966) Singer-Rafi, Lyrics-Hasrat Jaipuri, MD-Shankar Jaikishan
Lyrics
Apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
tum ko taskeen mil hi jaayegi
mujh ko aaraam aa hi jaayega
tum ko taskeen mil hi jaayegi
mujh ko aaraam aa hi jaayega
mujh ko aaraam aa hi jaayega
dil mein dheere se mera naam to lo
dil mein dheere se mera naam to lo
apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
baat karte nahin ho jaane do
dil milaate nahin ho jaane do
baat karte nahin ho jaane do
dil milaate nahin ho jaane do
dil milaate nahin ho jaane do
khair jaane do par salaam to lo
khair jaane do par salaam to lo
apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
gir na jaaoon main huzoor thaam to lo
10 Responses to "Apni baanhon se koi kaam to lo"
2 | Ava Suri
August 14, 2012 at 8:58 pm
He was the funnest actor really! He lit up the screen with his presence, the movies he acted in were EXACTLY what movies should be, good clean wholesome fun. And it helps that he was a hero just when everything was JUST right with cinema, good stories, good director, good music. He was like a cherry on top of all this goodness.
I will always remember Shammi with fondness
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August 14, 2012 at 9:03 pm
A very touching tribute Raja! I found myself nodding to lots of things you have written in this post. He was never a favourite actor of Hindi films for me. But he was a good entertainer! He made the 60s what they are!
Thank you for the post and thank you Atul for being the host
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August 14, 2012 at 9:12 pm
All I know is that when I met him at the age (his age :)) of 78 my knees went weak, and his eyes still sparkled like a young man’s. He was well aware of the effect he had on people, but it was completely natural to him. I will always cherish that memory as one of the best hours of my life.
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August 14, 2012 at 9:20 pm
Those eyes of his *sigh*!!!! It’s so hard to think beyond them.
And when he serenaded the heroine with a Rafi number on his lips, it’s simply heavenly to watch. Shammi and Rafi made a lethal combination!
He actually taught us what ‘Living life king-size’ meant!
Nashaa pilaa ke giraanaa toh sab ko aataa hai,
Arre mazaa toh jab hai ke girton ko thaam le saaqi
Haye!!! I just love this song!
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August 14, 2012 at 9:49 pm
What a memorable tribute to Shammiji by emotional yet informative write up, Rajaji! Missed your posts since few days. Your last write up was on July 31st on Mohd. Rafi’s death anniv and now on Aug 14th on Shammi Kapoor’s death anniv. Hope we don’t have to wait…… Yadi aap kaho to main meri diary of anniversaries (only of film personalities 😆 ) bhej doon. So, we don’t have to wait for a long to read your beautiful write up.
Shammiji is my most favorite actor. He is like Any movie, any time and No cry but just shine for me. Like you have said, he lived his life till end just like Dev Anand. aise log sabhi ko kuch na kuch updesh de jaate hai.
Thanks again.
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August 14, 2012 at 11:25 pm
One thing forgot to mention in this article, he was a “very patriotic” person. I remeberhe during or Sino-Indian War, all the people from the film industry was out on street to collect money for the war..Shammiji was among them and he was charging 100 rupee to say “Yahoo” and people of Mumbai threw money from the balcony just like a rain of hundred rupee note. So yes, he collected more money than any other celebrity.
Also we never heard of him having affairs with any of his leading ladies.
His second wife (I think she is daughter of King of Bhavnagar, Gujarat) NeelaDevi. She devoted her life to Shammiji, and decided not to have any kids of her own…He was lucky to find these two ladies in his life who was in true sense was his wives, as per describe in vedas the meaning of the wife.
He was a gentle-giant who had such a passion for life and we will miss him dearly.
OM shanti.
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August 15, 2012 at 3:00 pm
Thanks everybody. Indeed Shammi was a special type of personality. Which is why we will always cherish his memory.
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August 16, 2012 at 10:18 pm
Wow! What a write up! Thanks a ton Rajaji….apart from setting the screen afire in his heydays…he managed to do the same in Rockstar sitting in wheelchair…he truly had one of the most charismatic screen presence… a real legend!
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October 1, 2013 at 7:41 pm
Lovely write up from the heart Raja ji. Thank you. One can listen to many different songs, but when one listens to a Shammi number, that too renderred by Rafi saab, one cannot ask for more. True legends.
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Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
August 14, 2012 at 8:21 pm
He was the most stylish hero ever. Watch any song; he will never repeat any moves. Look at his eyes; just by looking at the heroines he would unwrap them. Even his gait was so chic. He was snazzy, ritzy, mod, posh, natty, sassy, sharp, sleek, swanky, classy, rakish, trendy, dashing, what have you. Girls were crazy and would go ga ga and do anything for him.
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