Chaand muskaaye sanam jiyaa lehraaye sanam
Posted by: Atul on: April 23, 2013
This article is written by Shekhar Gupta, a fellow enthusiast of Hindi movie music and a regular contributor to this blog.
Nahm has recently posted Mubarak Begum’s Aaj aayi bahaar le ke dil ka qaraar from Baghdad Ka Jaadoo (1956). It was then that I realized that none of its other numbers is on this Blog – which has prompted me to post my favourite from this movie today, a duet Chaand muskaaye sanam, jiya lehraaye sanam.
But first about the movie. Nahm’s post already provides the link to a detailed article on Baghdad Ka Jaadoo(also known as The Magic of Baghdad). I have appended below slightly edited interesting information from another source:
At the time of making Baghdad Ka Jadoo, Bollywood’s First Lady of Stunts, Fearless Nadia (Mary Evans in real life), had been with her longtime lover Homi Wadia’s Basant Pictures for fourteen years. Though it was under the Wadia Brothers/Movietone banner that she had first achieved fame, her career continued at full steam following the split that lead to Basant’s formation. Still, by 1956, public enthusiasm for the stunt film formula was on the wain, and the regular release of Nadia’s trademark actioners would trickle to a stop within just a couple of years. Given that, it’s hard not to see something elegiac in a later film like Baghdad Ka Jadoo, whether it was intentional or not. For instance, along with the aforementioned return of many narrative elements warmly familiar to Nadia’s fans, we also have a return by Nadia’s frequent costar, John Cavas, here not only taking his customary place at her side, but also directing.
Given its stunt film framework, the plot of Baghdad Ka Jadoo is impressively convoluted. Suffice it to say that Nadia and John Cavas play a pair of merrily thieving gypsies who fall on the wrong side of a corrupt sultan, thus necessitating their repeated breach of the castle walls in order to free members of their band who have been wrongly imprisoned, not to mention cause other varying forms of righteous trouble. This scenario provides the opportunity for all manner of showy leaping up and down parapets and onto the backs of charging horses, much of which is thrillingly impressive regardless of who was actually doing it.
One such episode involves Nadia entering the palace in the guise of a visiting prince – such gender bending masquerades being another signature aspect of her classic screen adventures – and meeting with the unintended consequence that the young princess’ (played by Krishna Kumari) heart is set aflutter by her dashingly bearded visage. Nadia then goes so far as to woo the young girl, even performing this romantic duet with her in which a concealed Cavas acts as her personal on-site playback singer!
Baghdad Ka Jadoo ultimately fulfills its titular promise during its final minutes, folding in elements of the Arabian Nights style fantasies that were, at the time, Basant’s bread and butter. This episode sees Nadia sidetracked on an abbreviated magical quest that ends with her riding to the rescue on a flying chariot as, meanwhile, Cavas leads a rousing peasant revolt against the palace. In the spirit of Baghdad Ka Jadoo overall, it’s gloriously, triumphantly silly. And if throughout Nadia and Cavas aren’t having the absolute time of their lives, they’re certainly doing an uncannily good job of acting it.
Unsurprisingly, Mubarak Begum has rendered her part of this romantic duet on Krishna Kumari superbly; the male singer on the bearded Nadia (via John Cavas) being a relatively unknown Khurshid Bawra. Shafi Nagri has tuned the romantic lyrics of Preetam Dehlvi for this sweet number.
Song-Chaand muskaaye sanam jiya lehraaye sanam (Baghdad Ka Jaadoo)(1956) Singers-Mubarak Begum, Khurshid Bawra, Lyrics-Preetam Dehalvi, MD-Shafi M Nagri
Both
Lyrics
chaand muskaaye sanam
jiya lehraaye sanam
chaandni keh rahi hai
aaja tujhe meri kasam
aaja tujhe meri kasam
chaand muskaaye sanam
jiya lehraye sanam
chaandani kah rahi hai
aaja tujhe meri kasam
aaja tujhe meri kasam
aankh se aankh mili
dil nazraana hua
dil nazraana hua
pyaar ki shamma jali
dil parwaana hua
dil parwaana hua
dil men ik dhoom machi hai
mere honthon pe hansi hai
ye zindagi jhoom rahi hai
aaj se tere sanam ho gaye
hum teri kasam
ho gaye teri kasam
chaand muskaaye sanam
jiya lehraaye sanam
chaandani keh rahi hai
aaja tujhe meri kasam
aaja tujhe meri kasam
ban’ke bahaar sada
mere gulshan mein raho
mere gulshan mein raho
aaaa aaa aaa aaaa
aaa aaa aaaa aaaa
aaaa aaa aaa aaaa
aaa aaa aaa aaa
ban’ke karaar mera
dil ki dhadkan men raho
dil ki dhadkan men raho
sari duniya se haseen ho
meri aankhon men tumhin ho
meri nas-nas men basi ho
aaye na koi bhi gham
ranjh mere sanam
aaye na ranjh-o-alam
chaand muskaaye sanam
jiya lehraaye sanam
chaandani keh rahi hai
aaja tujhe meri kasam
aaja tujhe meri kasam
chaand muskaaye sanam
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Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
May 8, 2013 at 1:23 am
Nice song…..thanks Shekhar ji!
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July 17, 2013 at 4:05 pm
You’re welcome, Umeshji. Glad you liked it.
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