Jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat
Posted on: August 15, 2013
This article is written by Ava Suri, a fellow enthusiast of Hindi movie music and a regular contributor to this blog.
Rakhi Gulzar was born on 15th August 1947. She wasn’t exactly a midnight’s child, but was born a few hours later. She grew up to be a stunningly beautiful woman and an accomplished actress. She had large honey coloured eyes, a round face and lovely features. She debuted in Hindi films with the successful Jeevan Mrityu along with Dharmendra. She went on to establish herself as a successful leading woman with hits like Sharmilee, Paras, Kabhi Kabhie, Daag, Trishul and Doosra Admi (my personal favorite).
During the 90s she turned to playing rather screechy and hyper roles of a mother like the one in Karan Arjun. She was soon jeered at by the young people of that generation for being perpetually drunk and being so loud. I always felt bad when I watched those skits parodying Rakhee on the comedy shows. Here was an extremely talented and a beautiful lady, who happened to have fallen on bad days. And she was being derided for it.
I remembered her glory days of being the top heroine. I remembered sighing over her romantic marriage with Gulzar. He was the brainy sensitive poet, and she was the beauty, his muse.
Time is relentless, cruel. It changes people and when they happen to famous, the whole world sees their downfall. With time, Rajesh Khanna lost his starry aura, Dev Anand became a caricature of his former self, lover boy Rishi Kapoor turned into a bloated man, Shahrukh looks dried up, Salman looks stiff and botoxed. But we can go back to their older films and watch them as they were during their best time.
Here is a song from the early days of Rakhee. Oh sure, it was the 70s, so she is wearing orange plastic earrings, some kind of a leathery orange jacket. She is travelling in a train, first class coupe, along with Rajendra Kumar. He has put on the transistor real loud, to tease Rakhee with this song. At one point of time, she marches out in the corridor, and promptly finds Gulshan Bawra playing the song on his transistor there.
It is a nice comical kind of a song, with a touch of romance. Despite being a fresher in the industry, Rakhee looks very comfortable and confident. Rajendra Kumar’s career was on its last legs. He looks just a bit jaded. Not much.
I have travelled by train often, and I must say the reception in the trains is never this good. 🙂
Song-Jab tum ho mere hamsafar (Aan Baan)(1972) Singer-Rafi, Lyrics-Hasrat Jaipuri, MD-Shankar Jaikishan
Lyrics
Jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat
jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat
to hai zindagi ka safar khubsoorat
jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat
to hai zindagi ka safar khoobsoorat
jab tum ho mere
mujhe dekh kar yoon na gusse me aa
miley na miley phir zara muskura
mujhe dekh kar yoon na gusse me aa
mile na mile phir zara muskura
hai chehre pe gussa magar khoobsurat
hai chehre pe gussa magar khoobsurat
to hai zindagi ka safar khoobsurat
jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat
to hai zindagi ka safar khoobsoorat
jab tum ho mere
chamakte hain gaalon me ujle savere
mehekte hain balloon me dilkash andhere
chamakte hain gaalon me ujle savere
mehekte hain balloon me dilkash andhere
hai phoolon se nazuk hai hai hai
hai phoolon se nazuk kamar khoobsurat
hai phoolon se nazuk kamar khoobsurat
to hai zindagi ka safar khoobsurat
jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat
to hai zindagi ka safar khoobsoorat
jab tum ho mere
9 Responses to "Jab tum ho mere hamsafar khoobsoorat"
August 15, 2013 at 4:19 pm
Nice Post Ava ji !
We do wish Rakhee a very happy birthday !!
a typcial sixties-seventies(early seventies?) like ‘train’ song.
I am not a Rakhee fan but like her in some movies.
thanks !!
August 15, 2013 at 5:14 pm
What a lovely post, Ava!
Raakhee was never my favourite heroine, though I didn’t dislike her either in her heroine days. She looks so much nicer her than later on, when she did those “Karan Arjun” type roles.
August 16, 2013 at 11:39 am
Yes I too found Rakhee extremely beautiful, what a lovely face, and inspite of all the flaws(Short height, a typical voice & accent and later on bloating because of her drinking habits) still carried herself with so much style in her westerns and grace in her indian outfits. Her eyes conveyed so much, that she need not speak..
Yes Ava, i felt her marriage with Gulzarji was like made in heaven, 2 sensitive and accomplished souls coming together, alas it did not last bec of 2 big egos clashing one another.
And I truly hate those who only mimic her Karan Arjun dialogues which was when she was in the character artist mode and not in her peak times.. distasteful.
Even her B grade movies are more entertaining than todays A grade movies. Let anyone say anything, she had and has a following which has a certain class.
August 16, 2013 at 12:18 pm
maya ji
You are 100% correct. I fully support your words
Her acting in Baseraa,Trishna,Dacait,Ek Rishta,Paroma,Rudali,
Lal Patthar,Reshma aur shera,
Dil Ka rishta,Tapasya,Humkadam,
Kabhi Kabhi,Anchal,Bemisal,Jurmana,Shakti,Daag,Saheb,Shraddhanjali,
Kasme vaade still touches my heart.
Regards
Prakash
August 15, 2013 at 3:41 pm
Ava ji
Simply superb post and thanks for the rare song. And you have echoed my feelings about Raakhi(regarding her mimicry on Comedy show, I always feel like beating those artistes, who delivers Rakhee`s dialogue “mere karan arjun aayenge”(It looks like,making fun of senior artistes became today`s trend, which I hate).
“Bandar kyaa jaane adrak ke swaad” Rakhee will be always Rakhee, for me, whatever they say. I still like her very much.
Regards
Prakash
August 16, 2013 at 2:32 pm
Exactly Prakashji.