Mere banne ki baat na poochho
Posted on: June 7, 2016
This article is written by Arunkumar Deshmukh, a fellow enthusiast of Hindi movie music and a contributor to this blog. This article is meant to be posted in atulsongaday.me. If this article appears in sites like lyricstrans.com and ibollywoodsongs.com etc then it is piracy of the copyright content of atulsongaday.me and is a punishable offence under the existing laws.
Today’s song is from the film Gharana(1961), a movie made by the famous Gemini Studios, Madras. The producer/director was S S Vasan- called the ‘Cecil B Demil’ of India, after his epic trend setter film Chandralekha way back in 1948. It was from this film that Hindi films started being made in south. In the beginning, it was only remakes of successful and Hit south films. Once this formula proved to be profitable, remakes of hit South Indian films began to constitute almost 80% of the Hindi films being made in south.
As several Hindi films began to be made in Madras, Hindi actors signed up for them had to go to Madras for shooting. Films in south are made very systematically and with great planning and discipline in implementing the plans. Some Hindi stars who were habitually lazy or Late Lateefs were carefully avoided by south producers. A few male stars like Rajendra Kumar, Raaj Kumar,Sunil Dutt, Jeetendra and later on Sanjeev Kumar, some female stars, composers like C.Ramchandra, Ravi,madan mohan etc were permanent choices of the south film makers. The south film makers never opted for Class I stars. They were happy with grade II stars. Among writers Pt.Mukhram Sharma and Rajendra krishna etc were favourites in the south.
Film Gharana-61 was a remake of Telugu hit film “Shantinivasam”-1960. Produced by Sunderlal Nahata and directed by C S Rao ( husband of actress Rajasulochana), the film had music by Ghantasala. I remember having seen this film in Hyderabad, for a special reason. The film had 12 songs and as many as 6 of its songs were made on tunes of popular Hindi songs. I don’t remember all 6 songs, but one was based on “Tim tim taaron ke deep jale’ from Mausi-58, another was on ‘Yalla yalla dil le gayi (inspired from Ujala-59 )and yet another (the title song itself) was inspired from the music of “Dil deke dekho” (1959).
The cast of the Telugu film was A Nageshwar Rao, Krishna Kumari, Devika, Relangi etc. It was surprising that a talented and famous composer like Ghantasala had resorted to the easy way of copying Hindi tunes, but then, in those days, the producers would insist on copying popular tunes and the composers had to bow to them. This was the case more or less with all south language films. Funnily in the 60s, the “Anti-Hindi agitation” was on and even thentheir films were using Hindi film song tunes ! Such is the Power of Music !!!
Today’s song is an all-women qawwali. This Genre of songs is generally male dominated, but Hindi films can do anything in this world ! The first known famous all-female qawwali was from the film Zeenat-1945 “aahen naa bhari, shikwe naa kiye”, composed by Hafiz khan ( not Hafeez khan mastana-predominantly a singer). It was sung by Kalyani, Zohrabai and Noorjehan. That qawwali was filmed on Zebunnisa, Kalyani and others…in which one could see young Shyama, Shashikala, Cuckoo, Yasmin and Rehana too. Though sung by Noorjehan, she was not in the performing qawwali artistes and her lines were lip synched by Rehana ( in a way, it was a playback only).
The next famous and popular all women qawwali was from the film ‘Mughal E Azam ‘-1960, sung by Lata, Shamshad and chorus- Teri mehfil mein kismet-. It was filmed on Madhubala and Nigar Sultana ( she got married to producer/director K.Asif, during the making of this film).
The third all female qawwali is what we are going to enjoy today. This is from the film “Gharana”(1961), sung by Asha and Shamshad Begum with chorus.
Actually, I fail to understand why this type of group singing is called as ‘qawwaali ‘ because the actual qawwaalis are entirely different. What we see in films as qawwalis are only a copy of the style of singing of real qawwalis. Dont get confused. I will explain….
A “qawwali” is what a “qawwal” sings…
What ‘qawwal ‘ sings is a “qaul”.
“Qaul” is the “utterance of The Prophet” of Islam .
There are 7 different types of “qauls” to be sung by qawwals.
Film songs, describing love between mortals or other frivolous subjects can not be a “qaul”.
Here is an explanation adapted from the Lucknow Chapter of Intach, about Qawwali….
” The roots of Qawwali can be traced back to 8th century Persia (today’s Iran and Afghanistan). During the first major migration from Persia, in the 11th century, the musical tradition of Sema migrated to South Asia, Turkey and Uzbekistan. Amir Khusro Dehelvi of the Chisti order of Sufis is credited with fusing the Persian and Indian musical traditions to create Qawwali as we know it today in the late 13th century in India. The word Sama is often still used in Central Asia and Turkey to refer to forms very similar to Qawwali, and in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, the formal name used for a session of Qawwali is Mehfil-e-Sama.
Qaul is an “utterance (of the prophet)”, Qawwal is someone who often repeats (sings) a Qaul, Qawwali is what a Qawwal sings.
The songs which constitute the qawwali repertoire are mostly in Urdu and Punjabi (almost equally divided between the two), although there are several songs in Persian, Brajbhasha and Saraiki. There is also qawwali in some regional languages but the regional language tradition is relatively obscure. Also, the sound of the regional language qawwali can be totally different from that of mainstream qawwali. This is certainly true of Chhote Babu Qawwal, whose sound is much closer to Baul music than to the qawwali of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, for example.
The poetry is implicitly understood to be spiritual in its meaning, even though the lyrics can sometimes sound wildly secular, or outright hedonistic. The central themes of qawwali are love, devotion and longing (of man for the Divine).
Qawwalis are classified by their content into several categories:
A hamd , Arabic for praise, is a song in praise of Allah. Traditionally, a qawwali performance starts with a hamd.
A naat , Arabic for description, is a song in praise of the Prophet Muhammad. The opening hamd is traditionally followed by a naat.
A manqabat (plural manaqib, which means characteristics) is a song in praise of either Imam Ali or one of the Sufi saints.
A marsiya , Arabic for lamentation for a dead person. This would typically be sung only at a Shi’a concert.
A ghazal , Arabic for love song, is a song that sounds secular on the face of it. There are two extended metaphors that run through ghazals—the joys of drinking and the agony of separation from the beloved.
A kafi is a poem in Punjabi, Seraiki or Sindhi, which is in the unique style of poets such as Shah Hussain, Bulleh Shah and Sachal Sarmast.
A munadjaat , Arabic for a conversation in the night or a form of prayer, is a song where the singer displays his thanks to Allah through a variety of linguistic techniques. ”
More knowledgeable readers can give their opinions on this subject.
The first Qawwali in a Hindi film was from “Sitamgar”-1934, – Idhar dekhata hoon, udhar dekhata hoon…Lyricist-Pt. Narayan Pershad Betaab, MDs Banne Khan and Rewa shankar Marwadi, Banner- Ranjit, singers- E. Bilimoria and Miss Khatun.
This qawwali was followed by another in film ‘Barrister’s wife’-1935, sung by Noor Mohd. Charlie and chorus- Nazariya taane hai teer kamaan-. Surprisingly, the lyricist and the MDs are same, by coincidence.
Film Gharana-61 had a cast of Rajendra Kumar, Asha Parekh, Raaj kumar, Devika, Minu Mumtaz, Bipin Gupta, Lalita Pawar, Agha, Shubha Khote etc. The story of the film was a typical south Indian format….
Kailash ( Raajkumar) looks after the prosperous business of his father Ramdas( Bipin Gupta). His younger brother Kamal ( Rajendra kumar) studies in college. Their mother Shanta (Lalita Pawar) is a dominating and a loud mouth lady shouting at everyone spoiling the shanti-peace- of the house. Her daughter Bhairavi (Shubha Khote) is married, but stays in mayaka only and doing mischief to please mother. Her husband Sarang ( Agha) is a good fellow.
Bhairavi creates confusion to make Kailash doubt that Kamal has an affair with his wife Seeta ( Vijayalaxmi). Kamal loves Usha (Asha Parekh and gets married to her, but on the same day Kailash leaves the house to committ suicide. He is saved by Ragini ( Minu Mumtaz) who was to marry him once. She takes his care and Kailash thinks this is love.
Kamal prompts his father to take over the matters and set house in order. Seeta begets a child. Kailash comes home to deny his paternity and disowns family. Seeta wants to die, kamal saves her,but Kailash openly accuses them of adultery. Seeta falls from stairs
Sarang meanwhile learns all this and brings Kailash home and exposes wife Bhairavi before everyone. The doubts are cleared, but Seeta stops talking to Kamal. Kamal is so much hurt that he wants to commit suicide. Seeta stops him at last and everything sets into place as before. All family gives a happy Group Photo, mandatory for a South made film !
The mukhda of this qawwali is “mere Banne ki baat naa poochho”…. At first I did not understand the word Banne. I thought it meant ‘to make’. Then I realised that Banna is the Male version of Banno (Bride), so Banna is Groom. Shubha Khote is lauding the virtues of her brother who just got married to Asha Parekh. The filming, tune,acting ( except Rajendra kumar) and the sets etc are all excellent and the song is simply captivating….so, enjoy this All Female “Qawwali “…
Song-Mere banne ki baat naa poochho (Gharaana)(1961)Singers- Asha Bhonsle, Shamshad Begum, Lyrics-Shakeel Badayuni, MD-Ravi
Asha Bhonsle’s support chorus
Shamshad Begam’s support chorus
Lyrics
mere banne ki baat na poochho
mera banna hariyaala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho
mera banna hariyaala hai
kyun na ho uski shaan anokhi
oonche gharaane waala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho
mera banna hariyaala hai
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
meri bani ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
uske gore mukhde ke aage chaand ka rang bhi kaala hai
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho mera banna hariyaala hai
dekh samdhan tu mere saamne shekhi na jata
kaun surkhaab ke par teri dulhan mein hai laga
usko duniya mein koi poochhne waala hi na thha
usko duniya mein koi poochhne waala hi na thha
wo to dulha ko dua de jo usey byaah laaya
wo to dulha ko dua de jo usey byaah laaya
haaa aan aan
teri banni ke gaal hain paapad a a a
tedhi medhi aankhen hain
aeji tedhi medhi aankhen hain
aeji tedhi medhi aankhen hain
aa aa aa aa
naak pakoda honth hain sookhe
uljhi uljhi zulfen hain
aeji uljhi uljhi zulfen hain
aeji uljhi uljhi zulfen hain
aa aa aa
mera banna hai wo shahzaada
jo naajon ka paala hai
mera banna hai wo shahzaada
jo naajon ka paala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho
mera banna hariyaala hai
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
dekh banne mere aage tu badi baat na kar
aisa hai tera banna jaise ho bhoora bandar
karke shaadi kiya ehshan dulhan ne us par
karke shaadi kiya ehshan dulhan ne us par
warna aise ko bhala kaun banaata shauhar
warna aise ko bhala kaun banaata shauhar
aa aa aa
tere banne ki oont si gardan an
saaras jaisi taangen hain
aeji saaras jaisi taangen hain
aeji saaras jaisi taangen hain
aa aa aa aa aa
choohe jaise kaan hain uske
kachhuye jaisi chaalen hai
aeji kachhuye jaisi chaalen hai
aeji kachhuye jaisi chaalen hai
mere banne ka naazuk mukhda
albela matwaala hai
mere banni ka naazuk mukhada albela matwaala hai
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho mera banna hariyaala hai
baith seedhi ari samdhan na dikha ye garmi
maan le haar tu ab chhod de ye hathdharmi
ja ri ja main nahin in baaton se dabne waali
ja ri ja main nahin in baaton se dabne waali
tere munh kaun lage yoon na dikha besharmi
tere munh kaun lage yoon na dikha besharmi
haan aan aan aan
mere banne ki saas nikammi ee ee
sasure hain das number ke
aeji sasure hain das number ke
haan haan
sasure hain das number ke
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa
mere banne ki nanad nikhhattu
dhang bure hain ghar bhar ke
aeji dhang bure hain ghar bhar ke
haan haan dhang bure hain ghar bhar ke
o o teri dulhan ka saara gharaana
aafat ka parkaala hai
teri dulhan ka saara gharaana
aafat ka parkaala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho
mera banna hariyaala hai
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
aaaa aaa aaa
mere banne ki baat na poochho mera banna hariyaala hai
aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
mere banne ki baat na poochho mera banna hariyaala hai
meri banni ke roop se ghar mein chaaron taraf ujiyaala hai
mere banne ki baat na poochho mera banna hariyaala hai
10 Responses to "Mere banne ki baat na poochho"
June 7, 2016 at 8:42 am
Arun ji,
All Female Qawwalis:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eal8UojiX8I&list=PLDA8DF3D95F052F2C&index=11
GAON KI GORI (1945) – It appears to be a partial video.
BAAZAR (1949)
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June 7, 2016 at 8:45 am
Sorry for the first video which has been withdrawn.
Here is the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eal8UojiX8I&
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June 7, 2016 at 9:29 am
Sadanand ji,
Thanks for additional songs. There may be some more too.
I only spoke about the most famous and popular 2 all-female qawwalis and the one to be presented today, though I knew there would be some more in other films.
-AD
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June 7, 2016 at 10:29 am
Dear Arunji ,
I have played that famous Qawwali from ZEENAT over and over again , but could identify only Sashikala , perhaps Rehana sitting on her left and perhaps Shyama sitting behind them with the cap , playing the dholak . Cuckoo maybe in the front row of the audience .
It is impossible to identify the others , namely Yasmin , Kalyani , Zohrabai , Zebunissa etc.
Is it possible for you to identify them by the time line of the song ?
Thanks in advance
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June 7, 2016 at 11:26 am
Partha chanda ji,
Not only me but no one in last so many years have been able to identify ALL actresses in this song. The RMIM group has also failed in this. Sorry. I am not able to pinpoint anyone you have asked for.
One more point. Zohrabai only sang, but did not participate in filming. Zebunnisa did not sing, but participated in the filming.
-AD
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5 | Bharat Upadhyay
June 7, 2016 at 12:46 pm
Arunbhai, very good and detailed info about quwalies. Generally hardly any filmy quawaly is religious-based. The original ‘ishq’ was religious but the ‘dunavi’ ishq is about Man-Woman love only, for filmy lyricist. The pattern with typical clapping is the only common thing between these two types.
I have also observed about the recent flood of so called ‘sufi’ songs in the films mostly sung by imported singers. (as if there are no good singers in our country) The lyricist has to include words like ‘Allah’ or ‘Maula’ to make it a ‘sufi’ song, the rest wordings can be anything imaginable.
Do you agree?
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August 13, 2016 at 9:29 pm
At 0:54 the actress(lip syncing for Shamshad Begum`s voice) in front of Shubha Khote, is KRISHNA KUMARI(not to be confused with Tamil,Telugu,Kannada movie actress krishna kumari, she is different krishna kumari)
Here is the link for Krishna Kumari, who featured in the above song opposite Shubh Khote
http://cineplot.com/krishna-kumari-i-filmography/
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Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
June 7, 2016 at 8:12 am
I arranged to play the song in one of the marriages in Indore. It was a big hit with both the parties. I feel it is a must in any marriage celebrations.
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