Ab Tere Bin Mera Nahin Thikaana
Posted on: June 14, 2020
- In: Calling the beloved | Devnagri script lyrics by Sudhir | Feelings of heart | Guest posts | Lyrics by Sudhir | Lyrics contributed by readers | Missing the loved ones | Post by Mahesh Mamadapur | Songs of 1940s (1941 to 1950) | Songs of 1948 | Surinder Kaur solo | Surinder Kaur songs | Yearwise breakup of songs
- 16 Comments
This article is written by Mahesh Mamadapur, 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.
|
Blog Day: |
4348 | Post No. : | 15661 |
We remember Nightingale of Punjab on her remembrance day today.
Surinder Kaur (25 November 1929 – 14 June 2006) was the recipient of the prestigious Padma Shri in 2006. She was the recipient of numerous other awards including Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and also a doctorate degree by Guru Nanak Dev University. Much of her life details can be easily found on her wiki page and many other articles and interviews on the net.
Her popularity of course stems from the fact that she pioneered and popularised folk songs of Punjab to the rest of the world. However, readers are well aware that she had a very short but memorable stint in HFM in the late forties. She gave playback to 57 songs in 21 films during the golden era and many of her songs are remembered and played to this day.
She has been one of my favourite singers for as long as I can remember and there is some aspect of her voice which attracts listeners. One is bound to be spellbound and even enter some sort of a trance on hearing her voice. Very few singers of the golden era had such combination of rustic and melodious voice. Her full-throated contemporaries being the big three of Noor Jahan, Suraiya and the versatile Shamshad Begum, it’s easy to get confused when Surinder Kaur sang especially with Shamshad Begum.
I am aware of her immense popularity in Punjab and Haryana where she is nothing less than a legend, but we shall restrict ourselves to her Hindi songs in this post. This post has taken an inordinate time for self to complete. I must admit that the delay has been by several years rather than months. A few years back one of my good friends who hails from Hisar in Haryana was on his way home from Mumbai where we were working together. He asked me if there was anything that he should bring back to me. I told him I wanted a booklet on Surinder Kaur’s Hindi songs. He had a bizarre look at me and asked; Anything else? The unanswered reply being that it would be very difficult to trace such a thing. Well, crazy music enthusiasts have crazy requirements.
It’s not that I have taken several years only to compile these 57 songs in the form of a table. This work started several years back and due to lack of proper commitment and other priorities, the post continued to be put off several times. This year, I resolved to complete the work and am excited to bring out the compilation.
In this post an effort has been made to put together all her songs sung for Hindi movies. A compilation of all her Hindi songs has been made in a tabular column. Before we proceed to the total list, here is the table of the number of songs she sung under different composers. Since the tables are self-explanatory, not much detailing is further provided.
| Composers | No. of Songs |
| Gyan Dutt | 15 |
| A R Qureshi | 7 |
| Hansraj Behl | 7 |
| Ghulam Haider | 5 |
| Husnlal Bhagatram | 5 |
| Khurshid Anwar | 4 |
| Naashad | 5 |
| Others | 9 |
| TOTAL | 57 |
An interesting table of her songs with different singers follows.
| Singers | No. of Songs |
| Solo | 30 |
| Mohd. Rafi | 5 |
| Mukesh | 5 |
| Ram Kamlani | 2 |
| Talat Mehmood | 1 |
| Raja Gul | 1 |
| Other female singers and chorus | 13 |
| TOTAL | 57 |
As can be seen above, more than half of her 57 songs were sung as solo numbers while Rafi saab and Mukesh sang a maximum of 5 each with her. Many of these songs will be discussed later.
Coming to the distribution of the number of songs that she sang in each year of her short stay in Bombay, following is the table. As is evident, more than 90% of her Hindi songs were sung only in 3 years of 1948-50.
| Year | Number of Songs | Number of Films |
| 1947 | 1 | 1 |
| 1948 | 20 | 6 |
| 1949 | 17 | 6 |
| 1950 | 15 | 4 |
| 1951 | 3 | 3 |
| 1952 | 1 | 1 |
| TOTAL | 57 | 21 |
I have not made a table of her songs under different lyricists, but from the detailed table below it is quite evident that DN Madhok wrote the maximum of 27 out of her 57 songs.
43 of the 57 songs have been already represented on the blog and hardly 14 remain.
Starting with Ghulam Haider who introduced many such wonderful artists to HFM, Surinder Kaur sang her first song, a duet with actress-singer Munawar Sultana in the film ‘Mehndi’ in 1947. What followed was what made Surinder Kaur Surinder Kaur in HFM.
Three priceless solo gems in the film ‘Shaheed’ 1948 that made her voice a craze all over India. These songs can be heard on repetition any given day. Song No 02 remains in active memory of many music lovers and I suppose this is one song which many associate with her.
‘Pyar Ki Jeet’ (1948) is basically remembered for its Suraiya songs, but Surinder Kaur stood her ground with her solitary solo and the two triad songs. Apparently, the solo is so very similar to the songs that she sang in ‘Shaheed’ even though the composers were different. The solo at 06 is sung under much gusto and one can only admire the rendition skills of Surinder Kaur.
‘Nao’ (1948), composed by Gyan Dutt has some wonderful songs. “Ek Nazar Wo Yaad Hai Unki” is a masterpiece, which continues to linger in the mind long after being heard. I happened to hear this song only a few years back and have been absolutely smitten to it ever since. More the song plays forward, more the mind loiters behind to absorb and ponder the depth of the voice and the words being rendered. It is from this film that I take up today’s solo for representing in this post.
Gyan Dutt who has the highest songs rendered by her for any composer continues in 1948 with ‘Lal Dupatta’. It would have been interesting to know if he would have continued with her voice had she continued to sing in HFM. Readers may be well aware that Lata Mangeshkar has a solitary solo for Gyan Dutt.
The years of 1949 and 50 were important for she sang almost all her duets with male singers in these two years. With Mukesh she sang all her 5 duets in only two films of 1949 viz. ‘Dada’ and ‘Sunehre Din’.
For very obvious reasons, these remain my personal favourites especially “Tera Kisi Se Pyar Tha“. In “Dil Do Naino Mein Kho Gaya,” it’s interesting to hear how the two singers sing in quick succession their respective lines.
Rafi saab had one duet in 1949 and the remaining 4 in the next year. My personal favourite is the one from Sabak, “Keh Do Hamen Na Bekarar Kare” which is played quite often on SLBC to this day.
Her final two years of stay in Mumbai had other composers like SD Burman and Anil Biswas try her voice under their compositions. But then, health concerns in coastal Mumbai being the reason, Surinder Kaur shifted her base to Punjab where she became a phenomena in folk songs singing.
In this post, I am afraid I have not done enough justice to the appreciation and admiration of the voice and the popularity of her songs. However, my main intention was to club all her songs in a table so that it is easy for other knowledgeable contributors to cover her balance songs to be posted on the blog.
I have relied on a couple of biographical posts on Surinder Kaur by our Sudhir ji, valuable comments by Nitin ji, cineplot blog, the highly reliable HFGK and my notes. I express my sincere gratitude to all these sources. There were a few clarifications and attributions of songs to various singers. Again, Sudhir ji took the initiative of contacting his reliable sources and helped me at arriving to the correct compilation. I further requested him to help me with the lyrics of today’s post. I express my gratitude to Sudhir ji for all the help rendered.
Yes, Surinder Kaur sang a handful of only 57 songs in the golden era, but as they say the blessings are always to be counted. We, music lovers, are fortunate to listen to her having sung some exceptionally great songs in a voice that was a class apart and on a different level altogether.
Her name will undoubtedly and forever be etched in golden letters in the annals of Hindi Film Music.
Song – Ab Tere Bin Mera Nahin Thikaana (Naao) (1948) Singer – Surinder Kaur, Lyrics – DN Madhok, MD – Gyan Dutt
Lyrics (Provided by Sudhir)
ab tere bina
mera nahin thikaana
ab tere bina
mera nahin thikaana
o o o pardesia
ye bhool na jaana
o o o pardesia
ye bhool na jaana
ab tere bina
mera nahin thikaana
main ne suna hai
log rog laga ke pyaar ka dukh paate hain
main ne suna hai
log rog laga ke pyaar ka dukh paate hain
yahi baaten
gham se bhari raaten
dil ko samjhaate hain
yahi baaten
gham se bhari raaten
dil ko samjhaate hain
o o o dil phir se hua begaana
o o o dil phir se hua begaana
ab tere bina
mera nahin thikaana
dekho dekho ji
neha laga ke daga na dena
hamaari haaye na lena
dekho dekho ji
neha laga ke daga na dena
hamaari haaye na lena
mera nanha naazuk dil roye
dukhi hoye
dekha jaaye mo se na
mera nanha naazuk dil roye
dukhi hoye
dekha jaaye mo se na
o o o dar laage bura zamaana
o o o dar laage bura zamaana
ab tere bina
mera nahin thikaana
———————————————————
Hindi script lyrics (Provided by Sudhir)
———————————————————
अब तेरे बिना
मेरा नहीं ठिकाना
अब तेरे बिना
मेरा नहीं ठिकाना
ओ ओ ओ परदेसिया
ये भूल ना जाना
ओ ओ ओ परदेसिया
ये भूल ना जाना
अब तेरे बिना
मेरा नहीं ठिकाना
मैंने सुना है
लोग रोग लगा के प्यार का
दुख पाते हैं
मैंने सुना है
लोग रोग लगा के प्यार का
दुख पाते हैं
यही बातें
ग़म से भरी रातें
दिल को समझाते हैं
यही बातें
ग़म से भरी रातें
दिल को समझाते हैं
ओ ओ ओ दिल फिर से हुआ बेगाना
ओ ओ ओ दिल फिर से हुआ बेगाना
अब तेरे बिना
मेरा नहीं ठिकाना
देखो देखो जी
नेहा लगा के दगा ना देना
हमारी हाय ना लेना
देखो देखो जी
नेहा लगा के दगा ना देना
हमारी हाय ना लेना
मेरा नन्हा नाजुक दिल रोये
दुखी होइए
देखा जाये मो से ना
मेरा नन्हा नाजुक दिल रोये
दुखी होइए
देखा जाये मो से ना
ओ ओ ओ डर लागे बुरा ज़माना
ओ ओ ओ डर लागे बुरा ज़माना
अब तेरे बिना
मेरा नहीं ठिकाना
16 Responses to "Ab Tere Bin Mera Nahin Thikaana"
June 14, 2020 at 11:00 pm
Mahesh ji,
A thorough analysis of Surinder Kaur’s Hindi songs. Kudos on a very informative post.
I didn’t know many of the songs.
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 11:29 am
Pradeep ji,
Thanks. Yes, many songs are relatively less known, but the voice itself is familiar and a class apart. One of my favourites.
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 8:14 am
Big Surprise! A post from Maheshji! Rather rare. And even more rare is finding a song by Surinder Kaur.
Congratulations Maheshji for compiling the table of songs by the nightingale of Punjab.
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 11:34 am
Nalini ji,
Thanks.
Song No 02….
Aap mujhe “badnaam” kar rahe ho.
I have indeed written on Rafi saab, Talat saab, Ghulam Mohammed, Uma Devi, Lata Mangeshkar, Shankar Jaikishan etc. Off course, agreed that rest are all on Mukesh.
Surprise tho tab hoga when I write a dedicated post on Kishore Kumar. 🙂
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 10:12 am
Excellent collating work on Surinder Kaur, Mahesh ji.
You can add one more song of Surinder Kaur in the list from the film ‘Reet’ (1940s, Unreleased in India) Some songs of the film were included in Pakistani film ‘Eid’ (1951) as the producer-director of both the films was Najam-ul Hasan. Link to the song:
Probably, this may be the first recorded HIndi film song of Surinder Kaur who sings with Munawwar Sultana, the singer (not the actress).
Incidentally, Surinder Kaur’s duet song in ‘Mehndi’ (1947) was not with actor-singer Minawwar Sultana but singer Munawwar Sultana who was a different person (same name confusion).
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 12:02 pm
Sadanand ji,
I am glad you have responded. Thanks.
Well, this is what makes this blog so interesting to be associated with.
This song was played on SLBC a few days back on 10 June.
The announcer attributed the singers to Munawwar Sultana and Nazira Begam.
Since, I was doing this post, I immediately contacted Ashwani ji and Sudhir ji. The latter confirmed that the record does display the name of Nazira Begum only. Hence the NFS was not included in my list. I will be more than happy if you can still contradict.
Regarding same name confusion, thanks for the clarification. The actress-singer was not part of the film I suppose. My bad and a silly mistake.
Thanks.
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 3:40 pm
I have checked with the voice of Nazira Begum and as also of Surinder Kaur from her other solo songs.
Nazira Begum’s song is here : https://atulsongaday.me/2020/04/28/jo-qaail-e-mehr-o-wafaai-na-ho/
It is a high-throated voice . But the voice in the song under consideration does not appear to be so high-throated.
However, I am not able to decide as to whose voice – Surinder Kaur or Nazira Begum in the song under consideration. There are few instances where the singer’s name on the record label were wrongly printed.
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 11:10 am
Mahesh Ji, Nice post, painstakingly compiling Surinder Kaurs HF songs.
My first exposure to this singer with these details
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 11:40 am
Shenoy ji,
The pleasure is mine. Thanks for your comment. Do listen to her songs in her trademark rustic voice. It will be quite a different feeling.
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 4:46 pm
Mahesh ji,
Pleasently surprised by this offbeat post from you.
A very well written post indicating the hard work that has gone behind the post.
While the stalwarts are trying to solve the confusion of song from Reet (UR)-40s, I can only say that the song seems to have been originally recorded in India with Surinder’s voice. In Pakistani film Eid-51, the same song seems to have been recorded again in the voice of singer Munawwar Sultana. Obviously, on that record Pak singers’ names will be seen. If any one is having Record No. N-14961, then the mystery will be solved.
-AD
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 5:11 pm
Arunkumar ji,
Many Thanks for your comment.
All of us do consider you not only as a stalwart, but also an encyclopedia of old Hindi songs.
Yes, will await more clarifications to solve the mystery.
LikeLike
June 16, 2020 at 9:08 am
Comprehensive Details of Film Eid – 1951
https://pakmag.net/film/db/details.php?pid=22
Ashwani Sharma
LikeLike
June 16, 2020 at 1:22 pm
Ashwani Sharma ji,
Many Thanks for the link. Apparently, details in the link have generated more doubts and we are trying to sort them out.
I am aware and very much appreciate your tireless efforts on everyday basis in presenting correct and complete details of SLBC broadcast of HFM songs.
Thanks
LikeLike
Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
June 14, 2020 at 10:39 pm
Mahesh,
This is a wonderful post. This must be the only place where all Hindi film songs of Surinder Kaur are compiled in a table.
AK
LikeLike
June 15, 2020 at 11:27 am
AK ji,
Many Thanks. As I have acknowledged in the write-up, some blogs such as cineplot do have compilations. However, on ASAD you have more knowledgeable readers adding authentic corrections and clarifications regularly.
LikeLike