Meree aabroo tere haathh hai
Posted by: Atul on: December 19, 2025
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 other sites without the knowledge and consent of the web administrator of atulsongaday.me, then it is piracy of the copyright content of atulsongaday.me and is a punishable offence under the existing laws.
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Today’s song is the last and final song from the costume film – Raaka-1965.
The film was directed by Kedar Kapoor. He was born on 2-9-1927. Not much information is available about him. Kedar joined the film line in 1945 and did a small role in the film Bhakta Prahlad-46. Working as an assistant to many directors, he started his career by directing the film Lal Pari-1954.
In all he directed 35 Hindi films, mostly B and C grade. He specialised in Dara singh films. He directed 8 films of Dara Singh in the 60s. Some of his films were, Miss Cocacola-55, Changez khan-57, Senapati-57, Dara singh-64, Patanga-71 etc etc. His last film was Bekhabar-83. Kedar Kapoor died on 5-6-1987.
The music for the film ‘s 6 songs was by Dattaram (Wadkar).
At the age of 9 years Dattaram Wadkar (1933 to 7-6-2007) came from Goa to Bombay, with his mother. He learnt Classical music with Yashwantbuwa kerkar and learnt Tabla with Pt. Pandharinath Nageshkar.
He joined Prithvi Theatres along with Shankar, playing Tabla. He was assistant to S-J from Barsat onwards. Even after the death of Jaikishen, he was with Shankar. When there was no work with Shankar, he assisted L-P as well as R.D.Burman, but he had lost interest After the death of Shankar in 1987. He left Bombay and lived in village Mavlinge, near Bicholim in Goa. He lived a retired life. He gave music to 19 Hindi and one each of Marathi, Magadhi and Bhojpuri films. His ” Dattu-Theka” was famous.
Choreographer of Hindi films Manohar Deepak made a Marathi Cinema – ” Savli Premachi ” ( सावली प्रेमाची ) – 1980. Sunil Gavaskar had acted opposite actress Madhumati (sister of Umpire Pilu Reporter). Dattaram gave music to this film in the name of Om Dattaram. Sunil Gavaskar sang 2 songs in this film, under his baton, but these songs were not taken in the film. However, these songs became popular in Maharashtra. Instead of these songs, he got Deedar Singh to sing a song.
The cast of the film included a long list of names – Dara Singh, Mumtaz, K.N.Singh, Kamal Mehra, Shyam Kumar, Parveen Pal, Shakeela Bano Bhopali, Jagdish Raj, Tun Tun, Laxmi Chhaya etc.etc.
Whenever the subject involves Dara Singh, my mind goes back to my younger days when i started liking his films I became a laughing stock of my friends and relatives for being one of the B and C grade film audience, but i never bothered about it.I know he was not a good actor and spoke his dialogues like an errant student reciting his maths tables and he looked so embarrassed in the song sequences that even I would have acted better than him – sans his physique, of course ! Nevertheless, I saw almost all his films, till I stopped seeing films regularly after 1970 onwards. In the later years his roles as a character artist in several films kept attracting me.
The decade of the the 60s opened up a new Genre of Films. Films in which muscular He-men ‘acted’. Really speaking, their dialogues were delivered silently by their solid bodies and the fighting they did on the screens. Here were the Heroes who would kill dangerous Jungle animals barehanded, break Iron chains, fight with 10 people at a time, ride horses, swim expertly and overall display their physical might !
The beginning was done in 1958 with ‘Zimbo’, featuring Azad-a Parsee Bodybuilder. That way Dara Singh had entered the films in 1952 with ‘Sangdil’ and he had a wrestling match with Om prakash in ‘Pehli Jhalak’-1954. His first film as a hero -King Kong came in 1962.
The 60s was a period when the Indian culture of defeats in all possible sports was on the peak and the Indians were looking for a Saviour. In Dara Singh, India found a SuperHero who won not only in India but also in Commonwealth and the World championships.
Dara Singh was much more than an Actor. he was a piece of Folklore and he became a social phenomenon soon. He was a hybrid of Myth and Folklore, larger than life evocation of the Desi Hero. He represented the Indian idea of Masculinity-The Mard, a He Man. He had the muscle prowess but no aggression. He evoked security, gentleness and the right kind of patriarchy. He was proud to be a Jat and an Indian.
He was a Pehalwan trained in the Indian style of wrestling. Dara’s victories against King Kong and Zybisco in the late 50s made him a legend. Lakhs of people would gather at the venues of his bouts. He brought wrestling from the Akhadas to the Drawing rooms of Affluent homes. He remained Undefeated in 500+ bouts in his lifetime, winning Indian Championship in 1953, the Commonwealth championship in 1959 and the World Championship in 1968, when he was into acting in Hindi films full fledgedly !
He did roles of Kings, Princes, Rebels, Mutineer, Jungle Boy, Samson, Hercules, Sikander and the greatest role of his life as Hanuman. There may be 300 odd types of Ramayans, but only one Hanuman-Dara Singh. He was, for most people, the embodiment of the Monkey God. Without him the Ramayan was never the same ! Dara Singh, I am sure, would have been the original choice of even Valmiki !!!
Dara Singh was the India Superman. Even when he started doing character roles, the Heroes were happy to work with him. In one interview ( he gave interviews very rarely-he used blush too much), he had said,” Out of all my roles, I liked my role in Anand-70, where I was very comfortable doing my real life role-that of a Pahilwan in an Akhada !”
He was probably one of the few who worked in A, B and C grade films in his life with equal ease and aplomb. Whether it was Mumtaz or Amitabh, he remained Dara Singh-Rustic, Strong, Indian, Gentle, Protective and Chivalrous.
Dara Singh was born at village Dharmuchak in Amritsar district on 19-11-1928 to Surat Singh and Balwant Kaur. He was married to Surjit Kaur Randhwa on 11-5-1961 and they had a son. From his second marriage he had 3 daughters and 2 sons. At the age of 22, he went to Singapore and won several championships. At 24 he did his first film role in Sangdil-52 and he became a Hero at 34 years of age. He did 122 Hindi films, 22 Punjabi films, besides producing 3 and directing 9 films.
He continued wrestling up to 1970. In 1978, he established his Dara Studios in Mohali, Punjab. His last film came in 2012-“Ata pata lapata”. With Mumtaz he did 16 films out of which 12 were Hit films. In those days, he was paid 4 lakh rupees per film.
Dara Singh died on 12-7-2012. His brother Randhwa died recently on 21-10-2013 ( this news was hardly noticed)
Many Bodybuilders tried to copy Dara Singh. Their films never succeeded because people knew who the original Superman was. Indrajit, Viju Penkar, Hercules, Azad and even Randhwa did few Dara-like films, but they were never accepted by the audience.
Dara Singh was Unique. One may think that his films were seen and liked only by the lower strata of society or exclusive C grade film audiences, but it was wrong. Dara Singh films were ‘Super Deluxe’ versions of B and C class films and were liked by people from Top class to bottom class. I was a great fan of Dara films and rarely missed any of them. I was very glad when I came to know that Memsaab of http://www.memsaabstory.com was a diehard fan of Dara singh.
One of the cast members of the film was Shakila Bano Bhopali. Not much is known or written about her. Shakeela Bano Bhopali (15 October 1942 – 16 December 2002) was a film actress & the first woman Qawwal of India, who transformed the face of qawaali with her flamboyant and uninhibited singing style. The famous Qawwali exponent, was a unique performing artiste of her era. Her phenomenal rise, the impact of her live performances that enchanted an entire generation and whose fans included the movie moguls, celebrities & the ordinary man on the street alike, are well-known.
Shakeela Bano Bhopali was born on 15 October 1942 in Bhopal, a town that since 1956 has been Capital of newly formed state of Madhya Pradesh. Her father & uncle were noted poet. Shakeela was a rage in Bhopal from very young age. Her mother Jameela Bano was opposed to the idea and according to Shakeela’s younger brother Anees, tied her hands and feet to scare her. But Shakeela did not relent. She joined the Variety Theatre and played lead roles. Later, when she became a big name in Bhopal, her mother learnt to play the harmonium for her.
Her entry to the world of professional singing was accidental. One night, while B. R. Chopra was filming “Naya Daur” in dent forest area of Budhani, near Bhopal with Dilip Kumar, Vyjayantimala and Johny Walker, the shoot had to be cancelled due to rains. Someone suggested Shakeela’s name to Chopra, who invited her to perform a qawwali mehfil. She was then barely in her teens, mesmerized the audience and the event that was supposed to be of an hour lasted whole night. Dilip Kumar said to her ”Aap Bhopal ki cheez nahin hain. Bombay aa jaaiye (You are not Bhopal material. Come to Bombay.”
Shakeela Bano did move to Bombay, with her parents sister & three brothers. In the year 1957 Sir Jagmohan Bhatt offered Shakeela a small role in his film “Jagir”. Later she rendered famous numbers like “Milte hi nazar tumse hum ho gaye deewane…” Ustaadon ke Ustaad (1963), “Peene waale meri ankhon se piya karte hain…” Gunda (1969), “Sainyan doli leke aaye tere dwar…” Shraddhanjali (1981), “Ab yeh chod diya hai tujhpe…” Humrahi (1974). There was a time when producers would add a qawwali number by Shakila to their flop films & re-release them.
A poet in her own right, Shakeela has a collection of poetry “Ek Ghazal Aur…” to her credit while Akmal Hyderabadi has written a seminal book “Qawwali Amir Khusru Se Shakila Bano Tak”.
In December 1984, Shakeela had gone to Bhopal to attend family wedding. During night poisonous gas leaked from Union Carbide’s pesticide plant in Bhopal. Gas leak killed hundreds of people. Though Shakeela survived gas leak, but, it affected her voice and lungs, thus ending her singing career. Post Bhopal gas tragedy she spent most of her life in poverty and hospitals. She lost her voice in the Bhopal disaster in 1984 and Shakeela Bano Bhopali died on 16 December 2002 at St. George Hospital, Bhopal after a massive cardiac attack.
As a singer, Shakeela Bano Bhopal has sung songs in three films Shareef Daku (1960), Rocket Tarzan (1963) & Maze Le Lo (1975) and as a lyricist she has written a song in Hamrahi (1974). As a music director, she has also scored music for two songs in the film Maze Le Lo (1975). (adapted from book Cinerang, an article by S.Sarvaiya, book Ateet ke sitare and my notes).
The story of film Raaka-1965 was….
Baku bar is a jungle tribe which is in deep jungle. The chief of the Tribe is Vishal. They are a peaceful community. They have a rule that no girl from Baku is allowed to marry outside the tribe. If this happens, the suitor has to fight with the father or guardian of the girl till one of them is killed. The wife of the chief Vishal had to leave the Tribe because two of her daughters had eloped with outsiders. With her small son and a well wisher-Sagar, she leaves the tribe. In due course the son – RAAKA (Dara Singh)- grows up. Badli, daughter of Sagar loves Raaka, but Raaka has lost his heart to Kajri, the sister of Parbat, a very brave warrior of Baku.
As per the tradition of Baku, Raaka has to fight unto death with Parbat-Kajri’s brother. In the ensuing fight, Raaka defeats Parbat but spares his life as he does not believe in killing. The Tribe however decides to kill Parbat. Before they do so, Parbat kills himself. Kajri becomes orphan, so she is brought to Dharti-Raaka’s mother. Dharti, meanwhile has already promised Raaka’s marriage with Badli to her father Sagar.
The tribe decides to capture Raaka for stealing their girl without marrying her. They capture Raaka. Badli who loves Raaka, but knows he loves only Kajari, daringly saves Raaka’s life and sacrifices her own life. Meanwhile Dharti and Sagar reach there. Vishal, the Tribal chief recognises his wife and realises Raaka to be his son, thus a Baku. All unite again and since all are Baku, Raaka and Kajri get united safely.
Today’s song is sung by Mohd. Rafi. With this song the film gets YIPPEED. Enjoy the song….
Audio
Video
Song- Meree aabroo tere haath hai (Raaka)(1965) Singer- Mohd. Rafi, Lyricist- Asad Bhopali, MD- Dattaram
All chorus
Male chorus
Female chorus
Lyrics
aadmee majboor hai
hmm
taqdeer par ilzaam hai
hmm
baat kehne kee naheen
hmm
ye sab tera hee kaam hai
aa aa aa
aa aa aaa aa
aa aa aa
meree aabroo tere haath hai
tu dilon ka haal hai jaanta
meree aabroo tere haath hai
tu dilon ka haal hai jaanta
jahaan faisla ho naseeb ka
jahaan faisla ho naseeb ka
tera raasta hai vo raasta
tera raasta hai vo raasta
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
mai bataaoon kya tera faisla
mujhe zindagee se azeez hai
mai bataaoon kya tera faisla
mujhe zindagee se azeez hai
hmm hm hmm hmm
tere dar se gham bhee agar miley
mujhe har khushee se azeez hai
mujhe har khushee se azeez hai
mujhe apne dil pe yaqeen hai
kisee aur ka mujhe kya pata
kisee aur ka mujhe kya pata
meree aabroo tere haath hai
tu dilon ka haal hai jaanta
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
aa aa aa
jo wafa kee raah pe chal padey
unhe dar naheen koi baat ka
jo wafa kee raah pe chal padey
unhe dar naheen koi baat ka
hmm hm hmm hmm hmm
kisee roop mein to savera ho
gham e intejaar ki raat ka
gham e intejaar ki raat ka
mere aitbaar kee laaj rakh
tere naam ka tujhe vaasta
tere naam ka tujhe vaasta
meree aabroo tere haath hai
tu dilon ka haal hai jaanta
aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa
ye takaaja hai mere pyaar ka
main kisi ka pyaar sanwaar doon
ye takaaja hai mere pyaar ka
main kisee ka pyaar sanwaar doon
hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm
meree zindagee keeye jeet hai
ki main apnee zindagee haar doon
ki main apnee zindagee haar doon
jo kisee ke kaam na aaoon to
ye hai meree sabse badee khata
ye hai meree sabse badee khata
meree aabroo tere haath hai
tu dilon ka haal hai jaanta
jaha faisla ho naseeb ka
jaha faisla ho naseeb ka
tera raasta hai vo raasta
tera raasta hai vo raasta
aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
aa aaa aa aa aa
aa aa aa aa aa
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