Simat ke baahon mein phoolon ka aasmaan aaye
Posted by: Atul on: January 6, 2026
This article is written by Sadanand Kamath, 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, January 6th is 39th Remembrance Day of music director, Jaidev Verma. He was one of those unlucky music directors who, despite being highly talented, did not make it in the list of top music directors in Hindi cinema. But he will be certainly remembered eternally through his semi-classical and folk-based melodious songs with a divine touch. He was a sage in Hindi film music who lived like a hermit in one room rental ‘hermitage’ with his only assets being a Harmonium and a Sarod.
Jaidev (03/08/1918 – 06/01/1987) was born in Nairobi (Kenya) where his father was working in railways. Since at that time, Nairobi did not have good school facilities, Jaidev and his two sisters were sent back to their maternal uncle’s place in Ludhiana from where he did his early school studies His mother used to sing bhajans and folk songs which created interest in Jaidev to become a singer. Knowing his interest, his uncle put him under the tutelage of a vocalist, Barkat Rai.
Jaidev used to watch stunt films which influenced him to become a stunt film actor. At the age of 14, he ran away from his home and reached Bombay (Mumbai) where he was employed as a stunt actor in Wadia Movietone. During this period, he acted in ‘Waman Avtaar’ (1934), ‘Kaala Gulaab’ (1934), ‘Desh Deepak’ (1934), ‘Veer Bharat’ (1934), and ‘Hunterwaali’ (1935). However, he soon realised that he was not getting the important roles in stunt films. By that time, his father had come back to India as he had lost his eye-sight. So, Jaidev returned to Ludhiana to look after his father.
Jaidev’s father passed away within few months from his arrival in India. Being the eldest, the responsibility of looking after the family fell on him. He joined All India Radio (AIR) as a singer where he came in contact of music director, Roshan who was a staff artist as an Esraj player. In 1948, Roshan got his first film, ‘Neki Aur Badi’ (1949) as a music director and left for Bombay along with Jaidev who was to assist him. He had also given him his first playback singing in the film. Unfortunately, due to a severe asthmatic attack, he could not sing and had to leave Bombay to be back in AIR Delhi. Now, it became clear to him that he cannot pursue his singing career with asthma.
One day, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, the Sarod player was in AIR Delhi for his programme where he was impressed with Jaidev. He took him as his Ganda bandh disciple. For the next two years, he learnt Sarod under him and accompanied him to Jodhpur where he was one of the court musicians in the royal court of Maharaja of Jodhpur. However, in January 1952, Maharaja of Jodhpur died in a plane crash with his actress-wife, Zubeida Begum (renamed as Vidya Rani). With the sudden death of his benefactor, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan moved to Bombay sometime in 1952 to try his career in Hindi films. Jaidev, as his disciple, accompanied him. Chetan Anand, being the fan of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, offered him to be the music director of the forthcoming Navketan’s films, ‘Aandhiyaan’ (1952) and ‘Ham Safar’ (1953) in which he took Jaidev as his assistant for music arrangements. Both the films flopped. With this, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan decided to shift to his base in Calcutta (Kolkata). But Jaidev decided to remain in Bombay. Chetan Anand took him in the payroll of Navketan Films.
S D Burman came back as music director for Navketan’s ‘Taxi Driver’ (1954) and Chetan Anand requested him to take Jaidev as his music assistant. Later, Chetan Anand left Navketan to start his own film production company to make film of his style. For his first film, ‘Joru Kaa Ghulaam’ (1955), Chetan Anand entrusted the music direction to Jaidev. The film failed miserably on the box office but its songs were appreciated. Chetan Anand directed ‘Anjali’ (1957) and ‘Kinaare Kinaare’ (1963) for which he once again entrusted the music direction to Jaidev. Once again, both the films failed at the box office but films’ songs were appreciated. At the same time, Jaidev continued as S D Burman’s music assistant in Navketan’s films like ’Funtoosh’ (1956), ‘Nau Do Gyaarah’ (1957), ‘Kaala Paani’ (1958) and ‘Kaala Baazar’ (1960).
Jaidev got his first Navketan film, ‘Ham Dono’ (1961) as an independent music director when S D Burman was not accepting any news assignment after he suffered his first heart-attack in 1960 and had suggested Jaidev’s name to Dev Anand. In a way, this enabled Dev Anand to used Sahir Ludhianvi as a lyricist and Lata Mangeshkar as the playback singer for the film’s two bhajans. At that time, S D Burman was not working with Sahir Ludhianvi and Lata Mangeshkar was not in talking terms with S D Burman. “Ham Dono’ (1961) became a box office hit film. Jaidev reached the height of his career with the high popularity of his songs. Unfortunately, this film became his last connection with Navketan.
For ‘Mujhe Jeene Do’ (1963), Sunil Dutt entrusted the music direction to Jaidev. All the songs from the film became very popular. In ‘Reshma Aur Shera’ (1971), Jaidev composed mainly folk-based songs which won him his first National Award for the best music direction. Later, he got National Awards for ‘Gaman’ (1979) and ‘Ankahee’ (1985). Jaidev is the only music director of Hindi films who won National Award for the best music direction three times. He had also received Madhya Pradesh Government’s Lata Mangeshkar Award and Sur Singar Samsad Award for his music direction for the film, ‘Ankahee’ (1986).
Some of the other films for which Jaidev composed pleasing songs were ‘Prem Parbat’ (1973), ‘Aalaap’ (1977), ‘Gharonda’ (1977), ‘Gaman’ (1978) ‘Tumhaare Liye’ (1978), ‘Ankahee’ (1985), ‘Jumbish’ (1986) etc. During his entire musical career, Jaidev composed around 225 songs for about 42 films. In addition, he had more than 20 unreleased/shelved films. He has also composed many non-film songs among which his compositions of 21 verses of Harivansh Rai Bachchan’s ‘Madhushala’ was the major one. He mostly worked with the poets/lyricists of high calibre like Sahir Ludhianvi, Jaan Nisaar Akhtar, Kaifi Azmi, Balkavi Bairagi, Narendra Sharma, Sudarshan Faakir, Shahryar, Nyay Sharma, Gulzar, Naqsh Lyallpuri, Maya Govind, Salahuddin Parvez etc.
Jaidev remained unmarried but managed to get his two sisters married who were well settled. Even after his musical career of nearly four decades in Hindi films, Jaidev did not have a house of his own or even a decent leased flat. He stayed in a building opposite Churchgate railway station in a single room provided by one of his well-wishers. However, after the death of his well-wisher, his family issued an eviction order to Jaidev. By that time, Jaidev’s health was deteriorating. He was admitted in a hospital on January 3, 1987, and passed away on January 6, 1987, at the age of 68. In a way, Jaidev obviated the need to find an alternative accommodation. In this context, it is very apt to quote a song ghar ye zameen naheen wo mera aasmaan to hai, composed by him for the film, ‘Hamaare Gham Se Mat Khelo’ (1967):
gar ye zameen naheen wo mera aasmaan to hai
ye kyaa hai kam ke koi mera meharbaan to hai
[Note: Some parts of the information on Jaidev are based on his interview on Vividh Bharati which was uploaded as an audio clip on a video sharing platform].
Incidentally, when I was planning to write an article on Jaidev, I accidentally came across a poem which had an interesting caption, ‘The Glory of Failure’. The poem was written by John Edward Smallshaw especially for a discussion group on ‘Failure Files’. The full poem is here. It immediately struck to me how aptly the caption is applicable to Jaidev in his musical career and also the last stanza of the poem which I am reproducing below:
Perhaps when I’m old and I’m ready to die
I might cast my mind back and I might wonder why
Every time I have failed, the boat seems to have just sailed.
But I was never a sailor.
I was just a participant in the glory of failure.
‘Jumbish’ (1986) was Jaidev’s last released film which had seven songs written by Salahuddin Parvez. Three songs have been covered on the Blog. On the occasion of the 39th Remembrance Day of music director, Jaidev, I present the 4th song, ‘simat ke baahon mein phoolon kaa aasmaan aaye’ rendered by Bhupinder Singh. The song is picturised on Akbar Khan and Padmini Kolhapure with lovely sitar amd flute prelude/interlude.
The background to the dream sequence song is that Akbar Khan’s mother has given an assurance to Bharat Bhushan that she will get her son married to his daughter, Padmini Kolhapure. After 14 years, Raza Murad, Padmini Kolhapure’s childhood friend and a well-wisher, who once secretly loved her, visits her house to enquired about her well-being. At that time, he comes to know that she has just got married to Akbar Khan. She goes into flashback to give him the background of her marriage followed by a dream sequence song. Even though song is picturised on Akbar Khan, the lyrics of the song are written from the imagination of Padmini Kolhapure as to what Akbar Khan thinks about her.
Video Clip:
Audio Clip:
Song-Simat ke baahon mein phoolon ka aasmaan aaye (Jumbish)(1986) Singer-Bhupinder Singh, Lyricist-Salahuddin Parvez, MD-Jaidev
Lyrics:
simat ke baahon mein
phoolon kaa aasmaan aaye
simat ke baahon mein
phoolon kaa aasmaan aaye
duaa adhooree rahe
duaa adhooree rahe
koi meharbaan aaye
simat ke baahon mein
phoolon kaa aasmaan aaye
sunaaye dil kee hikaayat
ke shama jaltee hai
tumhaaree aankh mein aahat
hamaaree chaltee hai
hamen kareeb se dekho…..o
hamen kareeb se dekho ke
kho gaye hain ham
badan kee chaand see lahron pe so gaye hain ham
hawaa kaakad ho ke tum phool kee ibaarat ho
hamaara dil ho ke tum dil kee baadshaahat ho
kuchh is tarah se hamaare lahoo mein shaamil ho
khudaa samaan ho….o
khudaa………aa aa
khudaa……..aa aa
khudaa samaan ho
phir bhee khudaa se gaafil ho
bano jo dard to saaree zameen tumhaaree hai
hamaare dil kee abhee tak saraay khaalee hai
hamaare dil kee abhee tak saraay khaalee hai
duaa adhooree rahey ae
duaa adhooree rahey
koi meharbaan aaye
simat ke baahon mein
phoolon kaa aasmaan aaye
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Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
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