Alka Yagnik thought ‘yeh kya mazak kar rahe hain’ when Laxmikant-Pyarelal told her opening lines of “Ek Do Teen”

Alka Yagnik recalled how an impending strike, a sore throat, and a cramped studio all contributed to the song "Ek Do Teen," composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal.

By: Entertainment Desk

New Delhi | Updated: February 18, 2023 09:33 PM IST

3 min read

"Ek Do Teen" is one of Alka Yagnik's most popular songs.

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Playback singer Alka Yagnik recalled her experience working with the music director duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal, particularly the song “Ek Do Teen Char,” for the film Tezaab. The song was picturised on Madhuri Dixit, and in a new interview, Alka recalled how unimpressed she was when she heard the opening lyrics of the song, but eventually realised what a masterwork it was.

In an interview with Film Companion, she recalled how dissatisfied she was with her recording of the song, and that even after multiple requests to dub over the track later, Laxmikant refused. To this day, she said, whenever she hears the song, she can’t help but spot flaws, and wonder if she could have performed certain bits differently.

Also read | Udit Narayan flirts with Alka Yagnik on The Kapil Sharma Show, says ‘Alka ke rag rag mein Udit baitha hai’

“Laxmi ji ka paan mooh mein rehta tha (Laxmi ji would always be chewing a paan). He said, ‘Likho, ek do teen char paanch chhe saat aath… (He said, ‘Write it down…’),” Alka said, and made the same confused expression that she had on her face back then. “I thought, ‘Yeh kya mazak kar rahe hain mere saath (are they messing with me)?’ But I didn’t say anything, I was scared of them, I’d keep quiet when they were around…”

She continued, “So, I wrote it. But uske baad jab second line likhi, third line likhi, antre likhe, I was like, ‘My God, what a song, what lyrics’. And the way it progressed, and how it climaxes… I had great fun singing it.” She said that because Laxmikant-Pyarelal wanted a full 60-person chorus, there was no room in Mehboob studio, so she was cramped against a wall as she recorded the track.

Alka began her career as a playback singer in the early 1980s. She said that she hasn’t been working as frequently of late mainly because she isn’t attracted to the songs that are being made for films these days. She complained that modern film music doesn’t have soul, and that she no longer feels the need to work as she used to in her heyday.

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