On a Song

And to think that Rajesh Khanna was only incidental to this breakthrough role. Director Shakti Samanta,who had a successful partnership with Shammi Kapoor in the early 60s,had planned Aradhana as a quickie as he was waiting for busy star Kapoors dates for Pagla Kahin Ka. The newbie Khanna,who was already signed on by Samantas company,after he had won a talent hunt organised by United Producers,was called in to star in this film opposite Tagore.

Aradhana,apart from being a huge epic romance and a musical blockbuster,was essentially a womans story. It was Vandanas Tagore tale of selfless love,a story of a young unwed mother who takes on society to give birth to her love child and the trials and tribulations she undergoes to ensure he has a safe future. It was a role that Tagore fought for,since Hema Malini was Samantas first choice. I wanted this role from the moment writer Sachin Bhowmick narrated it to me. Shakti had reservations since he felt the audience perceived me as a stylish modern girl,especially after An Evening in Paris. He was keen to have Hema Malini,who was just coming in then and had the dream girl image going for her. But I persisted and Bhowmick backed me, says Tagore.

Tagore got a sensational image makeover with Aradhana. The film also won her an award and great commercial standing. But it was a gamble. To have the heroine play the girlfriend and then a mother to the hero was a huge leap of faith for the director. In the first scene of the film,when Tagore is revealed in jail,with white hair and made up as a old woman,the audience laughed. Shakti walked out of the hall thinking that his worst fear had been realised. A minute later,the audience reaction changed. You could hear them sniffling. Shakti was called back. Aradhana was an eye-opener for all of us. It taught us that if a performance is genuine,then the audience gets over its reservations, says Tagore.

The heart of Aradhana is the romance. After exchanging coy glances in the iconic Mere sapno ki rani incidentally,Tagore was not even present in Darjeeling where the song was shot. She was called in to shoot for Satyajit Rays Aranyer Din Ratri. Samanta shot Tagores portions of the song at a studio in Mumbai,Arun Khanna and Vandana meet when Vandana empties a bucket of water on Arun mistaking him for her servant. Arun wipes his face,smiles and says,Camera nahin hai warna ek achchi photograph ho jaati. Khanna and Tagore brought to screen a fresh pairing,one that would soon get iconic status in films like Amar Prem,Daag,Safar and Aavishkar. They act out a breezy romance in songs like Kora kaagaz tha yeh mann mera and Gunguna rahe hain bhawren and they rocked in that cult classic,Roop tera mastana,which was done on a single trolley shot. We rehearsed the song for an hour and just did it in one shot, says Tagore.

Theres another love story in Aradhana which lacks the intensity and tragedy of Arun and Vandanas tryst but is equally appealing in terms of cuteness. Thats between Suraj Arun-Vandanas love child played by Khanna donning an air force pilots uniform and a moustache and coy Renu Farida Jalal. Theirs is a love expressed in banter. He chides her as moti and playfully extracts a love confession in the song,Baagon mein bahaar hai.

The music of Aradhana created history and heralded the era of Kishore Kumar. The story goes that music director SD Burman fell ill during the recording and son RD took over. Mohd Rafi,who was the rage of the nation and who had already recorded Gunguna rahe hain and Baagon mein bahaar hai,was on a foreign tour. So RD got good friend Kishore to sing the rest of the songs. Kishore became the voice of Rajesh Khanna and replaced Rafi as the voice of the new generation. Thanks to its songs,its actors and its story,more than 40 years since its release,Aradhana is still new.

harneet.singhexpressindia.com