The Latent Duets

Posted on Trivia – The Spice of Life on 21/03/2024

While writing a post on the perfect duets of S.D.Burman, another variant of the duet – the latent one – struck me. This moniker is my creation! When I say that a duet is latent or hidden, I mean to say that the other voice does not make its way into the song till it is halfway through. The song starts off as a solo and the other singer joins midway. The listener is led to believe that the song is a solo until the second voice is introduced, usually after the first or the second antara (where the song has three antaras).

There can be many reasons why a duet is latent. Sometimes, this has something to do with the plot or even the situation in the song. In a song where one is trying to cajole another, the person who has put up his/her price finally retorts or relents and so you have a latent duet. At other times, the duet is latent due to more functional and real life like reasons like one singer getting emotional and being unable to carry on. There are also cases where one reacts to what the other is singing after much thought. Such are the extensive possibilities which make space for the latent duet. My list of latent duets has both the singers at the same place, in the same frame. They are not distant duets. Both singers have at least one antara each to register their presence. But the second singer enters the fray only after the first antara.

1) Jaag Dard-e-Ishq Jaag – Anarkali (1953) – Rajinder Krishan – C Ramchandra – Hemant Kumar & Lata Mangeshkar. Set to Raag Bageshri (which was often used by C Ramchandra), the alaap and the mukhda which we hear are sung by Hemant Kumar who lends his voice to the onscreen-Tansen. Tansen is imploring Anarkali to get up and dance for the sake of the pain that love bestows on the lover. Anarkali, who has learnt that her lover is no common soldier but the crown prince, is shattered and is in no condition to dance. But the voice of Tansen finally gets her to sing and dance after the first antara. This explains why the voice of Lata Mangeshkar is heard much later in the song i.e. after the first antara. This makes the song a latent duet. Bina Rai is quite the whimpering damsel and does not impress greatly. Pradeep Kumar too is not great at emoting. Interestingly, the same song features in the Telugu version of Anarkali starring Nageshwara Rao and Anjali Devi but the tune is completely different.

2) Jeet Hi Lenge Baazi Hum Tum – Shola Aur Shabnam (1961) – Kaifi Azmi – Khayyam – Md. Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. This is a beautiful latent duet from a movie whose story line is pretty average. In fact, I ended up watching the movie for its outstanding music. It starred Dharmendra – one of his initial movies and Tarla Mehta, who happens to be Dina Pathak’s younger sister.

It begins as a solo with Dharmendra sitting behind the grand piano. As he plays it, he sings along. His visage in not clearly shown. The lights are off. Tarla Mehta is astonished to hear the song as it leads her down the memory lane to her childhood sweetheart whom she has lost contact with. This song that they used to sing together as children helps her realize that Dharmendra is after all her much sought childhood friend whom she was (and still is) in love with (Wonder how children are shown singing such songs!!).

The song is picturized very tastefully. Shadows are very effectively used to express emotions. The moment Dharmendra hears Tarla singing, we see his shadow freeze for a moment, which very eloquently expresses the fact that he too has discovered who Tarla is. She begins to sing along, rather involuntarily, towards the end of the first stanza and he does not disturb the natural flow of the song; from here on it becomes a perfect duet. This song therefore is one that re-unites them. Here is the audio link of the complete song with the vocal prelude.

3) Tum Mujhe Bhool Bhi Jao To Yeh Haq – Didi (1959) – Sahir Ludhianvi – Sudha Malhotra – Sudha Malhotra & Mukesh. This is a lovely song not just sung by Sudha Malhotra (along with Mukesh) but also composed by her. She composed the music for this song as N.Datta, the music director of the film, was indisposed and she was asked to step into his shoes. This also happened to be the last song that she recorded before taking a long break from playback singing. The mukhda and the antara sung by Sudha Malhotra for Shubha Khote speak of unrequited love. Mukesh, singing for Sunil Dutt, in this latent duet responds by way of the second antara, explaining why he is against commitment in love. It is said that the lyrics of this song were perhaps the outpourings of Sahir’s heart – a song he dedicated to his own failed relationship.

4) Aapne Yaad Dilaya To Mujhe Yaad Aaya – Aarti (1962) – Majrooh Sultanpuri – Roshan – Md. Rafi & Lata Mangeshkar. Aarti is a movie with wonderful songs and very powerful performances form Meena Kumari and Ashok Kumar. I cannot say the same about Pradeep Kumar’s prowess on the silver screen. In this song, Pradeep Kumar has doubts about whether he is doing the right thing by falling in love with Meena Kumari. There is no meeting ground between them in terms of economic and social standing. This is something that he fathoms. Thus, each time he sings, he ends the mukhda/antara with the words – ki mere dil pe pada tha koi gham ka saaya.

After hearing two of his antaras, Meena Kumari, who exudes confidence and has extremely expressive eyes, steps in to sing the third antara to convey that she has made up her mind to be his life partner and that she is there for the long haul. Did you notice how she does not sing – कि मेरे दिल पे पड़ा था कोई ग़म का साया (ki mere dil pe pada tha koi gham ka saaya/my heart is shrouded by misery)? She is optimistic and has the courage of conviction, which is missing in the hero. The song has a lovely prelude and postlude wherein the sarod – Roshan’s favourite musical instrument – is used to perfection. Interestingly, the line आप ने याद दिलाया तो मुझे याद आया is a line penned by the famous poet Dagh Dehlvi – which Majrooh Sultanpuri has co-opted into the song.

5) Dekho Qasam Se Kehte Hain Tumse – Tumsa Nahin Dekha (1957) – Majrooh Sultanpuri – O.P.Nayyar – Asha Bhosle & Md.Rafi. This is a roothne-mananewala duet, where the lady is trying to convince the gentleman to bury the hatchet. In the first antara, she tries to tell him that the night is pleasant and romantic and that they must make the best of it. When he does not relent, she readies to leave, saying in the second antara that it no longer matters to her whether he comes along or not. The man finally gives in and stops in his tracks. This is where Rafi sings the last antara making it a beautiful latent duet. The melody, voices and the simple but impressive picturization make it a loveable song to watch.

6) Jo Wada Kiya Woh Nibhana Padega – Taj Mahal (1963) – Sahir Ludhianvi – Roshan – Md.Rafi & Lata Mangeshkar. This latent duet, which has multiple versions, is one of the most immortal love songs of Hindi cinema. The matter of fact, conversational manner in which Sahir has written the mukhda is amazing. There is Shah Jahan waiting for his beloved and insisting that she must come to meet him despite all odds. After the first antara of the most popular (and happy) version of the song, the female voice (Lata singing for Beena Rai) joins in. And post this, it becomes a duet where both voices are heard together or are singing alternate lines. Roshan uses the reverberation effect beautifully, when Lata sings, to convey the physical distance between the two lovers which is slowly being bridged.

7) Yeh Duniyawaale Poochenge – Mahal (1969) – Anand Bakshi – Kalyanji Anandji – Kishore Kumar & Asha Bhosle. This latent duet is all about tutoring in love. With umbrellas being used generously as a prop, the song has been picturised differently. Asha Parekh is busy giving her sahelis a slip and meeting Dev Anand. Dev Anand begins his lessons right from the mukhda. It is all about the dos and don’ts in love. Asha Parekh listens carefully to all the advice – so much so that she herself gives him a tip or two – by joining in and singing the second antara. By the time the third antara is sung, both have benefitted by comparing notes and sing equal bits. This is an adorable duet!

8) Dushman Na Kare Dost Ne Woh – Aakhir Kyun (1985)- Indeevar – Rajesh Roshan – Lata Mangeshkar & Amit Kumar. Kishore Kumar was the voice of Rajesh Khanna. But it is interesting to see that here, his son – Amit Kumar – sings for Rajesh Khanna. This duet assumes the character of being latent because of functional reasons. Smita Patil is singing at a party where her ex-husband and his wife are also present. Seeing them, she is extremely disturbed and agitated. She sings this song, which is a veiled attack on her ex-husband and his new partner. As she sings, after two antaras, she is overwhelmed by emotion. It is then that Rajesh Khanna, her sensitive friend, steps in to maintain continuity and sings the third antara, as Smita tries to regain her composure. The lyrics of Indeevar are very thoughtfully written. The hypocrisy that we encounter in relationships is very aptly worded in this song.

9) Hothon Pe Haseen Aankhon Mein Nasha – Saawan Ki Ghata (1966) – S.H.Bihari – O.P.Nayyar – Asha Bhosle & Md. Rafi. This duet does not feature in the film; thus, only the audio of the song is available. I am presuming that it is not a distant duet. Here is Asha Bhosle (singing for Sharmila in all probability) praising her lover’s charm and beauty to the skies. After the first antara, the man (Md.Rafi singing for Manoj Kumar, I presume) returns the compliment by praising the woman’s beauty. Thus, this latent duet becomes a song of mutual admiration. S.H.Bihari is very generous in the adjectives he chooses to describe the beauty of the hero and heroine.

10) Beqaraar Dil Tu Gaaye Ja – Door Ka Raahi (1971) – A. Irshad – Kishore Kumar – Kishore Kumar & Sulakshana Pandit. This wonderful duet has always been my favourite. However, I saw this song for the first time while researching for this post. All the songs of Door Ka Raahi are masterpieces. Composed by the multifaceted genius Kishore Kumar, who was also the director of the film, he is ably assisted by a lesser known lyricist A.Irshaad. The lyrics are excellent. Irshaad does not seem to have worked prolifically. But the twenty odd songs that he has penned in all remind us of his immense potential.

Door Ka Raahi, which is Kishore’s home production, is such a contrast when one looks at his image of being a comedian and a singer who has rendered some of the greatest romantic duets and light hearted songs. This film offers a different perspective on Kishore Kumar as a person. It is quite apparent that though he specialised in comedy, there was a lot of depth in his thoughts which is sensitively brought out on screen in this film. It tells the story of a man who is not the typical protagonist seeking love but one who wants to touch lives and better them and help society to evolve. He is constantly on the move. This is a black and white film starring among others Tanuja, Ashok Kumar and Kishore Kumar – who is the Door Ka Raahi. Here is the video link of the film.

The song I have included is one that Ashok Kumar, Tanuja’s father-in-law in the film, sings. This was the song that his deceased son and daughter -in -law (now widowed) used to sing in happier times. Kishore Kumar who is an unexpected visitor at their house bears a strong resemblance to Ashok Kumar’s departed son. This explains the sudden gush of emotions. As Ashok Kumar sings this lovely melody, Kishore is sitting adjacent and Tanuja rushes down from her room and joins in after the first antara. It is interesting that Kishore Kumar lends his voice to his elder brother but (on screen) is seen sitting silently in the same frame.

Kishore Kumar seems to have engaged many new comers with potential for his home production. This is the only duet in the movie. In this song, Kishore is joined by Sulakshana Pandit, who was a newcomer back then.

This brings me to the end of my post on latent duets. Many of these duets are intertwined into the plot and have a more meaningful role to play than serve merely as a short musical break. Some of them also fall in the category of songs that reunite or rekindle old flames. There are quite a few latent duets that I had to do away with for the sake of brevity. I must also add here that my list has three songs featuring Pradeep Kumar which is just a coincidence. He has some very good songs. There were more featuring him which, I decided, must be reserved for a post on his songs, if I ever do write one.

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