Hyderabad: As the country celebrates its 77th anniversary of Independence, cities, towns, and villages are reverberating with patriotic songs sung by different singers.
Topping the list of singers are the songs rendered by the legendary singer Mohammed Rafi, who, in his career spanning over four decades, sang over 4,500 Hindi songs alone. The list includes around 100 well-known patriotic songs sung since the pre-Independence era – the highest number sung by anyone in the patriotic genre. The singer’s patriotism is quite intense in his renditions, often moving people to tears.
Born in Kotla Sultan Singh, a village in Punjab, on 24 December 1924, Rafi’s nickname, as it is learned, was Pheeko. He began singing by imitating the chants of a fakir in his village. Rafi also sang in other Indian languages like Assamese, Oriya, Punjabi, Bengali, Sindhi, Kannada, Gujarati, and Telugu, among other languages. He even recorded a few songs in English, Persian, Spanish, and Dutch.
The legend gave his first public performance at the age of 13 when he sang in Lahore. In 1941, Rafi made his debut in Lahore as a playback singer in the duet ‘Soniye Nee, Heeriye Nee’ with Zeenat Begum in the Punjabi film ‘Gul Baloch’.
His long journey with patriotic songs began in 1944 when he sang a patriotic song, “Hindustan ke hum hain, Hindustan humara,” written by D N Madhok and composed by the acclaimed music director Naushad, featured in the movie ‘Pehle Aap’ of 1944. The lyrics were composed keeping in view the then political developments and the advancement of Azad Hind Fauj formed by Subash Chandra Bose.
The other patriotic numbers of the legendary singer include the all-time hit ‘Watan ki Raah Mein’ (Shaheed 1948), ‘Sarforishi ki Tamanna Aab’ (Shaheed –e- Azam Bhagat Singh 1954), ‘Hum Laye Hain Toofan Se’ (Jagriti 1954), ‘Vatan Pe Joh Shaheed Hoga’ (Phool Bane Aangare 1963), ‘Aapni Azaadi Ku’ (Leader 1964), ‘Kar Chale Hum Fida’ (Haqeeqat 1964), ‘Jahan Daal Daal Par’ (Sikander E Azam 1965), ‘Vardi Hain Bhagwan’ (Fauji 1975), ‘Nafrat Ki Lathi Thoda’ (Desh Premee 1982), and ’15 August Se Humein Kyun Itni Preet Hai’.
The song ‘Hum Laye Hain Toofan Se’ was sung by him seven years after Independence. The lyrics offer advice to the younger generations to take care of the country and work hard to develop it. During the Indo-Sino war in 1962, he sang a couple of songs – ‘Watan ki Abroo Khatre Mein Hai’ and ‘Awaz Do Hum Ek’ to instill oneness among citizens and motivate soldiers.
In the ‘Filmon ki Baat’ episode, Jawaid Naseem shared that Rafi’s renditions were a hit and evoked a feeling of patriotism in all. During a fundraising drive taken up during the 1962 Indo-Sino war, Bollywood stars traveled around the country playing patriotic songs. In Bombay, the rally of film stars passed through the road where actor Shammi Kapoor stayed, and after hearing the song ‘Awaz Do Hum Ek Hain’, Shammi Kapoor’s wife, Geeta Bali, was so moved that she went into the house, brought all valuable ornaments, and donated them.
In its August 2016 and June 2020 issues, Filmfare magazine listed 10 hit patriotic songs released between 1940 and 1970, and six of the songs were sung by the legendary singer.
Rafi’s versatility and vocal range have made his songs an all-time favorite. He was awarded the Padma Shree in 1967 by the Government of India. Rafi passed away on July 31, 1980, following a heart attack. His last song was ‘Shaam phir kyun udaas hai dost’ (‘Aas Paas’ — 1981), which he recorded with Laxmikant-Pyarelal a few hours before his death.
Mohammed Rafi left behind a treasure trove of immortal songs – solos as well as duets with popular singers of his era. He sang qawwalis, ghazals, disco, and pop in Hindi and various other Indian languages.
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