Manna Dey: The singer who never got his due
Sharmila Taliculam
Pomposity is the grace of a genius. Especially, a genius spurned. When Manna Dey speaks of his own greatness, he is not bragging. He is simply talking about his talent. -- a talent that the music industry has failed to exploit. Even the Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema forgets to mention him!
But Mannada's legacy will not be forgotten by the millions of fans who still hum his songs, now almost half a century later.
There was some apprehension while fixing an interview with Mannada. He had sounded abrupt over the telephone. And now, he is not smiling as he meets us at the gate. Then he gets choosy. "I will answer only good questions," he declares!
But as he gets talking, the ice breaks and the reason for his ill humour becomes clear. His daughter is ill --she is suffering from cancer and is being operated on. His wife is with her in America. Mannada is perturbed and sad. "I don't know how can anybody so nice and good suffer from an illness like this. I wish I were with her now," he says. But he can't be. Work beckons as a few shows are coming up.
We delved into a bit of history. Manna Dey was born Prabodhchandra Dey in Calcutta. Manna was a pet name given to him by his uncle K C Dey who was known as the the 'Blind Singer of Bengal.' Though he studied law, to be a barrister like his father, Manna opted for a career in singing because his uncle thought the young boy had the talent to make it.
After New Theatres Studio in Calcutta shut down, K C Dey decided to come to Bombay. Manna followed. His first break came with Vijay Bhatt's Ram Rajya. It didn't win him accolades but the struggle had begun. After he sang Upar gagan vishal, all of a sudden, he found himself in the top slot. Almost every song that he sang became popular. Yet, strangely, he failed to get songs on a regular basis. Despite being one of the most talented singers of his time, Manna was never number one. Mohammad Rafi was king, and Manna never grudged him his success because he genuinely believed that Rafi was better than he was.
Today, at 75, Mannada is happy doing stage shows that bring in money and give him the chance to do what he likes best -- singing. He is also happy because people remember his songs and because they still want him to sing.
Despite ill health and disappointment with an industry that was not sure about him, he spoke at length about his days with Rafi, Mukesh and Kishore Kumar, about today's music and about his family.
Don't you like speaking to the press anymore?
I have not spoken much to the press. I strongly feel that the media wants gossip or something worthwhile when they write about us. We are talked about now and then, but we are not the kind of people who have lots to offer. We have said so much, so if you have anything interesting to ask us, then do so.
From law to singing, how did that come about?
I am a product of that house where K C Dey, known as the blind singer of Bengal, was also born. In fact, he brought me up. My father was the eldest in the family. Ours was a big joint family where all my uncles lived together. I have lived in Bombay for 56 years and I still miss that family, that togetherness. My uncle was unmarried and I lived with him.
Were films looked down upon in your family?
No, not at all. My uncle was a big name in the world of music. His songs like Baba man ki aankhen khol, Teri ghathari mein laga chor were very famous. Being born in such a family, I had inherited the talent to sing. We used to have regular riyaz at home early mornings. I am particularly fond of classical music. All the ustaads would come to our house and we would have singing all day long. Our house used to be the meeting place for all the singers. Whenever anybody came to Calcutta, they stayed on and on. I had the good fortune to listen and watch them. That is the best learning I could have ever asked for. I finished my studies and decided to become a singer like my uncle. Have you heard of New Theatres? Those days it was very big.
Your Uncle K C Dey was a big star of New Theatres...
Yes, he was. He was an actor and singer. His performances were recognised all over India.
What about when New Theatres closed down? Didn't you want to return to law?
No, far from it. I always wanted to be a singer. We decided to come to Bombay. We formed a good group called Laxmi Productions which included Phani Mazumdar, the director, Leela Desai, the heroine, Pahari Sanyal, the hero as well as an audiographer, sound recordist, cinematographer and many others, all of whom came from New Theatres.
I started working here as a singer. It was a long struggle. Then I made a mark -- I think it was in 1950 -- with S D Burman's Upar gagan vishaal for Mashaal. That brought me into limelight, though I was singing long before that. But unfortunately, those days they never put our names on record albums or mention us in any way. Burman was a disciple of my uncle's. I had known SD since I was in shorts. He used to come to my house to learn from my uncle.
Was it the turning point of your career?
Yes, it was. Before that I was toying with the idea of going back to Calcutta. I won't say it was all rosy even after that. There were other singers, though Rafi hadn't come then. G M Durrani was the other male singer those days. I used to miss Calcutta, and often thought of going back. But the money was good here and then of course, I found the person I married eventually. My wife Sulochana, was the soothing balm, she kept me going here.
You do a lot of shows, don't you?
Yes, I do a lot of shows all over the world. I get good responses too.
Who are the singers and musicians?
I have my own musicians who accompany me wherever I go. I sing all my songs. I have a female singer too. You know Kavita Krishnamurthi used to sing with me. She is my daughter's friend. She sang with me for 18 years. She got recognition after a long time.
What kind of shows are these?
I don't put up shows with lot of dances and lights. I sing my songs and people come to listen to them. I recently sang in front of two-and-a-half thousand people in a big hall. These are people who spend a lot of money on such shows.
Why don't you sing for films now?
The modern trend in music is repetitive. You listen to one song: it starts with the same routine tune and ends the same way. The other songs take off from the first. Every song sounds the same. All these heroes are like grandsons to me. How can I sing for them? What can I sing for them? It doesn't sound right. I personally feel that filmmaking has become trashy now. Can you sit with your father and children and watch these films?
In college I used to sing Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra and other Western songs. Though we can't experiment too much with Hindi songs, I have sung all kinds of songs and they were all hits.
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