**Sadabahar Geet Thread#1** ||Invitees only|| - Page 40

Originally posted by: DelusionsOfNeha

This beautiful face off from Amrapali❤️

https://youtu.be/knYu_QbWsns

Originally posted by: TheRoadNotTaken

i haven't watched Amrapali yet... i think now i will

Dekhooo!! It's is beautiful!!

The dance sequences, story line.. everything is sundar!!!

Originally posted by: DelusionsOfNeha

Dekhooo!! It's is beautiful!!

The dance sequences, story line.. everything is sundar!!!

Originally posted by: DelusionsOfNeha

This beautiful face off from Amrapali❤️

https://youtu.be/knYu_QbWsns

Super!

Does anyone know who the second dancer is?

I've been looking up but can't find her name

Originally posted by: LizzieBennet

Super!

Does anyone know who the second dancer is?

I've been looking up but can't find her name

Today (Aug 14) is the punyatithi of the one and only Shamsher Raj Kapoor, better known as Shammi Kapoor, or the Elvis Presley of India because of his improvised dance moves.

My earliest memory of Shammi was watching him yelling ‘Yahoo’ as he slid down a snowy slope and broke into a joyful dance with Saira Banu watching exasperatedly, mouthing ‘Junglee’ at him, to which he responded promptly with: ‘Chahe koi mujhe Junglee kahe’.

As a child, I had no idea what playback singing meant, so for me, that song was sung by that ‘Uncle’ who I would refer to as ‘Monkey’ uncle in my native tongue. I grew more and more fascinated by this lampoonish, over-the-top leading man who seemed to get away with the most nonsensical shenanigans (His Ayayiyaa suku suku, his nutty act in Kashmir ki Kali, his blanket and topi clad character singing ‘Tumse accha kaun hai’) and still ended up with the girl. I would clap in glee at his antics, not knowing that such a carefree, exuberant style of acting was possible in those times that were known only for sober, serious type heroes (save for Kishore Kumar). This guy was not only over-the-top, but was also incredibly good-looking! How was that possible?

My dad watched in disdain at my infatuation with his songs and his mannerisms, reiterating (in vain) that Shammi was responsible for his favorite singer, Rafi, ruining his voice, 😛 but I was too deep in Shammi land to ever turn back! 😆

Later when I grew older, my childhood fascination grew into an adolescent (and adulthood) crush. Luckily I had my aunt to back me up. There’s still a standing joke between us as to how Sharmila should have been the one singing ‘Ye chand sa roshan chehra’ to Shammi 😆‘cos let’s be real - who really had the ‘jheel si neeli aankhein’ here? 😳

He was the original rebel hero, and in my teens, he provided the perfect vehicle for my own rebelliousness.

When I grew older, and had a bit of agency, I went about finding all his movies to watch. I think I must have watched all his much-munda hero movies and a few of his moustachioed ones too - largely forgettable ones I must say except for Memsahib and Hum sab chor hain.

Now you might think as the second son of the famous Prithviraj Kapoor and the younger brother of a very successful Raj Kapoor, Shammi would have been extremely privileged and entry into Hindi films would have been a cakewalk for him with his father and brother paving the way for him as a lead hero. That wasn’t so. He was hired as an employee in Prithvi theatre in 1948 where he earned a salary of Rs. 50/-! It took him 5 years to land his first film, Jeevan Jyot in 1953 opposite Chand Usmani which was an unmitigated flop.

Then followed a series of flops for years - the only saving grace from those years being him meeting his future wife, Geeta Bali on the sets of Rangeen Raatein where she had a cameo role. They fell in love and married secretly (with the help of big brother, Raj) within just 4 months of meeting!

He trudged on with more flops following, and just when it looked like he would never redeem himself, an offer came by way of Filmistan Studio’s new launch vehicle for the owner’s protégé, Ameeta. Nasir Husain who was a writer for Bombay Talkies and then became part of its break-away wing, Filmistan, was hired by Producer, Shashadhar Mukherjee to direct this film.

Being his directorial venture, Nasir Husain scoffed at their choice of hero. “Shammi Kapoor? That mustachioed sissy? Then it’s bound to be a disaster!”

But that mucchad was gone and in his place stood a clean-shaven, stylish and completely transformed Shammi who had decided to reinvent himself (and his looks) for this film. Tumsa Nahin Dekha was intended to showcase Ameeta and all of its publicity was centered around her, but it was Shammi that walked away with all the limelight and the accolades. The movie was a runaway success, Shammi’s reinvented persona establishing him as the ‘Rebel Star’.

Then came ‘Dil Deke Dekho’ with debutante Asha Parekh, and then Junglee with yet another debutante, Saira Banu, which firmly rooted him as a successful leading man. These were followed by a spate of successes - Chinatown, BluffMaster, Professor, Budtameez, Kashmir ki Kali, Jaanwar, Rajkumar, Dil tera deewana.

His movies were fun, his leading man was someone who knew his mind, and expressed his heart with flamboyance - in a boisterous and completely unapologetic manner. And he developed his own style of choreography - the snap of his fingers and the twist of his head, in what came to be known as ‘gardan tod’😆.

His innate sense of rhythm and music helped him. His brother, Raj had it too thanks to the very early music lessons his parents had insisted on. But once Raj got busy with RK studios and film-making, Shammi had stepped in to take over his brother’s classical music lessons. And it paid! He changed the face of the sober, serious, solemn Hindi film hero. His characters were brash, debonair, and had swag and style, and unabashedly wooed (and won) their lady love.

And how can we forget the one thing all his films had in common? Melodious songs that were full of joy, energy, flamboyance, romance - much like the man himself.

I read this interesting anecdote somewhere (or perhaps Shammi himself narrated it) about how when he was a schoolboy, Nargis had promised him a kiss if Barsaat was a success, and if he would pray for it to be. Years later, when Awaara came about, Shammi - now a strapping, handsome young lad approached Nargis to collect on his promised kiss, much to her mortification. Shammi, however, insisted and in her chagrin Nargis agreed to give him anything he wanted (in lieu of the kiss of course!). Shammi, with his love for music, asked for a gramophone and records which she got him without questioning. And this sent him on a musical journey from which he never turned back - it grew into an obsession.

He attended all his recordings, often giving inputs on how he wanted his songs to sound to the singer (Rafi) and the Music Directors. O.P. Nayyar did not take kindly to his suggestion of the refrain ’Tareef karoon kya uski’ being repeated at the end of the song, but Shammi stuck to his ground and Rafi convinced O.P. to let it stay. That was the camaraderie and trust that is still talked about between the actor and the singer.

Years later, it would be proven when ‘Aasmaan se aaya farishta’ was recorded without Shammi’s presence (a gross miscalculation by producer Shakti Samanta) and a suitably incensed Shammi later cooled down with astonishment when he found that there was not a single thing he would change about the song! All because Rafi had read Shammi’s mannerisms so well that he used the right inflections at the right points.

Shammi has gone on record to talk about his insistence on having Rafi sing all his songs (much like his brother Raj's insistence on Mukesh) and had once said: "If I cannot have Rafi, then I'll take Asha Bhosle!" 😆. On Rafi's death, he was told, "Aapki awaaz chali gayi," and it seems apt given how much in tandem the two were.

Shammi’s musicality is very evident in so many of his songs where he plays musical instruments on screen. He would ask his friend, Jaikishen to teach him the nuances of playing each instrument so he would look authentic on screen. And he did.

1965 was a watershed year for Shammi in more ways than one. Teesri Manzil fell into his lap by a stroke of fate. Dev Anand was supposed to do the film with Nasir Husain directing, and Goldie was directing Baharon ke Sapne, but then Dev and Nasir Husain had a major disagreement and Dev walked out of the film. The roles were switched - Goldie was now doing Teesri Manzil and Nasir Husain Baharon ke Sapne with Rajesh Khanna. And Shammi Kapoor was offered Teesri Manzil which he agreed to do with Dev’s blessing. It went on to not only be a commercial success, but even now is acclaimed as one of Goldie’s (and Shammi’s) finest works.

And who can forget R.D.B’s music? The very new Music Director with just a couple of films in his kitty had a hard time convincing Shammi who was known to be a Shankar-Jaikishen loyalist. But he did. And the rest is history.

However, the movie also saw Shammi’s personal life being dealt a cruel blow. His beloved wife, Geeta succumbed to smallpox leaving behind a distraught Shammi and two small kids. He later married Neela Devi. And stayed faithfully married to her for the rest of his life. They did not have kids, Neela choosing to be mother to Geeta and Shammi’s children.

Mumtaz later confessed in an interview that she was in love with Shammi during Brahmchari and he’d asked her to marry him, but she turned him down because he expected her to quit acting after marriage. Thank heavens! 😃

Shammi’s last film as leading man was Andaaz after which his weight problem compelled him to accept character roles. He ended up playing father to Saira Banu who was his leading lady in Junglee!

His only Filmfare award for Best Actor was for Brahmchari, where he played a character that shelters orphaned children in his ramshackle house. Even as a character actor, he made his mark, winning the best supporting actor Filmfare award for Vidhaata that had stalwarts like Dilip Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar.

His last screen appearance was in his grand-nephew, Ranbir Kapoor’s Rockstar.

His songs and his unfailingly exuberant spirit never fail to bring a smile to my face. I’m posting 3 of my favorite Shammi songs (I'm posting only solos, but I have more than 3 favorites but this site only allows me to link 3 songs in a post, so I’ll leave the rest upto you guys! 😆)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnIUta3hyLE

Ehsaan tera hoga. I love everything about this song! ❤️

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS31oCXoQVU

Jawaniyaan ye mast mast. Rafi, O.P.N., a young and debonair Shammi and the promise in the lyrics by Majrooh! Just lovely!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7_IXBXQIeA

Baar baar dekho! A mustachioed Shammi (there are 2 of them in this movie!) and the rocking tune by Ravi! Baar baar suno!!

What are your favorite Shammi songs/ movies?

3 of my favorite Shammi duets (I have many, many more favs! 😆)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-gqCrEdpK8

Deewana hua baadal ❤️

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9Q2YqnBklk

Dekho kasam se ⭐️

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IBL3GMzvuw

Aaj kal tere mere pyaar ke charche 👏

Post your fav Shammi songs, y'all!

Originally posted by: Viswasruti

I think she was RK Narayan's wife. She is a great dancer. But I have to check once. Or she must be KuchAla Kumari , famous dancer from TN.

Yes, I think you mean Kamala Laxman, R.K Laxman's wife. I don't think this is her though.

Let me look up the other dancer. Thanks. Madhu!

Lizzie pls add me 😳

After getting top 4 in sheep retro I am like

😆

Originally posted by: Cookermaichane

Lizzie pls add me 😳

After getting top 4 in sheep retro I am like

Welcome Cooker!

Tumhara pehla task hai Mousy ko yahan kheenchke lana !

Aur apne fav Shammi songs post karo! 😆