Bhupinder will do playback again.!!!!!!!

Bhupinder returns after 10 years

The singer will do playback singing once again – for the upcoming films of Madhur Bhandarkar and Vinod Pandey

Kunal M Shah

Singer Bhupinder is back after a hiatus of 10 years. His last song recorded song was for Ram Gopal Varma's Satya. Now Bhupinder has made a comeback with two songs, both for music director Shamir Tandon. One song is for Vinod Pandey's Red Swastik and the other is for Madhur Bhandarkar's Traffic Signal.

Bhupinder says, "I am happy and overwhelmed by the response I've received from the people I'm working with. I'm grateful for their respect and love. To be honest, I really missed playback singing. When Shamir contacted me, I was glad he had kept aside a wonderful composition and a great song for my comeback. Coming back to these studios fills me with nostalgia."

And how did the singer kill time during his sabbatical? "My wife, Mitali, and I toured India and abroad for our shows. I didn't realise that ten years passed by doing the shows. I'm fortunate that a music director still considers me and gave me this opportunity," he says.

The singer feels that the Indian music industry has changed greatly in terms of the music and the orchestration. "In the older days, we used to have lots of live orchestra such as guitars and violins whereas now there are electronic violins," he says. "I think A R Rahman and Anu Malik are very talented and bring back the Indian melody in their music. They not only work hard on the rhythm but also on poetry. I would love to work with them."

Music director Shamir Tandon says, "I don't think anyone else could have performed this song as well as Bhupida. When the song was written, he was the first person who came to my mind. Bhupida had told me that if he liked the songs, he would sing them. Thankfully for me, he liked the songs. He is the easiest person to work with than the present crop of singers. I guess that's why he's a legend."

Vinod Pandey, producer and lyricist of Red Swastik says, "From the moment we penned the song, Shamir and me unanimously decided that Bhupinder would sing the song 'Yaad unki dil se jati nahih'. For me it's a privilege as he had done a wonderful song in my first film Ek Baar Phir. To record a song with him once again is an honour. I think he's as great as ever and has done a wonderful job."

Thanks Qwest bhai for sharing this wonderful story.

Singer Bhupinder

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Bhupinder – Hauntingly 'Hummable'

by

Mukesh Khosla

Bhupinder with wife Mitali: " .. for me a song without the depth of lyrics is a song without soul."

Bhupinder may have stopped singing for movies, but his name still brings back memories of the years when melody and lyrics were the essence of Hindi films. Most music lovers know Bhupinder the singer. But few know that he is also a guitarist who has given background score for Hindi films. According to veteran music director Naushad, when it comes to the guitar, no one can match up to Bhupinder.

For most of his three decades as a singer, he may have teetered on the side of classicism, yet he has assiduously cultivated his popular appeal. Which is why the easy laid-back charm that he exudes is deceptive. Bhupinder Singh personifies melody. And the songs he sings never go out of fashion.

Haqueeqat's

vintage Ho Ke Majboor Mujhe Us Ne Bhulaya Hoga or the hummable Dil Dhoondhta Hai Phir Wohi Fursat Ke Raat Din, or Ek Akela Is Shahar Mein, the music still haunts so also the voice that made these songs immortal.

Most music lovers know Bhupinder the singer. But very few people know that he is also perhaps the greatest guitarist ever to give background score for Hindi films. Working with music directors like R.D.Burman, Khayyam, Laxmikant Pyarelal and others he has played the guitar for songs, like Dum maro dum (HareRama Hare Krishna), Chura liya hai (Yaadon Ki Baraat), Chalte Chalte (Pakeezah)Mehbooba O Mehbooba (Sholay) and many more.

According to veteran music director Naushad, when it comes to the guitar, no one can match up to Bhupinder. He considers

Ambar ki ek paak surahi from Kadambari as one of his best creations. The music director was Ustad Vilayat Khan---the first and the last time when the guru provided music for a film. Another of Bhupinder's great guitar renditions is in Tum jo mil gaye ho from Hanste Zakhm with music by Madan Mohan.

It was Madan Mohan who invited Bhupinder to Mumbai in 1963 to sing for Haqeeqat. Though Ho ke majboor was a runaway hit, he didn't get offers. " Don't forget," he reminds you, " I had to compete with the likes of Mohammed Rafi, Mukesh, Talat Mahmood, Kishore Kumar and Manna Dey. I realized the going would be very tough."

Instead of seeking singing assignments, he began learning the guitar and met R.D. Burman. " In the early sixties both of us had very little work. So we would just hang out together," he reminisces. It was this strong bond of friendship that was later to transform into a working relationship that resulted in some of the most popular songs of Bollywood.

Mellifluous Voice

Today, Bhupinder may have virtually stopped singing for movies, but his name still brings back memories of those years when melody and lyrics were the essence of Hindi films. Back in the seventies Amol Palekar's brilliant acting and Bhupinder's mellifluous voice mesmerized audiences cutting across all class and language barriers.

As all good things must come to an end, so did the celluloid partnership of Bhupinder and Palekar and the golden voice went into oblivion. It reluctantly re-surfaced for a one-off song in Ramgopal Verma's Satya but that's all and no more.

Bollywood's loss has surely been a gain for ghazal lovers. In the mid eighties Bhupinder married Bangladeshi singer Mitali and switched from Hindi films to the genre of ghazals which he says have been his childhood obsession.

"I didn't leave Hindi film music because I wasn't getting offers. The truth is that the kind of music they wanted me do did not suit my style or my temperament. In the eighties songs lost their relevance and just became one more part of a Hindi film. And for me a song without the depth of lyrics is a song without soul. That's why I have distanced myself from Hindi films," says Bhupinder.

Through most of the nineties his gradual foray into ghazal singing with wife Mitali marked the beginning of another new phase in Bhupinder's life. " It's a very decisive step and there's no looking back. When you give a live show the response of the audience is instant and so is the gratification for an artist. It's like making magic on-stage."

For a man who brought orchestration and instrumentation into Hindi film music along with his one time mentor R.D.Burman this transition from film songs to classical based ghazals has indeed been a giant step. But, he says, even when he was singing he never compromised with the basic Indian-ness of the songs.

Lyrical Purity

" If the music director insisted on unnecessary innovations then I would simply refuse to sing. I insist on the purity of lyrics and examine the depth of poetry I lend my voice to," says the singer who along with his wife has dished out hugely popular albums like Ek Haseen Sham and Mohabbat. Last year Gulzar---whom Bhupinder considers his mentor---released his third ghazal and geet album, Kuch Intezaar Hai.. The video has been filmed of the song Shamma jalaye rakhna one of the huge hit singles of the album.

However, Bhupinder is not overly enthused by the idea of albums. He's wary of music companies bringing out a completely unrelated video. " A singer doesn't have control over the kind of video the company produces. There have been instances where a serious song has had a frivolous video which completely mars its essence," says the singer.

For wife Mitali too, singing ghazals has marked a big transition. She was already a well-known folk singer in her native Bangladesh when she made a trip to Mumbai and met Bhupinder. " We both had so many things in common including our love for good music. That's why we decided to stay together for the rest of our lives," she says with a smile.

She had come to do a concert in Mumbai and being a fan of Bhupinder requested him to join her on the stage. " Little did I realize that he would soon be my companion for life," says Mitali. " I feel if Bhupinder had not come to films he could have been a great classical singer. But he has no regrets. He's had the best of both worlds."

Today Bhupinder may have stopped singing in films, but generations will remember him for his soulful rendition of songs like Ho ke Majboor and Dil Dhoondta Hai---the songs where melody was queen and Bhupinder the king.

A ghazal singer whose been around for nearly forty years in the professional music world of Bombay, is till date remembered for his very memorable film numbers like 'Ek Akela Is Shahar Main..' and 'Dil Dhoondta Ha..'. It has been sometime since one heard Bhupinder render playback for the movies, however his work in the field of ghazal renditions continues till date.

Bhupinder was born on April 8, 1939 in New Delhi. He was inclined toward music at a very early age. His father Natha Singh, was a trained vocalist, from whom Bhupinder learnt his early lessons in music. He gave his performances on All India Radio, Delhi, in his early phase of musical career. He was also attached to the Doordarshan center, Delhi. Bhupinder has mastered the art of playing guitar and violin. In 1964, his luck gave him a call when music director Madan Mohan heard him over the All India Radio and called him to Bombay. He was so impressed by Bhupinder's talent that he gave him a chance of singing a song alongwith the noted singer Mohd. Rafi in Chetan Anand's Haqeeqat. The song was 'Hoke Majboor Mujhe Usne Bulaya Hoga..', which was a hit. After haqeeqat Bhupinder sang few more songs in some low budget films, which failed to give him the recognition he deserved.

He joined the orchestra of R. D. Burman and played guitar for many of RD's greatest scores, like, 'Dum Maro Dum..' and 'Ek Hi Khwaab..'. He became good friends with R. D. Burman. RD gave him his first 'original' hit with the release of Parichay in 1972. Bhupinder sang two songs in Parichay ('Beete Na Beetai Raina..' and 'Mitwa Bole Meethe Bai..'). He got a lot of appreciation from all the parts of the country. Parichay changed his outlook and he was now considered as a serious voice, and composers took him seriously. Bhupinder developed his own singing style. Gulzar's films carved a niche for him with songs like 'Dil Dhoondta Hai..', 'Naam Gum Jayega..' and 'Ek Akela Is Shaher Mein..'.



It was very gradually that he started signing contracts with record companies and did several private songs. His first LP was released in 1968, which had three songs that were self-composed. In 1978, Bhupinder released his second LP of ghazals. It was in this venture that he introduced the Spanish guitar, bass and drums to the ghazal style. It was an innovation indeed, and one that broke away from the traditional ghazal style of using merely the sarangi and the tabla. Bhupinder introduced more orchestration into the ghazal and going by the frequency with which these instruments were used in future ghazal recordings by other singers as well, the experiment had worked. In 1980 an LP titled 'Woh Jo Shair Tha' was released. Gulzar's poetry was put to music by Bhupinder who played the solo guitar. Besides which he also used synthesisers, electric guitars, a drum set and the tabla to produce an overall haunting effect.

Bhupinder married Mitali who is a noted ghazal singer. Both Bhupinder and Mitali gave several successful performances across the country. Today their name has got a respect in the world of ghazals. Bhupinder, now-a-days has almost cut off himself from the film playback, but he's busy with his ghazal concerts and live performances. Recently he sung 'Baadlon Se Kaat Kaat Kar..' for the film Satya, which was again written by his favourite shayar Gulzar saab. According to the true music lovers Bhupinder's voice is the last 'original' voice.

Thanks for sharing dada... Wow!! Thats a grt news 👏 👏 👏 I am looking fwd for the songs now 😃

Thanks Bobda.

Can we have the discography of his. I always wanted to know more about him.

Originally posted by: Bhaskar.T

Thanks Bobda.

Can we have the discography of his. I always wanted to know more about him.

Thanks Bhaskar Da, will get some more info on him.

In Perfect Harmony

Among the husband-wife ghazal-singing pairs, Bhupinder and Mitali Singh make a striking couple. And with their contrasting personalities, they prove that opposites attract. The beautiful Mitali is chirpy and talkative, while Bhupinder is sober and introvertish. The couple have just released their new album with Universal Music titled Kuch Intezaar Hai. They go down memory lane and share with Screen some special moments of their life...

Bhupinder started out as an assitant to R.D. Burman, playing the guitar for him, and later with his stylised singing in Gulzar's films carved a niche for himself with songs like Dil dhoondta hai, Naam gum jayega and Ek akela ek shaher mein. Mitali was a budding ghazal singer in private mehfils. When they came together, it was the beginning of one long harmonious relationship. After 18 years of marriage, just like their popular ghazal, 'Shama jalaye rakhna...', the flame of love still burns bright in their life, as was obvious during the interview. Mitali, being the chirpy one, was more vocal of the two. But Bhupinder too opened up and spoke fondly.