Cinemaazi remembers Jaikishan on his death anniversary.
12 Sep 1971
One half of the legendary music composer duo Shankar Jaikishan, Jaikishan Dayabhai Panchal has etched his name in music lovers' memories forever. He was born in Bansda, Gujarat and became a skilled harmonium player. He was trained by the likes of Sangeet Visharad Wadilalji and Prem Shankar Nayak. While struggling to make a mark as a musician in Bombay, he struck up a friendship with fellow struggler Shankar. Together they worked in Prithvi Theatres for some time. When the offer for Raj Kapoor's Barsaat(1949) came their way, the duo seized this opportunity. The rest, as they say, is history.
They went on to compose some of the most unforgettable tunes of the Golden Era. From Raj Kapoor's iconic tramp films to Shammi Kapoor'sJunglee avatar, all of it was bolstered by their evergreen compositions. They established the orchestra as a key component of Hindi film music. Combining elements of jazz, Indian and Western classical music, they created a heady concoction. They also contributed to the development of Indo Jazz. Uniquely, while they worked as a duo, they composed their songs individually. Jaikishan was known for the peppier, romantic songs and background scores while Shankar composed the title songs, dance and philosophical songs. They followed a strict policy of never identifying who had composed which song. Traditionally Shankar worked with Shailendra while Jaikishan worked with Hasrat Jaipuri. From 1949 to 1971, they enjoyed prime position in the film industry. Their partnership was broken when Jaikishan passed away on 12 September 1971 leaving his loved ones - Shankar, Raj Kapoor and Hasrat Jaipuri grief-stricken. His life-long collaborator Hasrat Jaipuri wrote in his memory:
Jai ke Bina Kya Zindagi
Lay ke bina kya zindagi
Sur ka Deepak bujh gaya
Ab kya khilegi roshni
Cinemaazi salutes the legend on his 49th death anniversary.
They went on to compose some of the most unforgettable tunes of the Golden Era. From Raj Kapoor's iconic tramp films to Shammi Kapoor'sJunglee avatar, all of it was bolstered by their evergreen compositions. They established the orchestra as a key component of Hindi film music. Combining elements of jazz, Indian and Western classical music, they created a heady concoction. They also contributed to the development of Indo Jazz. Uniquely, while they worked as a duo, they composed their songs individually. Jaikishan was known for the peppier, romantic songs and background scores while Shankar composed the title songs, dance and philosophical songs. They followed a strict policy of never identifying who had composed which song. Traditionally Shankar worked with Shailendra while Jaikishan worked with Hasrat Jaipuri. From 1949 to 1971, they enjoyed prime position in the film industry. Their partnership was broken when Jaikishan passed away on 12 September 1971 leaving his loved ones - Shankar, Raj Kapoor and Hasrat Jaipuri grief-stricken. His life-long collaborator Hasrat Jaipuri wrote in his memory:
Jai ke Bina Kya Zindagi
Lay ke bina kya zindagi
Sur ka Deepak bujh gaya
Ab kya khilegi roshni
Cinemaazi salutes the legend on his 49th death anniversary.
