I would term some movies as deceptive. The packaging is good but the product is not. That is the case with Ek Dil Sao Afsane (EDSA). When you see Raj Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman and Lalita Pawar’s names in the acting department, and Shankar Jaikishan as the music directors, your expectations increase. EDSA is a decent film but could have been better. Today. the film is remembered only for some of its songs if not more.
The Plot
EDSA is the story of 2 lovers. Shekhar (Raj Kapoor) is an eligible bachelor. He is also very rich. His naani (maternal grandmother) played by Lalita Pawar dotes on him. Apparently, his parents have passed away and naani is his only close relation. Naani has one mission in life. Shekhar has to marry and “produce” a son at the earliest. The family needs to have a male heir. For this, she insists on matching the horoscope of every prospective bride with that of Shekhar’s. If there is no possibility of a son’s arrival, the proposal is immediately rejected.
Shekhar doesn’t seem to do anything apart from attending parties and enjoying his bachelor status. He sings Mast nazar dekh idhar in a party. The party is full of women looking for eligible bachelors for their daughters. Seems the market is quite competitive. They approach Shekhar with a list of all that they will offer him as dowry. Shekhar informs them about his Naani’s precondition for marriage. The girl needs to deliver a male child else the marriage is off!
After the party, he goes with one of the girls in her car. While reversing, the car hits a girl riding a bicycle. This is Sunita (Waheeda Rehman). She is a salesgirl who works for Navbahar Cosmetics. The girl insults Sunita who slaps her in return. Shekhar is super impressed by the salesgirl – he has found his match. He tries to flirt with her but she shoos him off and leaves.
Shekhar and Sunita meet again on a train journey. Sunita is going for her friend Neelu’s wedding. Shekhar boards the same train compartment. He is surprised to see her and makes some poetic talk about separation and uniting. She responds to him sarcastically.
Upon reaching home, his Naani tells him he has to get married soon and gift her a toy – i.e. his son. There is no dearth of proposals and she is consulting astrologers to match the horoscopes and move ahead. Shekhar’s aunt (mausi) Sulochana (Sulochana Chatterjee) comes to visit them. Her daughter Neelu (Uma) is getting married. Shekhar and Neelu are very close and he gets heavily involved in the marriage activities.
He is surprised to find Sunita attending the marriage. He tries to impress her with his irritating (but endearing(?)) antics. During the sangeet, she performs a dance as he sings Sunoji suno hamari bhi suno. Later, Shekhar has a direct talk with Sunita about their marriage. She has started liking him too and they agree to get married. Its time for a dreamy romantic song O jaadugar pyar ke ye bata.
The only hurdle is Naani and her precondition for marriage. Naani meets Sunita. Sunita tells her she is an orphan. Naani is ready to accept her wholeheartedly. But she is in for a shock. The astrologer informs her that the couple will never be able to bear a child. Naani is appalled and tells Shekhar that he cannot marry Sunita. Shekhar pleads with her but she does not agree. He rebels against her and goes to meet Sunita.
Sunita sings the title song. They get married and settle down happily in his friend’s house, who has 4 children. Shekhar sings a romantic song Kuchh Sher Sunata Hoon Main. With no access to naani’s money, the couple is finding it hard to make ends meet.
By coincidence, Shekhar and Sunita get a job in the same law firm. Happily, they sing a romantic duet Tum hi tum ho. Sunita’s boss is Jagdish Raj, who falls for when she lies that she is not married.
Back home, Naani is not keeping well. She has no plan to reconcile with Shekhar and has decided to donate all her property and head for Kashi. She sends a family friend cum well wisher Chintamani to Mumbai to get her will prepared. As expected it is the same law firm where Shekhar is working. Shekhar brings Chintamani to his house. He sees Sunita holding a child. This is the son of Shekhar’s friend. Chintamani wrongly assumes this is Shekhar’s son and informs the same to Naani upon his return. Naani is overjoyed to hear the news. She rushes to Mumbai to see her great grandson. She also decides to make a new will with Shekhar as the beneficiary.
Naani arrives as planned. Shekhar continues with the deception and presents his friend’s baby as his own. His mind is on the money he will be entitled to.
Coincidentally, Shekhar’s friend has been transferred to New Delhi. He is leaving for New Delhi on the same day with his family. Shekhar is in a dilemma. He arranges for a “baby on rent” and brings the baby to his house. The baby’s mother also comes with him pretending to be a servant.
The drama, deception and confusion continues. Naani extends her stay unexpectedly. The baby’s mother makes extreme demands for keeping her mouth shut. Sunita begs Shekhar to tell Naani the truth. Will Shekhar agree? Will Naani figure out the truth? All is sorted with a twist in the climax.
The Music
Shankar Jaikishan deliver some nice tunes. Sunoji suno and the title song is famous. The surprise song is Tum hi tum ho as it has Rafi singing for Raj Kapoor when Mukesh had become his regular voice. Overall, the music is not that memorable when compared with other offerings from Shankar Jaikishan.
My Thoughts
Raj Kapoor and Waheeda Rehman are great actors, sadly their chemistry is not very effective in this film. Lalita Pawar appears in a predictable role. The film appears to be a comedy but falters in between. The hero’s character only cares about money and goes all out to deceive his grandmother. The heroine doesn’t have much of a say. The solution offered in the climax is not convincing. Overall, the high expectations are unfortunately not fulfilled.
Hindi films are incomplete with songs. Some songs take the narrative ahead and some are there simply to entertain. We have many accomplished singers who sing those lovely compositions. The songs are in the form of solos or duets, some backed by chorus and some having multiple singers.
Then there are some which sound like a solo i.e. featuring one singer. But on close observation, you realize there is another singer’s presence in the song. Their contribution is limited to singing the mukhda, a few words or even humming. I wonder if these songs can be called solos? How about terming them as “almost solos” because technically they are not duets?
So, here is a list of some songs on this theme. Do you remember any such songs?
1) Song: Woh Chand Khila Film: Anari (1959) Credits: Shailendra | Shankar Jaikishan | Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh
This is a sweet and playful song picturised on Nutan and the “simple” hero Raj Kapoor. Nutan’s character does most of the singing. But hold on, the hero croons something too, calling out the movie’s title! Raj Kapoor via Mukesh sings only one line at the beginning…naa samjhe woh anari hai.
2) Song: Madhuban Mein Radhika Film: Kohinoor (1960) Credits: Shakeel Badayuni | Naushad | Mohammed Rafi and Ustad Niyaz Ahmed Khan
This is an evergreen semi-classical song picturized on Dilip Kumar. He sings and plays the sitar while Kumkum responds through her dance moves. A lovely song based on raga Hameer. While a predominantly solo song by Mohammed Rafi, it has a very small classical portion sung by Mukri’s character, apparently for comic relief. These fast and difficult taans are voiced by Ustad Niyaz Ahmed Khan, a classical vocalist of the Kirana gharana.
3) Song: Ho Re Ho Re Jhanan Ghoongar Baaje Film: Gunga Jumna (1961) Credits: Shakeel Badayuni | Naushad | Lata Mangeshkar, Mahendra Kapoor and Chorus
Dilip Kumar, playing Gunga is being released from the prison and returning home. Vyjanthimala (as Dhanno) is eagerly waiting for him and sings this song in anticipation. The male portion at the end (O..ho..hooo) where Gunga announces his arrival is said to be voiced by Mahendra Kapoor (though he is not officially credited).
4) Song: Thandi Hawa Ye Chandni Suhani Film: Jhumroo (1961) Credits: Majrooh Sultanpuri | Kishore Kumar | Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle
Another gem of a song in the voice of Kishore Kumar. But the song begins in a female voice. We see Madhubala humming at the beginning. She gets diverted by Kishore Kumar’s singing as he begins his portion and occupies the song. It seems Asha Bhosle does the humming, but the song is known as a Kishore Kumar solo.
5) Song: Yeh Mera Prem Patra Film: Sangam (1964) Credits: Hasrat Jaipuri | Shankar Jaikishan | Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar
This as we know is a Mohammed Rafi song. Rajendra Kumar sings it addressed to Vyjanthimala. The song continues after the hero’s portion is done. Towards the end, Lata Mangeshkar starts humming and sings two lines…ke tum meri zindagi ho, ke tum meri bandagi ho. The song ends on that note.
6) Song: Aaj Hai Pyaar Ka Faisla Film: Leader (1964) Credits: Shakeel Badayuni | Naushad | Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammed Rafi
This is a fantasy song from a boring movie with great songs. Lata Mangeshkar sings for Vyjanthimala. Her lover Dilip Kumar has been converted to stone. She sings and dances in agony to bring him back in human form. Her efforts are successful. At the end, the hero emerges, and Mohammed Rafi delivers a couple of lines of a sher – Husna se ishq kabhi door nahi reh sakta. Dil agar dil hai to, majboor nahi reh sakta.
7) Song: Tum Jo Mil Gaye Ho Film: Hanste Zakhm (1973) Credits: Kaifi Azmi | Madan Mohan | Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar
This is a beautiful song by Madan Mohan with a terrific music arrangement. Navin Nischol is driving a taxi and he sings this number addressed to Priya Rajvansh. Midway into the song, they are sitting beside the sea when she sings the mukhda. There is no music, you hear Lata Mangeshkar’s clear voice with the waves lashing in the background. Then, the tempo increases like never before. It is back to the hero to sing the last stanza and complete the roller coster of a song.
8) Song: Parda Hai Parda Film: Amar Akbar Anthony (1977) Credits: Anand Bakshi | Laxmikant Pyarelal | Mohammed Rafi, Amit Kumar and Chorus
This is one of the entertaining songs of the most entertaining Amar Akbar Anthony. Akbar (Rishi Kapoor) sings this qawwali addressed to Neetu Singh. His catch line is “Akbar mera naam nahi hai.” His friend Anthony (Amitabh Bachchan) is sitting in the audience and reacts with wah wah and only one line – Akbar tera naam nahi hai towards the end.
The story goes that Kishore Kumar was approached to sing that line but he quoted a high price. In the end, it was sung by his son Amit Kumar. (Note: For some reason, the “Tips” company version circulated on YouTube has Mohammed Rafi singing that line. He sings “Akbar mera naam nahi hai” whereas you can easily see Amitabh mouthing “Akbar tera naam nahi hai.” I wonder why this editing was done).
9) Song: Tere Bina Jiya Jaye Naa Film: Ghar (1978) Credits: Gulzar | R. D. Burman | Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar
Ghar was directed by Gulzar. Rekha and Vinod Mehra play the happily married couple. This is a melodious and well picturized song. Lata Mangeshkar is the main singer and Kishore Kumar unexpectedly joins at the end to sing the mukhda. It seems there are 2 versions of the song available – one as a solo and the “duet” which appears in the movie soundtrack.
10) Song: Aur Is Dil Mein Film: Imaandaar (1987) Credits: Prakash Mehra | Kalyanji Anandji | Suresh Wadkar and Asha Bhosle
This hit song appears twice in this forgotten movie. Sanjay Dutt and Farah play the leads who fall in love and get separated. In this song, Sanjay Dutt sings his heart out describing that all he cares for is the heroine and her love. The heroine is sitting as a guest, listening and reacting to this rendition. Suresh Wadkar almost sings the full song. At the end, the heroine is unable to control herself and sings a couple of lines in admission of her love. These are sung by Asha Bhosle who also sings the “proper” solo version earlier in the film.
Happy New Year! This is the first post of 2026 and it is dedicated to R.D. Burman, who passed away on 04 January 1994. 1942: A Love Story was one of his last films as a composer.
R. D. was passing through the worst phase of his career by the late 80s and was not a sought after composer during that period. But the producer and director Vidhu Vinod Chopra insisted on his name for the music of 1942. The decision was justified. R. D. delivered one of the best scores of his distinguished career. Unfortunately, he passed away before the film’s release and was unable to bask in the success of his efforts. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director in spite of tough competition from films like Mohra, Main Khiladi Tu Anari and Hum Aapke Hain Kaun.
As a film, 1942 is an audio and visual treat. Binod Pradhan’s cinematography was widely appreciated. Sanjay Leela Bhansali is credited as the song director and leaves a lasting impact. The sets by Nitin Desai are impressive.
The Plot
As its name implies, the plot is set in 1942 when the Quit India movement was launched against the British with the famous “Do or Die” (karenge ya marenge) slogan. There are 2 parallel tracks in the movie. One of the freedom movement and one of romance.
In the very first scene, Anil Kapoor’s character is being led to the scaffold. Apparently, he has been supporting the krantikaris (revolutionaries or freedom fighters) and is set to be hanged for this crime. The flashback begins.
Raghuvir Pathak (Anupam Kher) is a krantikari. He is talking to his colleagues Ashutosh (Ashish Vidyarthi) and Raj Singh (Kamal Chopra). Ashutosh is reading the newspaper describing the atrocities performed by General Douglas (Brian Glover). Douglas is a savage character. Its normal for him to hang or kill a revolutionary as per his will. Ashutosh is itching to teach him a lesson. The news report mentions that Douglas is being promoted and he will be leaving for England on the 25th. Before that, he will be attending a farewell parade in Kasauni from his regiment on the 22nd.
Raghuvir realises this can be an opportunity to assassinate Douglas. His associates Govind (Pramod Moutho) and Abid Ali Baig (Pran) live in Kasauni and will help in this cause. Such an opportunity cannot be missed. Ashutosh volunteers to kill Douglas but Pathak stops him. He has identified Shubhankar for the job. Ashutosh is to start for Kasauni and help with the preparations. Pathak will also go to Kasauni posing as a TB patient undergoing treatment and oversee the planning which includes building of the bomb that will kill Douglas.
The scene shifts to Kasauni. Preparations are in full swing to welcome General Douglas and so are the protests by the opposition. Diwan Hari Singh (Manohar Singh) is a respected and wealthy man sympathetic to the British Government and totally against the Indian freedom movement. He is desperately trying for the Rai Bahadur title which has been his lifelong ambition. His wife is Gayatri Singh (Sushma Seth). They have a son Naren Singh (Anil Kapoor). Diwan Hari Singh is fed up with all the talk about the Quit India movement. The Commanding Officer Major Bisht (Danny Denzongpa) assures him that no revolutionary can enter Kasauni as long as he is the CO.
In the very next scene, Raghuvir Pathak arrives in Kasauni with his daughter Rajeshwari (Manisha Koirala) in a bus. The driver is Raj Singh. The bus enters the town square where a group of people have gathered to protest against General Douglas’s visit. Major Bisht notices the Indian revolutionary flag on the bus and orders his men to remove it immediately. The crowd starts shouting slogans and the British soldiers start beating them to crush the protest.
Naren is sitting in his car nearby with his driver Manohar/Munna (Raghubir Yadav). Naren notices a boy picking up the fallen flag and getting attacked by the soldiers. Naren rushes to rescue the boy. Someone throws a stone on the soldiers which hits the bus and breaks the window. Rajeshwari’s face appears at the window and she finds Naren staring at her. A very poetic scene. For Naren, this is love at first sight. The face disappears and Munna pulls Naren inside the car. Naren finds his father Diwan Hari Singh sitting there. His father has witnessed his “rescue” act and scolds him for getting involved with the protestors. They head towards their house called Kasauni Palace.
Diwan Hari Singh tells his wife Gayatri about the incident involving Naren and the boy. Gayatri rushes outside to check if Naren is fine but sees him leaving on his horse. Naren goes back to the bus stand to look for the girl. The driver tells him she has already left. But she has dropped her earring in the bus. Naren takes the earring and shares what has happened with Munna. They behave like close friends rather than master and servant. Naren can’t get Rajeshwari out of his mind. Its time for one of the best songs of the movie Ek ladki ko dekha to aisa laga.
Next morning, Naren goes to Munna’s house. Their mission for the day is to find the girl in the bus on priority. By coincidence, Naren sees the girl on a swing in the neighbouring house. This is the house of Govind, who works for Hari Singh. He doesn’t know yet but Rajeshwari is staying in Govind’s house where her father Raghuvir is secretly working on the assassination plan.
So, Naren finally meets Rajeshwari. For the next hour, we see him wooing her and they get closer, assisted by some lovely songs. There is the teasing song Rooth na jaana. Rajeshwari’s realisation of love is reflected in Pyar hua chupke se. This is followed by a rainy duet Rimjhim rimjhim and the evergreen Kuch na kaho. Some more characters are introduced like Major Bisht’s daughter Chanda (Chandni) who fancies Naren.
Naren and Chanda are acting in a play “Romeo and Juliet”, which will be performed in front of Douglas. (Interestingly, it is in Hindi and Douglas doesn’t understand a word of that language!). Rajeshwari joins the play rehearsals as a prompter. Naren is more than happy to have her close by.
Raghuvir and his team are planning to kill Douglas by throwing a bomb at him when he is sitting in the audience watching the play. Baig is supplying the raw materials for the bomb to Raghuvir. Then Shubhankar will execute the task.
The first 90 minutes are spent on the romantic track and the assassination planning. Interestingly, Major Bisht and the police are aware that something is being planned against Douglas. How they know about it is not revealed properly. They track Ashutosh and shoot him. Ashutosh manages to reach Raghuvir’s (i.e. Govind’s house) before he dies. The police come searching and Raghuvir and Rajeshwari act swiftly and bury the body before their involvement is discovered.
Rajeshwari shares her father’s background with Naren. But Naren is only concerned about his love life. He tells his mother about Rajeshwari and his intention to marry her. She is supportive and gives him “sindoor” and asks him to go ahead. He rushes to meet Raghuvir and Rajeshwari and make it official. But his pro British father Diwan Hari Singh calls the police to inform them about Raghuvir – he is the traitor they are looking for.
The police rush to arrest Raghuvir immediately. The police and Naren arrive at almost the same time. Raghuvir and Rajeshwari feel that Naren has betrayed them by bringing the police with him. Raghuvir asks Rajeshwari to flee and hide in the mountains.
Raghuvir goes to his room, ready to detonate the bomb before the police can arrest him. The bomb explodes killing Raghuvir and some policemen. Rajeshwari witnesses the blast from her hiding place and rushes towards the house but a man stops her. This is Shubhankar (Jackie Shroff), the man assigned to kill Douglas. He comforts her and asks her to remain strong to face the situation. Apparently, he loves her but hasn’t told her about it.
Shubhankar and Rajeshwari hide in the forest as he plans the next steps. It is assumed that both father and daughter died in the blast. Naren refuses to believe that Rajeshwari is no more. He has an altercation with his father and leaves the house. He searches for Rajeshwari and finds she is alive. Baig seems to be involved in hiding and protecting her. Baig accuses Naren of being just like his father and siding with the British. Naren does his best to convince them of his innocence. He is ready to go against his father and help in making the mission successful.
But is it so easy? General Douglas arrives in Kasauni and unleashes his cruelty. After a series of events including the deaths of some key characters, Naren is accused by the British of helping the revolutionaries. Douglas orders his execution by hanging in public. Diwan Hari Singh is torn to choose between his son and the British but is not ready to bend before his son. (Incidentally, he has finally received the Rai Bahadur title (his life’s achievement) by staying loyal to the British.) He pleads with Naren to tell the names of the real culprits and he can go free. Naren retorts that he only knows one traitor and that is Diwan Hari Singh.
Will Naren be executed? What happens to Douglas? And what is Rajeshwari’s future? What is Shubhankar’s role? The questions are answered in the long climax.
The Music
The music is easily the best thing about 1942. R. D. Burman shows his class. Javed Akhtar has penned the songs. It sounds different from the music prevalent in the 90s era. Rarely do you see a combination of great lyrics, music and a satisfying picturization.
The best is perhaps Ek ladki ko dekha which does not follow the standard pattern of a song (mukhada and antara) and is more of a free flowing poetry. For this, Javed Akhtar won his first Filmfare award for best lyricist. Kumar Sanu won the Best Playback (Male) award for the same song.
Kavita Krishnamurthy won her first Filmfare award for Best Playback (Female) for Pyar hua chupke se. Kuch Na Kaho appears twice in the film. Kumar Sanu had sung the male version while Kavita K the female. But the female version was later recorded in Lata Mangeshkar’s voice, which was retained in the movie. Rooth na jaana carries the flavour of the 1950s and 60s songs with a distinct Bengali touch. Rimjhim rimjhim is easily one of the best rain duets. One song Yeh safar bahut hai kathin magar, picturised on Jackie Shroff is sung by Shivaji Chattopadhyay.
My Thoughts
1942 is a “good looking” film. Binod Pradhan’s cinematography captures the beauty of Dalhousie and other locations making the scenes look like a painting. Add to it the good looking actors! The directorial treatment is poetic which works well in the romantic track. The evergreen music and poetry enrich the film. Sanjay Leela Bhansali is credited as the song director and makes his presence felt. Nitin Desai was the art director (this was only his second film). The sets of the movie were appreciated and brought him recognition.
But the story and its treatment falters. The film is slow and nothing worthwhile happens for a long time. In one scene, Raghuvir Pathak talks about letting the whole of Kasauni know that he has arrived in the town. Isn’t that a foolish step if he is on a secret mission? Why advertise your presence unnecessarily? What could have been a gripping track involving the freedom movement turns out to be disappointing until the character of Shubhankar arrives.
The romantic track works well. Anil Kapoor and Manisha Koirala are convincing as the couple in love but torn by compulsion. Anil Kapoor is good in the romantic scenes and later as the angry young man who defies his father and supports the freedom fighters in their mission. Jackie Shroff’s dashing entry finally brings some spunk and liveliness to the plot. His presence makes it worth watching. He won the Filmfare award for Best Supporting Actor. Other actors like Anupam Kher, Danny Denzongpa and Pran are fine in their limited roles.
Overall, 1942 is one of those films which did not perform well at the box office but is fondly remembered today, the main reason being its timeless musical score. Hats off to Pancham Da!
Cine Gaurav 