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The 90 most popular/significant Hindi-Urdu songs of 1959

A note abut the credits

i) When was the film Rani Roopmati released? 1957, says Hindi Geet Mala and 1957 say more than a dozen YouTube postings of the film and its songs. However, Mr. Harmandir Singh ‘Hamraaz’ has, in two different books, put the date at 1959. Indpaedia decided to check the film’s Censor renewal certificate—which was given in August 1969. Since these certificates used to be valid for 10 years at a time, the original must have been issued in mid-1959.

In any case, while songs have remained on Binaca Geet Mala (and hit parades in other languages around the world) for a year or so after their release, and sometimes a year before the release of the film, there has never been a case of a song lingering on in BGM two years after its release. If nothing else, the eighteen week sartaj guillotine would ensure this.

Incidentally, what is the correct Romanisation of Rani Roopmati? There are several guesses and variants on the internet and in books, but we will never have a definitive answer because this was one of those rare films the credit titles of which were entirely in Devanagari.

ii) Who was the female singer in the song Kali anaar ki na itna satao from the film Chhoti Bahen? Because a leading site said Lata and Prof. Anil Bhargava said Asha, the arbitration of SaReGaMa was sought. Prof. Anil Bhargava is right. It was Asha.

iii) In the film Anari is the song ban ke panchhi or the classically correct van [forest] ke panchhi, as a book suggests? Firstly, it can clearly be heard as ‘ban’ and secondly, ‘ban’ is not a folk form here. Ban ké panchhi does not mean ‘birds of the forest.’ It means ‘[let us] become [like] birds.’

iv) Who sang the song Babu samjho ishare in the film Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi? Hindi Geet Mala says: Ashok Kumar, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey. Makes sense. There were three actors; the three brothers used three singers, and Ashok Kumar was a very accomplished singer. But Prof. Anil Bhargava mentions only Kishore Kumar and Manna Dey. Seeking SaReGaMa’s arbitration was of no use because it credits only Manna Dey, eroding its own credibility even further.

Therefore, Indpaedia sought out Mr. Harmandir Singh ‘Hamraaz’ for the final word. He agreed with Prof. Bhargava. But Indpaedia was still not convinced, because there is a third singer, who has very long singing (not speaking) passages. Indpaedia tried to get the film’s credits to overrule M/s ‘Hamraaz’ and Bhargava. But the credits are even less helpful because they mention only Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey and Sudha Malhotra as playback singers for the whole film, omitting even Kishore (probably because he was a singer, not a playback).

As a result, Indpaedia has no choice but to concur with ‘Hamraaz’ and Bhargava. We have done so most reluctantly (by striking Ashok Kumar’s name off, not removing it) because these authorities do not explain the deep voice that sang for Ashok Kumar.

The next rung

The Geetmala ki Chhaon Mein CDs list 24 songs that were ‘in the shade’ (chhaoñ songs) this year. Prof Bhargava has compiled a list of 16 runners-up. The two lists have two songs in common. Thus, between the two, there are 38 unique songs in the ‘next rung.’

GC: Geetmala ki Chhaon Mein is a set of 50 CDs issued by Saregama in instalments that continued into 2012-13. The set concentrated on songs that had ‘remained in the shadow’ (chhaoñ) of the main annual list of Binaca and its successor Geet Malas. These, thus, were the ‘next rung’ of songs, which were popular but did not make it to the main annual list.

AB: Bhargava, Anil, Binaca Geetmala ka Sureela Safar (Hindi; 2007; Rs.1,200), Vangmaya Prakashan, Jaipur-302015. vangmaya_jpr@yahoo.com)

Raags in songs

Few film songs that have a root in Indian classical music remain faithful to a raag throughout their length. Indpaedia volunteers have sometimes mentioned raags even when there is merely a hint of that raag in a song. (Raag is also spelt raga.)

Binaca Geetmala’s Top 32 songs of 1959

	Song	Film	Music Director	Lyricist	Singer(s)
1	Haal kaisa hai janab ka?	Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Kishore Kumar, Asha Bhosle
2	Mujhko yaro muaf karna main nashé mein hoon	Main Nashe Mein Hoon	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mukesh
3	Sab kuchh seekha hum-ne na seekhi hoshiyari (Raag Bhairavi/ Taal Keherwã)	Anari	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mukesh
4	Woh chaañd khila woh taare hañse	Anari	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar
5	Hum bekhudi mein tumko pukare chale gaye	Kala Pani (1958)	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Mohammed Rafi
6	Aa laut ke aaja merey meet (Raag Madhumãdhavi [Madhumãd Sãrañg/ Taal Keherwã)	Rani Roopmati	S N Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Mukesh/ Lata Mangeshkar
7	Jhoomta mausam mast maheena (Ya Allah, ya Allah, dil le gayi)	Ujala	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Manna Dey, Lata Mangeshkar
8	Main rangeela pyar ka rahi	Chhoti Bahen	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar, Subir Sen
9	Kali anaar ki na itna satao	Chhoti Bahen	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey
10	Ruk jaa o jaane waali ruk jaa	Kanhaiya	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mukesh
11	Maine peena seekh liya	Goonj Uthi Shahnai	Vasant Desai	Bharat Vyas	Mohammed Rafi
12	Ek ladki bheegi bhagi see	Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Kishore Kumar
13	Dekh hameiñ aawaz na dena	Amar Deep (1958)	Chitalkar Ramchandra	Rajinder Krishan	Asha Bhosle, Mohammed Rafi
14	Main rickshaw wala	Chhoti Bahen	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mohammed Rafi
15	Tim tim karte tare	Chiragh Kahan Roshni Kahan	Ravi	Ravi	Lata Mangeshkar
16	Tum chal rahe ho, ham chal rahein hai	Duniya Na Mane	Madan Mohan	Rajinder Krishan	Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar
17	Jalte hain jiske liye (Raag Jaunpuri, Kafi)	Sujata	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Talat Mahmood
18	Mujhe tum se kuchh bhee naa chahiye (Raag Darbãri Kãnarhã)	Kanhaiya	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mukesh
19	Tera jalwa jisne dekha, woh tera ho gaya	Ujala	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar
20	Cheen o Arab hamara, Hindostan hamara	Phir Subah Hogi (1958)	Khayyam	Sahir Ludhianvi	Mukesh
21	Chand sa mukhda kyon sharmaya	Insaan Jaag Utha	Sachin Dev Burman	Shailendra	Asha Bhosle, Mohammed Rafi
22	Ban ke panchhi gayeiñ pyar ka tarana	Anari	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar
23	Teen kanastar peet peet kar	Love Marriage	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mohammed Rafi
24	Bhaiya mere rakhi ke bandhan ko nibhana	Chhoti Bahen	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Lata Mangeshkar
25	Keh do koi na kare yahan pyar (Jogiyã/ Taal DîpChañdi Mughali)	Goonj Uthi Shahnai	Vasant Desai	Bharat Vyas	Mohammed Rafi
26	Babu samjho ishare	Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	~~Ashok Kumar,~~ Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey
27	Chiragh kahaan roshni kahaan (Ajab hai Maalik tera jahâñ)	Chiragh Kahan Roshni Kahan	Ravi	Prem Dhawan	Mohammed Rafi
28	Dil deke dekho	Dil Deke Dekho	Usha Khanna	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Asha Bhosle, Mohammed Rafi
29	Bichhuaa (Daiya ray daiya, charh gayo paapi…)	Madhumati (1958)	Salil Chowdhury	Shailendra	Manna Dey, Lata Mangeshkar
30	Main main main cartoon	Mr. Qartoon M.A.	O P Nayyar	Hasrat Jaipuri	Asha Bhosle, Mohammed Rafi, Shamshad Begum
31	Bachpan ke din bhi kya din thé	Sujata	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Geeta Dutt, Asha Bhosle
32	Ho mora nâdaan bâlma	Ujala	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar

38 songs in the ‘next rung’

Song	Film	Music Director	Lyricist	Singer(s)	AB	GC
Humein to loot liya mil kay husn waloñ ney	Al Hilal	Bulo C. Rani	Shevan Rizvi	Ismail Azad Qawwal etc.	AB
Apne saiyan se naina ladaibe	Ardhangini	Vasant Desai	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Lata Mangeshkar		GC
Qadam behke behke	Bank Manager	Madan Mohan	Indeewar	Lata Mangeshkar		GC
Ik raat mein do do chand khile	Barkha	Chitraguptaa	Rajinder Krishan	Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar		GC
Rang rangeela sanwara	Barood	Khaiyyaam	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar, chorus		GC
Naina hain jadoo bharey	Bedard Zamana Kya Jaane	Kalyanji Virji Shah	Bharat Vyas	Mukesh	AB
Diwana mastana hua dil	Bombai ka Babu	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Manna Dey, Asha Bhosle		GC
Bairan neend na aaye	Chacha Zindabad	Madan Mohan	Rajinder Krishan	Lata Mangeshkar		GC
Kachchi hai umariya	Char Dil Char Rahen	Anil Biswas	Sahir Ludhianvi	Meena Kapoor, chorus		GC
Nahin kiya to kar kay dekh	Char Dil Char Rahen	Anil Biswas	Sahir Ludhianvi	Mukesh	AB
Lehron pe lehar, ulfat hai jawan	Chhabili	Snehal Bhatkar	S. Ratan	Hemant Kumar		GC
Tum mujhe bhool bhi jao (Pahãrhi/ Taal Dãdrã)	Didi	Sudha Malhotra	Sahir Ludhianvi	Sudha Malhotra, Mukesh		GC
Hum aur tum aur ye sama	Dil Deke Dekho	Usha Khanna	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Mohammed Rafi		GC
Bheegi palkein utha meri jaan	Do Gunde	Ghulam Mohammed	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi		GC
Yeh sama yeh khushi kuchh bolo	Ghar Ghar ki Baat	Kalyanji Virji Shah	Gulshan Bawra	Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh		GC
Dil ka khilauna hayé toot gaya (Raag Bhairavi/ Taal Keherwa)	Goonj Uthi Shehnai	Vasant Desai	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar	AB	GC
Dil ko lakh sambhaala ji	Guest House	Chitragupta	Prem Dhawan	Lata Mangeshkar		GC
Jis ka joota usi ka sar	Guest House	Chitragupta	Prem Dhawan	Mukesh	AB
Phoolwa ban mahke	Hum Bhi Insaan Hain	Hemant Kumar	Shailendra	Geeta Dutt, Suman Kalyanpur		GC
Yaad aai aadhi raat ko kal raat ki tauba	Kanhaiya	Shankar-Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mukesh	AB
Waqt ne kiya haseen sitam	Kaagaz ke Phool	Sachin Dev Burman	Kaifi Azmi	Geeta Dutt		GC
Bichhde sabhi baari-baari	Kaagaz ke Phool	Sachin Dev Burman	Kaifi Azmi	Mohammed Rafi	AB
Achha jee main hari, chalo maan jao na	Kaala Pani	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Asha Bhosle, Mohammed Rafi	AB
Laagi chhoote na ab to sanam	Kali Topi Lal Rumal	Chitragupta	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar	AB	GC
Unn par kaun kare ji vishwas	Kavi Kalidas	S.N. Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi	AB
Koi aaya dhadkan kehti hai	Lajwanti	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Asha Bhosle	AB
Kareeb aao na	Love Marriage	Shankar-Jaikishan	Shailendra	Geeta Dutt		GC
Bata do koi kaun gali gaye Shyam (Raag Tilang)	Madhu	Roshan	Shailendra	Manna Dey		GC
Sajan sang kãhe neha lagaye (Raag Tilang/ Taal Keherwã)	Main Nashe Men Hoon	Shankar-Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar		GC
Tere pyar ko is tarah se bhulana	Maine Jeena Seekh Liya	Roshan	Rahil Gorakhpuri	Mukesh		GC
Voh subah kabhi to aayegi	Phir Subah Hogi	Khaiyyaam	Sahir Ludhianvi	Mukesh, Asha Bhosle	AB
Meethi-meethi baatoñ say bachna	Qaidi n. 911	Dattaram	Hasrat Jaipuri	Lata Mangeshkar, Daisy Irani	AB
Phool bagiya mein bulbul bole	Rani Rupmati	S.N. Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi		GC
Nain dwar se man mein woh aake (Raag Jog/ Taal Keherwã)	Sawan	Hansraj Behl	Prem Dhawan	Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh		GC
Paar nadi ke yaar ka dera	Sohni Mahiwal	Naushad	Shakeel Badayuni	Mahendra Kapoor	AB
Kuhoo, kuhoo boley koyaliya (Sohini)	Swarna Sundari	Adi Narayan Rao	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi	AB
Mujhe naa bula…chhup-chhup chhaliya ré	Swarna Sundari	Adi Narayan Rao	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar etc	AB
Yaro soorat humari pe mat jao	Ujala	Shankar-Jaikishan	Shailendra	Mohammed Rafi, Mukesh		GC

20 additional songs with a classical background

Song	Film	Music Director	Lyricist	Singer(s)
Mere man ka bãñvara panchhi, kyon baar baar dolé (Raag Bhîm Palãsi/ Taal Keherwã)	Amar Deep (1958)	Chitalkar Ramchandra	Rajinder Krishan	Lata Mangeshkar
Tera jãnã, dil ké armanoñ ka luT jana (Raag Bhairavi/ Taal Keherwã)	Anari	Shankar Jaikishan	Shailendra	Lata Mangeshkar
Barhe bholé ho, hansté ho (Raag Kalyãn/ Taal Dãdrã)	Ardhangini	Vasant Desai	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Lata Mangeshkar
Sur badle kaise, kaise dekho qismat ki shehnai (Raag Bhairavi/ Taal Keherwã) -	Barkha	Chitraguptaa	Rajinder Krishan	Mohammed Rafi
Bairan neend na ãye mohé…mora jiyã ghabrãye (Raag Kafi/ Taal Keherwã)	Chacha Zindabad	Madan Mohan	Rajinder Krishan	Lata Mangeshkar
Preetam daras dikhao, tum bin ro-ro raen bitayi (Raag Lalit/ Teen Taal)	Chacha Zindabad	Madan Mohan	Rajinder Krishan	Lata Mangeshkar, Manna Dey
Intezaar aur abhi (Aaa, jab maiñ kehti hooñ) (Raag Kalyãn/ Taal Dãdrã)	Char Dil Char Rahen	Anil Biswas	Sahir Ludhianvi	Lata Mangeshkar
Jãooñ kahãñ, batã ai dil (Raag Jhinjhoti/ Taal Keherwã)	Chhoti Bahen	Shankar Jaikishan	Hasrat Jaipuri	Mukesh
Tere sur aur mere geet, dono mil kar (Raag Bihãg/ Taal Dãdrã)	Goonj Uthi Shahnai	Vasant Desai	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar
Jeevan mein piya tera saath rahe (Rok saké nã rãh) (Raag Gara/ Taal Keherwã)	Goonj Uthi Shahnai	Vasant Desai	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi
Tera jãdu na chalega O saperé (Raag Bhairavi/ Taal Keherwã)	Guest House	Chitragupta	Prem Dhawan	Lata Mangeshkar
Mãné nã…hayé balam pardésiyã (Raag Rageshri/ Taal Keherwã)	Jaagir	Madan Mohan	Raja Mehdi Ali Khan	Lata Mangeshkar
Kahé jhûm jhûm raat ye suhãni, piyã haulé sé chherho dubara (Raag KîrwãNi/ Taal Keherwã)	Love Marriage	Shankar-Jaikishan	Shailendra	Lata Mangeshkar
Aaja bhañwara sûni dagar (Raag Briñdãvani Sãrañg/ Teen Taal)	Rani Roopmati	S N Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar
Baat chalat nayi chunari rang dãri, hé aiso hai bé-dard Banwãrî (Raag Bhairavi/ Teen Taal)	Rani Roopmati	S N Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Krishna Rao Chonkar, Mohammed Rafi
Jhananana jhan bajé payaliya (Raag Briñdãvani Sãrañg/ Teen Taal)	Rani Roopmati	S N Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi
Urh ja bhañwar mãyã kamal ka aaj bañdhan torh ké (Raag Darbãri Kãnarhã/ Rûpak Taal)	Rani Roopmati	S N Tripathi	Bharat Vyas	Manna Dey
Na na na barso baadal, aaj barsé nayan sé jal (Raag Miañ Ki Malhãr/ Taal Keherwã)	Samrat Prithviraj Chauhan	Vasant Desai	Bharat Vyas	Lata Mangeshkar
Kãlî ghatã chhãye mora jiya tarsãye, aisé meiñ kahiñ koi mil jãyé (Raag Pîloo/ Taal Keherwã)	Sujata	Sachin Dev Burman	Majrooh Sultanpuri	Asha Bhosle
Ab kahan jayein hum, yeh batã ai zameeñ? (Raag Darbãri Kãnarhã/ Taal Keherwã)	Ujala	Shankar-Jaikishan	Shailendra	Manna Dey

Binaca Geet Mala 1959: greatest hits

Contents

The 90 most popular/significant Hindi-Urdu songs of 1959

A note abut the credits

The next rung

Raags in songs

Binaca Geetmala’s Top 32 songs of 1959

38 songs in the ‘next rung’

20 additional songs with a classical background

See also

For lists of popular songs

For lists of popular Hindi-Urdu films

For raags and taals

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