Sanjeev Rambhadran's first claim to fame was when he became the winner of the famous Saregama competition on Zee TV in the mid-90s. The program then was hosted by a young Sonu Nigam and the judge for the finals was none other than the doyen of Hindi film music- Anil Biswas.

Born and brought up in the US, Sanjee is now an acclaimed and much sought-after singer in the US program circuit. He is also a multi-instrumentalist. In this special series to commemorate Mohammed Rafi's 40th death anniversary, Sanjeev brings out various facets of Rafi's gaayaki through his songs with 40 different music directors. He also brilliantly pens his thoughts on these musical gems. Here is thirteenth one from the series.Over to Sanjeev Rambhadran for a musical treat!

DAY 13: This past May 29th, we lost eminent writer Yogesh Gaud. While his songs from megahit films like “Anand” immediately came to mind upon his passing, I couldn’t shake the feeling that there were some exquisite Mohd. Rafi favorites also penned by him…one of them came to me just in time for this series.

All the big name composers had their right-hand men, whether assistants, arrangers or both. By all accounts, the vibrant, infectiously catchy O.P. Naiyyar sound (and particularly rhythm) that drew in so many listeners would never have been but for his assistant G.S. Kohli, who was with him from the early 1950s and all through his prime, well into the late 1960s.

Despite the popularity of his soundtrack for the 1963 film Shikari (including several songs by Lata Mangeshkar who never sang for O.P. Naiyyar), G.S. Kohli as an independent composer never had the opportunity to work in big-banner films featuring superstar actors. Confined to relative obscurity, he nevertheless put together classy melodies that deserved a far better fate than being relegated to B and C-grade films. One thing any music director could count on, however, was Mohd. Rafi giving all he had regardless of a given film’s budget. The typical result, as in this case, was that the film pretty much sank without a trace, but the songs live on well-beyond their release date thanks to Mohd. Rafi’s masterful magic touch.

This gem from the G.S. Kohli-Mohd. Rafi collection features the subtle influence of the deeply endearing Raga Des, whose explicit signature appears when the first line of each verse is repeated in the higher register. The mid-1960s Mohd. Rafi is polished and suave, and a song like this in hand could assure romantic success for any hero, on or off screen.

#RememberingMohdRafi #40Years_40Songs_40Days_40Composers #Day13