In the cutthroat business of Bollywood, there are several
instances where people have stepped over the heads and hands of others on the
ladder of competition. They have not cared about basic human values, choosing to
further their own career and ruthlessly smothered any other talent that emerged
on the horizon.
So it is heartwarming indeed when one hears of a tale of a
guru, who encouraged his disciple to come out from under his wing…and find his
own place in the sun.
That disciple was the music director, Ravi Shankar Sharma, who
had the humblest of beginnings when he came to Bombay in 1950 to make a career
as a singer. Though he had no formal classical training, he made up for it with
his ear for music and the natural flair with which he taught himself to play
the harmonium and other classical instruments.
Born in Delhi on 3rd March 1926, Ravi was on the verge of turning twenty five when he came to Bombay. He found the going tough in the city of dreams, often struggling to put a roof over his head. In those days, while the pavements were his home during the day, Malad railway station would come to his rescue during the nights. When the platforms were deserted, it was easy to curl up to sleep on one of the benches and if questioned by a nosy constable, all one had to do was pose as a person who had missed the last train.
Born in Delhi on 3rd March 1926, Ravi was on the verge of turning twenty five when he came to Bombay. He found the going tough in the city of dreams, often struggling to put a roof over his head. In those days, while the pavements were his home during the day, Malad railway station would come to his rescue during the nights. When the platforms were deserted, it was easy to curl up to sleep on one of the benches and if questioned by a nosy constable, all one had to do was pose as a person who had missed the last train.
In 1952, he was lucky enough to be discovered by Hemant Kumar,
the singer who himself had forayed into music direction. Hemant Kumar was glad to meet
Ravi Shankar Sharma and get acquainted with his many talents. Besides learning to play many Indian classical instruments, Ravi had a flair for composing too and a voice good enough to express those compositions.
The first assignment Ravi got was for the film, “Vande Mataram”
where he had to give backing vocals to the lead singers. During those
recordings, Hemant Kumar realized that Ravi’s knowledge of rhythm and
instrumentation were vital assets that set him apart from the rest. He
took him on as his music assistant and soon enough, Ravi proved just how astute
a decision it was.
Over several movies, Ravi the music arranger perfectly
complemented Hemant Kumar the composer. From the landmark movie score for
“Nagin” in 1952, to many other film soundtracks in Hindi and Bengali cinema,
Ravi stood like a rock by Hemant Kumar’s side. So pleased was Hemant Kumar with
his disciple that he gifted the young Ravi a car at the stupendous success of
Nagin. He was employed for Rs 200 per month, a princely sum in those times and
Ravi was content with his life under the tutelage of his guruji.
But in 1954, this contentment was interrupted by Hemant Kumar himself, when he summoned Ravi to his side one day. Telling him that he had to go to Kashmir for some work, he asked Ravi what he would do in the meantime. Ravi replied most deferentially that he would be busy in the studio, composing new tunes for Hemant Kumar to use in his forthcoming projects.
At this reply, Hemant Kumar told Ravi categorically that he would do no such thing. He informed him that it was now time for Ravi to emerge out of his shadows. He was talented in his own right, with the capability of earning his own rightful place as a music director. Ravi was shocked at this suggestion – what Hemant Kumar was suggesting was a separation from him, an unthinkable thought. How could he desert his mentor, his guruji who had been there for him at every turn?
But Hemant Kumar was firm in his resolve – unless he moved out
of his shadow, Ravi would always remain an assistant…and that would be doing
tremendous injustice to his talent.
What is interesting about this story is that when Hemant Kumar made this conscious decision, he must have been aware that this separation would hurt him the most as a music director. It was the beginning of Hindi film music's golden period with so many talented music directors – that anyone would want the most prodigious talents working for them. And here he was actually asking his finest protégé Ravi, to become independent, to become a music director in his own right.
Over the next two decades, Ravi did just that – with sterling compositions for movies like Chaudhvin Ka Chand, Gumraah, Ek Phool Do Maali, among many others. The disciple, Ravi prospered to become one of the pillars of Hindi Film Music, while the mentor, Hemant Kumar faded away slowly into the background to return to his roots as a Bengali film composer.
But not for a moment was there any regret in him – for Hemant Kumar knew that he was the one who had shaped the destiny of that pillar of Hindi film music – Ravi.
But in 1954, this contentment was interrupted by Hemant Kumar himself, when he summoned Ravi to his side one day. Telling him that he had to go to Kashmir for some work, he asked Ravi what he would do in the meantime. Ravi replied most deferentially that he would be busy in the studio, composing new tunes for Hemant Kumar to use in his forthcoming projects.
At this reply, Hemant Kumar told Ravi categorically that he would do no such thing. He informed him that it was now time for Ravi to emerge out of his shadows. He was talented in his own right, with the capability of earning his own rightful place as a music director. Ravi was shocked at this suggestion – what Hemant Kumar was suggesting was a separation from him, an unthinkable thought. How could he desert his mentor, his guruji who had been there for him at every turn?
What is interesting about this story is that when Hemant Kumar made this conscious decision, he must have been aware that this separation would hurt him the most as a music director. It was the beginning of Hindi film music's golden period with so many talented music directors – that anyone would want the most prodigious talents working for them. And here he was actually asking his finest protégé Ravi, to become independent, to become a music director in his own right.
Over the next two decades, Ravi did just that – with sterling compositions for movies like Chaudhvin Ka Chand, Gumraah, Ek Phool Do Maali, among many others. The disciple, Ravi prospered to become one of the pillars of Hindi Film Music, while the mentor, Hemant Kumar faded away slowly into the background to return to his roots as a Bengali film composer.
But not for a moment was there any regret in him – for Hemant Kumar knew that he was the one who had shaped the destiny of that pillar of Hindi film music – Ravi.
Here is the landmark song from the film "Nagin" where Ravi had recreated the sound of the snake charmer's flute using his harmonium. The song had been a rage for over two years in a period where the next musical film was just around the corner. - and the sinewy melody mesmerizes one even today. The film score had earned Hemant Kumar the Filmfare award for the Best Music Director in the year 1955.
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