Discussion:
BELA MUKHOPADHYAY
(too old to reply)
jyotiprakasguha
2009-07-02 13:49:29 UTC
Permalink
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...

Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Afzal A. Khan
2009-07-03 04:56:42 UTC
Permalink
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Sad news. May her soul rest in peace.

I remember having seen them together on a couple of occasions at
Bombay's Mahalakshmi Race Course. IIRC, they made a startling
contrast in stature. Hemant Kumar was, of course, quite tall and
had a dignified presence.

Come to think of it, quite a few Bengali folks (connected with the
film industry) could be seen at Mahalakshmi, like S.D. Burman
himself, the late comedian Asit Sen and that accomplished character
actor S. N. Banerjee. RMIMers will readily recall him as Johnny
Walker's father in "ChaudhweeN Ka ChaaNd". He was a highly educa-
ted person --- and his Urdu diction was well-nigh impeccable.
Sadly, all of them have now passed on.



Afzal
Sukesh
2009-07-04 16:24:37 UTC
Permalink
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
      Sad news.  May her soul rest in peace.
      I remember having seen them together on a couple of occasions at
      Bombay's Mahalakshmi Race Course.  IIRC, they made a startling
      contrast in stature.  Hemant Kumar was, of course, quite tall and
      had a dignified presence.
      Come to think of it, quite a few Bengali folks (connected with the
      film industry) could be seen at Mahalakshmi, like S.D. Burman
      himself, the late comedian Asit Sen and that accomplished character
      actor S. N. Banerjee.  RMIMers will readily recall him as Johnny
      Walker's father in "ChaudhweeN Ka ChaaNd".  He was a highly educa-
      ted person --- and his Urdu diction was well-nigh impeccable.
      Sadly, all of them have now passed on.
      Afzal
Little digression here

1) Rajinder Krishan had won the jackpot worth Rs 48 lakhs (equivalent
to about Rs 35 crores today) sometime in the late 60s at RWITC,
Mahalaxmi. His was the only winning ticket on that particlar date.

2) Filmfare used to have a section Question Box with I S Johar
replying to readers' queries. Once when asked as to who was the most
educated person in the film industry, he replied that people should
not ask questions about him.

Regards
Sukesh
maheshks
2009-07-09 02:22:42 UTC
Permalink
Post by Sukesh
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
      Sad news.  May her soul rest in peace.
      I remember having seen them together on a couple of occasions at
      Bombay's Mahalakshmi Race Course.  IIRC, they made a startling
      contrast in stature.  Hemant Kumar was, of course, quite tall and
      had a dignified presence.
      Come to think of it, quite a few Bengali folks (connected with the
      film industry) could be seen at Mahalakshmi, like S.D. Burman
      himself, the late comedian Asit Sen and that accomplished character
      actor S. N. Banerjee.  RMIMers will readily recall him as Johnny
      Walker's father in "ChaudhweeN Ka ChaaNd".  He was a highly educa-
      ted person --- and his Urdu diction was well-nigh impeccable.
      Sadly, all of them have now passed on.
      Afzal
Little digression here
1) Rajinder Krishan had won the jackpot worth Rs 48 lakhs (equivalent
to about Rs 35 crores today) sometime in the late 60s at RWITC,
Mahalaxmi. His was the only winning ticket on that particlar date.
2) Filmfare used to have a section Question Box with I S Johar
replying to readers' queries. Once when asked as to who was the most
educated person in the film industry, he replied that people should
not ask questions about him.
Regards
Sukesh- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
1. correct.
2. also correct. He was a graduate in Law with master degrees in
politics and
Economics from Punjab University.
Kalyan
2009-07-03 07:54:55 UTC
Permalink
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).

Kalyan
surjit singh
2009-07-03 18:55:11 UTC
Permalink
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Here are a few

Maaldaar 1951 De-2 Pet Ko Rotee Tan Ko Kapare Hemant Bela Mukherji
Bahu 1955 Door-2 Se Kyaa Gaataa Hai Tum Paas Jo Ha Ravi Bela Mukherji
Bandhan 1956 Dulah Raam Siyaa Dulhaaree Dhan Daaminee Hemant Bela
Mukherji
Fashion 1958 Bare-2 Toofaanon Ke Aage Kabhee Na Jo Ha Hemant Bela
Mukherji
Sahaara 1958 Har Dukhraa SahNe Waalee Munh Se Naa Hemant Bela Mukherji
Faraar 1965 Ai DeenDayaal Dayaa Do Hamen Tum Dharm Bela Mukherji
pdg
2009-07-03 21:31:39 UTC
Permalink
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.

She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.

Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.

Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are at
http://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html

-Prithviraj
Kalyan
2009-07-06 19:22:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Thanks, Prithviraj and Surjit, for the details.

Kalyan
Jay
2009-07-09 12:19:20 UTC
Permalink
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,

That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???

- Who gave you this info ? OR

- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR

- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?

- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.

Jay
9/7
pdg
2009-07-09 14:29:49 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jay
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,
That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???
- Who gave you this info ? OR
- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR
- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?
- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.
Jay
9/7
Following sources:

1) HMV CS "Songs from Hindustan Records 78 rpm disks- Aaj dol dilo ki
hiyay" mentions Bela Mukherjee as singer of "o boner pakhi" and "elo
re (3)...abar basanta' (w/ Asitbaran). These songs are from the 78 rpm
version. I need to check on the last song, if there's a third voice,
but am 100% certain about the first one.

2) My own hearing of corresponding songs from Bengali version
Kashinath movie on VCD.

3) My own hearing of corresponding songs (o ban ke panchhi/aayi re
aayi re...) from Hindi Kashinath from Surjit-ji's Website.

4) Hemanta Mukherjee's autobiography or biography where he mentions
(not verbatim) "When I married Bela (in 1945), she was more famous
than I was following the success of her songs in Kashinath".

I would be glad to be enlightened if any of the sources 1) or 4) is
proved wrong.

It's ironic that we are questioning her contribution to these songs
right after her demise, while all this while when she was alive,
hardly anyone was bothering about her.

During her last years she spent a very lonely life, and was frequently
bothered by her landlord and promoters who wanted to evict her from
the rented apartment on Sarat Chatterjee Ave. in Calcuta, in which she
had lived with Hemant Kumar since 1980. She refused to move out of the
place because of lasting memories of her husband while the promoters
wanted to have a new development on that property citing that she was
living alone and didn't need an apartment meant for two people. I read
this in a newspaper article on her in 2006 or 2007.

-Prithviraj
maheshks
2009-07-09 16:27:34 UTC
Permalink
Post by pdg
Post by Jay
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,
That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???
- Who gave you this info ? OR
- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR
- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?
- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.
Jay
9/7
1) HMV CS "Songs from Hindustan Records 78 rpm disks- Aaj dol dilo ki
hiyay" mentions Bela Mukherjee as singer of "o boner pakhi" and "elo
re (3)...abar basanta' (w/ Asitbaran). These songs are from the 78 rpm
version. I need to check on the last song, if there's a third voice,
but am 100% certain about the first one.
2) My own hearing of corresponding songs from Bengali version
Kashinath movie on VCD.
3) My own hearing of corresponding songs (o ban ke panchhi/aayi re
aayi re...) from Hindi Kashinath from Surjit-ji's Website.
4) Hemanta Mukherjee's autobiography or biography where he mentions
(not verbatim) "When I married Bela (in 1945), she was more famous
than I was following the success of her songs in Kashinath".
I would be glad to be enlightened if any of the sources 1) or 4) is
proved wrong.
It's ironic that we are questioning her contribution to these songs
right after her demise, while all this while when she was alive,
hardly anyone was bothering about her.
During her last years she spent a very lonely life, and was frequently
bothered by her landlord and promoters who wanted to evict her from
the rented apartment on Sarat Chatterjee Ave. in Calcuta, in which she
had lived with Hemant Kumar since 1980. She refused to move out of the
place because of lasting memories of her husband while the promoters
wanted to have a new development on that property citing that she was
living alone and didn't need an apartment meant for two people. I read
this in a newspaper article on her in 2006 or 2007.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
In Kashinath....she also sang a duet with asit baran....lo shuru huyi
is baar,
hum main tum main taqraar.
pdg
2009-07-10 13:15:38 UTC
Permalink
Post by maheshks
Post by pdg
Post by Jay
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,
That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???
- Who gave you this info ? OR
- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR
- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?
- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.
Jay
9/7
1) HMV CS "Songs from Hindustan Records 78 rpm disks- Aaj dol dilo ki
hiyay" mentions Bela Mukherjee as singer of "o boner pakhi" and "elo
re (3)...abar basanta' (w/ Asitbaran). These songs are from the 78 rpm
version. I need to check on the last song, if there's a third voice,
but am 100% certain about the first one.
2) My own hearing of corresponding songs from Bengali version
Kashinath movie on VCD.
3) My own hearing of corresponding songs (o ban ke panchhi/aayi re
aayi re...) from Hindi Kashinath from Surjit-ji's Website.
4) Hemanta Mukherjee's autobiography or biography where he mentions
(not verbatim) "When I married Bela (in 1945), she was more famous
than I was following the success of her songs in Kashinath".
I would be glad to be enlightened if any of the sources 1) or 4) is
proved wrong.
It's ironic that we are questioning her contribution to these songs
right after her demise, while all this while when she was alive,
hardly anyone was bothering about her.
During her last years she spent a very lonely life, and was frequently
bothered by her landlord and promoters who wanted to evict her from
the rented apartment on Sarat Chatterjee Ave. in Calcuta, in which she
had lived with Hemant Kumar since 1980. She refused to move out of the
place because of lasting memories of her husband while the promoters
wanted to have a new development on that property citing that she was
living alone and didn't need an apartment meant for two people. I read
this in a newspaper article on her in 2006 or 2007.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
In Kashinath....she also sang a duet with asit baran....lo shuru huyi
is baar,
hum main tum main taqraar.
I have seen this attribution appear at some places. However, one thing
I am not certain about is the following - In the Bengali movie
Kashinath, the character that plays Asitbaran's would-be wife starts
singing the song 'o ban ke panchhi' as a child, and midway through the
song she grows up and then sings the latter part (2nd stanza) of the
song. I think I heard a change of voice between this young version and
mature version of the song. My guess is that the younger version is
playbacked by Bela M while the mature version is by someone else. The
78 rpm version of this song that I have on HMV CS attributes it to
only one singer - Bela M, and the song clearly is a solo. Now, the
song that you mention 'lo shuru hui' comes after Asitbaran's marriage.
I don't have the 78 rpm version of this song, and the movie version
that I have is evidently in the mature voice.

Maybe it's a case of BelaM singing all female songs on 78 rpm but
another voice singing the mature voice in the movie. Or maybe it's
someone else doing the child voice in the movie and BelaM doing the
mature voice. The mature voice is very melodious and full of body -
sort of like that of Suprova Sircar or Ila Ghosh. I've heard too
little of Bela Mukherjee's solo voice around that period to make a
hearing-based attribution. Also, I have to admit that I am not very
adept at identifying female voices, esp. from the 40s decade.
Evidently, it's open for the type of speculation some RMIM-ers love to
indulge in.

-Prithviraj
jyotiprakasguha
2009-07-11 15:22:04 UTC
Permalink
Post by pdg
Post by maheshks
Post by pdg
Post by Jay
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,
That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???
- Who gave you this info ? OR
- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR
- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?
- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.
Jay
9/7
1) HMV CS "Songs from Hindustan Records 78 rpm disks- Aaj dol dilo ki
hiyay" mentions Bela Mukherjee as singer of "o boner pakhi" and "elo
re (3)...abar basanta' (w/ Asitbaran). These songs are from the 78 rpm
version. I need to check on the last song, if there's a third voice,
but am 100% certain about the first one.
2) My own hearing of corresponding songs from Bengali version
Kashinath movie on VCD.
3) My own hearing of corresponding songs (o ban ke panchhi/aayi re
aayi re...) from Hindi Kashinath from Surjit-ji's Website.
4) Hemanta Mukherjee's autobiography or biography where he mentions
(not verbatim) "When I married Bela (in 1945), she was more famous
than I was following the success of her songs in Kashinath".
I would be glad to be enlightened if any of the sources 1) or 4) is
proved wrong.
It's ironic that we are questioning her contribution to these songs
right after her demise, while all this while when she was alive,
hardly anyone was bothering about her.
During her last years she spent a very lonely life, and was frequently
bothered by her landlord and promoters who wanted to evict her from
the rented apartment on Sarat Chatterjee Ave. in Calcuta, in which she
had lived with Hemant Kumar since 1980. She refused to move out of the
place because of lasting memories of her husband while the promoters
wanted to have a new development on that property citing that she was
living alone and didn't need an apartment meant for two people. I read
this in a newspaper article on her in 2006 or 2007.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
In Kashinath....she also sang a duet with asit baran....lo shuru huyi
is baar,
hum main tum main taqraar.
I have seen this attribution appear at some places. However, one thing
I am not certain about is the following -  In the Bengali movie
Kashinath, the character that plays Asitbaran's would-be wife starts
singing the song 'o ban ke panchhi' as a child, and midway through the
song she grows up and then sings the latter part (2nd stanza) of the
song. I think I heard a change of voice between this young version and
mature version of the song. My guess is that the younger version is
playbacked by Bela M while the mature version is by someone else. The
78 rpm version of this song that I have on HMV CS attributes it to
only one singer - Bela M, and the song clearly is a solo. Now, the
song that you mention 'lo shuru hui' comes after Asitbaran's marriage.
I don't have the 78 rpm version of this song, and the movie version
that I have is evidently in the mature voice.
Maybe it's a case of BelaM singing all female songs on 78 rpm but
another voice singing the mature voice in the movie. Or maybe it's
someone else doing the child voice in the movie and BelaM doing the
mature voice. The mature voice is very melodious and full of body -
sort of like that of Suprova Sircar or Ila Ghosh. I've heard too
little of Bela Mukherjee's solo voice around that period to make a
hearing-based attribution. Also, I have to admit that I am not very
adept at identifying female voices, esp. from the 40s decade.
Evidently, it's open for the type of speculation some RMIM-ers love to
indulge in.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Radharani Devi sang ROTI BRISHBHAN KUMARI for herself (role of Kirtan
singer) and MANMOHAN MUKHRA MOR for Sunanda Banerjee (w/o Asit Baran
in the film).
jyotiprakasguha
2009-07-11 15:24:36 UTC
Permalink
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Post by pdg
Post by maheshks
Post by pdg
Post by Jay
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,
That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???
- Who gave you this info ? OR
- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR
- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?
- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.
Jay
9/7
1) HMV CS "Songs from Hindustan Records 78 rpm disks- Aaj dol dilo ki
hiyay" mentions Bela Mukherjee as singer of "o boner pakhi" and "elo
re (3)...abar basanta' (w/ Asitbaran). These songs are from the 78 rpm
version. I need to check on the last song, if there's a third voice,
but am 100% certain about the first one.
2) My own hearing of corresponding songs from Bengali version
Kashinath movie on VCD.
3) My own hearing of corresponding songs (o ban ke panchhi/aayi re
aayi re...) from Hindi Kashinath from Surjit-ji's Website.
4) Hemanta Mukherjee's autobiography or biography where he mentions
(not verbatim) "When I married Bela (in 1945), she was more famous
than I was following the success of her songs in Kashinath".
I would be glad to be enlightened if any of the sources 1) or 4) is
proved wrong.
It's ironic that we are questioning her contribution to these songs
right after her demise, while all this while when she was alive,
hardly anyone was bothering about her.
During her last years she spent a very lonely life, and was frequently
bothered by her landlord and promoters who wanted to evict her from
the rented apartment on Sarat Chatterjee Ave. in Calcuta, in which she
had lived with Hemant Kumar since 1980. She refused to move out of the
place because of lasting memories of her husband while the promoters
wanted to have a new development on that property citing that she was
living alone and didn't need an apartment meant for two people. I read
this in a newspaper article on her in 2006 or 2007.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
In Kashinath....she also sang a duet with asit baran....lo shuru huyi
is baar,
hum main tum main taqraar.
I have seen this attribution appear at some places. However, one thing
I am not certain about is the following -  In the Bengali movie
Kashinath, the character that plays Asitbaran's would-be wife starts
singing the song 'o ban ke panchhi' as a child, and midway through the
song she grows up and then sings the latter part (2nd stanza) of the
song. I think I heard a change of voice between this young version and
mature version of the song. My guess is that the younger version is
playbacked by Bela M while the mature version is by someone else. The
78 rpm version of this song that I have on HMV CS attributes it to
only one singer - Bela M, and the song clearly is a solo. Now, the
song that you mention 'lo shuru hui' comes after Asitbaran's marriage.
I don't have the 78 rpm version of this song, and the movie version
that I have is evidently in the mature voice.
Maybe it's a case of BelaM singing all female songs on 78 rpm but
another voice singing the mature voice in the movie. Or maybe it's
someone else doing the child voice in the movie and BelaM doing the
mature voice. The mature voice is very melodious and full of body -
sort of like that of Suprova Sircar or Ila Ghosh. I've heard too
little of Bela Mukherjee's solo voice around that period to make a
hearing-based attribution. Also, I have to admit that I am not very
adept at identifying female voices, esp. from the 40s decade.
Evidently, it's open for the type of speculation some RMIM-ers love to
indulge in.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Radharani Devi sang ROTI BRISHBHAN KUMARI for herself (role of Kirtan
singer) and MANMOHAN MUKHRA MOR for Sunanda Banerjee (w/o Asit Baran
in the film).- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Bela Mukherjee's songs in Kashinath got her to Bombay with film
KRISHNARJUN BADH. No more details with me about the Hindi film in
Bombay.
Kalyan
2009-07-13 19:51:13 UTC
Permalink
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Post by pdg
Post by maheshks
Post by pdg
Post by Jay
Post by pdg
Post by Kalyan
Post by jyotiprakasguha
Singer Bela Mukherjee, wife of late Hemanta Mukherjee, passed away on
25th of June, 2009-Her Sradhh ceremony on 5th July- at her
residence-117/1 Southern avenue- Newspaper annoncement this morning by
Jayanta, Moushumi and others...
Jyoti Prakash Guha.
Wasn't she also a playback singer? It will be great if someone
knowledgable can list some of her songs in Hindi (and Bangla).
Kalyan
Her most successful songs were in the New Theater's Kashinath (1945)
under Pankaj Mullick. 'o ban ke panchhi' and 'aayi re...(3) basant
ritu' come to mind. After her marriage to Hemant around this period,
she stopped pursuing an active career in music and sang mostly, if not
only, under her husband's baton and only on rare occasions.
She also sang 4 non-film Hindi songs with Hemant - tum kahan pe kho
gaye/jab dard uthe dil me and qaum ki khidmat me raho/desh hamara
hindustan.
Her output in Bengali also follows a similar pattern.
Some reminiscences by her on her late husband are athttp://faculty.ist.unomaha.edu/pdasgupta/hemanta/articles/bela.html
-Prithviraj
Who told you , Sir,
That Bela Mukerjee, the w/o of MD:Hemant Kumar has sung the songs you
have quoted in your post from NT's KASHINATH('43) under Pankaj
Mallick???
- Who gave you this info ? OR
- Where is it mentioned in any reference book, if at all you have it/
seen it or prompted by any one?? OR
- Is it your 'hunch' or that of someone ?
- Whatever your reply in f/o Bela Mukerjee , you must be able to
substantiate, ELSE it lacks credibility.
Jay
9/7
1) HMV CS "Songs from Hindustan Records 78 rpm disks- Aaj dol dilo ki
hiyay" mentions Bela Mukherjee as singer of "o boner pakhi" and "elo
re (3)...abar basanta' (w/ Asitbaran). These songs are from the 78 rpm
version. I need to check on the last song, if there's a third voice,
but am 100% certain about the first one.
2) My own hearing of corresponding songs from Bengali version
Kashinath movie on VCD.
3) My own hearing of corresponding songs (o ban ke panchhi/aayi re
aayi re...) from Hindi Kashinath from Surjit-ji's Website.
4) Hemanta Mukherjee's autobiography or biography where he mentions
(not verbatim) "When I married Bela (in 1945), she was more famous
than I was following the success of her songs in Kashinath".
I would be glad to be enlightened if any of the sources 1) or 4) is
proved wrong.
It's ironic that we are questioning her contribution to these songs
right after her demise, while all this while when she was alive,
hardly anyone was bothering about her.
During her last years she spent a very lonely life, and was frequently
bothered by her landlord and promoters who wanted to evict her from
the rented apartment on Sarat Chatterjee Ave. in Calcuta, in which she
had lived with Hemant Kumar since 1980. She refused to move out of the
place because of lasting memories of her husband while the promoters
wanted to have a new development on that property citing that she was
living alone and didn't need an apartment meant for two people. I read
this in a newspaper article on her in 2006 or 2007.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
In Kashinath....she also sang a duet with asit baran....lo shuru huyi
is baar,
hum main tum main taqraar.
I have seen this attribution appear at some places. However, one thing
I am not certain about is the following -  In the Bengali movie
Kashinath, the character that plays Asitbaran's would-be wife starts
singing the song 'o ban ke panchhi' as a child, and midway through the
song she grows up and then sings the latter part (2nd stanza) of the
song. I think I heard a change of voice between this young version and
mature version of the song. My guess is that the younger version is
playbacked by Bela M while the mature version is by someone else. The
78 rpm version of this song that I have on HMV CS attributes it to
only one singer - Bela M, and the song clearly is a solo. Now, the
song that you mention 'lo shuru hui' comes after Asitbaran's marriage.
I don't have the 78 rpm version of this song, and the movie version
that I have is evidently in the mature voice.
Maybe it's a case of BelaM singing all female songs on 78 rpm but
another voice singing the mature voice in the movie. Or maybe it's
someone else doing the child voice in the movie and BelaM doing the
mature voice. The mature voice is very melodious and full of body -
sort of like that of Suprova Sircar or Ila Ghosh. I've heard too
little of Bela Mukherjee's solo voice around that period to make a
hearing-based attribution. Also, I have to admit that I am not very
adept at identifying female voices, esp. from the 40s decade.
Evidently, it's open for the type of speculation some RMIM-ers love to
indulge in.
-Prithviraj- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Radharani Devi sang ROTI BRISHBHAN KUMARI for herself (role of Kirtan
singer) and MANMOHAN MUKHRA MOR for Sunanda Banerjee (w/o Asit Baran
in the film).- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Bela Mukherjee's songs in Kashinath got her to Bombay with film
KRISHNARJUN BADH. No more details with me about the Hindi film in
Bombay.- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Thanks all. When exactly was Kashinath released? I have seen '43 and
'45 in this thread. I have seen Indianscreen refer to the year as '37
and '43 for different songs.
I heard a few of Bela Mukherjee song listed in the thread.
Unfortunately, her contribution seems fairly limited to form any
opinion.

Kalyan

ps: unrelated question - Geeta and Asha have sung for Pankaj Mullick
in Zalzala and Kasturi respectively. Did Lata or Shamshad ever sing
for him?
abhayphadnis
2009-07-14 02:25:24 UTC
Permalink
On Jul 14, 12:51 am, Kalyan <***@yahoo.com> wrote:
(snip)
Post by Kalyan
ps: unrelated question - Geeta and Asha have sung for Pankaj Mullick
in Zalzala and Kasturi respectively. Did Lata or Shamshad ever sing
for him?
For Lata, the answer is no according to Lata herself. She has said
(IIRC, in the introductory remarks before she sings his songs in the
"Shraddhanjali" album) that PM had met her at some function and told
her wanted to tune some songs for her but it didn't materialise.

Warm regards,
Abhay
Afzal A. Khan
2009-07-15 15:35:16 UTC
Permalink
Post by maheshks
In Kashinath....she also sang a duet with asit baran....lo shuru huyi
is baar,
hum main tum main taqraar.
A little nitpick. The word is "takraar". No need to
"over-Urduize" it !



Afzal

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