Why Dilip Kumar Never Sang In Mughal-e-Azam

‘K Asifsaab was very definite that ‘woh Hindustan ka honewala Badshah hai -- woh gana nahin gayega.’ Dinesh Raheja recalls a memorable encounter with Naushad on the legendary composer's 19th death anniversary on May 5.

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When I visited Naushad at his green-fringed Bandra bungalow in northwest Mumbai, circa 2000, he was around 80 years old. But the life force coursed strongly through the maestro’s veins. The composer of landmark classics like Mughal-e-Azam, Mere Mehboob, Mother India and Baiju Bawra was sitting with his harmonium, trying out tunes and singing to himself.

"I recorded some 15, 20 songs for Mughal-e-Azam and not all of them were used in the film. K Asifsaab said, ‘Bhai, jo tumhara dil chahe karo.’ Today, there are no such producers. The one who arranges the money feels he knows about music too," Naushad said.

At 80, what drives you to sit in your music room and compose tunes on your harmonium?

A kalakaar lives as long as he is engrossed in creation. That's my message for everybody: Talaash mein raho. The day your search ends, that's the end of your life. If you ask me to name my favourite film scores or my favourite songs, I will say that it has yet to come.

Your body of work is renowned. But why were you so selective?

I have composed music for only 66 films in 60 years. Of these, 26 were silver jubilees, six were golden jubilees and four were diamond jubilees. Today, composers work on 10, 20 films at a time. I used to devote 15, 20 days for each song -- sochna, banana, mitaana, phir banana, phir mitaana. Till I was satisfied. I recorded some 15, 20 songs for Mughal-e-Azam and not all of them were used in the film. K Asifsaab said, ‘Bhai, jo tumhara dil chahe karo.’ Today, there are no such producers. The one who arranges the money feels he knows about music too.

Were any of the unused Mughal-e-Azam songs to be sung by Dilip Kumar's character?