Vijay Anand, brother of Dev Anand and Chetan Anand, was a much admired film director. His movies with Dev under the Navketan banner, with music by S.D. Burman, were commercially successful and critically acclaimed.
To mark his 19th death anniversary on February 23, we choose 10 songs from films he directed. Vijay Anand also acted in a few films like Kora Kagaz and Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki. This list is chronological:
1 Aankhon Mein Kya Jee – Nau Do Gyarah (1957)
Vijay Anand made his directorial debut with Nau Do Gyarah, starring Dev Anand and Kalpana Kartik. This song, composed by S.D. Burman, was sung by Mohammed Rafi and Asha Bhosle. Majrooh Sultanpuri wrote, “Aankhon mein kya ji, rupehla baadal; baadal mein kya ji, kisi ka aanchal, aanchal mein kya ji, ajab si halchal”.
2 Apni Toh Har Aah – Kala Bazar (1960)
S.D. Burman composed some great songs in Kala Bazar, including ‘Khoya Khoya Chand’. Vijay Anand used the train setting on ‘Apni To Har Aah’, with Dev Anand serenading Waheeda Rahman, asleep on the upper berth. Rafi sang Shailendra’s lines, “Apni toh har aah Ik toofan hai, oopar waala jaankar bhi anjaan hai”.
3 Tere Ghar Ke Saamne – Tere Ghar Ke Saamne (1963)
The highlight of this song lay in the use of effects to show Nutan in a wine glass, with Dev Anand singing for her. Again the combination or S.D. Burman, Rafi and Majrooh was in full swing. The lines were, “Tere ghar ke saamne, ek ghar banaaonga, tere ghar ke saamne, duniya basaaoonga, tere ghar ke saamne”.
4 Tere Mere Sapne – Guide (1965)
In Guide, Vijay Anand adapted R.K. Narayan’s novel. S.D. Burman’s music was a huge success and on this song, Shailendra wrote simple lines like, “Tere mere sapne ab ek rang hai, jahaan bhi le jaaye raahein hum sang hai”. Rafi sang for Dev Anand, who was paired opposite Waheeda Rahman.
5 Tumne Mujhe Dekha – Teesri Manzil (1966)
The Nasir Husain production Teesri Manzil was directed by Vijay Anand. In the song ‘Tumne Mujhe Dekha’, he used a lavishly choreographed set. Rafi was the singer and R.D. Burman gave the music, with Majrooh writing the words. Shammi Kapoor and Asha Parekh formed the lead pair.
6 Rula Ke Gaya Sapna Mera – Jewel Thief (1967)
Lata Mangeshkar sang this gem composed by S D. Burman in raag Pahadi. The last song written by Shailendra, it had the lines, “Rula ke gaya sapna mera, baithi hoon kab ho savera”. The song was filmed on Vyjayanthimala and Dev Anand on a stream.
7 O Baabul Pyaare – Johnny Mera Naam (1970)
Vijay Anand directed this film for producer Gulshan Rai. This song was filmed on Hema Malini in a group folk dance. Lata sang the tune for music directors Kalyanji-Anandji. Indeevar wrote, “O baabul pyaare, o roye paayal ki cham cham, o sisake saanson ki sargam, o nis din tujhe pukare man, ho”.
8 Jeevan Ki Bagiya – Tere Mere Sapne (1971)
Because of sudden developments (two theories did the rounds), S.D. Burman recorded this song only with santoor exponent Shivkumar Sharma, bansuri genius Hariprasad Chaurasia, a tabla player and singers Lata and Kishore Kumar. It was filmed on Dev Anand and Mumtaz. Neeraj’s lyrics were characterised by interesting wordplay.
9 Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas – Blackmail (1973)
Many critics have considered Blackmail to be one of Vijay Anand’s underrated works as director. This song, of course, remains on the list of favourite love songs for thousands of people. Sung by Kishore, it was composed by Kalyanji-Anandji and written by Rajendra Krishan, with Dharmendra and Raakhee in the lead.
10 Yaar Ki Khabar Mil Gayi – Ram Balram (1980)
The highlights of this song were the choreography and the costumes, with Amitabh Bachchan in cowboy attire. Rekha was paired with him. This song, sung by Kishore and Asha Bhosle, was a hit in its time. Music was by Laxmikant-Pyarelal and lyrics were by Anand Bakshi.
If one notes the 10 films mentioned, with the exception of Blackmail, all had multiple hit songs. Choosing for this list wasn’t easy, but while shortlisting, we made sure the song had a special charm.
