Madan Mohan, who made a special place in the hearts of people with his melodious tunes and memorable songs, was not only an excellent musician, but his journey was also equally interesting. Let us know the story of his personal life, career and reaching Bollywood.
Born in Baghdad, was fond of music since childhood
Madan Mohan Kohli, the composer of evergreen songs like ‘Dil Dhondta Hai’, ‘Lag Ja Gale’ and ‘Tu Jahan-Jahan Chalega’, made his special mark in the Hindi film industry for almost three decades. He is counted among the best musicians of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Especially for Ghazals, he gave such music which people like even today.
Madan Mohan was born on 25 June 1924 in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, where his father Rai Bahadur Chunilal Kohli was working. Later his family returned to India and settled in Lahore and Mumbai. He had a keen interest in music since childhood. He took early education in classical music but he composed most of his later music from his own experiences. And learned by continuously learning
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Left army job and chose the path of music
After completing school education, Madan Mohan served as Second Lieutenant in the Indian Army in the year 1943. After the Second World War ended, he left the army (a two-year tenure) and dedicated his life to music. After this he worked as a program assistant in All India Radio, Lucknow and Delhi. During this time, he got the opportunity to work and learn from great artists like Ustad Faiyaz Khan, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Begum Akhtar and Talat Mehmood.
Made a distinct identity with these films
He started his film journey as an assistant musician. In the year 1950, he got recognition as an independent musician with the film ‘Aankhen’. After this, in films like ‘Ada’, ‘Dekh Kabira Roya’, ‘Sharabi’, ‘Woh Kaun Thi?’, ‘Mera Saaya’, ‘Haqeeqat’, ‘Dastak’, ‘Heer Ranjha’, ‘Mausam’ and ‘Laila Majnu’, he gave such music, which even today people listen to with great interest.
Will always be remembered for ghazals and melodious tunes
Madan Mohan is especially remembered for giving new heights to ghazals in Hindi films. A wonderful combination of depth of classical music, sweetness of emotions and sensitivity of words was visible in his tunes. He gave many classic songs with legendary singers like Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi, Talat Mehmood, Manna Dey, Kishore Kumar, Mahendra Kapoor and Hemant Kumar. His pairing with Lata Mangeshkar was especially famous and together they gave birth to many immortal songs.
Said goodbye to the world at the age of 51
His creative collaborations with lyricists Raja Mehdi Ali Khan, Kaifi Azmi, Rajinder Krishna, Sahir Ludhianvi and Majrooh Sultanpuri were also very successful. The biggest feature of his music was that the depth and sweetness of emotion was easily felt in every tune. Madan Mohan died on 14 July 1975 at the age of only 51. Although his life was short in comparison, he gave such an invaluable heritage to Indian film music, which is equally famous even today.
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The decade of 1960 and 1970 is considered to be the most successful and memorable time of Madan Mohan’s music career. During this period, he gave classic music in films like ‘Woh Kaun Thi?’, ‘Haqiqat’, ‘Mera Saaya’, ‘Dastak’, ‘Heer Ranjha’, ‘Hanste Zakhm’ and ‘Mausam’. Songs like ‘Lag Ja Gale’, ‘Naina Barse’, ‘Kar Chale Hum Fida’ and ‘Yeh Duniya Ye Mehfil’ are evergreen even today. In the year 1971, he received the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for the film ‘Dastak’. Lata Mangeshkar called him the ‘Prince of Ghazal’, a tribute to his music. Skill It is considered the biggest honour.
