The enigmatic singer was an amazing pack of multiple identities, ever changing with time. Instinctive and spontaneous, he expressed himself in parts, but the sum of parts never revealed his true identity. The defining aspect of his identity – the songs – oscillate between deceptive complexity and actual simplicity, creating curiosity of discovering him and his ways. Kishore Kumar: The Ultimate Biography is an ambitious undertaking at discovering Kishore the person, whose appetite for excellence made him a genius; Kishore the voice, that delivered emotional authenticity of human feelings; and Kishore the icon, who personified musical veneration. It is a tribute to a singer who has continued to have a hold on the airwaves ever since.
It has been 35 years since his passing, but Kishore’s voice remains endearing to the listeners. He was an unschooled genius who could not read music notes, but his fans included classical maestros such as Bhimsen Joshi and Kumar Ghandharva. To the extent that classical vocalist Kanika Bandyopadhayay had once remarked: ‘Just to listen to these songs is a motivation to live longer’. Kishore’s rendition of choral backed raag Yaman composition Woh sham kuch ajeeb thee (Khamoshi, 1969), and raag Charukeshi-based Jeevan se bhari teri ankhen (Safar, 1970) stand testimony to the ease with which he negotiated classical compositions to sublime perfection.
Born with an abnormally hoarse voice that produced a coughing sound, Kishore would not have become a singer had his right toe not got accidently severed by a kitchen knife back in 1934. That one moment in childhood opened the door to an unimaginable future awaiting Kishore. In the absence of strong antibiotics, he had cried incessantly for some seventeen or eighteen hours a day for a few weeks that gave way to a clear, distinctive high-quality phonation. At the cost of his school studies, the destiny’s child carefully nurtured trait of effortless singing. Kishore never allowed the child in him to die, liberally using nonsensical words, scatting and yodelling as part of the song. The classic comedy (Padosan,1968) came handy for Kishore to impromptu create the song Mere bhole balam, and insert innovations like Oye tedhe, Seedhe ho jaa re during the final recording of Ek chatur naar, that R D Burman had no hesitation to accept.
There are hundreds of stories about the inimitable Kishore, about his genius, about his parsimony, about his eccentricity, and about his run down with his directors which are meaningful curated to give the narrative a credence of an ultimate biography. The 550-page biography is indeed more factual, more accurate, and far more informative. However, when each of Kishore’s 3,000 odd songs has a story to tell, one wonders if serious Kishore Kumar aficionado will ever have enough on the maverick singer. Kishore not only sang his way into the hearts of people, but he did also so while proposing to Leena Chandavarkar over phone singing Mere dil me aaj kya hai (Daag, 1973).
Kishore was borne to sing. Little realizing that his words would prove to be prophetic, he had once nonchalantly responded to the reprimand of his teacher for playing table on the desk saying: ‘sir, this will be my career one day’. Kishore persisted with his devil-may-care attitude throughout life, which had helped him sail through ups and down in his life. With his voice so fluent and mellifluous, he could generate entire spectrum of emotions with utmost ease. If his carefree yoddling number Zindagi ek safar hai suhana (Andaz, 1971) could make life worthy of more, the more sombre Zindagi ka safar (Safar, 1970) can drown the listener in tears.
Kishore’s long-standing friend Pritish Nandy, journalist and filmmaker, defined him in three words: Madcap. Mystic. Magician. At the other end, Bhattacharjee and Dhar count him as the last ‘great natural’ in Indian cinema, who continues to be part of listeners from dawn to dusk. No wonder, the ultimate biography documents the life of Kishore Kumar as per the time-based rule of raags, beginning with morning raag Bhairav and concluding with night raag Kedar. Kishore Kumar: The Ultimate Biography is an absorbing book on the life and times of Kishore Kumar, the eccentric talent who did not quite go by the book.
by Anirudh Bhattacharjee & Parthiv Dhar
HarperCollins, New Delhi
Extent: 544, Price: Rs. 699.
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