Bappi Lahiri realised disco was a winning ticket and escalated his game with several more dancefloor perennials.
Soon, every film producer and music director in town was down with disco fever.
On what would have been Bappi Lahiri's 73rd birthday this November 27, Dinesh Raheja rewinds to the late music composer's hit music days.
Despite a discography encompassing a record-shattering 500-odd films, Bappi Lahiri is an often underappreciated music composer.
All too often, the focus on the late composer centres around his penchant for wearing layers of glittering gold jewellery paired with flamboyant costumes and his signature dark glasses. Even appellations like 'Disco King' or 'King of Bling' are well-deserved but reductive, failing to capture the full range of his musical abilities.
What gets overlooked is just how much of a force to reckon with Lahiri became in the 1980s after three musical superhits -- Disco Dancer (1982), Namak Halal (1982) and Himmatwala (1983) -- all released within a span of 10 months!
Bappi's meteoric rise provided a startling wake-up call to music composers of that time.
All through the 1970s, composers Laxmikant-Pyarelal, R D Burman and Kalyanji-Anandji had comfortably ruled the roost, with Rajesh Roshan occasionally cornering some of the big banner films.
However, Bappu's trio of chartbusting soundtracks created a seismic shift in the cultural tectonic plates. It sent R D Burman, Kalyanji Anandji and Rajesh Roshan scrambling to save their careers; and even LP had to cede some ground.
Not only did the music composers have to adopt to the disco era and dish up a more youth-oriented sound but they also had to grapple with the new realities in their profession, and step up their output.
Because other than for consistently delivering songs that appealed to the masses, Lahiri was also known for being a prolific powerhouse.
In 1986, he recorded an incredible 180 songs for 33 films -- and this feat has won Lahiri a place in the Guinness Book Of World Records.
Eventually, however, Lahiri made the mistake of overvaluing his own creative fertility.
After flying high for a dozen years on the strength of this prolificity, the composer started delivering indifferent scores.
Think You Are My Chicken Fry from Rock Dancer (1994) which has birthed a zillion jokes.
Lahiri's insecurity-based insistence on overworking himself can probably be traced to his long struggle to establish himself as a composer in the music world of the 1970s, which was already crowded with major talents.
Bappi Lahiri's Surprisingly Soulful, Melodious Seventies Hits
Born into a musical family (his parents were both singers), Lahiri was barely out of his teenage years when he started trying his luck in the Hindi film music industry.
His first film as a composer was Nanha Shikari in 1973 but he hit his stride with Zakhmee (1975) and Chalte Chalte (1976).
There are an astonishing number of collaborations with Lata Mangeshkar during Lahiri's struggling days in the 1970s.
Remarkable, because during his peak, he reserved Lata Mangeshkar only for special occasions and songs, while the bulk of his output was shouldered by Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar.
Zakhmee showcased Lata crooning the tuneful Aao Tumhein Chand Pe Le Jaaye (which is enjoying a second lease of life courtesy television singing reality shows) and Abhi Abhi Thi Dushmani while Chalte Chalte had her singing Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi Aisa and Door Door Tum Rahein.
Even if in small-budgeted films, for the next few years, the Lata-Lahiri combination yielded soft, mellow yet radio-friendly numbers like Phir Janam Lenge Hum (the title song), Aangan Ki Kali (Tumhein Kaise Kahoon Main Dil Ki Baat) and Iqrar (Tum Saamne Baithe Raho).
A large proportion of Lahiri's best creative work was done while he was still inching up the ladder of success in the 1970s.
He crafted surprisingly soulful melodies and painstakingly worked on the orchestration to create several gems, many with Kishore Kumar -- Nanha Sa Pancchi Re Tu Bahut Bada Pinjra Tera (Toote Khilone), Pyaar Maanga Hai Tumhi Se (College Girl), Kitne Raanjhe Tujhe Dekhke Bairagi Ban Gaye (Ahsas) and Hothon Pe Jaan Chali Aayegi (Patita).
The Disco King Of Bollywood
The first Lahiri film to hit the box-office bullseye was the Mithun Chakraborty thriller Suraksha (1979).
He lent his own voice to songs like Mausam Hai Gaane Ka (Gunmaster G9) and Tum Jo Bhi Ho Dil Aaj Do which, with their thumping disco beats, heralded a new era for Hindi film music.
Lahiri realised disco was a winning ticket and escalated his game with several more dancefloor perennials like Hari Om Hari (Pyaara Dushman, 1980), Ramba Ho Ho (Armaan, 1981), Disco Station (Hathkadi, 1981) and Jawani Jaaneman (Namak Halal, 1982).
Soon, every film producer and music director in town was down with disco fever.
The zenith was reached with Disco Dancer.
Lahiri conjured up sings like I Am A Disco Dancer, Jimmy Jimmy and Koi Yahan Aha Nache Nache that took the country by storm.
Edging Out The Competition
Lahiri entered the big league with the Amitabh Bachchan blockbuster Namak Halal (1982). Each of its five songs were hugely popular especially Pug Ghungroo Baandh and Aaj Rapat Jaaye Toh.
After the Himmatwala (1983) chartbuster Nainon Mein Sapna, Lahiri became perhaps most identified with Jeetendra starrers, often produced by Padmalaya. More successes followed quickly with Justice Chowdhury, Mawaali, Tohfa etc.
Lahiri has composed music for 34 films starring Jeetendra and numerous others with Mithun.
This success streak changed the career trajectories of other music directors.
R D Burman fought back with increased creativity (19 releases in 1984!) but the box office seemed to have just stopped favouring him and his career declined sharply.
Kalyanji-Anandji witnessed loyalists like Prakash Mehra switching over to Lahiri with Namak Halal and Sharabi and cut down their assignments before handing over the baton.
Rajesh Roshan too saw a long, lean phase till he made a comeback with his brother Rakesh's films.
Lahiri's 1980s output is chock-full of massy numbers such as Ek Aankh Maroo Toh or Ice Cream Khaogi.
To his credit, he did find time for the occasional imaginatively composed number too: Log Kehte Hain Main Sharabi Hoon (Sharabi) or Kisi Nazar Ko Tera Intezar Aaj Bhi Hai (Aitbaar).
Echoing his 1970s stunner Maana Ho Tum Behad Haseen, he enlisted singer Yesudas again for Haisiyat's serene Dheere Dheere Subah Hui.
Going Commercial With A Vengeance
The 1990s began for Lahiri on a high note with Aaj Ka Arjun (Gori Hai Kalaiyaan) and Ghayal (Sochna Kya).
He soon scored another blockbuster with Aankhen (1993).
Lahiri had helped make Govinda a star in his debut film Ilzaam (1986) with I Am A Street Dancer and now aided him in scaling new heights with the whistle-fetching O Lal Dupattewali.
Lahiri was busy pursuing success and ably accommodated risque numbers like Aankhen's Angna Mein Baba and Dalaal's Gutur Gutur in his soundtracks.
But by the late 1990s, he was unable to fend off the invasion of a phalanx of new composers like A R Rahman, Nadeem Shravan and Anu Malik.
Bappi: The Celebrity
Though he continued to compose music till the end, Lahiri also began exploring other avenues.
He appeared as a genial judge on several television reality shows.
For Dirty Picture (2011), Vishal-Shekhar got him to sing the hit number Ooh La La.
A dance video of Lahiri's Jyoti (1981) number Thoda Resham Lagta Hai with its unrelenting catchy backbeat unleashed the remix trend circa 2002.
Till recently, a spate of Hindi films have incorporated recreations of Lahiri's earlier hits like Tamma Tamma and Bhankas.
Fortunately for Lahiri, he had enough laurels to rest on.
Photographs curated by Satish Bodas/Rediff
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