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A film by Brahmanand
Singh (Approx
Duration: 2 hrs).
Featuring
Asha Bhosle, Gulzar, Shammi Kapoor, Shakti
Samant, Bhupinder, Manna Dey, Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Pyarelal,
Ameen Sayani, Gulshan Bawra, Sachin Bhowmick, Vidhu Vinod Chopra,
Vishal Bharadwaj, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Shantanu Moitra, Ismail Durbar,
Leslie Lewis, Taufiq Qureshi, Gautam Rajadhyaksha, Usha Uthup, Shiv
Kumar Sharma, Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Ronu Majumdar, Louis Banks,
Kersi Lord, Manohari Singh, Bhanu Gupta, Uttam Singh, Nitin Shankar,
Amit Kumar, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Shailendra Singh and many more.
One of
the most versatile composers the Hindi Film Music Industry had ever
seen, RD Burman brought about a revolution in the popular music of
its time in the late 60s, almost single-handedly. For the next two
decades, he captured the musical imagination of an entire
subcontinent like none before --- right from the entertainment
seeking popular masses to the connoisseurs of classical HIndustani
and Western, jazz, opera and pop music. And almost a decade and a
half after his demise, he continues to be re-mixed and imitated
endlessly (he’s the most re-mixed man of the Indian music Industry),
even today.
Attempting
to explore legendary composer RD Burman’s music, Pancham
Unmixed: Mujhe Chalte Jaana Hai (an unending journey …) takes
an incisive look into the composer’s reflective artistry and
buoyant-but-also-lonely inner being. Featuring a host of close
friends, colleagues and admirers, the film attempts to evoke awe,
admiration and nostalgia the way most of his music does, till date.
It is perhaps the most
comprehensive film made on the great composer and hopefully, an
important one on for our entire film and music Industry.
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Shammi
Kapoor and Brahmanand Singh
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Vidhu
Vinod Chopra and Brahmanand Singh
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Asha
and Anand Bhosle with Brahmanand Singh
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Hariprasad
Chaurasia with Brahmanand Singh
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Asha
and Anand Bhosle with Brahmanand Singh
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Bhaskar,
Bramhanand, Bhupinder and Priti
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What they have already started
saying …
Pancham Unmixed: Mujhe
Chalte Jaana Hai by Brahmanand Singh
brings rare glimpses into the life of the legend … The two-hour long
documentary … features over 40 eminent personalities from the industry, who
unequivocally vouch for Burman's genius and largesse as a human being.
--
Mumbai Mirror, Jan 6, 2008
http://www.mumbaimirror.com/net/mmpaper.aspx?Page=article§id=47&contentid=200801062008010604274662d9ca9a59
One of his fans, Brahmanand Singh has
recently completed a two hour long documentary film Pancham Unmixed:
Mujhe Chalte Jaana Hai on RD Burman for which he has interviewed some
of the most revered names in the Film Industry like Asha Bhonsle, Shammi
Kapoor, Gulzar, Rishi Kapoor, Pyarelal, Javed Akhtar, Vidhu Vinod Chopra,
Vishal Bharadwaj, Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Shantanu Moitra, Shiv Kumar Sharma,
Hari Prasad Chaurasia and loads more.
--- India FM & Bollywood.com
http://www.indiafm.com/features/2008/01/04/3431/index.html
faridoon@indiafm.com
&
http://www.bollywood.com/?q=node/2843
The tribute is a thorough
look at R D Burman's life and work - and what exactly made his music so
trend setting and timeless …
-- HT Café Jan 4,
2008
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=19be3f30-133f-423b-93c0-134f9f042f8a
A poignant portion is when Vidhu
Vinod Chopra speaks about the dark phase in Pancham’s career — apparently
RDB had almost been written off by the music industry …
-- DNA Jan 2, 2008
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1142672
The film takes an incisive look not
only at the body of work of the legendary composer, but also reveals various
facets of R D Burman that you would never know.
The film is not only a nostalgic trip down memory lane for
friends of the late composer, but it’s also a cinematic tribute to one of
the greatest mSusic directors, Bollywood has ever known.
-- Yahoo.com, In.Movies
http://in.movies.yahoo.com/news-detail/16424/Filmmaker-pays-tribute-R-D-Burman-death-anniv.html
Pancham Unmixed: Mujhe Chalte
Jaana Hai (an unending journey)
a film by Brahmanand Singh
The film adopts a rather non-linier approach to Pancham
– the man and his music and attempts to explore many aspects of his music
and being, with a well-worked out effortlessness.
From the apprenticeship to his already famous father … to his early attempts in doing
comic roles … to the stories of his first big film, Teesri Manzil … to
his somewhat dramatic courtship, marriage & separation with Rita Patel,
his first wife, the film evolves into a gripping narrative of Pancham’s
reflective and innovative artistry with which he so dominated the music
scenario of the seventies, right up to the mid-eighties.
Through extremely charming and
insightful de-construction of some of his very well-known as well as some
not-so-known compositions (by musician colleagues and by a few leading
current generation composers), we get an uncanny peek into how exactly he
went about setting trends --- not only in playback songs but also in title
songs and background scores.
Effortlessly moving in and out of song stories, his amazing
oeuvre and the man behind those amazing creations, the film explores the
graph of his life and persona with heartwarming finesse. When we enter into
the low phase of his life, it restructures human tragedy at its ironic
best. The man who used to be surrounded by friends and colleagues all the
time suddenly had no one by his side, once his commercial success went on
the wane. Close friends recall, many with moist eyes, those terribly trying
days, which he navigated with his dignity and humor intact, in spite of the
low.
And then came 1942, A Love story, which sprang
him back into his pristine glory. Vidhu Vinod Chopra, however, transfixes
us with a few riveting accounts of his almost personal journey in the
process --- the act of drawing out the genius composer from his own
insecurities and demons to the real RD Burman that Chopra had always loved
and adored.
In spite of an abundance of music (since that’s what best
defines the great composer), the film is also adequately laced with
anecdotes recalled by some of his closest working colleagues, with fondness
and humor, about his peccadilloes, pranks and eccentricities (and of course
creations of some of his timeless compositions).
In an attempt to recreate the late composer, the film uses
some rare photographs and archival material (live footage, though, has been
kept, deliberately, to a minimum, since the quality encountered wasn’t very
great).
Without the use of any voiceover, the film is a structural
delight, where one facet of his music or persona seamlessly flows into
another, propelling the narrative forward every few minutes. In the
process, we come out with a rich and endearing experience of a journey
that’s delightfully, unending.
Highlights:
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Pancham’s early take off ---
Chote Nawab, BhootBangla etc
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Story of how he got to do
Teesri Manzil
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His contributions in SD’s
compositions and how he broke-off by creating an original style for himself
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Vishal Bhardwaj, Ismail
Durbar, Ehsaan Noorani & Taufiq Qureshi share their fascination about
songs like Duniya mein … breath rhythm etc …
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Padosan – elements of scale
change … notion of introducing a lot of polyphony into our music and
getting away with it … people saying ‘hey that’s so nice …’ etc
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Panchamda’s caring style of
getting the best out of his singers & his songs not being simple songs
but with a lot of reading between the lines, the subtleties …
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His rather exciting
courtship, marriage & (sad) divorce with first wife, Rita Patel
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How legends of India would
keep sitting for his creations … and his democratic and warm way of working
with his fellow musicians and getting the best out of them …
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It never felt like work,
recall close colleagues, pointing out how they’d look forward to a new day
… what new is going to happen today … song stories …
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Gulzar about the high
moments he shared … how they shared the best of years of theirs,
together … in a search, not
for work but of themselves …
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Friends talk about Pancham’s
naughty pranks …
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Musical insights … folk
Ektara to Madal … with song stories
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Insights into his rhythm
experimentations … with song stories and examples …
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Fans … their craze, and
endless exciting reasons for it …
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Percussionists Nitin Shankar
mentions how after doing his 10th grade, he chose a subject of
unending study, a subject called Pancham … Shantanu Moitra, Vishal Bhardwaj,
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, all acknowledge influences and fascination …
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The magic of off-beat … why it added so much to the
playfulness of his tunes
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Gulzar & Ahsa Bhosle …
about their rather close association … with personal anecdotes & song
stories and an intimate peek into Pancham’s creativity and persona …
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The depth inside the
composer … one who’s lived a life in all its hues … contemporary composers
share their awe on the range of RD’s music, with insight and examples …)
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Amazing background scores …
Satte Pe Satta … gargling story, horse chase (Sholay) stories etc …
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Influences and inspiration …
RD’s way of adapting melodies … and giving it a new lease of life, making
it even more popular and charming …
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The success of Pantera, a Latin Anerican album he had
done, in the west …
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RD, was he constantly trying
to negate the idea of form?
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Bengali … Puja albums, their
cult status, appropriation into Hindi etc
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Side rhythms
experimentations … obsession with real sounds …
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Recording expertise … why the
quality of his songs still sound so good …
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Lighter moments, glimpse
into personal side --- sense of humor, dress, driving
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Sagar debacle … how it set
him back …
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Dil Padosi Hai … brilliant album …
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Growing depression … changing times, changing professional
styles/ethics of others …
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Lesson from RD Burman’s life
… how he was destroyed because he wrongly believed in commercial success
and failure … and loneliness he was driven into …
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Mohammad Ali Clay’s
definition of a champion …
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How initially, movie
companies refused to buy music of 1942, A Love Story, upon
hearing RD Burman’s name …
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The refreshing 1942 …
Vinod Chopra’s new year’s party … Pancham’s last moment of glory while
alive …
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Pancham lives on … he’s not
dead because he’s music …
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Along with Puccini, Richard
Rodgers, Pancham being positioned as the third greatest melody maker of the
20th Century …
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People’s admiration growing
by the day … much after he’s passed away … Remixes
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Fond salutations and moist
eyed, reflective memories from close friends and colleagues about a man who
was so adorable … and a composer whose music is an unending journey …
What has gone into the making of
the film
Tireless effort of
getting the possible key people on the film, shooting with them with patience
and sensitivity … and over fifteen hundred editing hours, to create a seamless
structure that covers Pancham the man and his music --- all important
aspects, retaining its engaging elements at all points.
The effort has also been
made to create a film of international class, in content, structure and
technical quality (has been shot on HDV, wide screen format, 16:9 aspect
ratio … is compatible with good quality reverse-telecine for theatrical
release).
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