An endless feud between the fans of Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar..
Mohammed Rafi was born at Kotla Sultan Singh, near Amritsar . Rafi displayed his talent for singing at the tender age of 13. The lure of movies beckoned him to Bombay in 1944. His first hit was the Tera Khilona Toota Balak from Anmol Ghadi in 1946. India lost this jewel on July 31, 1980.
Abhas Kumar Ganguly, better known as Kishore Kumar was born on August 4, 1929 in Kandwa. Following the footsteps of his elder brother Ashok Kumar he too ventured into movies. But he soon realised that his heart was in singing. Under the patronage of RD Burman he soon flourished. He would at times compose and write songs himself. Sadly he passed away in October,1987.
The debate as to who was the greater singer carries on even today, even decades after their death. Both of them left an indelible mark in the world of Indian film music, a void that still cannot be filled today. No wonder that their fans are at constant feud with one another trying to prove that their hero was better.
It is a no secret that Mohammed Rafi was a trained classical singer and that Kishore Kumar had a natural talent. Hence Rafi’s fans feel that he was the more accomplished and skilful of the two. Kishoreda’s fans are of the opinion that though he may not have been trained, he had purity and sheer quality of voice. The fact that he wasn’t trained, and could still sing anything, both classical and non classical songs with equal magic rendered him more superior than Rafi.
Fans claim that Rafi was the most favoured singer for many veteran composers while Kishore Kumar was preferred by few and was a playback mainly for Dev Anand and later for Rajesh Khanna. Rafi on the other hand balanced his melodious voice for diverse stars like Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, Guru Dutt, Rajendra Kumar and Shammi Kapoor.
In support of Rafi’s greatness, many of his fans say Rafi sang for Kishore Kumar in films that Kishore himself acted. They also draw the attention to Rafi’s song Darde Dil in Karz which was based on a single note and proved that he was indeed blessed with God-gifted melody. Mohammed Rafi’s fans also claim that Sonu Nigam and Udit Narayan who belong to the Rafi school are technically better than Kumar Sanu, Babul Supriyo etc.
On the other hand, Kishore Kumar’s fans remind people of songs which he sang by melodiously incorporating his inimitable yodelling. Those numbers are extremely popular even today. They further claim that in the 70’s and 80’s, it was he who sang for a number of heroes.
This debate can go on endlessly. However it must be stated that both were great singers of their times and each had his own distinctive style.
There was no feud between the two and the immense respect that Kishore Kumar had for Mohammed Rafi is clearly seen in the photo during Rafi’s funeral. A silent, sad and grief-struck Kishore in the newspapers portrayed very well that no one except him understood what an irreparable loss had taken place in Indian film music.
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April 24th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Vipul,
I can’t see my last detail mail on Kishore’s devotional songs.
Kishore sang many filmi devotional songs under Rajesh Roshan and LP composition. Check the DB.
Abt Rehman, Rehman is most hyped MD of today. He concentrate more on sound than melody.
Listen few of his hit songs:
1. Pathsaala
2. Fanna from Yuva (i can’t understand lyrics)
3. all songs from Nayak
All above songs are c grade songs.
I think Jatin-Lalit was great MD of newer generation, but sad thing is that they are now seperated.
He copied couple of his tunes in Sivaji (Tamil) form Dil Se….
Vipul,
I write samething to you, becauase you question/doubt samething again anad again.
April 24th, 2008 at 12:01 am
Ashu Sir
I admire your spirited defence of Kishoreda.You are the most formidable opponent we the fans of Rafi have on this forum.I am glad that you watched K4K on the 19th.In Asha’s own words the show was trashy.My point from the beginning has been: what purpose do such shows serve? They further spoil the already degenerated tastes of the people who watch them.
Anyway,Asha is often cited by Kishore fans to boost the latter’s position vis-a-vis Rafi.Whenever I have heard Asha I have found her lacking in sophistication.Whatever be her credentials as a singer,her assertions often border on the ridiculous.And her effusions on the 19th were no exception.
Asha said:Kishore jaisa bara singer hazaar saal mein nahin hua.Aur Lata jaisa.
My question:I would like my ignorance of films and music to be dispelled by being told the names of films and singers from 11th to 19th centuries.My severely limited knowledge of film music is confined only to the 20th century.
Or was Asha just talking for our amusement?
Another amusing thing that Asha said was:Kishore is liye sabse barey singer the kyonki veh hamesha sur mein gaate the.
My question is: If the criterion of sab se bara singer is haemesha sur mein gaana,then what about Saigal?Or Talat and Manna De.( I am not putting forward Rafi for the Mangeshkar sisters feel insecure with him).Kishore himself acknowledged Manna De’s superiority to him in the matter of sur.Talking about the song:koi hum dum na raha koi sahara na raha,Ashok Kumar, who himself had sung this song before Kishore sang it,said that Kishore had no knowledge of sur.
Or was Asha just kidding?
Ashu,I quoted Lata only to show that Rafi is such a great singer that even those who have pronounced antipathy to him for personal reasons can’t escape the spell of his music.Lata’s praise of Kishore is obviously motivated and partisan.Song for song Lata has sung like Rafi and not Kishore.Her repertoire matches Rafi’s and not Kishore’s.Though demonstrably she is not Rafi’s equal.She is deficient both in treble and bass whereas Rafi soars effortlessly.The reason for the sisters’ denigration of Rafi is that once Rafi is out of reckoning,there is nobody to challenge them for the top slot.
Vipul
You say that Kishore had no connection with gazal.
Do you mean that he was an imperfect singer?
Kishore had no connection with classical singing.He has sung nothing like Madhuban mein Radhika naache.
Does that mean that he was just a singer for the hoi ploi,for the front benchers?
Vipul,what about:Hum bekhudi mein tum ko pukare chale gaye?Something beyond the capabilities of Kishore.
I can’t understand the Kishore fans who wish to place on the highest musical pedestal a man who contributed nothing to some of the finest aspects of music.
Kishore is often lauded for his manly,resounding voice.Yes,indeed!He is just a male version of Shamshad Begum.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:57 am
Vipul,
Pls. mention top 10 melidious songs from Rahman….He is MD who concentrate on sound than melody. I canhardly hear singer’s voice in his composition..
Great composition
- Pathasala
- rang de basanti
- Fanaa (Yava…Still i don;t understand lyrics)
If above songs are great, then i am sorry. I think Jatin-Lalit was great composer in today, and sad thing that they are not together now.
Vipul mere dost,
There are many devotional song sung by Kishore..Pls. check the DB..He sang under RDB and LP composition.
Regarding patriotic, in hindi i can remmeber only “Aakraman” song whihc is great.
And one more, Singing more songs doesn’t mean singer is great….
Again and again, u r coming back to square:
u wrote:
I wonder RDB being KK loyalist didn’t choose him. Similarly LP use Mahendra Kapoor in Avtar for Rajesh Khanna in a devotional number. kk is just not comfortable with devotional songs.
My reply:
,
Many times i replied to such silly doubt..
You are eager to know that Kishore was not comfortable with devotional songs
Can you answer why LP asked Kishore to sing “TUM KO BHI TO AISA HI KUCHH” from AABA, and why LP asked kishore to sing “Mere naseed me ae dost tera pya rnahi” though all songs were sung by Rafi.
If you can find answer pls. let me know.
Boss, let’s talk on songs or composition delivered by Kishore and Rafi. Lata hardly sang disco songs, does it mean she could not sing disco songs.
April 23rd, 2008 at 12:53 am
There is no doubt about the fact that Rafi was a prolific singer who lent his voice not only to leading actors of the 50s and 60s, but also did playback singing for established singers. When Kishore Kumar went off key recording Ajab hai dastaan teri ay zindagi for Shararat, Shankar Jaikishan summoned Rafi to lend his voice for Kishore Kumar.
Besides Kishore Kumar, Talat Mahmood used Rafi’s voice for the Lala Rukh number Hai kali kali ke lab par teray husan ka fasana. Neither Talat nor Kishore objected to Rafi’s voice being used for them— such was the virtuosity of Rafi. This speaks volumes for their on-mike camaraderie.
link given below…
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040808/mailbag.htm
April 23rd, 2008 at 12:02 am
Correction:
In the second paragraph of my last post, the sentence should read as:
“and this domination period includes the 1977-80 period”.
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:55 pm
Vipul,
Here are the Rafi-KK output stats from 1969 to 1972. These figures are as per the HFM Geet Kosh:
1969: Rafi - 194, KK - 20
1970: Rafi - 131, KK - 47
1971: Rafi - 131, KK - 102
1972: Rafi - 95, KK - 137
After 1972, KK took over in terms of number of songs, and Rafi leaving the country, and cutting down on his work had a lot to do with that. From 1972-76, the difference in Rafi and KK output isn’t that much, and then from 1977-80, Rafi has sung more songs than Kishore (in total). So it is definitely a myth that KK ruled from 69 onwards, his peak periods were 72-76 for various reasons and even then Rafi wasn’t far behind, he was right there.
Also in this ’so called’ KK 70’s rule period, Rafi won the Filmfare and National Award vis a vis RDB in 1977 besides winning other awards such as in 1974 for “Teri Galiyon Mein Na” from Hawas. He was also nominated for many awards as well. Mukesh also won a few awards, and Mahendra Kapoor even won an award as well. This all happened in the ’so called’ KK decade. When Rafi dominated the industry, no one even came close to him, and thid domination period included the 1977-80 period. In 1972-76, Rafi cut down on his own singing, which is why the stats show his output decreased in those years, but the media highlighted it as Rafi was gone when he never left. Check out the period 1979-81 on the BGM, very little of Kishore, and mostly all Rafi. Those who were present during that time and followed the BGM trends will know this, its a fact. Rafi’s songs were very popular in the 70’s on BGM and elsewhere, as were songs from other singers, along with KK songs. Rafi’s popularity in the 70’s in general was the same as previous decades, and no one could also reach him in this aspect as well.
The examples given by KK fans of Kishore songs in various other genres is a joke, and not up to the mark, because KK didn’t have any real quality qawwali’s, ghazals, geets, bhajans, etc. There is no comparison between Rafi and KK, Rafi is miles ahead, the more KK fans try and defend him, the worse it gets. KK himself acknowledged Rafi as the greatest, but his fans think something else.
It is also a myth that after Teen Devian KK challenged for the number 1 spot. Truth is he was, as expected, no where during that time. Look at KK’s stats from 1965-1968 in terms of songs (as per HFM Geet Kosh):
1965: 16
1966: 8
1967: 11
1968: 22
If you call this challenging for the number 1 spot, then may the truth come to you in the future. Please do not fabricate facts, and please do not compare apples and oranges, KK or any singer doesn’t even come close to Rafi.
It’s also a fact that the majority of artists, musicians, MD’s etc. consider Rafi as the greatest. A few comments here and there from others won’t make a difference. We can’t count Asha, because it is her agenda to promote RD and in the process she also ignores Rafi and only mentions KK.
Also, RD composed better for Rafi from 1977-80 then he did for KK (imo). Rajesh Roshan was KK’s best composer from 1975 onwards, and not RD, and RR also was one of Rafi’s best latter day composers as well.
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:55 pm
Songs sang by Rafi and picturized on Rajesh Khanna were a result of incapability of kishore to sing them. Example - “Ekna To Yaad Hai”, “Yeh Jo Chilman Hai”, “Ann Milo Sajnaa”, etc.
Manna Dey himself has acknowledged that Rafi was not basically a classical singer, but had the capability to sing any type of classical song. Rafi was trained by renowed Ustads and Pandits.
I have been listening to Rafi for last 23 years. I have listened to Kishore also. Rafi has sang for maximum number of music composers. It is not the question of high pitch only, but also the control of the voice. Songs “O Duniya a Rakhwale”, “Mann Tadpat Hari”, “Madhubhan Mein Radhika”, “Tum Jo Mil Gaye Ho”, etc. speak of voice modulation with great control.
Coming to Kishore, he survived because of S D Burman(Dada), because in the 1950s and 60s only Dada had the right musical notes for his voice. Without Dada Kishore could have been wiped out long back. Kishore sang remarkable numbers under the Burmans & LP.
Kishore needs a very good tune to excel. In case of Rafi what ever the tune may be his voice will do magic.
If Kishore was such a great singer, then majority songs should have been sang by him after Rafi death in 1980. In the 80s music composers felt the need to Rafi so much that even a singer like Mahendra Kapoor was also not considered, though he could match Rafi’s pitch very well. Singers like Anwar, Shabir Kumar and Munna Aziz got break through. Just imagine new comers competing with Kishore Kumar. One can imagine where Kishore stands.
Media has tried to promote that Kishore Kumar over Rafi in the 70s. But after Rafi’s death his absence has proved how great a singer he was.
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Hello friends,
I am a perfect fan of the certainly great kishore kumar. The songs which our kishore da has sung with mohd. rafi such as bane chahe dushman jamana hamara and yadoon ki barat etc. ; kishore da has a definite edge over rafi. I have repeated this message many times in mohd. rafi. com. In fact, the administrator there has stopped posting my messages due to my supporting of kishore kumar. Many times i have argued that kishore da is the best than mohd. rafi. Everybody knows kishore was selected the best playback singer in aradhana and many times thereafter when rafi was still there. Still rafi fans argue about rafi without paying heed to my above message. It is but for sure kishore rose from aradhana and continued to eclipse rafi and was the greatest singer in bollywood till he left this earth. Rafi was below kishorekumar from aradhana onwards.
More so rafians, rafi not only falls behind rafi, but you will also note that he is also not better than another great legend, which you will come to know from my wonderful presentation made hereunder.
My dear kishore fans and dearest friends,
As true music lovers, i would also like to introduce here the greatest south indian playback legend from telugu i.e shri ghantasala venkateshwara rao, I have heard his few songs and i personally feel his voice is a perfect divine and melodious voice and undoubtedly one of the greatest voices in playback singing which our country has produced. I was mesmerised by this legend from the south, as it reminded me my favourite kishore kumar’s talent and presentation.
One rafi fan himself writes in mohd. rafi. com. I am reproducing his comments here. I request my friends to give a patient reading and to kindly have a opportunity to hear shri ghantasala, the greatest playback legend from the south and enjoy his mellifluous voice as true music lovers.
comments by sri rakesh malhotra, a rafi fan on mohd. rafi.com
Third, and possibly most amazing, I heard the Shiva Shankari song posted (hereunder) after reading Khan saahab’s raving review of Ghantasala ji, and man, am I lucky I decided to visit this website today. - (khan sahab is a seasoned hindustani musician who reveiwed shri ghantasala ji’s talent and found him to be the best singer)
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Is he (ghantasala ji) for real?!! And, how come I haven’t heard of him until today?! He (ghantasala ji) has the perfect combination of voice and technical ability — the latter (ghantasala ji) is simply out of this world, the modulation, the control, the pitch he reaches. WOW!!!
Anyone out there who hasn’t heard him yet — please listen to:
shiva shankari song from telugu posted here and sung by shri ghantasala:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=M3hCRAQ2yJg
I guarantee - you will be amazed. After listening to this, I listened to songs sung by both Rafi saahab and Ghantasala ji, and I must say Ghantasala ji easily eclipses him mohd. rafi in all of them. Suvarna Sundari (kuhu kuhu bole koyaliya in hindi )aur Chal Ud Ja Re Pancchi.
Here are the links for the above two songs sung by ghantasala ji in telugu:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuxnuuX_hZQ (the telugu suvarna sundari song which was first sung in telugu by ghantasala ji)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=nra86TX__hc (chal ud ja re panchi in telugu sung by ghantasala ji - first sung by mohd. rafi)
that is the message from rafi fan.
Raj continues,
Friends, Our rafi fan is right regarding shri ghantasala, I have heard him and you all will be also will be amazed after hearing the divine voice of this legend from south. This information is only for true music lovers.
Rafians,
So, mohd. rafi is only after these great singers - ghantasala ji and kishore kumar.
April 22nd, 2008 at 9:18 pm
KK Fan:
Sure Kishore is more versatile.. Not only did he know acting and comedy, he also knew how to evade income taxes and just evade Madhubala in her death bed once he had “extracted” all her juice…Don’t make us open our mouth..For your reference: http://specials.rediff.com/movies/2008/mar/25sd5.htm
Ashu: Who told you Shreya’s favorite was Kishore? She did not even mention KK in her interview (unfortunately it is Bengali Anandalok; I am trying to get an English version of the interview). She said Rafi and Rafi only..
Go through the list of the judges of the Outlook India poll, remove the obvious KK followers and Rafi followers, and you will figure out the way people like Shreya voted!
April 22nd, 2008 at 8:16 pm
We are KK fans:
Our arguments for KK are:
He Yodels
He is a great comedian
He was RD Burman’s favourite
He lacks classical training
We are happy that he does not get National Award
He has one semi classical song, one patriotic, and one devotional, so he can sing every type of songs.
He can shout in sur Chak Chik Cha Cha Cha Cha.
Kishore da ki jai ho!
Our questions:
Can Rafi do comedy?
How many films he has acted in?
Can he yodel?
Can he shout in sur?
Was he loud?
Was he RD Burman’s favourite?
Has he ever said Chak Chik Cha Cha Cha Cha?
Kishore da ki jai ho!
Your Rafi knows only singing. That’s all. Kishore da knows many things. A real Jack!
Kishore da ki jai ho!
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:51 pm
KK and devotional songs, patriotic songs
———————————————–
I think KK has sung 0 devotional songs. I recall a film Dard-Ka-Rishta in which there are KK songs with Music Director RD Burman. There is one devotionsal song on Ganpati Visargan which is sung by Hari-Haran. I wonder RDB being KK loyalist didn’t choose him. Similarly LP use Mahendra Kapoor in Avtar for Rajesh Khanna in a devotional number. kk is just not comfortable with devotional songs.
The patriotic scong by kk in Akraman is Good. But a patriotic song sung at low pitch doesn’t sound very appealling. This is perhaps Rafi’s and Mehendra’s area, since both can stay at very high range of singing for a longer time. In short, kk’s voice is not suitable for devotional songs and patriotic songs… oe please mention more songs of kk on desh bhakti to enhance my knowledge… I need to learn from you more and more…
Ashu, Correct me if I am wrong.
Please also find out how many songs were sung by Rafi and kk from 1969 till 1972 as I am not sure. You can enhance my knowledge here too. I have to learn more and more from everyone.
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:34 pm
About A R. Rahman…
Someone mentioned that his tunes are all the same. I think he is the best MD of today. He is very original. He does not copy. In fact, I fell in this aspect he is even better than RD.
Remember How RD was inspired by western tunes, He is used to copy the whole tune and then his fans will say that RD was just inspired. I feeling copying the tune is true inspiration.
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:29 pm
Ashu Wrote:
“2 mahine se ek his dhun baja rahe ho….Jara dhun change karo: Itni bar fact batane par bhi aadat nahi chhod rahe ho”
Dear Ashu.. fact is Rafi is more versatile than kk and you also know that…
My post was not meant for u dear. If you do not like my facts, please ignore them. And you kind of do the sanme thing right! … Writing the same thing againa and again… and then telling others not to repeat! (pure double standard) But I have no problems with your posts…
Please go thru your post u wrote to me and you will realise that u mentioned same thing before…
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Dhani Ram, I have heard the ghazal you are talking about… “Gazab kiya… tere wade pe.. Tamam raat qyamat ka intzaar kiya”…
Rafi was excellent in ghazals unlike KK. I mean KK and Ghazal has no connection at all.
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Manish Kumar and other Rafians:
Here is a link:
http://entertainment.oneindia.in/music/news/lata-mangeshkar-music-030707.html
Lata said:
While speaking about other yesteryear artists, Lataji liked Kishore Kumar the best. While she feels that singers like Mohd. Rafi and Mukesh were good in most of their songs, Kishore Kumar was good in every song. Kishore Kumar’s sad songs have been her favourite and she rates the romantic songs she has sung with Mohd. Rafi as amongst her best.
Now, What i observed from Sudip, Vipul, VIkram and DHani Ram comments that, if Lata said something good abt Kishore then she is biased or she twisted her comments as Rafians cliamed. But if Rafians said something wrong abt Kishore then they are right.
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:28 pm
dear vipul ,
2 mahine se ek his dhun baja rahe ho….Jara dhun change karo: Itni bar fact batane par bhi aadat nahi chhod rahe ho….
u wrote:
Interms of versatility, Rafi was miles ahead… KK is nowhere in the picture (forget about no 2) . Rafi has sung almost all types of songs with equal ease and perfection. Check the database and you will know where kk stands…
my reply:
What do you mean all types of songs? Is it Qawaali, ghazal, geet, mujra etc? Does it show greatness if singer sing all types of songs as mentioned above. If is it so, then BHUPINDER is another best after Rafi.
I believe i already shared Kishore’s songs for all above categories 2 months ago.
What do you mean “Equal ease”? Pls. listen “YAAD NA JAAYE BITE DINO KI”
It was one of my fav; songs sung by Rafi, but suddenly i started diliking this songs. Reason is, word like “YAAD”, “JAAYE”…Many times it felt like “khar khar” voice (somebody has tighten his throat with handkerchief).
u wrote:
and it is also a myth that KK was number 1 from 1969 onwards. He became hit and popular after 1969 for sure. but Rafi was ruling playback singing till 1972. I am not very sure on his but again I feel Rafi was marginally ahead of kk till about 72. Sudip and Dhaniram can throw more light on this topic.
my reply:
It might be myth for u rafians, but it is a fact that Kishore ruled industry from 69, though he inclined toward no. 1 after TEEN DEVIYAAN and slowly he eclised Rafi in 69.
Why are you asking SUDIP and DHANI RAM to throw more light, is it because they can extend ur thought
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Kishore was Kishore….no any comparision!! He came from Heaven and went there again…..
Actor, writer, director, musician, comedian, singer and a true nature lover…
What a person!!
Great!!
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:11 pm
DhaniRamji,
Kishore Kumar’s clone are worthless, because nobody can become Kishore as Asha clearly told in that episode:
u wrote:
Raj Sahib,Lataji has this to say about the greatest ever Indian singer:Rafi sahib bahut surila gate the.Veh har tarah ke geet gate the.Un jaisa gayak baar baar paida nahin hota.Maine sab se ziada duets unke saath gaye
My reply:
Lata was 100% correct, Rafi was great singer and definetely was SURILA, but she never said Rafi was best among best, but Asha openely accepted that Lata and Kishore are best. I hope everyone knows what Lata said abt Kishore.
Sudip..Mere dost.
I hope you must aware of singer name “ALKA YAGNIK” , “SHREYA GHOSAL”. They openely accepted that Kishore was best among male singer. Even Alka said, she (and her entire family) used to listen only Lata and Kishore in her free time.
Abt Rahman, he is hyped MD. All his tunes are same, he prefer to sing in high pitch like Rafi. So i am not surprised at all.
But i must say, i respect Rahman’s view.
April 22nd, 2008 at 9:24 am
Rahman makes special note of Rafi:
http://mangalorean.com/news.php?newstype=local&newsid=75272
He then mentioned the names of some fine performers and singers like SP Balasubramaniam, KS Chitra and Lata Mangeshkar. The names of these artists along with the legend of hindi music industry Mohammed Rafi needs to be etched on a marble in golden letters for generations to remember them for their contribution in the field of music he added.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:22 am
ab sahib
Don’t scold my friend Vipul.Did you watch that blot on the name music on 19th? Five picked so called Kishore clones performed and Ashaji found them worthless.Will you advise Ashaji toop to keep away from such rubbish?
Raj Sahib,Lataji has this to say about the greatest ever Indian singer:Rafi sahib bahut surila gate the.Veh har tarah ke geet gate the.Un jaisa gayak baar baar paida nahin hota.Maine sab se ziada duets unke saath gaye.This from a rival singer who tried to let Rafi down speaks for the latter’s supremacy.
Those who have heard Rafi’s non-film gazal and Jagjit Singh’s glowing tribute to it please raise their hands:Gazab kiya tere waide pe aitbaar kiya.Rafi was not only the greatest film singer,he was also a very great singer of non-film gazals as well.
April 21st, 2008 at 11:23 pm
Dear Anil,
I think many people have said before but I would repeat.
Rafi ruled Hindi playback singing for more years than KK. Check the history…
I agree with your songs like Aanewala pal, Yeh Jeevan hai etc that KK was wonderful. But there are many Rafi songs to counter those songs of kk.
Interms of versatility, Rafi was miles ahead… KK is nowhere in the picture (forget about no 2) . Rafi has sung almost all types of songs with equal ease and perfection. Check the database and you will know where kk stands…
and it is also a myth that KK was number 1 from 1969 onwards. He became hit and popular after 1969 for sure. but Rafi was ruling playback singing till 1972. I am not very sure on his but again I feel Rafi was marginally ahead of kk till about 72. Sudip and Dhaniram can throw more light on this topic.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Kishore was great and at his true best in soft and sad songs.
one can’t imagine Yeh JEEVAN HAI, KAB tak andhere( rajesh roshan compsition, the song is carried by simply voice there was liitlebackground music, no singer has done it!), Aanewala pal, Zindagi ka safar . chhokar mere manko kiya . moreover if you are not carried away from the complex of classical singing you will notice that hume tumse pyar kitana by kishore is more effective than parveen sultana sheerely by emotions put in the song.
It is amyth that rafi made comeback as top in eighties. his songs were more in 1980 in binaca but that is because of Amitkumar shared some numbers of kishore courtosy RDB.
Moreover the best songs in 1977 to 1980 were composed by rajesh roshan , rdb and their best compositions ( Rimzim gire sawan ) are sung by kishore and always this was the case .Occassionally RDB used Rafi for the khoya khoyaa chand versions!. in abdulla best song was not Maine pucha chandse but Ae khuda her faisala tera muze manjjor hai a sad song sung by kishore.
Kishore as regarded as top due to his vice quality which reflevted in songs like KABtak andhere Manko and JEEvanse na har jeenawale imosiible to ever imagine in any other voce.
there were some qualities of Lata and asha in kishore’s voce and exactly complimentary copies from latrta and asha reflected in rafi’s voice.RDB realized it late.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:53 pm
Kishore kumar is a great singer. Indeed bollywood is fortunate enough to possess such a great singer. I personally feel and enjoy his songs. I am a telugu person, but a firm lover of songs of bollywood singers mainly kishore kumar and mohd. rafi who are greatest singers in Hindi along with my favourite singer in telugu, ghantasala venkateshwara rao, a classical telugu playback legend in the south.
April 20th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Vipul,
If you don’t like K4K just don’t watch it! It really doesn’t matter if all the rafi fans doesn’t watch K4K
April 18th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
Raj,
Often when a stalwart makes a comment to the press, he or she does not say it with the intent to be accounted for every word. Good example would be from Mannade. One interview he’ll say Rafi is the best and another interview he’ll say Kishore is best. We’ve seen both interviews of that. In some interviews, Lata has mentioned only Rafi and sometimes Kishore. On a given interview, Lata will mention a different set of composers as her favorites. Interviews on pleasant topics like this i.e. your favorite co-singers, are a light, fun matter for someone like Lata. It isn’t a serious task like recording a song or answering allegations about a monopoly. Sure you have exceptions like Anil Biswas who remains consistent with his remarks.
Less importantly, I notice the interview was paraphrased - there was no direct quote. Often I have seen paraphrasers or translaters give a very different impression from the original. SD Burman’s interview for Dev Anand & Kishore is a good example.
Hindi: par Kishore ke siwaaye sirf Rafi hii kii aawaaz Dev ke liye yogya thii.
English: Kishore was the perfect choice for Dev Anand; no other male singer, except Rafi to a limited extent, suited Dev.
Notice how the uncharitable phrase “limited extent” pops in.
I give the highest value to the opinions of each and every one of the dedicated music lovers that we have here. Just listen to the music, make your choice, and clarify your perspective.