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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May 21st, 2007 at 8:39 am
Jayanta,
Here’s an excerpt from an article Manna Dey wrote in Anandabazar Patrika after Naushad’s death. I met the great man after a concert last year and requested him to translate his autobiography from Bengali into English. Hope he does, so that the non-Bengali audience can know more about him and his opinions. You don’t have to buy the book; go to a book store and flip through the pages and see whose pictures appear the most other than his.
“Once some of my acquaintances from Kannada Radio wanted to interview Naushad saab and they asked me for my help. Naushad saab immediately agreed to my request. But the condition was that I would have to go to his house and have lunch with him. When I went, I found that lavish arrangements had been made; Muslims are famous for their hospitality. We chatted for a long time. With a smile on his face, he said, ‘Everyone asks me, who is a greater singer? Mohammed Rafi or Manna Dey?’ I smiled and replied, “Why don’t you tell them Rafi is a much better singer? I say that myself. That’s what I believe in my mind.’
I am saying it again, our and everyone’s favourite Rafi, India’s best male voice of all time, could transcend to a different level because of the magic in Naushad’s tunes. I do not have the words to express my gratitude and respect to Naushad for that.”
May 21st, 2007 at 6:57 am
kishore da was the gr8est is the gr8est & will always b gr8 & this is the fact no matter what some people say & i cant understand if some people dont consider kishore da as great singer than what are they doing to this website This is only 4 kishore da fans
May 21st, 2007 at 6:39 am
Hussein bhai, you keep saying Bapan and some other guys are repeating themselves .. well you too are doing the same.
Just a word for you. To them KK may be great as Rafi sahab is to you. Stop comparing the legends. They both have a special place in the hindi film music and we should accept them the way they are. Why is it that you guys can’t appreciate Rafi sahab without bringing in Kishore Kumar? Why is it not Mukesh, Manna Dey. They were no less than Kishore or others, right? If acc to you Rafi sahab is incomparable, then why are you bringing in Kishore Kumar at all? Does that make any sense to you?
The article is more on the discussion about the feuds between the fans and not the legends.
May 21st, 2007 at 5:23 am
P. Haldar,
I checked with a dear friend of mine who also a huge Rafi fan.
The point that Rafi saab took a break from singing is authentic. It was after his Haj pilgrimage in 1971 where a maulvi told him that singing was ‘haram’ and he quit singing for that period of time, roughly 8 months. This was a crucial period and during the time he was out of town, the majority of songs went to KK.
About your Bobby story, it is again true. Raj Kapoor wanted either Rafi or a new voice and Rafi could not record the songs because he was away. The songs were recorded sometime in 71, Bobby released in 72 or 73.
As you pointed out, Main Shaayar To Nahin would have been wonders in Rafi’s voice.
I would like to pose a question to Kishore fans as to why Raj Kapoor did not want to take Kishore for Bobby even when it was KK’s “peak” period ?.
May 21st, 2007 at 3:55 am
Mast Mast, nothing special said by you…..
May 21st, 2007 at 1:53 am
As P. Haldar mentioned, I would like to Thank the members of this forum for allowing us to participate in heathy discussions about Rafi and Kishore.
Adding some more, it took Kishore 2-3 years after Aradhana to take the top spot by himself. If you look at the Rafi-KK stats for the years 1970-1980, in 1970 and 71, Rafi has sung more songs than Kishore, so you could say from about 72-76 before Laila Majnu released, it was Kishore who ruled the roost. Rafi’s comeback to the charts is generally said to have started around 76-77. However here is an excerpt from Raju Bharatan’s recent article on Rafi:
“Still Rafi, by dint of sheer effort, had staged a comeback without parallel in the annals of the industry. A comeback beginning with Usha Khanna’s award-winning Teri Galiyon Mein in Hawas (1974).”
So according to RB, Rafi coming back started around 1974. Anyways, charts do not mean anything when talking about singing talent, and even though no male singer has had as much success on music charts as Rafi has, he was always a class apart as a singer.
Also, Rafi and Kishore have sung almost the same number of songs in the 70’s which is something interesting indeed.
I will mention one composer who I think after RDB took the best out of Kishore and that is Rajesh Roshan. Whenever Kishore sang for RR, I think he sounded different, more softer, their songs together are great from films such as Julie, Des Pardes, Swami etc. Junior Roshan was responsible for many of Kishore’s hits from the mid 70’s and onwards.
May 21st, 2007 at 1:16 am
In this entire thread till now, I have held back my criticism about Kishore and RD, while displaying my preference for Rafi.
But here is something that I can’t pardon Kishore and RD for. To me, RD, Bappi and the likes with the aid of Kishore Kumar murdered Bengali songs for good. Bengali songs in the 1950s to mid-70’s represented the soft romanticism of the Bengali bhadralok played on screen by Uttam, Soumitra, Subhendu.. Songs used to be soft and strong on lyrics.. For the Bengalis out here, rewind to Uttam hits in Pothey Holo Deri, Sankhabela, Nayika Sangbad, Deya Neya, Antony Firingi, Stree or Chowringee…Or the Soumitra starred Sat pakey badha, Monihaar, Pratham Kadam Phool…The melodies were soft and mellowed, the focus was on lyrics and tune.. Voices of Manna, Hemanta, Shyamal, Satinath, Dhananjoy used to represent the dhoti-clad bengali bhadralok, depicting bengali romanticism and intellegentia..
Then came Kishore Kiumar, backed by RD and Bappi..This was the worst import that could have ever hit Bengal from Bombay.. Most of the Bollywood hits were “bengalicized” without any care for regional nuances or culture. So we saw Kishore humming “He he ha ha ha” in Bengali numbers, tunes completely contrarian to the soft bhadralok personality.
Things started going out of control in the 1980s. Towards the period of Kishore’s death we witnessed juvenile lyrics like “(H)E(Y) amar gurudakhina”, “Eparey thakbo ami” or “Tomar barir samney diyey amar moron yatra” delevered in the rough Kishore open-throated style. The real funeral procession (”moron yatra”) was that of Bengali songs.. It only hastened the arrival of Sanu, Abhijeet, Udit who polluted it beyond recovery..
Bengali songs will never be the same..
May 21st, 2007 at 12:57 am
Any idea why RD used Rafi for Rajesh Khanna in “The Train”? Wasn’t it post-Aradhana?
May 21st, 2007 at 12:04 am
Also, Kishore’s dominating period was for pretty much four years either 71-75 or 72-76 however one wants to look at it.
May 21st, 2007 at 12:00 am
Btw, in my first paragraph I was referring to the Binaca List of 1971 vis a vis Rafi’s hits in those films.
May 20th, 2007 at 11:58 pm
P. Haldar,
Very great analysis, I always enjoy reading your write-ups and appreciate your great knowledge.
Coming to the story about Haj, I have heard this from several sources, although it may not be true now that I have heard it from you. I find it hard to believe that Rafi who produced many hits in 70-71 could only have one or two songs on the Top list of Binaca at that time compared to the rest of KK’s scores. Do you know the reason for this ?. What happened to his songs from Caravan, Mela, The Train, Aap Aaye Bahar Aaye etc. during that time. I read in an interview of Shakti Samantha that they wanted Rafi for Kati Patang but he was out of town so all the numbers went to Kishore and one to Mukesh. You mentioned that this score was also a factor in Kishore’s upswing in the early 70’s.
In regards to his comeback on the charts, in the years 77 (Pardah Hai Pardah), 78 (Aadmi Musafir), 80 (Dafli Wale) and 81 (Chal Mere Bhai), Rafi had the top song for those years. From 77-79 Kishore may have had more songs in general but it wasn’t by much, so in this sense BOTH shared the top slot. In 1980 and 81, Rafi matched Kishore in the number of songs but Rafi also passed away in the middle of 1980, as well as had more songs on the charts during certain periods, so it is clear that in terms of the number game, Rafi had gained his numero Uno slot back. Let me also bring back the point I mentioned earlier that I had interacted with listeners of the BGM at the time, that from 79-81 when Sargam released, it was Rafi everywhere, and indeed he was King, so in my view he re-gained his position of numero uno. His domination at that time is legendary now, only a man of his talent would have come back in such a way. The momentum was clearly on his side at the time, its sad that he passed away because the 80’s would have been a totally different story.
Coming to the films, from 76 starting with Laila Majnu, and 77-80 whenever Rafi dominated films, they did well. Adding to that, you mentioned the big budget films were mostly Rafi dominated, and Rafi passed away at the time so he could not complete ZKDH. Another interesting story, RDB had originally recorded Dukh Sukh Ki from Kudrat with Chandrashekar Gadgil. However the distributors asked why there was no Rafi song in the film, and I believe them along with Goldie Anand wanted and persuaded RD to record the same song in Rafi’s voice, and his version (not retained in the album, only in the film) was used as the crowd puller.
Rafi actually never left as you pointed out, he was very much there from 72-76, producing chartbusters, even with Junior Burman. His comeback is associated with his songs coming back more on to the charts but it does not mean he left or stopped singing as it may sound.
You mentioned another great point, Rafi getting the majority of the album. Even a composer such as Rajesh Roshan delivered two knockout albums, Aap Ke Deewane and Unees Bees with Rafi in 1980. I love RR’s albums in his early days, he is a very talented musician and made great use of both Rafi and KK. Rafi vibed with him very well. What are your views on him as well as his combination with Rafi ?.
LP became number one at the start of the decade, eventually displacing SJ, and they along with RD had a battle royale in the 70’s. Although both did great I feel in the late seventies LP broke away. RD’s best phase was in the early seventies IMO, that was when he was at his creative best and peak, a good number of his songs were for B-grade films which is sad considering the songs he produced for them. LP were always consistent throughout the decade, and in order to match RD at his game, they balanced both Rafi and KK. Once the late seventies came around it was back to Rafi more than KK and then Rafi was used to devestating effect by LP as you mentioned. After HKSKN (Rafi-based), RDB could never repeat the same success until 1942 ALS, and the 80’s was a tough time for him. Even though he still received big budget films in the late 70’s-80’s and produced great songs with both KK and Rafi. Rafi’s exit just made things worse, and I am sure if he was alive at the time it would have made a difference to RD. He did realise his blunder in not using Rafi more, and when he did, he couldn’t do it for that long due to Rafi’s passing away.
The Bobby story is interesting, I have also heard that somewhere, Bobby by Rafi would have been amazing. An interesting point, the tune for Hum Tum Ek Kamre was composed by Jaikishan, RK had all of SJ’s practice tunes on tape and was free to use them with other composers. It is ironic though that Rafi later on became Rishi Kapoor’s voice, the two matched eachother perfectly.
P. Haldar, when you contact Mr. Nair, please contact me as well, I have given Mr. Nair my email address, it would be great to be in touch with you.
Jayanta,
If you fail to acknowledge Rafi’s greatness in the 70’s then that is your wish, no one is forcing you to accept anything. Kishore’s dominating period was from 71-75, in which no male singer was as successful as him. You cannot compare that with the two decades that Rafi ruled previously. Add to this, Rafi also made a comeback on to the charts in supposedly Kishore’s era, which is in itself a great thing. Both Rafi and Mukesh won awards during this time, something no singer was hardly able to do in Rafi’s domination for two decades, so please judge for yourself.
In regards to LP using KK more than Rafi after Aradhana is again not the truth, I don’t know where you are getting your info from, but please do not distort facts. And MM using KK a lot in the 50’s beats me, his favourites were always Rafi and Talat, again wrong information. If he did use KK it was probably for KK’s own film. MM using KK more after Aradhana is again false, please do check your facts.
Coming to SDB, yes Kishore has 120 songs compared to Rafi’s 90 odd, however have you noticed how many songs came from Kishore’s own films ?. If you take out Kishore’s own films under SDB, the two totals will be pretty even between KK and Rafi vis a vis SDB.
The reason why both father and son SD and RD moved KK way in the 70’s was for a few reasons, one being KK’s popularity from Aradhana and the films after, both father and son felt that since KK had lost out in the 50’s and 60’s, here was a chance for him to get songs, and also RD’s chance at breaking away from his father as well as other composers, being different, aka not using Rafi, hence using Kishore. This does not have anything to do with KK’s singing talents being better than Rafi.
As far as classical singing is concerned, Manna Dey himself has said that even though he was more trained in classical songs, Rafi could sing classical songs better than him because he was a better singer. If Manna was the better singer, I am sure composers would have chosen him over Rafi. As far as singing is concerned, you cannot compare anyone to Rafi.
As for interviews, the majority of the times celebrities such as Lata, Manna Dey etc. have said Rafi is the greatest. Add to this the hundreds of musicians such as Yesudas, SPB, Jayachandran, many prominent HFM personalities, even the great Illayaraaja of the South, one of the best musicians India has ever seen as well as MSV have all vouched for Rafi as the greatest including the Outlook Poll by prominent celebrities. So there is no point in discussing one or two interviews mentioning KK when the majority is in favour of Rafi. As for Asha Bhosle she does not admit Rafi’s greatness even though she has sung her most duets with him, over 800, but it is understandable that she would mostly talk about Kishore, since RD was her husband.
May 20th, 2007 at 11:36 pm
DEAR Mast Mast,
U people want to compare Sun light with Moon light If u ask a blind man he will know different between sun light and Moon light.thanks to mohd Rafi name only this top is over 133 msg,KK fans have no topic?I requet to Mohd Rafi fans plz don’t answer KK fans here,If u look to all topic in the site will see that only there few people they speak but when they tried to compare Mohd Rafi with KK,why we should answer them because KK fans have no answer for our Questions?
To Mohd Rafi fans and kk fans wilcome to mohdrafi.com?
Some said that why not SD used Mohd Rafi for only for one song in flim Abhiman but they don’t know the story of flim that KK lost fom Lata ji.
!!!!!!!!kk was a good singer who copied KK they think they are better than KK but when u see the singer who copied Mohd Rafi they know how is Mohd Rafi great they never said that they are better than Mohd Rafi,
This my last msg at KK site my answer will be at Mohd afi site to KK fans
May 20th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
Dear Hussein Sheikh, unknown and other RAFians,
Please do not disrespect the memory of your idol by targeting Kishore. Rafi never said anything bad about anyone. The modest person that he was, he once said during his lean phase, “I’ve had a long reign; it’s someone else’s turn now”. Each of the greats — Manna, Mukesh, Kishore and Rafi — added new dimensions to the world of Hindi film music and we should all be happy about it. Let us thank Kishore’s fans and the administrator of this website to be their guests, and go back to our home site.
May 20th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
Mohd Rafi was so much indispensible that composers used
Rafi s vocals for Kishore Kumar in Bhagam Bhag, a duet :
Humko yeh dhar hair; Man mora bhavra in RAAGINI :
COMPOSER: O.P. NAYYAR ; AND IN FILM shararat : AJAB HAI
DASTAN TERI : COMPOSER: SHANKAR JAIKISHAN.
Rafi has sung for three generations of actors : the Kapoors,
Prithviraj-Raj-Rishi Kapoor which is a world record.
Kishore Kumar is a great all rounder liked by many. But
when it comes to singing a n d melody there is only one master :
MOHD RAFI .
He is the BADSHAH, THE EMPEROR - FOR ANY TYPE OF SONGS,
from Bhagwan to yahoo , Chahe koi muje junglee kahe…..
And many many incomparable melodies.
binu nair binus2000@hotmailo.com
May 20th, 2007 at 10:14 pm
Well analysed article.
But shri Shakti Samanta said to a music buff : Rafi went to
Haj or on a long holiday and Kishore Kumar reaped the harvest
in Rafi saabs absence….
Again, Rafi had already scaled the No. 1 position in 1980 by his
melodious vocals and due to L.P being on top and on his side.
binu nair binus2000@hotmail.com
May 20th, 2007 at 9:53 pm
quote - # Hussein Sheikh Says:
May 19th, 2007 at 11:28 pm
Only a couple of people say KK is popular, but 90% praise Rafi Saheb only on this KK site! Very strange but true!! - unquote
Couple of people - are couple of different people. 90% is one person posing as many.
Hussein bhai you should be amazed that a kk fan who created this site is actually approving all your messages. What do you say about that?
That he is a Rafi fan? If so he is a great man. There you go agreeing that a KK fan is great. 
May 20th, 2007 at 9:53 pm
Dear Sir,
how they can say to Mohd Rafi to sing in Abhiman because if u look the story of the flim Lata ji was the winner and she singed better than KK(Bachchan),As said that flim Abhiman was one of mr bachchan best flims as a actor,who said that KK was at top from 1970 t0 1976?when Rishi Kapoor and flim said to Madan Mohan to use KK in flim Laila Majnu but Madan Mohan said no way plz put kk in these songs.
Why u KK fans d don’t answer what asked?why it said that music born in late 1940’s was baby in 1950’s was young in 1960’s was old in 1970’s and died in 1980’s?if u r honest u will see only Mohd Rafi it,
Dear KK fans please give one name if u take kk out from him u will not get anything from him?about Mohd Rafi said by them if there was no Mohd Rafi there was no O P Nayar,Naushand said Mohd Rafi was 50% in his Music,Shammi Kapoor said mohd Rafi was his voice…………………..
May 20th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
Continuting on the remark made by myk, let me point out to Kishore fans not to make statements like “Rafi was swept aside in the 70s” or “Rafi was king only in the 50s and 60s, but after that, it was Kishore all the way”. As I’ve said time and again, each one of us is entitled to our opinions — there is always some subjectivity involved — but please do not distort the facts. At the time of Rafi’s death, 10 out of the 16 songs being played at Binaca Geetmala were his; please remember those days that progam was the main yardstick of popularity. The other thing to note is that RD, even in big-banner films like Shaan, were giving most of the songs to Rafi. Why do you think he was doing that? The reason is simple — it was just the market forces. In Zamane ko Dikhana Hai, Rafi got the main song “Puchho na yaar kya hua” and probably after that he died, otherwise I doubt Nasir Hussain would have asked Shailendra Singh to sing rest of the songs. LP was happy to make Rafi lip-synch for Amitabh in Naseeb and others were also doing the same.
Despite his growing popularity, I wouldn’t still say that Rafi had pulled ahead of Kishore in 1980. During the 1977-80 period, both were at the top; there was no clear winner. But knowing Rafi, who ruled like a monarch in the 50s and 60s, I think he would have slowly pulled ahead of Kishore in the 80s (this is just my opinion). Other than the fact that all the big banners wanted to sign him, there is another factor: LP was getting ahead of RD. Laxmi would start using his “pitri-saman” Rafi for entire scores and gradually RD would have been forced to follow suit. As I’ve said before, RD should have kept this weapon in his arsenal; he was a multi-dimensional talent but got restricted in his compositional orbit by his over-dependence on Kishore. Why not give some of his folksy compositions to his “Ni sultana re” Rafi? He was slowly coming around to that point of view but it is our misfortune that Rafi left us prematurely. Listen to Rafi’s “Poocho na yaar kya hua” in ZKDH and the way he starts (Chak chak chakah chakah cha).
I want to point out to the Burman fans one more thing: whenever Rafi got a fair chance to deliver under their batons in the 70s, he did. If you consider the senior Burman, Rafi produced hits in Talash, IPZN and Abhiman. Look at Abhiman; he had only one duet but that remains the most enduring one. For the younger Burman, consider YKB; one duet with Kishore and one duet with Asha. The latter became one of the greatest hits of all time. Fast forward to HKKN and you have Kishore and Rafi sharing the songs. Do I have to remind you guys who came out on top? No, actually there is no need because it doesn’t mean much. There were many instances in the 60s when Manna’s or Mukesh’s songs were greater hits than Rafi’s in the same film; Waqt is a prime example where Manna’s “Aae mere zohra zabeen” was by far the biggest hit. So even though Rafi’s songs in HKKN or AAA were much bigger hits than Kishore’s, I wouldn’t say that Kishore was “swept aside” (like Kishore’s fans do from time to time).
What all of us — both Kishore and Rafi fans — missed was a battle royale between the two greats in the 80s. Kishore had the advantage in that his heavier voice suited the reigning superstar more than Rafi’s. But Rafi had the momentum and that ever-dangerous Laxmi on his side.
Where I’d differ from myk is the contention that Rafi lost his No. 1 place in the early 70s because he took a break. I know RAFIans would like to believe that but as someone who has followed his career even before I hit my teens, let me tell you something: Rafi never took a break. That man was a workaholic. He didn’t go to Haj or a world tour for the first time in 1970. If I remember correctly by that time he had completed more than 20 world tours! Producers, directors and actors used to wait for Rafi to return home, such was his dominance. What hit him more than Aradhana was those twin blasts: Amar Prem and Kati Patang. Make no mistake about it — it was Chhote Nawab who was responsible for Rafi’s downward slide in the early 70s.
There is another interesting story I heard from someone who knows a lot about the film industry. I cannot vouch for its veracity but here’s how it goes. Raj Kapoor wanted a fresh voice for Rishi in Bobby but LP wanted Rafi to sing. Apparently, Shailendra Singh told an interviewer that LP would have given the songs to Rafi had he failed in the audition. And if that had happened, Rafi wouldn’t have had to wait for three more years to witness the reversal of fortunes. Imagine “Main shayar to nahin” in Rafi’s voice!
May 20th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
Rafi Saheb’s ‘Tum bin jaoon kahan…’ is a better version than of KK, Rafi Saheb’s version has sweetness, melody, sung so nicely for Shashi Kapoor.
May 20th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
kk was more popular and famous than Mohd Rafi!!!!!!!!!!???if u r saying jokes plz don’t………If u r saying that KK was at top from 1970 to 1976 u r so wrong,when Late ji,Asha ji RD,SD most of MD they speak about KK jokes or he should be paid before to sing but when they speak about Mohd rafi we know what they say…….
If am popular it not mean that i am the best.
some one speak that kk singed these songs so will i agree with him but if we speak best 20 all time hit songs went to only Mohd rafi.
There was Madan Mohan he was been force to use KK but he said that he will work in the flim if Mohd rafi not sing in it.
There was OP N,SJ and SD who used Mohd Rafi voice on KK..if I am not wrong when they asked SJ why they used Mohd Raf on KK he answer that is not KK cup of tea….
Whey Mohd Rafi singed for Shammi Kapoor there was no other he need to sing for him but Rajesh Khanna he used Mohd Rafi and all songs singed by Mohd Rafi are hit.
May 20th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Hi myk, a very nice comment by you, I appreciate it. So nicely explained.
May 20th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
i frequently hear hindi songs.while iam travelling imostly prefer kk songs.it gives me joy and enjoiment.moreover his sound has a special power to conqer all other sounds emnating from the suroundings.at home i prefer rafi -gives me peace of mind -trianquility-happiness.
May 20th, 2007 at 12:14 pm
myk..u r again distorting facts altogetherand with no good effect!..kishore ruled for four yrs??..commom even the die hardest rafi fans wouldnt have givejn such biased opinion!..after aradhana it was kishore all the way!..no one surpassd him…2 rafi hits during that time was followed and buried by 10 hits of kk!…comprehensively!..dont say sumthing like rafi made a comeback..!not at all!..even the intervies depicting lata /asha /manna etce tc says kishore da ws the ebst..’unke jaisa singer aaj tak paida nahin hua’…then what great opinions do u need!…and u r wrong agaib..check out the facts.LP has given kk more of his compositions than rafi!..and most of then came during post aradhana!..MM used to use kk a lot during the 50s..and also post aradhana!..and as per sdb…his fav sinegr was also kishore all the way..although sdb chose rafi a lot during the 50!
rafi sab wud have taken a 1000 yrs to come near the calibre of manna dey! if classical singing is considered then manna dey is way way ahead of rafi!..
May 20th, 2007 at 11:11 am
If someone who has not heard a single Rafi or Kishore song in life goes through the above comments, he/she will be able to figure out who the better singer is.
On one side (Rafi) are comments with analysis, logic and reference to classic numbers.
On the other side (KK) are comments with emotion completely devoid of any analysis and reference to crappy songs (”lare lappa songs” as they say in Bengali).
May 20th, 2007 at 9:43 am
Rafi saab is the t a n s e n - of music.
And for centuries, music lovers will cherish his songs, character
and humility.
Such an individual can take birth only between many centuries.
My good fortune that I heard r a f i saab from close quarters on
two occassion.
My good fortune that I met the great Kishore da at abu dhabi,
the UAE capitol for 2 minutes - just before a fun rolled concert..
We are all blessed to have such great singers with us - who visited
this planet - and will never die…..
binu nair
binus2000@hotmail.com