This is a rare interview of OPN, in which he tells MANY things about
his various singers ( he talks in DETAILS on Asha, Geeta, Shamshad,
Rafi & C H Aatma. Small comments are those of singers Talat, Manna
Dey, Mukesh, Kishore & UshaM )
This was sometime in July 1957....
In this post, I am adding comments only about Geeta ( other singers'
comments to follow soon )
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My favourite singers ....by O P Nayyar
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"Unsung and unplayed, the composition is like a beautiful statue or
painting inert and static, until the singer with his or her voice
breathes life into it"
When a song for which he has composed the tune becomes a hit, the
music director is apt to take all the credit and the kudos himself. In
the flush of success, he forgets the voice of the voices which have,
in more senses than one, given the expression of life to his tune or
composition.
The composition is the composer's undoubtedly. He conceived it, gave
it shape and form, wove its pattern, hewed and bevelled it to fit the
situation and the sentiment, and gave it the flourish and the furbelow
which are the final touches of the artist's craft. So what ? Unsung
and unplayed, the composition is like a beautiful statue or painting
inert and static, until the singer with his or her voice breathes life
into it, imbues it with feeling and expression, and sends it forth
into the world to move a million hearts with its sentimental and
melodic appeal
Often, in moments of relaxation beside the sea - not many, alas,
nowadays with a schedule which practically covers the clock - as I
gaze into the tumbling waters, there rise before my mind's eye the
figures and faces of the distinguished and deservedly popular singers
of the Indian screen who have done just that with my compositions.
A lovely lady, whose appearance proclaims that she has good taste in clothes and jewellery. So gaily is she bedecked that, for a moment, I think a nymph has risen from the swirling waves. But I know, of course, that the limpid look and that smooth carriage can belong only to Geeta Dutt !
Cultured, comely and well-read, Geeta could as easily be a leading lady as she is a top playback singer. But she sincerely believes that she has found her nische in the realm of ghost-singing. And who will deny that there is a unique quality in her singing? Give her a blatantly westernised tune this moment and a complex classical composition the next, and she will do equal justice to both with an ease of expression which a singer can only be born with.
She is especially good for songs accompanying boisterous jamborees. With that tantalising lilt and the fascinating curves she puts into her singing, she is the ideal choice if it is seductive allure you want in a song. Remember the gay abandon of those early songs, hits all of them, which I composed for her : "Jara samne aa" in Baaz and "Ye lo main haari Piya" in "Aar Paar"? Since then, she has sung many other hits for me, including the two best selling duets in "CID"
A linguist, sober and serious by nature, of a thoughtful disposition, very considerate of others, and punctilious to a fault, Geeta Dutt is an asset to any music director.
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