C. Ramchandra

Ramchandra Narhar Chitalkar (1918–1982) was a renowned music composer in the movie industry in India. In the composer's role, he mostly used the name C. Ramachandra, though he also used the names Annasaheb (in the movies "Bahadur Pratap", "Matwale", and "Madadgaar"), Ram Chitalkar (in the movies "Sukhi Jeevan", "Badla", "Mr. Jhatpat", "Bahadur", and "Dosti"), and Shyamoo (in the movie "Yeh Hai Duniya"). Further, he often sang and acted in Marathi movies under the name R. N. Chitalkar. For his career as an occasional playback singer he used only his surname Chitalkar. Chitalkar sang some renowned and unforgettable duets with Lata such as "Kitna Haseen Hai Mausam" in film Azad or "Shola Jo Bhadke" in Albela.

Biography

Ramachandra was born in 1918 in Puntamba, a small town in Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra, India. He studied music under Vinayakbua Patwardhan at "Gandharva Mahavidyalaya". He joined the movie industry playing the lead role in Y. V. Rao's movie, "Naganand". He also had some small roles at Minerva Movietone in the movies "Saeed-e-Havas" and "Atma Tarang".

Ramachandra provided harmonium accompaniment for Minerva composers Bindu Khan and Habib Khan. He debuted as music director in Tamil movies with Jayakkodi and Vanamohini. He received public notice as a good composer in Bhagwan Dada's "Sukhi Jeevan", and established a long association that culminated with the musical box office hit "Albela".

Influenced by Benny Goodman, Ramachandra introduced in his compositions the alto sax in combination with guitar and harmonica. He also included whistling in one of his famous songs, "Aana meri jaan Sunday ke Sunday" in "Shehnai". He used a combination of a bongo, an oboe, a trumpet, a clarinet and a sax for the song "Shola Jo Bhadke" in "Albela". He sang the title song "Shin Shinaki Boobla Boo" with Lata Mangeshkar, which included rock rhythms. He provided the musical score for the scat song "Ina mina dika" in "Aasha".

Perhaps C. Ramachandra's biggest success as a music composer was the 1953 movie Anarkali starring Beena Roy in the title role and Pradeep Kumar. The songs that he composed for this movie are today legendary. Songs of this movie like "Yeh Zindagi usiki hai", "Mujhse mat pooch mere ishq main kya rakha hai", "Mohabbat aise dhadkan hain", "Jaag dard-e-ishq jaag" etc.. went on to become huge hits and were also highly acclaimed as masterpieces. Anarkali also perhaps saw the famed composer-singer combine of Ramachandra and Lata Mangeshkar at their best ever together. A film critic in London who watched the movie is said to have remarked that the heroine sang like an angel without knowing that the angel was actually Lata giving playback for the actress.

The highly popular patriotic song "Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo", which was sung by Lata Mangeshkar and penned by poet Pradeep, was a composition of Ramachandra, it was later performed live, by Lata Mangeshkar, in the presence of Jawaharlal Nehru at the Ramlila grounds, in New Delhi on Republic Day, 26 January 1963 ^[1] He similarly provided a memorable musical score accompanying a competition between two dancers whose roles were played by Padmini and Vyjayanthimala in the Tamil movie "Vanjikottai Vaaliban".

Ramachandra provided music compositions for a few Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, and Bhojpuri movies besides Hindi movies. In 1953, he also produced with "New Sai Productions" three Hindi movies: "Jhanjhar", "Lehren", "Duniya Gol Hai".

In the late 1960s, Ramachandra produced two Marathi movies, "Dhananjay" and "Gharkul". He also acted in them and composed music for them. C. Ramchandra died of acute peptic ulcer on the 6 January 1982 at Beach Candy Hospital, Mumbai.

Ramchandra wrote his autobiography in Marathi in 1977.

Compositions

The following is a short list of some of Ramachandra's best compositions:

• Yeh zindagi usi ki hai jo kisi ka ho gaya (Anarkali)
• Dheere se aaja re ankhiyano mein (Albela)
• Katate hai dukh mein ye din (Parchhaai)
• Tum kya jaano, tumhari yaad mein (Shin Shinaki Bubala Boo)
• Aankhon mein sama jao
• Kitna haseen hai mausam (Azaad)
• Is dil mein raha karana (Yasmin)
• Koi kisi ka deewaana na bane (Sargam)
• Jaag dard-e-ishq jaag (Anarkali)
• Mehfil mein jal uthi shama (Nirala)
• Ae pyar teri dunaya se hum (Jhanjar)
• Wafaaon ka majboor daman bichha kar dua kar gume dil khuda se dua kar (Anarkali)
• Muhobbat aisi dhadkan hai jo samjhayi nahi jati (Anarkali)
• Ab woh raate kahan ab woh baate kahan (Yasmin)
• Jo mujhe bhula ke chale gaye (Sangeeta)
• Mujh se mat poochh mere ishq mein kya rakha hai (Anarkali)
• Dekho ji bahar aayi (Azad)
• Jo dil ko jalaye sataye dukhaye aisi muhobbat se hum baaj aaye (Nirala)
• Mujh pe iljaam-e-bewafaai hai (Yasmin)
• Ae chand pyar mera tujh se ye kah raha hai (Khazana)
• Muhobbat mein aise jamane bhi aaye (Sagaai)
• Aa ja ab to aa ja (Anarkali)
• Tere dar se khushi mangi magar gum de diya tu ne (Hungama)
• Tere phoolon se bhi pyar (Nastik)
• Kali kali ratiyan yaad sataye (Ghungaroo)
• o nirdayi pritam (stri)
• Balma bada nadan
• Dekhoji bahar aayi
• Dil se bhula do tum humen (Patanga)
• Kaghaz ki thi woh nao jis main ham jarahe the (Zaban)
• Dil ki duniya basa ke sawariyan (Amardeep)

  Filmography

  Movies for which Ramachandra provided musical scores are listed below in chronological order:

• Sukhi Jivan
• Hanso Hanso Ae Duniya Walo
• Badla
• Bhakt Raaj
• Mr. Jhatpat
• Muskurahat
• Zabaan
• Bahadur
• Dil Ki Baat
• Lalkaar
• Manorama
• Raunaq
• Naghma-e-Sehra
• Saawan
• Samrat Chandragupt
• Bachchon Ka Khel
• Dosti
• Safar
• Ahinsa
• Bahadur Pratap
• Leela
• Madadgaar
• Matwaale
• Saajan
• Shadi Se Pehle
• Shehnai
• Khidki
• Mera Munna
• Nadiya Ke Paar
• Duniya
• Girls School
• Namoona
• Patangaa
• Roshni
• Saanwara
• Siphaiya
• Nazrana
• Nirala
• Samadhi
• Sangeeta
• Sargam
• Albela
• Khazana
• Sagaai
• Sangraam
• Saudagar
• Shabistaan
• Ustaad Pedro
• Chhatrapati Shivaji
• Ghungroo
• Hungama
• Parchhain
• Saaqi
• Shin Shinaki Bublaa Boo
• Anarkali
• Jhamela
• Jhaanjhar
• Lahren
• Shagoofa
• Kavi
• Meenar
• Naastik
• Pehli Jhalak
• Subah Ka Tara
• Aazad
• Duniya Gol Hai
• Insaniyat
• Lutera
• Saavdhan
• Teerandaaz
• Yasmeen
• 26 January
• Devta
• Shatranj
• Asha
• Baarish
• Naushervan-e-Dil
• Sharda
• Talaash
• Amardeep
• Kaarigar
• Raj Tilak
• Talaaq
• Navrang
• Paigham
• Aanchal
• Sarhad
• Amar Rahe Ye Pyar
• Stree
• Madam Zapazta
• Bahu Rani
• Daal Me Kaala
• Veer Bhimsen
• Sher Dil
• Zindagi Aur Maut
• Labelaa
• Tasveer
• Wahaan Ke Log
• Balram Shri Krishna
• Paayal Ki Jhankar
• Jitne Door Utne Paas
• Rootha Na Karo
• Tulsi Vivaah
• Toofani Takkar