Ramchandra Narhar Chitalkar (12 January 1918 – 5 January 1982), also known as C. Ramchandra or Chitalkar or Anna Sahib, was an Indian

music director A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the d ...

and

playback singer A playback singer, also known as a ghost singer, is a singer whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not app ...

.C Ramchandra - Music Director
Indian Cinema Heritage Foundation website, Retrieved 12 January 2022 As a composer, he mostly used the name C. Ramchandra, 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 Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

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 Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her cont ...

such as "Kitna Haseen Hai Mausam" in the film '' Azaad'' (1955) and "Shola Jo Bhadke" in '' Albela'' (1951).

Biography

Ramchandra Narhar Chitalkar was born on 12 January 1918 in Puntamba into a Marathi Brahmin family, a small town in

Ahmednagar district Ahmednagar district (Marathi pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, �ɦ(ə)məd̪nəɡəɾ is the largest districts of Maharashtra, district of Maharashtra state in western India. The historical Ahmednagar city is the headquarters of the district. ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He studied music under Vinayakbua Patwardhan at "Gandharva Mahavidyalaya" and also under Shankarrao Sapre of Nagpur where he studied music alongside Vasantrao Deshpande. 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 ''

Said-e-Havas ''Said-e-Havas'' (Prey To Desire) or (Greed) also known as ''King John'' is a 1936 Hindi/Urdu film adaptation of the Shakespeare play, '' King John'', directed by Sohrab Modi. It was based on the Urdu play ''Said-e-Hawas'' by Agha Hashar Kashmir ...

'' (1936) and ''

Atma Tarang ''Atma Tarang'' is a 1937 Hindi social drama film directed by Sohrab Modi. This film and ''Khan Bahadur'', made the same year, were the first films produced under Modi's newly established banner, Minerva Movietone (1936). The music was composed b ...

'' (1937). Ramchandra provided harmonium accompaniment for Minerva composers Bundu Khan and Habib Khan. He debuted as music director in

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

movies with Jayakkodi and ''

Vana Mohini ''Vana Mohini'' is a 1941 Indian Tamil-language film directed by Bhagwan. The film stars Srilankan actress K. Thavamani Devi and M. K. Radha. Additionally, an elephant played an important role in the film. Plot The story is about a tribal gi ...

''. He received public notice as a good composer in Bhagwan Dada's ''Sukhi Jeevan'' (1942), and established a long association that culminated with the musical box office hit '' Albela'' (1951). Influenced by

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

, Ramchandra 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 film '' Shehnai'' (1947). He used a combination of a bongo, an oboe, a trumpet, a clarinet and a sax for the song ''Shola Jo Bhadke'' in film '' Albela''.woh toh hai albela
/ref> He sang the title song "Shin Shinaki Boobla Boo" with

, which included rock rhythms. He provided the musical score for the scat song "Ina mina dika" in '' Aasha'' (1957). Perhaps C. Ramchandra's biggest success as a music composer was the 1953 movie ''

Anarkali Anarkali () was a legendary woman said to be loved by the 16th-century Mughal Prince Salim, who later became Emperor Jahangir. According to some accounts, Anarkali was the nickname of the courtesan Nadira Begum or Sharf-un-Nisa, though scho ...

'' 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 Poochh Mere Ishq Main Kya Rakha Hai", "Mohabbat Aisi Dhadkan Hai", "Jaag Dard-E-Ishq Jaag" etc. went on to become huge hits and were highly acclaimed. ''Anarkali'' also perhaps saw the famed composer-singer combination of Ramchandra and

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. Similarly, C. Ramchandra's compositions in V. Shantaram's '' Navrang'' (1959) and '' Stree'' (1961) were also quite popular and are still remembered. The highly popular patriotic song ''"

Aye Mere Watan Ke Logon "Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo" ( "O' people of my country") is a patriotic song written in Hindi by Kavi Pradeep, composed by C. Ramchandra, and sung by singer Lata Mangeshkar. The song commemorates Indian soldiers who died during the Sino-Indian War ...

"'', which was sung by

and penned by poet

Pradeep Pradeep is a Diya lamp, used in Puja (religious ceremonies) in Hinduism, Jainism, & Buddhism. It is related to the name Pradip. Notable people with the name include: Pradeep Dahal* Pradeep (actor) * Kavi Pradeep * Vidya Pradeep * Pradeep Kumar * ...

, was a composition of Ramchandra. It was later performed live, by

, in the presence of

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

at the National Stadium, in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

on Republic Day in 1963. It is said

became so sentimental that tears rolled down his cheeks.C. Ramchandra (profile)
MySwar.com website, Retrieved 12 January 2022 On 27 Jan 2014,

was felicitated by the then chief minister of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

at Mumbai to commemorate the 51st Anniversary of this song. Ramchandra similarly provided a memorable musical score accompanying a competition between two dancers whose roles were played by Padmini and

Vyjayanthimala Vyjayanthimala (born 13 August 1936) is a former Indian actress, dancer and parliamentarian. She is the recipient of several accolades, including two BFJA Awards and five Filmfare Awards. She made her screen debut at the age of thirteen with ...

for the song ''

Kannum Kannum Kalanthu "Kannum Kannum Kalanthu" is a Tamil song from the 1958 film '' Vanjikottai Valiban'', directed by S. S. Vasan. The song was composed by C. Ramchandra, and R.Vaidyanathan, lyrics penned by Kothamangalam Subbu and sung by P. Leela and Jikki. The ...

'' lyrics penned by

Kothamangalam Subbu Kothamangalam Subbu (born S. M. Subramanian, 10 November 1910 – 15 February 1974) was an Indian poet, lyricist, author, actor and film director based in Tamil Nadu. He wrote the cult classic Tamil novel ''Thillana Mohanambal'' and was awarded ...

, sung by

P. Leela Porayathu Leela (19 May 1934 – 31 October 2005) was an Indian playback singer, Carnatic vocalist and a music director. She has recorded more than 5,000 songs in various Indian languages including Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Hindi, ...

and Jikki in the Tamil movie ''

Vanjikottai Valiban ''Vanji Kottai Valipan'' () is a 1958 Indian Tamil-language Ruritanian romance film written by the Gemini Studios story department, consisting of K. J. Mahadevan, C. Srinivasan and Kothamangalam Subbu, while the film was directed and produced by ...

'' (1958). He remade the song in Hindi as "Aaja Tu Raja Aaja" from '' Raj Tilak'' (1958) written by P. L. Santoshi where

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the ...

and

Sudha Malhotra Sudha Malhotra is an Indian playback singer. She also acted in some Bollywood films and as a playback singer, worked in popular Bollywood movies in the 1950s and 1960s, like ''Arzoo'', ''Dhool Ka Phool'', ''Ab Dilli Door Nahin'', ''Girl Friend' ...

rendered their voice. Ramchandra provided music compositions for a few

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

, and

Bhojpuri Bhojpuri (;Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries
, Oxford U ...

movies besides

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

movies. He also produced three Hindi movies with New Sai Productions namely ''Jhanjhar'' (1953), ''Lehren'' (1953), ''Duniya Gol Hai'' (1955). In the late 1960s, Ramchandra produced two Marathi movies, ''Dhananjay'' (1966) and ''Gharkul'' (1970). Apart from composing music, he also acted in them. Ramchandra wrote his autobiography ''The Symphony of My Life'' (''माझ्या जीवनाची सरगम'' in Marathi) in 1977.

Death

C. Ramchandra died on 5 January 1982, a week before his 64th birthday, in Mumbai, India.

Awards and recognition

His music fans were disappointed, when he was nominated for 'Best Music Director' twice for

Filmfare Awards The Filmfare Awards are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Hindi-language film industry of India.Al The Filmfare ceremony is one of the most famous film events in India. The awards were first introduced by th ...

for the films Azaad (1955) and Aasha (1957) but ended up not actually winning them. It should also be mentioned here that one of his most successful films was

(1953) and it was released one year before the first Filmfare Award was given in 1954. Mumbai based troupe Musicolor, which is promoting vintage music, presented an exclusive tribute programmes featuring the gems of C Ramchandra at Dinanath Mangeshkar auditorium on 22 January 2010.

Popular songs

Though Ramchandra used a number of ragas in his compositions, his favourite remained raga "

Bageshri Raga Bageshri or Bageshree () is a Hindustani classical raga. It is a popular night raga, which is meant to depict the emotion of a woman waiting for reunion with her lover. It is said to have been first sung by Miyan Tansen, the celebrated co ...

" ( Radha na bole - Azad, 1955). In a 1978 interview at BBC studios with Mahendra Kaul, he ascribed the reason to Bageshri's simplicity. However, he also composed songs in other ragas including Malkauns ('' Aadha hai chandrama- Navrang''). The following is a short list of some of Ramchandra's best compositions: * ''Yeh Zindagi Usi Ki Hai'' (''

'') * ''Ae Mere Watan Ke Logo'' * ''Dheere Se Aaja Ri Ankhiyan Mein'' ('' Albela'') * ''Bholi soorat dilke khote, naam bade aur darshan chhote'' (''Albela'') * ''Mere dilki ghadi karen tiktiktik O baje raatke baaraa'' (''Albela'') * ''Katatay hain dukh mein yeh din'' (''Parchhaain'') * ''Tum kya jaano, tumhari yaad mein'' (''Shin Shinaki Bubala Boo'') * ''Aankhon mein sama jao is dil mein raha karana'' (''Yasmin'') * ''Kitna haseen hai mausam'' (''Azaad'') * ''Shola Jo Bhadke, Dil Mera Dhadke'' (''Albela'') (1951) * ''Mohabbat Hi Na Jo Samjhe, Woh Zalim Pyar Kya Jane'' {''Parchhain'') (1952) * '' Ina Meena Dika '' ('' Aasha'') * ''Qismat Ki Hawa Kabhi Naram'' ('' Albela'') * ''Koi kisi ka deewaana na bane'' (''Sargam'') * ''Jaag dard-e-ishq jaag'' (''Anarkali'') * ''Mehfil mein jal uthi shama'' (''Nirala'') * ''Aye pyar teri duniya 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'') * ''Main jagu sari rain'' (''Bahu Rani'') * ''Ab woh raate kahan ab woh baate kahan'' (''Yasmin'') * ''

'' (''

'') (Tamil film) * ''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 baaz aaye'' (''Nirala'') * ''Mujh pe ilzaam-e-bewafaai hai'' (''Yasmin'') * ''Aye chand pyar mera tujh se ye kah raha hai'' (''Khazana'') * ''Muhobbat mein aise zamane bhi aaye'' (''Sagaai'') * ''Aa ja ab to aa ja'' (''

'') * ''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'' (''Stree'') * ''Balma bada nadan'' (''Albela'') * ''Dil se bhula do tum humen'' (''Patanga'') * Sipayee O Sipayee (

Akbar Salim Anarkali ''Akbar Salim Anarkali'' is a 1978 Indian Telugu-language historical romance film produced & directed by N. T. Rama Rao under his Ramakrishna Cine Studios banner. The film stars Rama Rao, Nandamuri Balakrishna and Deepa, with music composed by ...

) (Telugu film) * ''Kaghaz ki thi woh nao jis main ham jarahe the'' (''Zaban'') * ''Dil ki duniya basa ke sawariyan'' (''Amardeep'') * ''Jab Dil Ko Sataave Gham, Chhed Sakhi Sargam'' (Sargam) (1950) * ''Dekh Tere Sansaar Ki Haalat Kya Ho Gai Bhagwan'' (''Nastik'') (1954) * ''Naa Bole Naa Bole Naa Bole Re'' ( Azad) * ''Aplam chaplam chaplai re'' * '' Mere man ka baanvra panchhi kyon baar baar dole'' * ''Dekh hamen awaaz na dena'' (''Amardeep'') * ''Aapka chehra mashalla'' (''Rootha Na Karo'') * ''Bechain Nazar Betaab Jigar'' (Yasmin) * ''Kehte Hai pyar kisko panchi jara bata de(Baarish)'' C Ramchandra composed music for some Marathi songs, which are lovely as well. * ''Malamali Tarunya Maze'' – ''Gharkul'' (1970) Singer –

/ Lyrics –

Suresh Bhat Suresh Bhat ( mr, सुरेश भट; 15 April 1932 – 14 March 2003) was a Marathi poet from the state of Maharashtra, India. Life Suresh Bhat converted to Buddhism with the help of Bhante Surai Sasai. Because of Buddhism was the religi ...

* ''Pachole Amhi Ho Pachole'' – Singer Chitalkar / Lyrics – Anna Joshi {The tune was later reused in Damini (1993) as ‘Gawah Hai Chand Taare’ by

Nadeem Shravan Nadeem (also spelled Nadim or Nedim; ar, نديم) is an Arabic masculine given name. It means "best friend of the drinker" "companion", "confidant" or "friend". Originates from the plural word "Nadama""نَدامَى" which means, drink to forg ...

} * ''Achandrasurya Nando Swatantrya Bharatache'' – ''Gharkul'' (1970) / Singer – Rani Verma & Chorus, Lyrics – Ga Di Madgulkar

Gajanan Digambar Madgulkar Gajānan Digambar Mādguḷkar (1 October 1919 – 14 December 1977) was a Marāthi poet, lyricist, writer and actor from India. He is popularly known in his home state of Mahārāshtra by just his initials as Ga Di Mā (गदिमा). He wa ...

* House of Bamboo – ''Gharkul'' (1970) Singers –

Manna Dey Prabodh Chandra Dey (May 1, 1919 − October 24, 2013), known by his stage name Manna Dey, was an internationally acclaimed and celebrated Indian playback singer, music director, and a musician. As a classical vocalist, he belonged to the Bhen ...

, Pramila Datar and Chorus / Lyrics – Shanta Shelke * ''Aai Bagh Na Kasa Ha Dada'' – Balgeet/Song for kids (1972) / Singer – Sushma Shrestha, Lyrics – Shanta Shelke * ''Roop Pahta Lochani'' – ''Sant Nivrutti Dnyandev'' (1964) / Singer – Asha Bhosle, Lyrics – Sant Dnyaneshwar

Filmography

Movies for which Ramchandra provided musical scores are listed below in alphabetical order: # Aanchal (1960) # Azaad (1955) # Ahinsa (1947) # Albela (1951) # Amar Rahe Yeh Pyar (1961) # Amar Deep (1958) #

(1953) # Aasha (1957) # ''

'' (1979) # Baarish (1957) # Bachchon Ka Khel (1946) # Badla (1943) # Bahadur (1944 film) # Bahadur Pratap (1947) # Bahurani (1963) # Balram Shri Krishna (1968) # Bhakt Raj (1943) # Chhatrapati Shivaji (1952) # Daal Me Kaala (1964) # Devta (1956) # Dil Ki Baat (1944) # Dosti (1946) # Duniya (1949) # Duniya Gol Hai (1955) # Ghungroo (1952) # Girls School (1949), with Anil Biswas # Hanso Hanso Ae Duniya Walo (1942) # Hum Diwane (1965) # Hungama (1952) # Insaniyat (1955) # Jhaanjhar (1953) #

Jhamela ''Jhamela'' (English: Problem) is a 1953 Hindi comedy thriller film produced and directed by Bhagwan, for his Bhagwan Art Productions. The film was a repeat formula Bhagwan had earlier used in his commercially successful film '' Albela'' (1951). ...

(1953) # Jitne Door Utne Paas (1960) (Unreleased) # Kaarigar (1965) # Kavi (1954) # Khazana (1951) # Khidki (1948) # Labelaa (1966) # Lahren (1953) # Lalkar (1944) # Leela (1947) # Lutera (1955) # Madadgaar (1947) # Madam Zapata (1962) # Manorama (1944) # Matwale (1947) # Meenar (1954) # Mera Munna (1948) # Mr. Jhatpat (1943) # Muskurahat (1943) # Nastik (1954) # Nadiya Ke Par (1948) # Naghma-e-Sehra (1945) # Namoona (1949) #

Nausherwan-E-Adil ''Nausherwan-E-Adil'' () also called ''Farz Aur Mohabbat'', is a 1957 Indian costume action drama Hindi/Urdu film directed by Sohrab Modi. Produced by Minerva Movietone, it had music composed by C. Ramchandra with lyrics by Parwaiz Shamshi. The ...

(1957) # Navrang (1959) # Nazrana (1948) (Unreleased) # Nirala (1950) # Payal Ki Jhankar (1968) #

Paigham ''Paigham'' () is a 1959 Indian Hindi-language comedy drama film directed by S. S. Vasan. The film stars Dilip Kumar, Vyjayanthimala in lead roles, with Raaj Kumar, Pandari Bai, B. Saroja Devi, Motilal, Johnny Walker in other important roles. T ...

(1959) #

Parchhain ''Parchhain'' (Shadow) is a 1952 Hindi romantic melodrama film directed by V. Shantaram. The production company was Rajkamal Kalamandir. The story and dialogue were by Shams Lakhnavi, with cinematography by G. Balakrishna. Music direction was by ...

(1952) # Patanga (1949) # Pehli Jhalak (1954) # Raj Tilak (1958) #

Raunaq ''Raunaq'' is a 1944 Bollywood film directed by Dwarka Khosla and starring Chandraprabha, Noor Mohammad Charlie (billed as Charlie), Chandra Mohan, Motilal and Subarnalata Subarnalata. It was released in 1944 Events Below, the events ...

1944 # Rootha Na Karo (1970) # Roshni (1949) # Sajan (1947) # Sanwaria (1949) # Saqi (1952) # Savdhan (1954) # Sawan (1945) # Safar (1946) # Sagaai (1951) #

Samadhi ''Samadhi'' (Pali and sa, समाधि), in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools, is a state of meditative consciousness. In Buddhism, it is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Ashtanga Yoga ...

(1950) # Samrat Chandragupt (1945) # Sangeeta (1950) # Sangram (1950) # Sargam (1950) # Sarhad (1960) # Saudagar (1951), with Hanuman Prasad # Shabistan (1951) # Shadi Se Pehle (1947) # Shagoofa (1953) # Sharda (1957) # Shatranj (1956) # Shehnai (1947) # Sher Dil (1965) # Shin Shinaki Bublaa Boo (1952) # Siphaiya (1949) # Stree (1961) #

Subah Ka Tara ''Subah Ka Tara'' (The Morning Star) is a 1954 Hindi social romantic film directed by V. Shantaram. The film was produced by Rajkamal Kalamandir and had story and dialogues by Shams Lucknavi. The director of photography was G. Balkrishna. It had ...

(1954) # Sukhi Jivan (1942) #

Talaq Divorce in Islam can take a variety of forms, some initiated by the husband and some initiated by the wife. The main traditional legal categories are ''talaq'' ( repudiation), ''khulʿ'' (mutual divorce or ransom divorce) Historically, the rules ...

(1958) # Talash (1957) # Tasveer (1966) # Teerandaaz (1955) # Toofani Takkar (1978) # Tulsi Vivah (1971) # Ustad Pedro (1951) #

(1941) # Veer Bhimsen (1964) # Wahan Ke Log (1967) # Yasmin (1955) # Zaban (1943) # Zindagi Aur Maut (1965)

References

External links

*
A Tribute To C. Ramchandra, Biography, The Greatest Music Composer Of Indian Cinema on YouTube

Commentary And Interview of C. Ramchandra with Ameen Sayani on YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramchandra, C 1918 births 1982 deaths People from Maharashtra Indian film score composers Marathi people People from Ahmednagar district 20th-century composers 20th-century Indian musicians