Harvard | Mr. & Mrs. 55 – Classic Bollywood Revisited!

Asha Parekh sings a song for Baby Pinky on the ride back from Simla in Zakhmee (1975). Take note of the Santa Claus figurine hanging off the rearview mirror.

Merry Christmas! Mrs. 55 and I hope that your holiday season is filled with lots of joy, laughter, and great music with your loved ones. In the spirit of the holidays, we are providing the lyrics and English translation to one of the few Christmas-themed songs that has ever graced the Bollywood silver screen: aao tumhe.n chaa.nd pe le jaaye.n from Zakhmee (1975).

Lata Mangeshkar sings for Asha Parekh and Sushma Shreshta sings for Baby Pinky in this song composed by Bappi Lahiri and penned by Gauhar Kanpuri. As is expected for a children’s anthem, the lyrics and melody in this song are nothing fancy. Here, in his debut film, Bappi Lahiri composes a catchy, pleasant tune that builds off of the classic Christmas carol “Jingle Bells.” In the introduction, we even get the rare opportunity to hear Lata Mangeshkar singing a snippet in English from the chorus of “Jingle Bells.” Her accent isn’t too distracting, so we won’t dwell on that point. Interestingly though, you might have noticed that the traditional lyrics to “Jingle Bells” have been modified to include a reference to Santa Claus.

When Baby Pinky asks where Santa Claus lives, Asha Parekh responds that he lives on the Moon and offers to take her there through this song. While I certainly can appreciate a fantasy lunar world now and again, I have to point out that the entire premise here is flawed! Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, which has nothing to do the with the Moon. It is of slight concern to me that films back then were exposing Indian children to blatant geographical inaccuracies (outer space is not the same thing as the North Pole!) while butchering cherished holiday folklore!

Technicalities aside, we hope that watching this song will spread holiday cheer in true Bollywood style with its outrageous dream sequences, melodramatic facial close-ups, and heart-warming spirit. Enjoy, and have a very merry Christmas! Even if you wanted to go to the Moon, we hope that you received all the presents that you asked for this year. Until next time…

-Mr. 55

Asha Parekh and Baby Pinky dance together in a dream sequence depicting a fantasy lunar landscape.

Aao Tumhein Chand Pe Le Jaaye: Lyrics and Translation

Jingle bells, jingle bells,
jingle all the way!
Santa Claus is coming to town,
Riding on a sleigh!

Baby Pinky: Miss, Santa Claus kaa ghar kahaa.n hai?
Asha Parekh: chaan.d pe
Baby Pinky: hame.n bhii vahaa.n pe le chaliye na!
Asha Parekh: acchaa?

aao tumhe.n chaa.nd pe le jaaye.n
Come, let’s take you to the Moon,
pyaar bhare sapne sajaaye.n
and create dreams filled with love.
chhoTaa-saa ba.nglaa banaaye.n
Let’s build a small home,
ek nayii duniyaa basaaye.n
and settle a new world.

pyaar kii hai duniyaa duur aasmaa.n pe
A world of love exists in the far skies.
mil ke na bichhDe koii vahaa.n pe
No is separated after being united there.
aisii bhii ek Dagar hai, aisaa bhii ek nagar hai
There is a path to such a place.

gham jahaa.n soye aur khushi jaage
Sorrow sleeps there, while joy awakens.
aas kii hai manzil taaro.n se aage
It is a destination of hope beyond the stars.
vahaa.n dil rote nahii.n hai.n, aan.nsuu to hote nahii.n hai.n
Hearts do not cry there, for tears do not even exist.

aao tumhe.n chaa.nd pe le jaaye.n
Come, let’s take you to the Moon.

Glossary

chaa.nd: the Moon; sapne sajaanaa: to create dreams; ba.nglaa: a house in the Bengali style, a bungalow; duniyaa basaanaa to settle a world; bichhaDnaa: to be separated; Dagar: path; nagar: place, town; aas: hope; manzil: destination; aa.nsuu: tears.

My blockmates and me at my last winter holiday formal at Harvard! (12.08.2012)

Nargis and Raj Kapoor in one of the most iconic shots of classic Indian cinema from Shree 420 (1955)

A scene from Mira Nair’s Monsoon Wedding (2001) inspired by Raj Kapoor’s classic

After the summer of my sophomore year, I was fortunate enough to intern with my favorite contemporary director Mira Nair. Both of us had studied film production at Harvard University and incidentally under the same professor! I first met Mira at his film screening at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City when I spotted her in the audience. My heart was beating so fast, I could hardly sit still through the screening. After the show, I gave her my impromptu elevator speech and joined the crew at Mirabai Films that summer!

Mira Nair and I at the MoMA my sophomore year. Note the glazed look in my eyes. Best day ever!

I was twelve years old when I saw Monsoon Wedding (2001) and have yet to find a movie from my generation that I love more. Mira’s other films include Vanity Fair, Salaam Bombay, The Namesake, Kama Sutra, and Amelia, but what does any of this have to do with old Hindi cinema? I want to talk about a side to her movies that you may not have been familiar with—that is, the impact of classic Bollywood on her work.

Perhaps you can recall that scene from Monsoon Wedding in which the wedding planner marries the housemaid beneath an umbrella. Look familiar? It should! Mira was directly inspired by Raj Kapoor’s famous song “Pyaar Hua Iqrar Hua” in directing this scene. Like Nargis and Raj Kapoor walking together on a rainy night, huddled together beneath an umbrella, Mira’s characters strike the same pose to celebrate their romance at the height of the Indian monsoons.

On-set and behind-the-camera with Hollywood director, Mira Nair.

In the front lobby of Mirabai Films hangs an original hand-painted movie poster of Aurat (1940), Mehboob Khan’s little-known precursor to the later smash-hit Mother India (1959). Its relative obscurity (and the eagerness to explain) brings a pride that can only be known to a fellow old Bollywood fanatic. By her desk is a beautiful and fascinating work of photography taken of the interior of R.K. Studios. Mira once explained how the studio in her photograph seems so unassuming and bland, but there, in an inconspicuous back wall besides an empty soda bottle hangs a small, telling picture of the greatest showman of India—Raj Kapoor himself. Despite his wealth and glamour, he and his colleagues maintained an inspiring sense of humility throughout his career that inspired hers.

If you’re looking for more celebrity interest, there is a great scene in her film, Vanity Fair (2004), in which the heroine (played fearlessly by Reese Witherspoon) makes an ill-received attempt to blend in among a high-class dinner party. Guess what? The scene was inspired by none other that the classic song Jaane Woh Kaise from Guru Dutt’s classic Pyaasa! In fact, Mira love it so much and wanted to make sure she captured Dutt’s spirit so precisely, that she got the whole cast together and watched Pyaasa for a movie night before the shoot. You heard me, people. If you have yet to watch Pyaasa yourself and are still looking for reasons to make the commitment, try this: Reese Witherspoon has seen it and you haven’t. Enough said.

Guru Dutt makes the room incredibly uncomfortable in Pyaasa (1957), an inspiration for Reese Witherspoon’s future character in Vanity Fair (2004).

And did you know Mira was very close friends with bold auteur Satyajit Ray? Mira’s favorite of his films include The Apu Trilogy and Days and Night in the Forest (1970), the latter of which was actually screened at the Harvard Film Archive last year with Sharmila Tagore in person! (I obviously had front row seats, almost underwent cardiac arrest upon seeing Sharmila in person, and begged for an autograph that is now framed on my desk. But that’s neither here nor there.) In fact, after growing up on these films, Mira came to respect Sharmila so much as an actress, and eagerly cast her in one of her first indie films called Mississippi Masala (1991)!

There are a million other ways old Bollywood films have influenced her work, and I have highlighted only a few that I know from working with her personally. Watch her films and let us know which others you can spot! Until then, put Pyaasa on your early Christmas list.

-Mrs. 55