Had the legendary music composer and singer Hemant Kumar not pushed him to make music independently,Ravi Shankar Sharma fears he wouldve remained Hemant das assistant forever. He said,Ravi,I dont want to kill your talent. Leave me or else youll b an assistant all you life, such was his magnanimity,and on his insistence,I did,Its been 56 years in the industry,and Ravi has never looked back. From leaving his job as an electrician at the Post and Telegraph Office in New Delhi,to trying his luck as a singer in Mumbai,Ravis journey has been long and rewarding. Although Im not a trained singer and musician,I learnt it by singing at bhajan soirees and listening to classical concerts all night, says the 84-year-old music composer,who is in town for a musical evening with Three Legends at the Tagore Theatre organised by Vibrations Group. As he takes us for a walk down the Filmistan memory lane,we revisit musics golden era (50s to 70s),with a man who gave us timeless classics,songs which to day complete any event,be it birthday,marriage etc. The first time I composed and sang Babul Ki Dooaayen Leti Jaa at lyricist-writer Rajinder Krishans daughters wedding,actor rajendra Kumar burst into tears.I knew the song will be a hit, people still dance to his Aaj mere yaar ki shaadi hai,Ae Meri Zohre jabi,Hum Bhi Agar Bachche Hote,Gareebon Ki Suno,the famous been tune from Nagin,hits from Chaudvin Ka Chand,from Gumrah,Do Badan,Vachan,etc. Awarded with the Lata Mangeshkar award recently,Ravi,who is also known as Bombay Ravi down South,says he finally got his due after so many years. My songs always got the best writer and best singer,never the best composer.ironically,countries other than India honoured me. Then came a time when I was told to compose meaningless hotch potch songs. I refused and moved to Malayali cinema, says Ravi,as he narrates incidents of professional rivalry during his time. In those days,a rival music composer would buy the tickets of our film in bulk and tell the black marketeer to sell at a lesser price which flummoxed the people. In reply,the black marketeer would say,the film is useless! Thats how business and reputation were attacked, he tells us. For Ravi,the key to surviving in the industry rested in attitude. Merit can take you two,three years maximum,but its attitude and behaviour that takes you far, he cites an example of how singer Suman Kalyanpur faded out because of her difficult attitude,so did Salma Agha. Blessed with good looks and a melodious voice,Ravi chose to be a music director,for had I been a singer,I wouldve been looking for work. Now,everyone comes to me looking for work! Even today,Ravi,unlike other composers,prefers to hear the words of a song before composing it. I dont want to trap or restrict the writer in a pre-decided tune. He/she shouldve have the creative freedom to write, perhaps this is the reason,Ravi feels,poetry is missing from songs these days. There is no orchestra or singer interacting with the musician.everything is so technical. Music,for him,is a confluence of composition,words and voice. Its a teamwork,of the composer,writer and singer. If they dont co-exist,music will lose its soul, he walks on.
