Piyaa Milan Kii Aas
Film: Teen Batti Char Rasta
Year: 1953
Composer: Pt. Shivram
Raaga: Jogiya

When we think about classical music-based film songs we usually conjure up images of taans and flourishes. However, the connection between the two genres is far more prevalent and goes far deeper than overt classical harkats. Lata’s songs from the golden era touched upon many facets of raaga sangeet. They were not classical expositions, but fine and astoundingly accurate vignettes of the raagas. Usually, one or two facets of classical gayaki stand out in each song. We will explore some songs from this perspective, loosely following the raaga-samay-chakra.

The first raaga of the series is the early morning melody Jogiya. It shares its melodic space with Bhairav, as does another raaga Kalingada. Both Jogiya and Kalingada are ancient melodies, most likely evolved from older folk or regional traditions (indeed one is inclined to think that the latter must have come from Kalinga) and are not derivatives of Bhairav. Specifically, Jogiya utilizes straight and slightly higher shade of rishabh compared to the andolit variety of Bhairav, and adds a poignant komal nishad. Madhyam and komal rishabh (of the taar saptak) are prominent. It is a highly emotive raaga that is mostly used for Thumris and bhajans.

There are many great Jogiyas, both vocal and instrumental. One of the (if not the) first songs recorded was a Jogiya, an interesting folkish melody with a Central Asian touch! The voice is that of the redoubtable Gauhar Jaan. (Watch on Youtube.)

While you would hear Kalingada frequently in traditional laavaNis, Bal Gandharva’s celebrated song “vada jaau kuNaalaa sharana” is in Jogiya. (Watch on Youttube).)

The Lata song in this raaga is not a full song, but just a small piece of incidental music from the 1953-film Teen Batti Char Rasta. It is the humming of the composition “piyaa milan kii aas”, the mere mention of which evokes the classic recording of Ustad Abdul Karim Khan sahab. It is a beautiful composition, and the music composer Pt. Shivram did well to use it here. This song has one of the highest disappointment quotients for me personally! Let me explain. The situation is that the protagonist Shyama is supposed to sing on radio the following day, and hums the asthayi of this bandish. In the following sequence, she is administered some poison due to which she lost her voice. And could not sing the song. I was completely crestfallen as this situation unfolded! In retrospect however, the full song might have come under the censor’s scanner (or scalpel) due to words like “din din badhat hai jobanavaa”.

Shyama sang in Lata’s voice of course. There is no instrumental accompaniment, just an accompanying drone. The rendition is replete with kaN-swaras, aarohi-mee.nD work, and a quick murki or two, all in the space of 40 seconds. The pukaar in the word “aas” is the highlight of the melody. The snippet dies off with a devastating “kii~~~ aas”, and leaves you wishing for more. 

Here is the Audio-only Youtube Video of the song.

 

In the same year, Anil Biswas used Jogiya as one of the raagas (the leading one in fact) in the fantastic raagmala in Hamdard. It is a Lata and Manna-da duet. The theme and the melody of this part of the song “pii bin sunaa jii” are similar to “piyaa milan kii aas”. This one is a fuller treatment, with sargams used to adorn the raaga. (Watch on Youtube.)

Both the songs represent Jogiya very well, and highlight the fact that you don’t need lightening-fast taans for raaga shuddhata.