Kundan Lal Saigal in ‘The President’ (1937)
Today happens to be the 119th birth anniversary of the iconic Indian actor and singer Kundan Lal Saigal better known as K L Saigal, regarded as the first superstar of Hindi cinema (April 11, 1904--January 18, 1947).
I reup a piece I had written on March 5, 2017 in a different context but does indeed refer to him.
An 80-year-old song started playing in my mind yesterday for no recognizable reason. It is almost as if it had escaped from a subterranean level of my memory where it resided along with a countless number of other memories. The song was ‘Ek Bangla Bane Nyara’, one of the most enduring compositions from the nascent days of Hindi cinema. It was composed by Rai Chand Boral better known as to R.C. Boral. Some links also attribute Pankaj Mullick as the other composer. I have not been able to find the song writer’s name.
2017 marks the 80th anniversary of the movie that was made in the shadow of a great political tumult building up over India’s campaign for freedom, which was still a decade away. I mention this for a couple of reasons—one is the theme of the film and the other the aspiration of the song. At a time like that, the film’s female protagonist Prabhavati (Kamlesh Kumari) was cast as the owner of a proprietor of a textile mill which she inherits after her parents’ death. The idea of a young woman inheriting and running any business, let alone a cotton textile mill, was quite remarkable for the time.
The other more intimate aspect was the song’s aspirations. K.L. Saigal, playing Prakash, is a machinist in the mill who recognizes many defaults in its equipment. He gets fired by Prabhavati for pointing out the defective machinery but is reinstated by her after it indeed begins to fail. What struck me was the conversation about his job description before he breaks into this iconic song. On reinstatement his salary goes up to 400 rupees a month. He then points out singing that even though he did not work the previous month he got paid. His family is thrilled to hear the news and begins to entertain visions of owning the mill some day. That’s when Saigal, one of India’s greatest singing stars, breaks into the famous song:
एक बंगला बने न्यारा
रहे कुनबा इस में सारा
सोने का बंगला
चंदन का जंगला
विश्वकर्मा के द्वारा
अती सुन्दर और प्यारा
एक बंगला बने न्यारा
रहे कुनबा इस में सारा
(Ek bangla bane nyara
Rahe kunba jis mein sara
Sone kaa bangla,
Chadan ka jangla
Vishvakarma ke dwara
Aati sundar pyara pyara
Ek bangla bane nyara
Rahe kunba jis mein sara)
May we build a unique bungalow one day
Where the whole extended family can stay
A bungalow made of gold
In a jungle of sandalwood
Built by Vishwakarma himself (Vishwakarma is the divine craftsman)
Exceptionally beautiful and lovely
May we build a unique bungalow one day
Where the whole extended family can stay
The song goes on to talk about the bungalow being so high in the sky that it becomes like a star perched on whose top of you can watch the moon swing on a glorious rainbow.
It is an uplifting song with lofty personal aspirations. Being one myself, I normally avoid second-guessing the poet’s intentions. Perhaps the aspirations are both for the individuals and the country. It is a pity that I have not been able to find the lyricist’s name.
The great Nitin Bose directed the film for New Theatres, a major studio of the time. On a side note, I found it strange that the usually meticulous IMDB makes no mention of the movie “President’ either in Saigal’s filmography or that of Bose’s.
It is amazing how Saigal’s speaking voice was the same as his singing voice, something I find to be rare. Also, I couldn’t help but notice his rather stylish clothes, especially his tweed and what seems like a knitted tie. I wouldn’t mind wearing both 80 years hence.