Rare Photo of Geeta ji from a programme for Chinese Premier Zhau En Lai

March 21st, 2023

Here is a rare photo of Geeta ji shared by fellow fan Priya Pakanati ji.

A rare photo from L – R – Sitara Devi, Waheeda Rahman , Geeta Dutt , Sudha Malhotra with the Chinese Premier Zhau En Lai who was on a diplomatic visit to India in 1960. The film Industry presented an entertainment programme for him

Rare photos of Geeta ji thanks to Lakshmipriya ji

March 18th, 2021

A never before seen rare pic of Geeta Dutt in 1955 shared by Lakshmipriya ji. Thanks to her for sharing it!

Here is another rare photo of Geeta ji with other stalwarts at a concert shared by Laxmipriya ji. She says, “Rafi at a concert. I can recognise Shakeel Badayuni at extreme left , Talat Mehmood , Geeta dutt and Mukesh on the right”

Here are two pictures of Geeta ji with her son shared by Laxmipriya ji.

Geeta ji with her son
Geeta ji with her son

Here is another rare picture of Geeta ji shared by Laxmipriya ji from a Telugu Magazine of 1951 (appears to be an autograph in the magazine).

Geeta ji in a 1951 Telugu Magazine

Here is an elegant picture shared by Laxmipriya ji probably for a programme in 1957 with Guru Dutt and a host (Can someone recognise him?).

Geeta ji with Guru Dutt and a programme host in 1957.

Here is another rare picture shared by Laxmipriya ji. She says, “Geeta Dutt with her sister Lakshmi Chakraborthi behind her. Tapan’s sisters – Ila di on right and Iva di on left..Tapan , Ila and Iva are children of GD elder sister Jyotirmayi…..see pics of ..The original one and the one I restored’.

Geeta ji with sister Lokkhi and other relatives (original)
Geeta ji with sister Lokkhi and other relatives (restored)

Finally, we have this picture of Geeta ji reading shared by Laxmipriyaji.

Geeta ji reading.

Gajendra Khanna Remembers Geeta ji on Her 90th Birthday

November 23rd, 2020

Geeta ji was a wonderful soul who sadly left us very early. On 23rd November 2020, She would have turned 90 years old.

The date also marks completion of 12 years of this website. We thank all those who have contributed to this website over the years and request all her fans to share more material with us.

Here is a programme dedicated to her memory by Gajendra Khanna, the administrator and maintainer for this site. Let’s keep enjoying her songs and spreading the joy of her voice with Everyone.

Audio:

Radio Ceylon’s Tribute to Geeta ji

July 24th, 2020

On this death anniversary of Geeta ji, Radio Ceylon i.e. Srilanka Broadcasting Corporation’s Videsh Vibhag gave a tribute to Geeta ji.
In a rare tribute, they played all songs (except the last mandatory Saigal song) by Geeta ji. Normally one sees only half an hour tribute on anniversaries but for Geeta ji they dedicated a whole ‘prasaran’ to her.
Geeta fans thank Padmini Parera ji and SLBC for this wonderful gesture. The whole programme is available at this page on our sister site anmolfankaar.com :- https://www.anmolfankaar.com/monday-july-20-2020-slbc-broadcast/

Do tune in and enjoy it Thanks to Ashwani Kumar ji.

Geeta Dutt by Raaj Bothra

July 20th, 2020

Fellow Geeta Dutt Fan, Raaj Bothra ji remembers Geeta ji on her Anniversary

When I think about Geeta Dutt I don’t bother my mind with my favourites. I think instead of few miracles which she has sung. For instance Tumi Je Aamaar ( Harano Sur ) , as if a poem is being painted on a canvas or a cascade is humming a sweet melody. Geeta Dutt is so effortless that I doubt whether she is really singing ? Then there is Kaise Koi Jiye ( Badbaan ) The agony and pain of life are asking the simplest question to you and you are left speechless.

Kaise Koi Jiye in Film Baadbaan

She never put emotions in her song , she had an uncanny knack of adapting emotions of a song. When she sings Piya Aiso Jiya Men ( Sahab Bibi aur Ghulam ) she is personifying the emotions of a typical Indian “ Suhagan” in her singing which even a seasoned actress like Meena Kumari found difficult to enact on screen.

Piya Aiso Jiya Mein picturised on Meena Kumari in Sahib, Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962)

In Aaj Ki Raat Piya Dil Na ( Baazi ) she is sweet , coaxing to the extreme but in Thahro Jara Si Der ( Savera ) her voice is still like a beautiful photograph.

Aaj Ki Raat Piya picturised on Kalpana Kartik in Baazi (1951)
Thehro Zara Si Der Toh – Savera (1958) in Mujra Style

When she sang Bhajans she was not a master singer but an innocent Bhakt ( Ghunghat Ke Pat from Jogan ) and when she took to singing a Cabaret ( Tomar Duti Chokhe from Sonar Harin ) she was an enchantress teasing at best.

Bhajan Ghoonghat Ke Pat Khol in Jogan (1950) where She sang for Nargis
Cabaret song Tomar Duti Chokhe from Sonarharin (1959)

She sang every genre even comedy songs. Some said that she did not sing many a Classical songs but in my view this should not be a pre-requisite for a playback singer and vice versa. Perhaps she did not get her share of Classical songs. Noorjehan also didn’t sing Classical songs but nobody can question her supremacy as a playback singer. A good playback singer should make a class of his / her songs which Geeta did perfectly. In fact she merged with her songs in such a way that sometimes it was difficult to recognise her voice. She has many duets to her credit and what else can I say when Lata Mangeshkar once admitted that she had goosebumps while singing with Geeta.
I can never forgive Guru Dutt for imposing restrictions on Geeta Dutt’s singing. He must have known that Geeta was one among those rare natural singers for whom singing was like oxygen , way of survival.He was a genius film maker but a total duffer in home affairs.
Though Waqt Ne Kiya gave new dimensions to Geeta Dutt yet there are plenty of her songs which were not noticed duly. There was much more to come from her but her untimely death was not a Hasin Sitam by Waqt it was a cruel one really.

Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Haseen Sitam from Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959)

There shall never be another Geeta Dutt. There could have been so much more from her, but one must learn to be content with what is. Today’s singers can learn a lot from her singing. She was a real Master of Emotions. A thousand pranaams to her memory.

Geeta ji’s Funeral

July 20th, 2020

By Lakshmi Priya ji

Geeta ji’s early demise was a huge loss for her fans. On her death anniversary, thinking about all that could have been is a source of deep anguish for her fans.

I hereby present an Urdu magazine (probably Shama)’s photo which documents her extremely sad funeral. She was merely 41 years when She left for her heavenly abode due to cirrhosis of the liver.

It’s written ….playback singer Geeta Dutt Ka inteqaal 20 july ko bambai mein ho gaya”.. Aditya Pant had translated what is written for me . The headline is bulbul hamesha ke liye khamosh ho gayi.. ppl are offering flowers and her elder son is having the last darshan….can see SDB and RDB…

Geeta ji may have passed away but She continues to live in her songs. Lets keep spreading her songs to the new generations and keep her alive. May She be at peace, wherever She is.

Additional Inputs by Taiyeb Shaikh ji on the picture: I can’t make out magazine or new paper name. Usually Shama was Urdu monthly magazine with all Bollywood pictures & News. Kahkashan from Bombay was weekly Urdu Filmi news paper like Screen in English.
Anyways the lines are clear
Bulbul Hamesha ke liye khamosh ho gayi.
I can read also “Khush Gulu play back singer Geeta Dutt ka inteqal ho gaya” Khush Gulu mean Harmonious or Melodious voice. Khush is generally Sweet if used for voice & Gulu is voice. Never expected to see this. Salutes to you all.

She can never be replaced. Shyamal Chatterjee, a fellow Geeta fan sums it up aptly, “There will never be another Geeta Dutt . A comparatively short career but what she gifted us is never fading Diamonds “.

Geeta ji sings for Ustads and Pandits

July 17th, 2020

By Gajendra Khanna

During her career, Geeta ji had the opportunity to sing for quite a few Ustaads and Pandits, Master instrumentalists and vocalists of the classical arena when they composed for light songs or films.

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan with stamp released in his honour.

Humsafar (1953) made under the Navketan banner, had Ustad Ali Akbar Khan as the music director. here’s a gem tuned by him and rendered by Geeta Dutt. Enjoy listening to it.

Pandit Ravi Shankar who is a world renowned sitarist was also a composer. He is the one who composed for Satyajit Ray’s famous Apu Trilogy. In hindi films also he composed on a few occasions. One of those movies, Godaan (1963) had Geeta ji recording a duet, O Bedardi Kyun Tadpaaye, with Mahendra Kapoor. Its lyrics were by Anjaan. Here’s the song for your listening pleasure:-

Famous Tabla maestro, Allah Rakha also gave music to Hindi and Punjabi films by his full name A R Qureshi. One of his most famous movies was the Raj Kapoor starrer Bewafa (1952) where Geeta ji also sang for him. Enjoy this sweet song written by Sarshar Sailani :-

Another famous Tabla Maestro, Pandit Nikhil Ghosh also composed two non-film songs for Geeta ji. They are a real treat for fans of Geeta ji. They had been written by Pandit Bharat Vyas.

The first one is Jamuna Ke Teer Kanha Aao, which has a similar famous bhajan by Ustad Abdul Karim Khan. Geeta ji has sung it very sweetly and one would get to hear it on Radio Ceylon during its Devotional song programme.

Enjoy listening to it :-

The second song is also quite delightful which takes you to a feeling of calm and serenity. Enjoy this rendition of Haule Haule Hawa Dole by Geeta ji :-

It is interesting to note that She was also introduced by ‘Pandit’ Hanuman Prasad. Here is one of her renditions for him in her debut Bhakt Prahlad with Kalyani:-

Of course, we music lovers know that there are Pandits of the literary variety too, who wrote lyrics for many of Geeta ji’s songs. We have already come across one, Pandit Bharat Vyas above.

There was a lyricist in the 40s and 50s by the name Pandit Madhur (whose real name was Buddhichandra Agarwal). Here is a song, Kaali Kamali Odh Ke Aaye which Geeta ji sang for him under the composition of Avinash Vyas, the Gujarati maestro for whom Geeta ji sang nearly a 100 songs during her career. It is from the movie Bhakt Dhruv (1957).

Last but not the least, Geeta ji has worked in movies with ‘Ustad’ in them and songs with ‘Pandit’ or ‘Ustad’ in them too probably.

She sang two songs for the movie Ustaad (1957). Both were composed by O P Nayyar and written by Jaan Nisaar Akhtar. Here’s the first one which is a duet with Mohd Rafi Sahab, Kya Kya Dil Mein which is quite sweet:-

And this second one is quite a popular one for Radio lovers, Chor Lutere Daaku which is a delightful listen:-

Here’s a duet of hers with Mohd Rafi sahab, Pandit Ho Ya Lala for the movie Rickshawala (1960). It is composed by N Dutta and lyrics are by Jaan Nisaar Akhtar.

For us Geeta ji was a ‘Pandit’ of her art and ‘Ustaad’ in conveying the mood of the songs. May her songs reach the coming generations and keep delighting them all.

The Kind Hearted Geeta ji

July 11th, 2020

Geeta ji was a very kind hearted and warm person. She would always be ready to help those in need. We have read about how She would give money to those who needed it as well as cases where She had taken out the bangles She was wearing to help someone in an emergency.

She is also known to have participated in charity events and shows in support of the needy. Lakshmipriya ji had shared a small picture related to this.

Here is a lovely captioned version of that picture shared by Anish Raj Pandit ji. He says that They had just returned from Calcutta after performing to raise funds for the Bihar Flood Relief Fund!

It is so nice to see her with Raj Kapoor, Hemant Kumar, Leela Naidu, Ranu Mukherjee, Meena Kapoor, Anil Biswas and Mohd Rafi sahab. A really rare picture which is a great treasure for Hindi film music fans. Thanks to both of them for bringing the photo to our notice and the people who helped it reach online!

Phulwa Band Mehke…

July 9th, 2020

Film Hum Bhi Insaan Hain (1959) had a lovely song Phulwa Band Mehke sung by Geeta ji with Suman Kalyanpur.

For those not familiar with it, Do listen to this lovely duet of theirs.

Fellow Geeta fan Lakshmipriya ji has shared a photo with us where Geeta ji and Suman Kalyanpur can be seen standing with Lyricist Shailendra and Mohd Rafi Sahab. She says it must be from a rehearsal for this song. Here’s the picture below for your viewing pleasure. Thanks Lakshmipriya ji for sharing it.

Suman Kalyanpur-Geeta Dutt-Mohd Rafi-Shailendra-Phulvaa band mehke : Film – Hum bhi insaan hai (1959) MD: Hemant Kumar, Lyrics: Shailendra

Teen Gaayak Aur Ek Abhineta

July 3rd, 2020

Geeta ji was active in the film industry for more than 25 years. As a top playback singer in the 40s and 50s and wife of a top Film maker, It is but natural that She would rub shoulders with other singers as well as actors.

Fellow Geeta Fan, Lakshmipriya ji recently shared a picture where one can see Geeta ji with other top playback singers Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh talking to Ace Actor and Showman Raj Kapoor.

Raj Kapoor can be seen talking animatedly to them probably cracking a job to which Lata Bai and Mukesh are laughing at while Geeta ji looks on. Here is the lovely picture :-

Geeta ji with Lata Mangeshkar, Raj Kapoor and Mukesh

Seeing all of them together makes me feel that they must be together in connection with the recording of the song Hai Aag Hamaare Seene Mein for the movie Jis Desh Mein Ganga Rehta Hai. This song had as many as five singers, Mahendra Kapoor, Manna Dey as well in addition to the three seen in the pictures. Geeta ji gets very less opportunity to sing in it due to so many singers being there and It being more of a chorus song.

Here’s the song for your viewing pleasure :-

Wish Raj Kapoor had given more singing opportunities to Geeta ji in his films. Though Geeta ji has sung for many of his films made for other banners. If there is interest, in the combination, do tell us in the comments and we’ll be glad to put up a post regarding this!