5 Things You May Not Have Known About RD Burman | Birth Anniversary

6 Things You May Not Have Known About RD Burman, According To A New Book

1. He wrote lyrics for the English song that plays during a key scene in Deewaar (1975) : An important scene in Yash Chopra's Deewaar was the one in which the characters played by Amitabh Bachchan and Parveen Babi meet at a bar. An English song, with the opening words 'I'm Falling In Love With A Stranger' plays in the background during this scene, the lyrics of which, according to Padukone, were penned by Burman.
2. His signature singing style was inspired by jazz legend Louis Armstrong: Burman was known for the distinctive growl he lent to his vocals when singing in songs such as 'Mehbooba Mehbooba' from Ramesh Sippy's Sholay (1975), which Padukone says were inspired by the stylings of American jazz legend Louis Armstrong. "He was fascinated by Louis [Armstrong] and didn't want to be stereotyped as a conventional playback singer," says Padukone. "He used to say: 'Meri awaaz ki koi pehchaan honi chaahiye (my voice should have its own identity)'."
3. He would make music out of everything — from a bunch of keys to physically playing a beat on the back of a shirtless and bewildered session percussionist: In the song 'Raat Gai Baat Gai', from the Dev Anand-Zeenat Aman starrer Darling Darling (1977), at one point (the 2:22 mark in the video above), a beat is heard which doesn't sound like a conventional percussion instrument. In the song's picturisation, it is Aman who is creating the beat by tapping various parts of her own body (as well as a few extras). In the studio, that beat was played by Burman, literally, on the back of one of his trusted percussionists, Amrutrao Katkar. "During the recording, he asked Amrutrao to remove his shirt," says Padukone. "Naturally, he [the percussionist] was embarrassed and bewildered by this. Then, he proceeded to play a Latin American beat on his back, with a microphone recording everything. It was okayed in one take and used in the movie." Burman had a penchant for using natural, foley-inspired techniques or unusual instruments to create interesting sounds and rhythms in his songs, which would be depicted on screen similarly. In 'Chura Liya Hai Tumne', from Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973), the spoon-on-glass sound heard in the beginning is an actual recording of a glass being struck by a spoon. In 'Dheere Dheere Zara Zara' from Agar Tum Na Hote (1983), the rhythm created by actress Rekha on screen, where she's shown tapping a piece of jewellery around her waist, was actually the sound of a bunch of keys that was used in lieu of the traditional hi-hat.
4. He was always thinking about music, even in his dreams: Once, in the middle of an interview with Padukone in the lobby of a recording studio, Burman suddenly stood up and went inside one of the booths to talk to his arranger Babloo Chakravorty about a brainwave he'd just had. "He would do this very often — stop mid-sentence, and then go and talk to Babloo-da and say, 'Yahaan aisa music rakho, yahaan silence rakho' and then return to the interview," he says. He claimed to have composed the song 'Kancha Re Kancha Re' from Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1971) entirely in a dream.
5. He was honest about his 'inspirations': Like many Bo