Subodh Mukhopadhyay was so impressed by Hemant's sonorous voice that he introduced him to All India Radio Calcutta. He faced the mike and sang his first song, 'Amaar gaanete ale nabarupi chirantani,' when he was barely 13 in 1933.
Hemanta's music career was primarily mentored by the Bengali musician, Sailesh Duttagupta. In 1937, Hemanta cut his first gramophone disc under the Columbia label. The songs (non-film) on this disc were "Janite Jadi Go Tumi" and "Balo Go Balo More" whose lyrics were by Naresh Bhattacharya and music was composed by Sailesh Duttagupta.Hemant da recorded 12 songs for Colombia in one year. Meanwhile, he also recorded private Hindi songs written in 1940. His numbers, 'Bhala tha kitna apna bachpan' and 'Aaj sharabi aankhon mein', became immensely popular. With unprecedented success of these songs he started assisting Kamal Dasgupta. His popularity as a singer was soaring and he recorded his first Hindi song for film Meenakshi under the baton of Pankaj Mullick, followed by the Hindi film Irada.
Hemanta's music career was primarily mentored by the Bengali musician, Sailesh Duttagupta. In 1937, Hemanta cut his first gramophone disc under the Columbia label. The songs (non-film) on this disc were "Janite Jadi Go Tumi" and "Balo Go Balo More" whose lyrics were by Naresh Bhattacharya and music was composed by Sailesh Duttagupta.Hemant da recorded 12 songs for Colombia in one year. Meanwhile, he also recorded private Hindi songs written in 1940. His numbers, 'Bhala tha kitna apna bachpan' and 'Aaj sharabi aankhon mein', became immensely popular. With unprecedented success of these songs he started assisting Kamal Dasgupta. His popularity as a singer was soaring and he recorded his first Hindi song for film Meenakshi under the baton of Pankaj Mullick, followed by the Hindi film Irada.
Producer-director Hemen Gupta of Bhooli Nai was instrumental in bringing Hemant da to Bombay, having invited him to score music for Filmistan's Anand Math in 1951. The background music was much appreciated. Hemant da scored music for Daku ki Ladki, Samrat, and Filmistan's Ferry. Though hurt after films did not do well, he went ahead and accomplished this haunting melody, 'Na ye chaand hoga na taare rahenge magar hum hamesha tumhare rahenge', set in Raag Kaafi, with beautiful interludes of sitar, sarangi and tabla.
With four flops in a row, he decided to go back to Calcutta. And this is when S Mukehrjee of Filmistan advised him, "Don't go back with flops, stay here. Compose music like Naushad first and then think of going back to Calcutta. With these words he signed him for Filmistan's next venture Nagin. The rest is history, as he composed twelve great numbers. He used composer Kalyanji's clavioline to create a song with the effect of a snake charmer's been. The solos of Hemant da including 'O zindagi ke denewale' and 'Tere dwar khada ek jogi'; became instant hits nationwide even before the release of the film. Jaagriti, too, was produced by Filmistan and it created a storm with its music. Hemant da was in huge demand after the success of Nagin and Jaagriti.
He had also become a producer with the Bangla film, Neel Aakasher Neeche, followed by the production of a Hindi film, Bees Saaal Baad, under the banner Geetanjali Films. A suspense thriller based on Arthur Conan Doyle's 'The Hound of Baskerville', the film had Lata's classic gems and Hemant da lent his voice to these unforgettable numbers 'Zara nazron se keh do ji' and 'Beqrar karke hamein yoon na jaayei'. So did Bin Badal Barsat fared well. His next home production was Kohraa based on Daphne du Maurier's grand novel 'Rebecca'. Kohraa's renditions were simply beautiful, 'Raah bani khud manzil', 'Ye nayan dare dare', and 'Jhoom Jhoom dhalti raat'. These wonderful numbers could not sustain Kohraa, causing great anguish to Hemant da.
Hemant da's all-time great number was 'Jaane wo kaise log they' that he sang for Guru Dutt's Pyaasa. Guru Dutt also signed him for his classic, Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam. Hemant and Shakeel Badauni were back after Bees Saal Baad. Hemant da's music truly enhanced the spirit of the movie.
Contributed by :- Shri. Mitul Kansal
kansalmitul@gmail.com
kansalmitul@gmail.com