Legendary music composer RD Burman, affectionately called Pancham, had a strong friendship with Randhir Kapoor but surprisingly refused to compose music for Raj Kapoor. Yes, that’s true! Pancham was initially hired to compose the music for “Dharam Karam” which was Randhir Kapoor’s first directorial film but when asked to create a song for Raj Kapoor in the film, Pancham declined. This story was shared by Raju Bharatan, a former assistant editor at the Illustrated Weekly of India, in an interview with a portal.
Randhir Kapoor invited Pancham to create the tune in Raj Kapoor’s presence but Pancham wasn’t comfortable with that. He got upset and told Randhir that he (Randhir) didn’t inform him (Pancham) that he had to play the tune in front of Raj Kapoor and if he had known it, he wouldn’t have signed the movie. The reason behind RD Burman’s unwillingness to work with Raj Kapoor was because of his experience with Guru Dutt.
Reportedly, he had a tough experience working with Guru Dutt and he had heard Raj Kapoor could also be challenging to work with. Pancham once said Guru Dutt drove him crazy. Guru Dutt would select a tune after hearing several options but would change his mind later, leaving Pancham unsure about what he really wanted. Similarly, Pancham believed that Raj Kapoor was picky when it came to music, which is why he didn’t want to perform a tune in front of him. Randhir tried to convince Pancham, explaining that Raj Kapoor was highly creative but Pancham responded that he had worked with creative people before and knew how difficult it could be. He preferred working with more straightforward and normal people.
After some persuasion, Pancham finally agreed to play the tune but was very anxious. Raj Kapoor, who preferred music by Shankar-Jaikishan and wasn’t a fan of Laxmikant-Pyarelal, listened to Pancham’s tune for “Ek Din Bik Jayega Maati Ke Mol,” even though the lyrics weren’t finished. To Pancham’s relief, Raj Kapoor loved the tune and confidently predicted that the song would be a hit. Raj Kapoor had a knack for identifying a hit just by hearing the melody.
RD Burman went on to have successful collaborations with the Kapoor family. He composed for Shashi Kapoor in films like “Shaan” (1980) and “Pyaar Ka Mausam” (1969). For Randhir Kapoor, he worked on “Jawani Diwani” (1972) and “Dharam Karam” (1975). With Rishi Kapoor, Burman delivered some of his most memorable songs in 17 films, including iconic hits like “Khel Khel Mein” (1975) and “Hum Kisise Kum Nahin” (1977), featuring popular tracks like “Khullam Khulla Pyar Karenge” and “Tu Tu Hai Wohi.”
RD Burman left this world in 1994 but left behind a timeless musical legacy.
