Sujata (1960)

Sun mere bandhu re 

Sun mere mitwa ......

Sujata 1960 

Sunil Dutt, Nutan, Tarun Bose, Sulochana, Lalita Pawar , Shashikala 

Music – SD Burman, lyrics- Majrooh Sultanpuri , Director - Bimal Roy 

Adhir[ Sunil Dutt ] is disappointed  when  Sujata [ Nutan ] does not come to see the dance drama Chandalika being performed by  Rama’s college. Little does he know that she is abiding his  grandmother’s orders. He leaves midway ,  heads to Gandhi Ghat  and finds Sujata at the river bank. She’s surprised – how did he know that she would be here ?

“My mind told me ,”  he answers .

She demurs from telling him the truth about   her absence at  the show and he explains the story of Chandalika to her.

That was aeons ago ... where is Buddha in today’s world ?

Of course Gandhi ji , who did not let opinions about the harijan girl Laxmi at the Sabarmati ashram faze him . He bravely faced the boycott  though contributions to the  Ashram froze  and it faced closure. But God is kind – a benefactor emerged  and Gandhi ji continued his crusade. 

Can you tell me why I like you so much ? , he asks

I often dream of you – with Chandramallika flowers in your hair, a chandan bindi on your forehead wearing a champa coloured saree .  Do you know what this dream signifies ?

Yes , it means you are beautiful !

Do you also like me ? he persists 

The boatman’s song says it all – amidst the sound of waves, splashing   oars , soft breeze and the lantern light  swaying on the boat. 

They sit quietly on the steps at the Ghat and he hums a tune – the words haven’t yet come to him but he promises to sing the song for her after  penning the lines .

Endnotes –

*Sun mere bandhu is a bhatiyali song composed by SD Burman – the first Bhatiyali song of Hindi cinema. The ‘re’ at the end signifies a  boatman’s song – its about human feelings of love, hope, expectation .  An east Bengal folk song was SD Burman’s  inspiration , ‘ tomar laagiya re ,pran amar kande....’

*”I have my own definition of bhatiyali , though in no way does it intend to change the general concept of the same. Bhatiyali is the tune of the earth. Its roots are in the earth , it flowers in the earth. Bhatiyali is the song of the river. Its notation, its words , its pathos, its delight remind us of the rivers of Bengal as do Rabindranath’s poems. Again, bhatiyali is the song of love be it of the common peasants or of Radha Krishna. “

 S D Burman quoted in ‘ The world of his music ‘ by Khagesh dev Burman 

And a word about the location – Gandhi Ghat at Barrackpore This was the first  memorial to the Father of the Nation  and his love for all religions inspired the architect Habib Rehman to conceive a structure that symbolised Hinduism, Islam and Christianity. Thus , there is a temple shikhar or tower capped with an Islamic dome and the horizontal cantilevered slab projecting from both sides appears in silhouette like a cross . Inaugurated  by Jawahar lal Nehru on 15th January 1949, who complimented H. Rehman for the ‘ magnificent conception. ‘