Original Vs. Remix

As I've been writing about my Retro favorites, I started thinking about all the remixes that are out there. I must confess that sometimes I came to know about the original songs only after I watched the remixed versions. Most of the classics that are remixed are sweet romantic songs with loads of masti, chedkani and ada. Sometimes, the remixes are nice and add to the original song while some just sound horrible. When it comes to the videos, almost all of them have an ample dose of sexiness - skimpily clad girls dancing in ways that good Indian girls shouldn't (hence the phirangis in most of them)!

I also have to add that there may be multiple remixes for a single song. The ones I've listed here are the remixes that I personally like. So here's a list of some of my favorite remixed versions of bollywood classics...

First the Good (there's going to be a whole separate post about the bad and the ugly):

Sayan Dil Mein Aana Re, Bahar (1951), S.D. Burman

The young, fresh-faced Vaijayanti Mala is adorable in this song. Her movements are so carefree and elegant. Also the Kabootar part totally reminds me of Maine Pyaar Kiya. The costume changes remind me of Buddha Mil Gaya from Sangam, another one of Vaijayanti Mala's successful songs. This song just makes me smile every time I watch it.

The remixed version of this song is also carefree and incorporates Wannabe by the Spice Girls (without giving them credit of course, cuz that's how it's done in Bollywood!). As is tradition for remixes, this video has a starlet, this time it's Tanushree Dutta. The dancing is cute and not over the top or too sexy.

Zarurat Hai from Man Mauji (1962), Madan Mohan

Kishore Kumar weaves his magic in this song. He sings about his need for a wife who will take care of him and serve him well, while the beautiful Sadna ignores his efforts to woo her. I hadn't watched or listened to the original song until my mom pointed out that this was the original version of the remix by the Bombay Vikings.

The remix has different lyrics for the most part but still retains the same feel. It still retains a lot of the classic Kishore Kumar masti and fun elements. The guy in the video is Raju Sundaram (Prabhu Deva's older brother) for those of you who were wondering! Raju Sundaram is also an accomplished choreographer like his brother and even choreographed Salman Khan in Wanted.

Hoton Pe Aisi Baat from Jewel Thief (1967), S.D. Burman

Vaijayanti Mala is in this classic as well. Here we see her at her peak. This song establishes her dancing ability. She convincingly portrays pain through her dancing. In short, she is amazing in this song while Dev Anand does his thing.

In the remixed version we see Rakhi Sawant with Muzamil Ibrahim (can someone say yummy!). The reason why I like this remix is because of the video. I like the story and the whole setting even though Rakhi Sawant is over-the-top at times. It modernizes the setting in the original video (raja ka darbaar) to a certain extent (even though it has an Arabian/Aladin theme). I don't really understand the ending but I enjoyed the video and the remix very much.

Main Chali from Padosan (1968), R.D. Burman

The original song has the beautiful Saira Banu cycling around a garden with her friends proclaiming that she's on her way to find love while her friends warn her of potential heartbreakers. This is a cute song in which a girl and her friends talk about love and the right time to fall in love.

I really like this remix by the Bombay Vikings. In typical Bombay Vikings style, they change some of the lyrics. They modernize the song without getting rid of the essence of the original song. The song still tells the tale of a girl who leaves everything behind in pursuit of love. For a change the video does not have scantily clad girls dancing provocatively.

Kajra Mohabbat Wala from Kismat (1968), O.P. Nayyar

This song stars the chanchal Babita dressed as a man. The song is all about teasing and chedkani. It tells the story of a guy telling his lover that her gajre ne leli meri jaan, hay re mein tere kurbaan.

I was pleasantly surprised when I found the remix of this song considering it stars Diya Mirza. The song is sung by Sonu Nigam and Alisha Chinoy. Sonu very easily add the chedkani while Alsiha effortlessly adds the ada and nakhre. Diya has a sexy avatar and looks amazing in the video. The part where Sonu cheds Diya reminds me of this song from Pyaar Kiye Jaa (1968).

Bindiya Chamkegi, Do Raaste (1969), Laxmikant Pyarelal

The original song is filmed on the cute and bubbly Mumtaz and the (then) king of romance Rajesh Khanna. The song is about a girl teasing her rootha lover while asking him to forgive her as well. Along with all the teasing she also tells him that she loves him very much and his emotions and sentiments are important to her.

This remix is sung by Anuradha Paudwal, who adds a lot of soul to the song. The video is about a girl who pulls a prank on her Army Jawan boyfriend. It's fun and manages to keep the essence of teasing intact. Another shocker is that the remix does not have some weird out-of-place setting that involves girls dancing seductively.

Chadti Jawani Meri from Caravan (1971), R.D. Burman

For those of you who want an excellent example of the fun 70s Bollywood soundtrack, listen to the music of Caravan. All of the songs in this movie are just plain amazing. R.D. Burman was a musical genius just like his father S.D. Burman. This song especially, is filmed on a young and flirty Aruna Irani and the Jumping Jack Jeetendra. The song is about a girl who wants her lover to notice her chadti jawani rather than the other girls around. This song is all about teasing, flirting and masti. For a change it's not Kishore Kumar singing but Mohammed Rafi.

The remix mixes in The Ketchup Song by Las Ketchup (without giving them credit, of course!). The result is actually a fun remix. The video has the infamous Negar Khan, a fresh faced Priyanka (aka Nisha) Kothari and another model whose name I am yet to find as angel mannequins who come to life and experience the modern world. Yes they are scantily clad angels but who cares (I guess they were inspired by the Victoria's Secret Angels!)

Nahi Nahi from Jawani Deewani (1972), R.D. Burman

I like this song because it's just so darn like-able! Kishore Kumar adds a whole lot of masti and chedkani to this song, while Asha Bhosle contributes the ada and nakhre. As a special mention, I must add that all of the songs in this movie are amazing. (I bet there are remixes for all of them!) Randhir Kapoor plays the young lover perfectly while the gudiya like Jaya Bhaduri plays his cute girlfriend perfectly.

I like that this remix by DJ Aqueel retains the original vocals and just adds new beats. As a bonus the video has a drunk Ayesha Takia dancing away as her boyfriend, Keith (ex B4U VJ) tries to take her away before she does some she may regret!

Koi Shehri Babu from Loafer (1973), Laxmikant Pyarelal

The original has a cut and bubbly Mumtaz and adorable Farida Jalal (how cute is she in this song?!). The vocals are provided by Lata Mangeshkar. The girl sings about a shehri babu who stole her heart and gifted her a ghungroo, which made her dance. Yeah this sounds really weird when I translate it but I promise it sounds much better in Hindi! The setting for this song is at a sangeet (I'm assuming here - I haven't watched the movie). So this song is all about how the bride fell in love with her groom. It's cute and full of masti.

The remix stars Reshma Bombaywala, an indian model who became a known face after this song. There is no real story to this song. It's just a bunch of scantily clad girls dancing but the dance steps are not crazy (surprising). I still remember how this video raised a whole bunch of eyebrows when it first came out. I like this video because it's simple, doesn't try too hard, doesn't have crazy beats ruining the song and I think Falguni Pathak is sining it. I'm a huge fan of Falguni's songs (I can already see an idea for my next post blossoming!).

Bahon Mein Chale Aao from Anamika (1973) & Hum Bewafa Hargiz Na The from Shalimar (1978), R.D. Burman

Bahon Mein Chale Aao is filmed on the lovable Jaya Bhaduri and the handsome Sajeev Kumar. The song is about the sweet longing a girl has for her lover. She wants her lover to spend time with her without being shy. The song is sweet and the lyrics are playful. Lata Mangeshkar's voice adds an innocence to the song. Hum Bewafa is filmed on the Garam Dharam (Dharmendra) and the beautiful Zeenat Aman. The song is about a man telling his lover that he was never bewafa and still loves her. It is very heartfelt and sung skillfully by Kishore Kumar.

The remix has both of these songs which is why I've grouped them. The story is about a guy coming to village where he falls for the village belle. The elders disapprove of their relationship and he is thrown out of the village. He is sad and heartbroken as he leaves the village. But all is well again when he reunites with his love. This remix is sung by the talented Mahalakshmi Iyer and the melodious Shaan. It sounds good. It looks good. Most of all the video of the remix captures longing and heartbreak effectively.

Jay Jay Shiv Shankar from Aap Ki Kasam (1974), R.D. Burman

This is actually one of the first remixes I remember watching as a kid. MTV India held a singing contest and the winners got to sing this song. The video stars Maria Goretti (Arshad Warsi's wife) and Yash Tonk. It's fun and captures the masti that was in the original.

The original was filmed on the bubbly Mumtaz and the romantic Rajesh Khanna. In the song, the lovers are at a temple where they unknowingly drink Bhang. They sing about their love for each other in their drunken stupor!

Ghar Jayegi from Khusboo (1975), R.D. Burman

This song is filmed on the Dream Girl Hema Malini and is about a girl dreaming about her wedding. She dreams about the mehendi that going to adorn her arms. She wonders what her doli is going to be like. She thinks back to the first time she realized she was in love. This song is so well written. It expresses a girl's feeling so well.

The remix starts out with the original vocals and then switches to the new vocals and beats, which sounds good. The video on the other hand is a little confusing. It is set in a brothel, of all places, and has Anjana Sukhani cast as a prostitute/wife (weird, yeah I know!). The setting could hint at prostitute's desire to have a family to call her own or a prostitute mocking the lives of other girls. So it starts out with a prostitute returning to the brothel and seeing her lover/husband there. The end suggests that the entire song was a dream. Anyway, yes the girls are seductive and provocatively dressed (they are prostitutes...) but the dance steps are actually cute.

Pardesiya from Mr Natwarlal (1979), Rajesh Roshan

This song is filmed on the enigmatic Rekha and none other than Amitabh Bachchan. It is about a girl telling her lover that he stole her dil. Rekha looks beautiful and is very graceful. Mr. Bachchan plays the part of the dashing young man convincingly.

The remix has Rakhi Sawant and Muzamil Ibrahim doing their thing. I believe this is Rakhi's first remix but I may be wrong. Well since she's in this song, it's a given that there's going to be a whole lot of skin-show and jhatkas and matkas Rakhi style. I like this song because of the story. The whole office crush thing is cute but other than that this song has nothing else to offer.

Hum Tumhe Chahte Hai Aise from Qurbani (1980), Biddu

The original was filmed on Zeenat Aman and Vinod Khanna. It's not difficult to see that Zeenat Aman could easily be any man's object of affection and desire. Here the guy tells the girl the extent of his love for her even though he knows that she loves someone else. The song is very passionate and has a lot of emotion. Vinod Khanna plays the lovelorn lover excellently.

The remix has the beautiful Shweta Salve. I like the mysterious quality that she brings to the video. Also, this remix does not increase the tempo of the song but keeps it slow and romantic. Another change that it makes is the addition of female vocals for certain sections of the song, which convey what the girl feels.

Thoda Resham Lagta Hai (Kaliyon Ka Chaman) from Jyoti (1981), Bappi Lahiri

Kaliyon Ka Chaman brought Megna Naidu to everyone's attention. I actually did not know that Kaliyon Ka Chaman was the remix of Thoda Resham Lagta Hai. When I actually saw the original song, I was surprised. In this case, the remix sounds very different.

The original is a bit more classical with Lata Mangeshkar providing the vocals. The song has Aruna Irani as a tawaif singing and dancing. What's really surprising to me is that this time Bollywood did not do the copying.

"Truth Hurts" by Addictive is a copy of the remix Kaliyon Ka Chaman. Not only is the music copied but even the styling of the video is copied. Now that's different!

Raat Baki from Namak Halal (1982), Bappi Lahiri

This song stars the ravishing Parveen Babi, dashing Shashi Kapoor and the original Angry Young Man Amitabh Bachchan. The song is about a girl teasing her lover. She says the night is still young and let whatever happens between them happen. Parveen Babi plays the role of the temptress effortlessly.

I remember watching the remix when I was younger. I was mesmerized by the weird setting but somehow I've grown to like it. The model in the song also appears in Right Here Right Now from Bluffmaster (she's the girl with the tattoo on her shoulder). The remix is seductive just as the lyrics.

Tu Tu Hai Wohi from Yeh Vaada Raha (1982), R.D. Burman

This song is so catchy. The original stars Rishi Kapoor, Poonam Dhillon and Tina Munim. This song is about a girl telling her lover that he is what her heart desires and she will be always be with him no matter where he is.

Just like many of the other songs, I actually heard the remixed version before I heard the original version of the song. But unlike Nahi Nahi, this time DJ Aqueel did not retain the original vocals of the song. This time, he not only changed the vocals, but also added english lyrics. I also have to point out that in the original as a faster tempo while the remix is actually much slower, surprisingly. This is the second video that includes prostitutes. Here they answer phone calls by dedicating these promises of love to their callers. One of the girls in this video, Mahi Vij has gone on to act in TV shows. I have no clue about the other two girls.

Bin Tere Sanam from Yaara Dildaara (1991), Jatin-Lalit

The original song is filmed on Asif Sheikh, who was most recently seen essaying the role of Dr. Armaan's father (Billy) in the hit TV show Dill Mill Gayye, and Ruchika Pandey. I've never even heard of this movie or seen the original video before. Regardless, the song is a different story. I've heard this song countless times. The song is about lovers who declare their love for each other. The boy talking about how barren his life is without his love calls her his life while the girl promises never to leave him since zhalim hai dil ki lagi.

This remix is by DJ Suketu. The video for the remix is set in a club setting, which partly explains the crazy costumes. The story is simple. Boy and girl meet in the club. Boy and girl dance and tease each other. The next part I didn't quite get, it's either boy sees another guy dancing with girl or girl already has a boyfriend. Anyway, boy is left heartbroken. When boy is about to leave he sees girl waiting for him. So I guess the other boy was a friend?! IDK. The song sounds good and that's all I care about!