Remember Shammi Kapoor’s carefree, flamboyant, high-energy moves, and Mumtaz’s cabaret/jazz-infused dance in ‘Aaj Kal Tere Mere Pyar Ke Charche’ (Brahmachari, 1968)? Mohammed Rafi’s vocals perfectly matched Shammi Kapoor’s breezy steps. But who was the singer whose voice blended so seamlessly with Mumtaz’s bewitching routine on the dance floor?
Chances are the average Hindi film music listener will answer: Lata Mangeshkar. He will be certain—there is no reason to doubt.
Take the good-natured ribbing in the exuberant ‘Na Na Karte Pyar Tumhi Se Kar Baithe’ (Jab Jab Phool Khile, 1965). Who is the female singer matching Rafi’s playful rendition? Lata, the listener will answer, without hesitation. Why do you ask?
The romantic, melody-soaked ‘Tum Jo Aao To Pyar Aa Jaye’ (Sakhi Robin, 1962), with Manna Dey as co-singer, will meet the same fate. Lata—who else?
Who else? That would be Suman Kalyanpur.
Judge for yourself. Here is probably the only duet sung by Lata and Suman—‘Kabhi Aaj Kabhi Kal’ (Chand, 1954; MD: Hemant Kumar).
Of course, you, dear reader, would know who’s who. But I am referring to the ordinary listener, who sees only the broad strokes, not the nuances.
But why the confusion?
Suman’s voice quality, texture, and range were uncannily similar to Lata’s—so much so that not only listeners, but radio stations and even music directors initially mistook her for Lata. What did that do to her career? She was seen as a “poor man’s Lata,” or as Lata’s “replacement” when Lata was unavailable, refused to sing (such as during her royalty dispute with Rafi), or was indisposed.
My uncle, the late Satish Bhatia—music director of V. Shantaram’s Boond Jo Ban Gayi Moti (1967)—took Suman for three solos and one duet (with Mukesh) because Lata was unwell for a long period. Lata had sung for V. Shantaram’s films earlier and later as well (including the immediately following Jal Bin Machhli Nritya Bin Bijli, 1971). Due to her indisposition, there was no option but to opt for her near sound-alike, Suman.
She did not disappoint. Her duet with Mukesh—‘Haan, Maine Bhi Pyar Kiya’—became very popular. She won the prestigious Sur Shringar Samsad Award for Best Classical Song in a Hindi film for ‘Ankhiyan Tarsan Laagi’. The Sur Shringar Samsad is an institution in India dedicated to promoting classical music, and the award highlighted her ability to handle complex classical compositions in Hindi cinema.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnjuCoWM67Y
This is what Suman had to say about my uncle.
All music directors recognized her mastery in semi-classical and classical-based film songs. Consider some such songs:
- ‘Manmohan Man Mein Ho Tumhi’ (Kaise Kahoon, 1964, MD- SD Burman) with Rafi and SD Batish
- ‘Ajhun Na Aaye Baalama’ (Sanjh Aur Savera, 1964, MD – Shankar Jaikishan)
- ‘Mere Sang Ga Gunguna’ (Janwar, 1965, MD- Shankar Jaikishan)
- ‘Gir Gayi Re More Mathe Ki Bindiya’ (Pakeezah – Rang Barang released 1977, MD- Ghulam Mohammad)
Her immense talent—her distinct skill, classical depth, and ability to hold her own with other singers—was acknowledged. Unfortunately, it was overshadowed by her similarity to Lata. Connoisseurs knew, much like relatives and friends of identical twins do, that the voices were similar but not identical. Suman had a mild tremolo. Lata’s voice remained steady and uniform across all ranges, whereas Suman’s voice tended to shiver when she raised her pitch. Suman’s voice carried a hint of imperfection and an unstable timbre.
Suman had all the qualities of a top-class singer, but she was born at the wrong time—or perhaps in the wrong country.
Suman was born as Suman Hemmadi on 28 January 1937 in Dhaka (now in Bangladesh). Her father belonged to a Saraswat Brahmin family from Hemmadi, a village in the Udupi district of Karnataka, and served in a senior position at the Central Bank of India. He was posted in Dhaka for a long period. In 1943, the family moved to Bombay.
Suman was interested in painting and music. After school, she gained admission to Sir J. J. School of Arts to study painting. Simultaneously, she began learning classical vocal music from Pandit Keshav Rao Bhole of Pune’s Prabhat Films, a close family friend. Initially, singing was only a hobby, but gradually her interest deepened and she pursued it professionally under various teachers.
Her first public performance was for All India Radio in 1952. She then sang for the Marathi film Shukrachi Chandni (1953). At that time, Sheikh Mukhtar was producing Mangu, composed by Mohammed Shafi, who was impressed by her singing and selected her for three songs. Suman later met Lata during the recording of Mangu, and Lata appreciated her singing. When O. P. Nayyar replaced Mohammed Shafi, only one of her three songs—the lullaby ‘Koi Pukare Dheere Se Tujhe’—was retained.
Immediately after, Suman sang 5 songs under the baton of composer Naushad for Darwaza (1954) including a duet with Talat Mehmood. Talat heard Suman singing in a musical concert and was highly impressed by her singing. Her career hit the big league when Talat agreed to sing the duet with her, making the film industry sit up and take notice of her.
In the same year, Suman sang in OP Nayyar’s hit ensemble song ‘Mohabbat Kar Lo Ji Bhar Lo Aji Kisne Roka Hai’ with Rafi and Geeta Dutt for the film Aar Paar. This was her only song with OP Nayyar. The disc does not mention Suman’s name in the credits for this song, so this fact remained unknown. OP Nayyar said that Suman’s parents didn’t want her name to be published on the record for some reason, possibly because when this song was recorded, she was a school going girl.
OP Nayyar never used Lata on the ground that Lata’s voice didn’t suit his compositional style. Listen to this Aar Paar song (from 1.36 onwards) to get an idea as how Lata would have sounded in an OP Nayyar song and whether his claim (which he made to me also) was justified or not.
Suman had an active career from 1954 to 1988. She was most popular during the 1960s and 1970s, recording over 3,000 songs in various languages. She sang over 140 duets with Rafi in the 1960s. The number would certainly not have been so high had Lata not refused to sing with Rafi over royalty issues during this period (1962-1967). Lata’s loss was Suman’s gain. Similarly, during SD Burman’s tiff with Lata during 1957-62, though the bulk of the songs went to Asha Bhosle, some went to Suman as well. Some of the memorable ones are – ‘Chhodo Chhodo Mori Baiyan’ (Mian Biwi Raazi, 1960) and ‘Na Tum Humme Jaano’ (Baat Ek Raat Ki, 1962).
Some of her memorable duets with Rafi are ‘Parbaton Ke Pedon Par Shaam Ka Basera Hai’ ( Shagoon, 1964) , ‘Tumne Pukara Aur Hum Chale Aaye’ ( Rajkumar, 1964) , ‘Bad Muddat Ke Yeh Ghadi Ayee’ ( Jahan Ara , 1964) , ‘Mujhe Yeh Bhool Na De’ ( Ghazal, 1964) , ‘Thehriye Hosh Main Aa Loon’ ( Mohabbat Isko Kehte Hain, 1965) , ‘Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya’ ( Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya, 1966), ‘Rahen Na Rahen Hum’ ( Mamta, 1966) , and ‘Tumse O Haseena’ ( Farz , 1967) .
With Manna Dey she sang the popular duet ‘Na Jane Kahan Hum The’ (Zindagi Aur Khwab, 1961). With Mukesh she sang many popular duets like `Yeh Kisne Geet Chheda’ (Meri Surat Teri Aanken, 1963), ‘Chura Le Na Tumko Yeh Mausam Suhana’ (Dil Hi to Hai, 1963), and ‘Mera Pyar Bhi Tu Hai’ (Saathi, 1968).
There were rumours that industry politics sidelined her from reaching greater heights, though she remained a respected legend with timeless hits. Her immense contribution was eventually recognized with the Padma Bhushan in 2023, acknowledging her legacy. She even received the Lata Mangeshkar Award in 2009 from the Maharashtra government
But did she have a unique identity? Suman was very uncomfortable regarding the similarity between her voice and Lata’s. Said she- “I was quite influenced by her. In my college days, I used to sing her songs. Meri aawaaz nazuk aur patli thi. What could I do? Also, when Radio Ceylon relayed the songs, the names were never announced. Even the records sometimes gave the wrong name. Maybe that caused more confusion.” Suman has said that she never tried to imitate Lata and stuck to her own style of singing and connoisseurs could distinguish their voices. Be that as it may, the subtle differences between the two singers were lost on most listeners,
My own take is that in songs where she was a replacement choice because of unavailability of Lata, the music directors (particularly Shankar-Jaikishan) may have seen to it that she sounded like Lata, or she may have sub-consciously, tried to imitate her. But in songs where she was taken due to her merit, she sounded different. She added something distinct, beautiful and everlasting. This is particularly true of her solo songs. Take for example – ’Sharabi Sharabi Yeh Saawan Ka Mausam’ (Noorjehan, 1967). She sounds very unique and distinctly different from Lata. Her performance is all the more creditable because this song stood out in the face of a great Lata song in the same film – ‘Raat Ki Mehfil Sooni Sooni’.
Some of the other solo Suman songs – ‘Bujha Diye Hain Khud Apne Hathon’ (Shagoon ,1964), ‘Mere Mehboob Na Ja Aaj Ki Raat’ (Noor Mahal ,1965), and others proved that Suman could sing solo numbers with equal flair. In ‘Duniya Bananewale Kya Tere Mann Mein Samayee’ (Teesri Kasam,1966), the last stanza, which comes after a dialogue between Raj Kapoor and Waheeda Rehman after Mukesh’s part, was sung by Suman in a unique style. She was taken even though the film had great solos by Lata and Asha.
It is sad that a singer with such enormous talent did not get her due; her similarity with Lata’s voice became her curse. Yet she is one of the great singers of the golden era. Today (January 28) on her 89th birthday, we wish her good health and happiness. Her charcha on every zabaan will remain for a long time to come.
(Cover Photo: The President, Smt. Droupadi Murmu presenting the Padma Bhushan Award to Smt. Suman Kalyanpur at the Civil Investiture Ceremony-I at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on March 22, 2023. PIB)
BollywoodHindi filmsIndiaLegendary SingerMusicPadma BhushanPlayback SingerSingerSuman Kalyanpur