Director, producer, writer and lyricist Saawan Kumar Tak breathed his last at the intensive care unit of Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai at 4:15 pm on Thursday. He was 86. He was admitted to the hospital in a critical condition as he had a heart failure. He also had a history of lung-related ailments. Tak is survived by his wife and music director, Usha Khanna.
During the span of his career, Tak worked with a bevy of singers including the iconic Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhonsle, and the then newer talents like Shaan, Sunidhi Chauhan and Sonu Nigam, among others.
Singer Madhushree, who helped bridge the gap between these two generations of musicians, shared a rather special personal and professional equation with Tak. In what was supposed to be his last directorial film, Souten 2, Madhushree had lent her vocals to two songs, including its title track, which remains unreleased.
In an exclusive chat with News18, Madhushree remembers the late filmmaker and writer, and says, “Saawan ji was an eminent producer, director and lyricist. It feels unbelievable that he is no longer among us. It was just a few days back that I visited him. He fed me so much food! I sang so many songs for him. He used to love shers and shayaris. He was also a music lover.”
She reveals that Tak used to call her ‘Lata Mangeshkar’ and adds, “He loved me a lot. He used to tell me, ‘Madhushree, you are my Lata Mangeshkar’. In his last film Souten 2, which is still unreleased, he made me sing two songs, one of them was the title song that goes like, ‘Tumhaare phool toh aaye magar tum nahi aaye.’ He used to love this song. He would make everyone listen to it. He would often call me up and ask me to sing it for him.”
Talking about how the news of his demise has affected and even shocked her, the In Lamhon Ke Daaman Mein (Jodhaa Akbar; 2008) singer shares, “He would grace most of my music shows and parties with his presence. We would frequently speak to each other on the phone. The fact that he left all of us so suddenly makes it extremely difficult for us to believe that he is no more. I’m truly shattered. I hope his soul finds peace wherever he is today.”
A year ago, Madhushree shared a video on her YouTube channel, which also featured Tak. The former is seen crooning the iconic Zindagi Pyar Ka Geet Hai from Tak’s Souten (1993) starring Rajesh Khanna.
Check out the video here:
Following the music session, she engages him in a conversation and requests him to shed the light on his process of making music. To this, Tak replies, “I don’t know. Words just flowed out of my heart. I never put too much of thought when writing a song. When I write songs, I become the character and then start thinking like them. I think how they would think and speak about and react to a certain situation. Once I feel convinced, I immediately start writing a song.”
The Souten filmmaker also talks about penning the lyrics of Shayad Meri Shaadi Ka Khayaal, a song that has achieved the status of a cult classic. He remarks, “It’s a very simple song. The setting is also very common because there arrives a time at every girl and boy’s life when their parents meet over tea. Nobody thought of turning this into a song but it struck me and I wrote the song. Lata ji sung the song with a lot of love.”
Tak started his career in the film industry as a producer with the 1967 film Naunihal. Some of Tak’s most successful films are Saajan Bina Suhagan (1978), Souten, Souten Ki Beti (1989), Sanam Bewafa (1991) and Bewaffa Se Waffa (1992). He also introduced two actors Sanjeev Kumar and Mehmood Junior in the film industry. His most famous directorial venture was superstar Rajesh Khanna starrer Souten, which was the first Indian film to be shot in Mauritius. It went on to become a platinum jubilee hit. His last release was Saawan… The Love Season starring Salman Khan, which released in 2006.
