Bollywood Greatest Music Directors
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- Soundtrack
Sachin Dev Burman was born on 1 October 1906 in Comilla, Tripura, British India. He was a composer, known for Abhimaan (1973), Guide (1965) and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). He was married to Meera Dev Burman. He died on 31 October 1975 in Bombay, Maharashtra, India.- Composer
- Music Department
- Actor
Laxmikant Shantaram Kudalkar was born on 3 November 1937 in Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India. He was a composer and actor, known for Karz (1980), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) and Satyam Shivam Sundaram: Love Sublime (1978). He died on 25 May 1998 in Nanavati Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.- Composer
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Pyarelal Ramprasad Sharma was born on 3 September 1940 in Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India. He is a composer and actor, known for Om Shanti Om (2007), Karz (1980) and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004).- Music Artist
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Amit Trivedi's musical journey started during his days at Rizvi College Mumbai where he joined a fusion band called "OM". The band did few gigs and got an album released by Times Music but the album failed due to poor promotion. Amit's struggle continued with ad-jingles, background scores for TV serials and Theater. As a part of a two year contract with Sony BMG, Amit composed some tracks for Abhijeet Sawant's Junoon and one track in Prashant Tamang's debut album. Singer Shilpa Rao introduced him to director Anurag Kashyap who was looking for a composer for his ambitious project Dev.D. Anurag was so impressed by Amit's music that he decided to convert Dev.D (2009) into a musical. Dev.D was meant to be his first release but ran into some production delays. Anurag recommended his name for Aamir (2008) which eventually became his first Bollywood release. Dev.D was the major turning point for him, earning accolades, fame and a National Film Award for Best Music Direction. He also won two Filmfare and a Star Screen award for the same movie. He continued working with his college band mate and lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya in Dev.D, Wake Up Sid (2009) and Udaan (2010) He believes in making good music that can be related to film's script instead of becoming a music factory. His favorite genres are Jazz, Rock and Western Classical and favorite instruments Clarinet, Oboe, Mandolin, Harmonica.- Composer
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M.M. Keeravani was born on 4 July 1961 in Kovvur, Andhra Pradesh, India. He is a composer and actor, known for RRR (2022), Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017).- Composer
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Pritam Chakraborty was born on 14 June 1971 in Calcutta, West Bengal, India. He is a composer, known for Barfi! (2012), Dilwale (2015) and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013).- Composer
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Madan Mohan was one of the most respected Hindi film composers. He was also one of the most overlooked - in a career spanning 25 years, he composed music for only over around 100 films, out of which only 25 became box-office hits. This was due to his extremely fastidious nature and the number of tunes he composed for his films that were never used. Born Madan Kohli in 1924, he was the son of Raj Bahadur Chunilal, who worked in famous studios like Bombay Talkies and Filmistan. From his childhood he was seen as musically inclined and talented. In fact, during his lifetime, he amassed an amazing record of compositions, the majority of which were either unutilized for lack of appropriate films or were alternate tunes composed for his films.
He began working in Bollywood as an assistant to music director C. Ramchandra, and got his first major film with Aankhen (1950), a love triangle. The film was a success. Subsequently, a fair amount of work came to Mohan. Among his earlier films was a trilogy of movies with his childhood friend Raj Kapoor - _Aashiana (1952)_, _Dhoon (1952)_ and Papi (1953). Unfortunately for Mohan, the films he chose to compose for did not create much impact, and it was only with Bhai Bhai (1956), which starred the legendary Kumar brothers, Ashok Kumar and Kishore Kumar, that he got some success. But from then on, things got rough; Railway Platform (1955), Gateway of India (1957), while with excellent music, weren't huge hits. And to make matters worse, all of the top stars had already chosen a particular composer to work with (e.g. Dilip Kumar with Naushad the great composer), which left no room for a débutant, however talented.
Then, in the late 1950s and the 1960s, things changed for the better. His scores for Dekh Kabira Roya (1957) and Adalat (1958) showed that. And in the 1960s, he really began to be noticed with Anpadh (1962), with his songs becoming the rage all over India. It was with this film that he became to be known as the Ghazal King, even though he had already established his reputation for gossamer melodies with Adalat (1958). He acquired further commercial success with two films by Raj Khosla - _Woh Kaun Thi (1964)_ and Mera Saaya (1966). He also began to work with filmmaker Chetan Anand, for which he produced his most outstanding score in Haqeeqat (1964), a war film.
Although he brought out the best in his singers, special mention must be made of his work with Lata Mangeshkar, which showed both of them at their very best. This legendary combination was established in 1951 with Adaa (1951) and continued right up to (and after) his death. Mohan had this special talent of bringing out the best in Lata's voice - she could sound seductive in Sanjog (1961), jaunty in Neela Akash (1965) and perky in Mera Saaya (1966). However, it was in sentimental songs that they were at their best.
In the 1970s, when Western songs from films like _Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1971)_, Mohan still composed poetic melodies. His strict aesthetic sense caused him to be in great demand with sensitive if not commercially successful filmmakers, and he collaborated with respected names like Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Sampooran Singh Gulzar and Rajinder Singh Bedi, his collaboration with Bedi particularly standing out as it was with Dastak (1970) that he got the National Award for best music director - it was the only major award he got during his lifetime.
In 1975, at the age of 51, Mohan died from cirrhosis of the liver. Ironically, two films released soon afterwards - The Season (1975) and _Laila Majnu (1975)_ - became resounding musical successes. However, three decades later, two films paid their tribute to Mohan. One was Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo (2004), a war film which, interestingly, took its title from one of his songs from Haqeeqat (1964). The film, however, didn't do well at the box-office. The other film, a romance called Veer-Zaara (2004), paid a more fitting tribute for a composer - the director, Yash Chopra, took some of his unused compositions and used them in the film.
The spectacular success of Veer-Zaara (2004), especially its soundtrack (with a 75-year-old Lata Mangeshkar still as melodious as ever), established Madan Mohan as one of the elite composers of all time...- Composer
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Vishal Bhardwaj is an Indian film director, writer, composer, singer and producer. He has directed ten feature films, produced five and composed music for more than forty. His directorial work includes Makdee, The Blue Umbrella, Kaminey, 7 Khoon Maaf, Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola, Rangoon, Pataakha as well as the internationally acclaimed Shakespeare Trilogy - Maqbool, Omkara and Haider (adapted from Macbeth, Othello and Hamlet, respectively). Prominent films written and produced by him are Ishqiya, Dedh Ishqiya and Talvar (based on the Noida double murder case).
He has received 3 international awards: Makdee (2002) received the Best Film award at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival, Omkara (2006) won the Best Artistic Contribution in Cinema award at the Cairo International Film Festival and Haider (2014) won the People's Choice award at the Rome Film Festival. He has also received 7 National Awards: Best Music Direction for Godmother (1999), Best Children's Film for The Blue Umbrella (2005), Special Jury Award for Omkara (2006), Best Music Direction for Ishqiya (2010), Best Dialogues and Best Music Direction for Haider (2014) and Best Screenplay for Talvar (2015).- Producer
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Sanjay Leela Bhansali is among the most celebrated Film Makers of the Bollywood. Having worked with the biggest stars of Indian Film Industry, Bhansali is the most sought-for director of the Bollywood. He started his career as an assistant director to Vidhu Vinod Chopra. If one has to name his 'niche' genre, it would definitely be Mega-Musicals. From Devdas to Bajirao Mastani, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam to Saawariya, love of cinema and music, proclaims through every movie he writes or direct.
His 1999 Romantic-Drama, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, starring heartthrob duo Salman-Aishwarya became one of the most critically cherished movies of the Genre. Amitabh Bachan, starrer Black was equally appreciated by the critics. But he made his presence felt with 2002 adaptation of the Hindi literary masterpiece, Devdas, for a silver-screen experience. He received a nomination for Best Foreign Film at BAFTA for the movie.
Devdas has become a name synonymous with a passionate, intense love that does not find consummation. This similar theme has been repeated numerous time in the literary work. And one of them is Romeo & Juliet. He translated this classic tale into Indian Folk Idiom.- Composer
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Harris Jayaraj was brought up in Chennai, HE was born into a middle class Christian Nadar family. He studied at Krishnaswamy Matric School, K. K. Nagar. His father, S. M. Jayakumar, was a noted film guitarist and an assistant to Malayalam music director Shyam and later became a noted musician and film composer. At age six, Harris began his formal training in carnatic music.[2] His father wanted him to become a guitarist and made him learn classical guitar from Mr.A.Abdul Sattar. Harris scored the highest mark in Asia on his 4th grade exam of Trinity College of Music, London.
He started his music career as a guitarist in 1987 at age twelve. After befitting as a guitar player, he started playing keyboard and developed interest over synthesizers. He then started programming with his Roland MC-500 and went on to work as a programmer under more than twenty five music directors in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam, working in more than 600 projects till the year 2000. He worked under noted composers including Raj-Koti, A. R. Rahman, Mani Sharma, Karthik Raja, Vidyasagar. While working as an additional programmer under Rahman, he composed music for various television commercials including a Coca-Cola commercial featuring actor Vijay. In his early years, he admired music composers M. S. Viswanathan, percussionist Aruljothi Balagopal, A. R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer.- Composer
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Shankar Mahadevan was born on 3 March 1967 in Chembur, Bombay, Maharashtra, India. He is a music artist and composer, known for Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), My Name Is Khan (2010) and Dil Chahta Hai (2001).- Music Artist
- Composer
- Music Department
Jatin Pandit is known for Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Fanaa (2006) and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001).- Music Artist
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- Music Department
Lalit Pandit was born in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. He is known for Dabangg (2010), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) and Fanaa (2006).- Music Department
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Babloo Chakravorty is known for Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001), Sarfarosh (1999) and Mohabbatein (2000).- Composer
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- Director
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Shravan Rathod was born on 13 November 1954 in Rajasthan, India. He was a composer and actor, known for Raja Hindustani (1996), Pardes (1997) and Raaz (2002). He died on 22 April 2021 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.- Music Artist
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- Music Department
Himesh is the son of Gujarati music director Vipin Reshammiya. He lost his elder brother at the age of 11, and decided to take up music as his career after the incident, to fulfill his father's wishes. He did his schooling at Hill Grange School in Peddar Road area, Mumbai. Himesh started his career with a production house which aired quite a few TV soaps on Doordarshan Ahmedabad and Zee TV.- Composer
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Vishal Dadlani was born on 28 June 1973 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He is a music artist and composer, known for Ra.One (2011), Chennai Express (2013) and War (2019).- Music Artist
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Bappi Lahiri was popular in the late 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s for the film soundtracks composed by him from films such as Zakhmee, Chalte Chalte, Naya Kadam, Aangan Ki Kali, Wardat, Disco Dancer, Hathkadi, Namak Halaal, Masterji, Dance Dance,Himmatwala, Justice Chaudhury, Tohfa, Maqsad, Commando, Gang Leader, Sailaab and Sharaabi. He came to Mumbai when he was 19. He received his first opportunity in a Cinema of West Bengal, ''Daadu'' (1974) where he made Lata Mangeshkar sing his composition. The first Hindi film for which he composed music was ''Nanha Shikari'' (1973) and his first Hindi composition was Tu Hi Mera Chanda sung by Mukesh. The turning point of his career was Tahir Husain's Hindi film, Zakhmee (1975), for which he composed music and doubled as a playback singer. He composed a duet with Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar named "Nothing Is Impossible", for the same film.His compositions Jalta Hai Jiya Mera (Kishore Asha duet) and Lata Mangeshkar solos like Abhi Abhi Thi Dushmani and Aao Tumhe Chand from the same film became popular and gave him recognition. The duet Phir Janam Lenge Hum sung by Kishore Lata became famous from the film Phir Janam Lengey Hum. All songs from the film Chalte Chalte (1976), became hits, thus bringing him recognition as a music director at national level.He sang duet with Sulakshana Pandit named Jana Kahan Hai which gave him recognition as singer. Songs from the films like Aap Ki Khatir, Dil Se Mile Dil, Patita,Lahu Ke Do Rang, Hatya and Ravikant Nagaichs ''Surakksha'' 1979 had soft music.
His singing and music became even more popular and got branded as disco master. In the early 80s, he added an element of the then-popular disco music to his compositions, in movies such as ''Wardat'' 1981, Sahhas 1981, ''Laparwah'' 1981, ''Pyara Dushman'' 1980. Examples are the songs "Hari Om Hari", and the ''Armaan'' (1981) song "Ramba Ho Samba Ho". Mithun Chakraborty and Bappi Lahiri became synonyms of Indian disco culture in the 1980s, largely due to movies such as Disco Dancer and Dance Dance .His song "Jimmy Jimmy" was a success in the early 1980s and is said to have achieved some fame in other countries such as Russia. Some in the media have called Lahiri the "Disco King" of India after success of Disco Dancer in 1983.He also composed music for some ghazals, namely "Kisi Nazar Ko Tera Intezaar Aaj Bhi Hai" and "Aawaz Di Hai" for the 1985 film ''Aitbaar''. He also composed melodious songs sung by Kishore Kumar either as duets with Asha Bhosle or Lata Mangeshkar in the films starring Rajesh Khanna in the 80's in hit films like Naya Kadam, Masterji, Aaj Ka M.L.A Ram Avatar, Bewafai, Maqsad, Suraag, Insaaf Main Karoonga and Adhikar. After success of the film Himmatwala, Bappi regularly composed duets sung by Kishore Kumar for films starring Jeetendra like in Justice Chowdhry, Jaani Dost, Mawali, Haisiyat, Tohfa, Balidaan, Qaidi, Hoshiyaar,Sinhasan, Suhaagan, Majaal, Tamasha, Sone Pe Suhaga and Dharm Adhikari.Bappi Lahiri made a record by composing for 12 super-hit silver jubilee movies starring Jetendra as the lead hero in the period 1983-1985. He entered the Guinness Book of World Records for recording over 180 songs for 33 films in 1986. He used fusion music in the feature film ''Namak Halaal'' in the song "Pagh Ghungroo Bandh Meera Nache Te", which was 12 minutes long.
Lahiri has composed over 5,000 songs in over 500 films. He has also composed music for three films made in Bangladesh. He composed the background score for the 1989 Hollywood film ''Eye Witness to Murder'', produced by Vijay Amritraj and directed by Jagmohan Mundra. He also created the music for the Indian English language film Divine Lovers, which was produced and directed by Babbar Subhash in 1997.He recorded two private English albums, ''Moving Away'' in 1986 and ''Snake Dance'' in 1990, with songs sung by himself. In 1982, he cut a private Hindi pop album titled ''Superuna'', with songs by the Bangladesh singer Runa Laila. This was followed by a private Hindi pop album for Polygram called ''Dance Dance Music Lover'', with Padmini Kolhapure. In 1986, he released ''Welcome'' in London, with Anil Kapoor and Salma Agha, and ''Dancing City'', which featured songs by the Hindi actress Mandakini. introduced his daughter Rema Lahiri in 1987, then 9 years old, in a disco version of children's nursery rhymes called "Little Star", marketed by HMV. The platinum disc song had an unbroken record for best sales among the children's section. Based on Michael Jackson's Thriller (Michael Jackson album, Lahiri released a video-pop album titled "Bappi Lahiri's thriller live", consisting of eight Hindi songs. He also released albums such as ''Dance Party'', sung by his daughter Rema Lahiri in 1990, ''Jawani Jawani'', released by Venus Records & Tapes, ''Night Lovers'' in 1992, ''Heatrave'' in 1993, ''Yamma Yamma Dance'' with Usha Uthup in 1995, and ''Nine Below Zero'' in 1997. In 2014, he composed two songs for the album ''Women's Day Special: Spreading Melodies Everywhere'', along with Sunil Jha and Shakir Ali. The tracks were penned by Meenu Singh and sung by Sunidhi Chauhan and Rekha Raj. November 1994 Lahiri started his music company, BL Sound (now called B9 Digital Studios Mumbai). He released several CDs under his banner such as ''Ala-li-la'' in 1995, ''Jungle Boy'', ''Super Rema'' sung by his daughter Rema Lahiri, ''Purono Jeans'', ''Agnee Prem'', ''Hum Hai Khalnayak'', ''Saajan Ke Liye'', ''Sraddhanjali Amar Maa - a tribute to Bansari Lahiri'' (1997) and ''Get on the dance floor'' (a compilation of eight songs by international singers such as Tony Di Bart and Sabrina Johnston. also a singer and performer of repute on stage. He introduced disco songs to Hindi cinema and introduced several pop singers such as Usha Uthup, Sharon Prabhakar, Alisha Chinai, Parvati Khan, Bali Brahmabhatt, Vijay Benedict, Nandu Bhende, Remo Fernandes, Salma Agha. Even film stars Anil Kapoor,Amrish Puri, Padmini Kolhapure,Moandakini and Amjad Khan have sung under his baton. Many prominent singers such as Lata Mangeshkar, P.Susheela, Asha Bhosle Kishore Kumar and Mohammed Rafi, Mukesh, Manna Dey, Yesudas S. Janaki and the newer generation singers such as K.S. Chitra, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Amit Kumar have sung for his compositions. He is also a singer and performer of repute on stage. Even next generation singers Kumar Sanu, Udit Narayan,Suresh Wadkar, Sadhana Sargam, Sonu Nigam, Abhijeet Bhattacharya, S.P. Balasubramaniam, Alka Yagnik, Anuradha Paudwal, Shailender Singh, Shabbir Kumar, Vinod Ratho, Mohammad Aziz, Sudesh Bhosle, along with Gazal singers Jagjit Singh, Bhupinder Singh and Pankaj Udhas have sung songs composed by Lahiri in a career spanning 50 years in over 500 films in over 5000 songs.- Composer
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Ram Sampath is known for Delhi Belly (2011), Raees (2017) and Talaash: The Answer Lies Within (2012).- Composer
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Anand Chitragupth is known for Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988), Extraction (2020) and Baaghi: A Rebel for Love (1990).- Composer
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Milind Chitragupth is known for Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988), Extraction (2020) and Baaghi: A Rebel for Love (1990).