Book Review #60 : Jiya Jale: The Stories of Songs by Gulzar and Nasreen Munni Kabir

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It is such an honor to experience the legendary conversation between the people, best of their fields and revealing nostalgic memories related to the evergreen songs of Indian Cinema. This book is all about honest chit-chat on behind the scenes, what happens in the making of lyrics, what are the contributing factors behind picturing the entire scenes and takes, and how everything impacts the age of songs. Gulzar Sahab, the extraordinary man, who is the backbone of Bollywood’s poetry is a delight to read, and here - extra delight to listen.


Being a fan of songs, I always admired Gulzar Ji’s lyrics. There’s a conversation where Gulzar Ji was asked to pick his favorite among his songs, and he replied “The choice reflects the experience of the moment. There is no numbering involved..”. I can’t agree more with this. If I am in my philosophical mood, I would prefer to listen “Tujse naaraz nahi zindagi, hairan hun main”. For my jolly mood, I would like to dance on “Chal chaiyaan chaiyaan”. This selection is very easy to choose under circumstances, and tough to pick when combined.


I also get to know so many intriguing details about the history of songs, their under-the-shade meanings behind the picturization, opinions on singers and gender roles, and many more laughs behind the several rewritten scripts. This book feels like a cozy podcast, which you can listen to, randomly between your work breaks. The love between Urdu and Hindi is so admirable through the expert’s eyes. Nasreen has totally given justice in translating the essence of his songs, by including Gulzar Ji’s point of view.


Do read this to know more about the endearing mix of reel and real sides of songs’ journey.

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