Image Courtesy: Akshay Kulkarni
QSQT and all that
Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1987) wasn’t their debut film. In fact, they first gave music for Ab Aayega Maza (1984) and before that too were actively involved in assisting their father Chitragupt. But yes, QSQT started it all. “Ironically, the music wasn’t appreciated during the distributor trials,” remembers Anand. “They told director Mansoor Khan that they would invest their money, only if he changed the music and the sad ending. But Mansoor stuck to his guns and the gamble paid off. Aamir Khan got his stardom and so did we.” It’s strange that Mansoor never repeated them in later films like Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar. “Mansoor gave it all up to become an organic farmer in Coonoor,” reveals Milind. “He makes fun of us and tells us you guys are still stuck in the same rut and keeps inviting us to his farm. Perhaps he’s right, perhaps we need to let go, make a home in the mountains and make music without any restrictions.”
Aamir and the other Khans
“Aamir still looks like he’s in his 20s. We wonder how young he was when he did QSQT,” they smile. “He’s always been dedicated. He was always planning ahead, moving on to the next project. RD Burman predicted a bright future for him.” The duo was close to the other Khans — Salman and Shah Rukh, as well as Akshay Kumar at one time but currently has no equation with the ruling stars. “Back then, everyone was one call away,” Milind wistfully remembers. “This industry is like one big happy family when you have work but no one has the time for you in your lean days.” Anand remembers RD Burman literally coaxing people with promise of free food and drink for the sake of company. “He was extremely social and liked to talk to people. But he was reduced to drinking alone. He once told us that he would like to give one tight slap to all those who had written him off. And thanks to 1942: A Love Story, he was able to do just that.”
Rivalry with Nadeem-Shravan
Ask them about their bitter rivalry with Nadeem-Shravan, the other top composers of the ’90s and they choose to laugh it off. Milind says it was something sparked off by the press. “We used to hang out together as strugglers and were quite close. We met regularly even after making it big. Both teams were busy as hell. Recording rooms became our homes and we used to talk, share a cigarette during breaks. We admit we were hungry for more but we never undercut each other’s projects.” Anand says being termed rivals gave them a chance to be one up on producers. “Producers used to come to us if they said no and vice versa. Nadeem-Shravan used to call us and say, ‘We have quoted so-and-so price, don’t quote below that’
T-Series saga
They composed a non-film album for music company T-Series called Lal Dupatta Malmal Ka, which became an instant hit. It became so popular that Gulshan Kumar made a film around the songs of the album. “We became his favourites after that and remained so till his death,” says Anand. “He was an emotional man, who used to ask us about our forthcoming projects and would buy the music rights overnight without even listening to the tunes.” They lost all touch with the company and Gulshan’s son Bhushan, after the music baron’s death, which eventually led to their downfall. “We remember Bhushan as a kid in half pants. He is not like his father, who was a true visionary. He hasn’t bothered to keep in touch. But we aren’t upset by such behavior because it’s a fickle world after all.”
Ghost of plagiarism
They were plagued by charges of plagiarism since the beginning of their career. At one time, one couldn’t differentiate between their tunes and celebrated South composer Ilaiyaraja’s compositions in films like Love, Dil, Beta, Anari. The duo accepts the charge with equanimity. “It’s not that we haven’t done any original work but sadly we are more known for our plagiarised tunes,” says a remorseful Milind. Anand says they did it to keep the competition at bay. “The producers would have gone to someone else and got the work done. We had no issues about work going to Ilaiyaraja. But he wasn’t a known name up North. Producers wanted our name and his tunes. We told them, ‘Give us time, we will produce something similar,’ but they wanted the exact same thing, as it had already worked in the South.” Milind says he understands the plight of Pritam and others tainted with the feather of plagiarism. “We buckled under pressure and in hindsight shouldn’t have done so because everything we did after that was suspect.”
The downfall
One reason for their fall from grace is that the singers who made them big — Kumar Sanu, Alka Yagnik, Udit Narayan and Sonu Niigaam — are no longer in the game. Then, corporatisation of the production houses means things are run by white-collar workers and not those who know their cinema. “Some days ago, one girl from my building, who works in an ad firm wanted to hire us. Her boss told her to bring our CV. These 20-somethings with their fancy degrees want us to do an audition.” Anand feels there is no connect between them and today’s directors. Also the producers they were working with are no longer active. “We can still give decent music but we don’t know whom to approach. The music of our latest film Yeh Khulla Aasmaan has been well-received. There are some more projects in the pipeline. We have already made a name for ourselves during our first innings and yearn to be part of good projects in our second.” Amen to that!