Kishore Kumar: The musical voice of top actors and the controversies he ran into

“Yeh Shaam Mastani... Madhos Kiye Jaye...” It is not just an evening or a day or any particular occasion or moment or mood, music legend Kishore Kumar still rules the hearts and playlists of music lovers. One of the greatest and most dynamic singers of Indian music, Kishore Da is looked upon as an idol by several music legends as well as aspiring singers and composers.

With his mesmerising golden voice, he filled music and love in the lives of all music lovers across several generations. Even, his songs have healed broken hearts or have aided people to cope up with pain.

Kishore Kumar, the musical voice of top actors in the 1970s to 80s has left a musical trail which will ever remain evergreen. Be it Mere Meheboob Qayamat Hogi, Mere Samne Wali Khidki, Ek Chattur Naar, Chhu Kar Mere Manko, Neele Neele Ambar Par or Manzilein Apni Jagah Hain, Kishore Daa has a song for every mood and for everyone.

Here we bring a list of his witty controversies with several top actors to whom he lent his magnificent voice. 

Dev Anand and Kishore 

Evergreen and legendary actor Dev Anand remained one of the undisputed actors. There was an era of the evergreen actor; however, he shared deep chemistry with Kishore Daa. 

Be it Gaata Rahe Mera Dil, Phoolon Ke Rang Se, or Aise Na Mujhe Tum Dekho, the pairing of Dev Anand and Kishore Daa has gifted several evergreen songs. Kishore Daa was popularly known as Dev Anand’s musical voice. 

However, it is lesser known that Kishore landed in a witty controversy with Dev Anand. 

Kishore Kumar With Dev Anand

Apart from being a playback singer, Kishore had earned a distinguished identity as an actor.  Though he didn’t love acting, he has featured in several flicks in lead as well as special characters. 

One such incident was with Dev Anand. Kishore’s elder brother and veteran actor Ashok Kumar asked Kishore to play a cameo in a movie starring Dev Anand. As per the scene, Kishore was supposed to reprimand Dev. After agreeing to play the character, instead of following the script, he actually started scolding Dev leaving everyone stunned on the sets. More surprisingly, Kishore Daa left the sets immediately after his scene without even bothering about others who were yelling out at him. 

This is not the only incident when Kishore Daa stunned everyone picking up controversy with top actors. 

Superstar Rajesh Khanna and Kishore 

Rajesh Khanna clinched the title of India’s first superstar. Throughout his acting career, he has delivered several blockbuster films driving movie lovers crazy. Apart from his acting, it was the songs that people still are in awe of. Be it Mere Sapnon Ki Rani, Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai, Yeh Kya Hua or Yeh Sham Mastani the list of iconic songs is quite long. The pairing of Kishore and Rajesh has embarked on several benchmarks. 

But, did you know that when the duo first met each other, Kishore Daa didn’t even offer a glass of water to the superstar? 

Yes, Kishore Daa is well known for his weird activities. Rajesh Khanna, before becoming a superstar landed in such a situation with the music legend. When Kishore Daa was approached by the makers to dub for Rajesh Khanna, Kishore Daa insisted to meet the actor before giving his words. 

Kishore Kumar With Rajesh Khanna

Before Khanna met Kishore Daa, the makers had showered praises on the actor. However, when Khanna visited Kishore Daa at his residence, he didn’t recognise him and didn’t even offer a glass of water. He instantly started interrogating Khanna. He went on to ask why he was interested to become an actor and what was his aim. 

After getting a convincing response from Khanna, Kishore Daa agreed to lend his voice to his songs. It was Aradhana and its songs that led Khanna’s way to superstardom and the rest is history. Several songs of Rajesh Khanna have been voiced by one and only Kishore Daa and almost all songs went on to become evergreen. However, behind the scenes, Kishore Daa insisted to meet Rajesh Khanna to observe his activities so that he could probably blend his voice accordingly. Of course, all of the songs synced properly that went on to create history. 

Millennium Star Amitabh Bachchan and Kishore

There are innumerable songs of the Millennium Star Amitabh Bachchan voiced by Kishore Kumar. Whether it is Chhu Kar Mere Manko, Manzilein Apni Jagah Hain or Mein Hoon Don, the pairing of Kishore-Amitabh once ruled the chartbusters. 

However, did you know Big B had picked up a controversy with his musical voice! The controversy went so harsh that Kishore Daa decided not to lend his voice to Big B. 

Kishore Kumar With Amitabh Bachchan

The spat took place between the two when Big B turned down Kishore Daa’s offer of making a guest appearance in Mamta Ki Chhaon, produced under Kishore Daa’s production banner. Such a gesture of Amitabh pissed off Kishore Daa and he stopped singing for him. However, he made peace with him within a few years and once again lent his voice to Big B in Toofan. 

The duo have gifted several iconic songs and the list is quite long. There was an era when Kishore Daa was patronised as the playback voice of Amitabh Bachchan.

Kishore and Mithun

Actor Mithun Chakraborty is one of the most sought-after actors and boasts a huge fandom for his acting and dancing skills. Being an outsider, Mithun had faced several challenges before rising to fame. Later, considering the ongoing craze for Kishore Daa’s voice, makers opted for his voice for Mithun. 

Disco Dancer's 'Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy Aaja' song is still remembered as one of the bests of Mithun Daa. There are several other songs that paired Kishore and Mithun Daa together. However, the duo had a clash for which Kishore Daa stopped singing for Mithun for some time. 

All are well aware that Kishore Daa’s personal life was not smooth and had married four times. He first married Bengali singer-actor Ruma Ghosh but they got divorced after eight years. Next, he married actress Madhubala. After the actress passed away in 1969, he tied the knot with Yogeeta Bali but they got divorced after around two years of marriage. Later, he married Leena Chandavarkar in 1980 and it lasted till his last breath. 

Yogeeta Bali divorced Kishore Daa and married Mithun Daa a year later. This fumed Kishore Daa and he stopped singing for him. However, he couldn’t avoid it for a long time and started dubbing songs starring Mithun. 

Kishore Daa will forever reside in the hearts and souls of music lovers

There are several other controversies about Kishore Kumar with several other celebrities, including actors, producers and directors. Kishore Daa was very particular about his payments. Above all, his witty controversies have been overlooked by all as love for his songs and golden voice is much more than petty controversies. 

Kishore Daa was, is and will ever reside in the hearts and souls of music lovers. The legendary singer has recorded over 2,678 songs in different languages and worked with over 110 music directors. He still holds the record of clinching the highest number of Filmfare awards as a playback singer. No other singer till date has dared to go close to his achievements of eight Filmfare Awards. Apart from being a singer and actor, he also stands out as a music composer.