OPNayyar- a legend

I have been a great fan of OP Nayyar, Listing selected songs of OPN is indeed a difficult task, hence I have chosen following songs which are absolute originals, unique in their style, format, tune and orchestration. These songs are totally different from the standard style of MDs of yesterday and today.

1. Tu hai mera prem devataa: A duet by Rafi & Manna Dey from Kalpana( 1950). This is a classical number based on raag Lalit. Two male singers providing background to two female classical dancers ( Ragini & Padmini) is a unique experiment.
2. Aankhon se jo utari hai dil mein: Sung by Asha Bhosle for ’’ Phir wohi dil laya hoon’’ in another distinctive song. A maiden’s sigh of love, yearning for her lover, set to a beautiful, touching tune. The song has no beat, no percussion at all, yet so beautiful!
3. Jaiye aap kahan jayenge: Another Asha Bhosle number from Mere Sanam. Very unique format; initial lines have only guitar rhythm, followed by Tabla which gives way to snare drums brush beat. Antaras(stanzas) too have similar format. The ending alaap and usage of Santoor in prelude ,are superb.

4. Bahut shukriya, badi meherbaani: A Rafi-Asha duet from ’’ Ek musafir ek haseena’’, that gives full freedom to Rafi to showcase his unique quality of gliding across the octaves accompanied by some heavy voilin counters. Main Pyar ka rahi hoon based on a classical raga was another superb composition.

5. Aao huzoor tumko: An Asha number from Kismet. The song starts with poetry recitation in tarannum without any music, suddenly turns into a classical format, only for guitars to take over and a western type of club song follows. Another interesting experiment.Surprisingly, the remix of this song is one of favorites of the youngsters of today.

6. Mera naam chin chin chu: A racy, fast, rock-n-roll number sung by Geeta Dutt in ’’Howrah Bridge’’ is an evergreen OPN classic. The beautiful prelude on Guitar, Mandolin and Hawain Guitar, the interlude on trumpets and clarinets, the dholak beat in the antara, and effortless switchover to rock-n-roll drum beat make this number memorable.

7. Aapke haseen rukh pe: A beautiful, slow, beatless melody by Rafi from ’’ Bahrein phirbhi aayeingi’’ has only piano for accompanyment. No other instruments at all! Hemant Kumar much later copied the format in Anupama.

8. Haath aya hai jabse: An Asha- MK number from ’’ Dil aur Mohobbat’’ is a beautiful melody with some exquisite pieces of orchestration especially the hawaain guitar.The film had superb background music during credit titles, and a great cabaret song"Uff".

9. Akeli hoon main piya aaa: Asha Bhosle sings this classical based mujra in ’’ Sambandh’’. The hitherto unheard usage of flat & Sharp notes, Sarod interlude, and a distinctive taal make this song unmatched.

10. Huzoorewala: A racy dance number sung by I think Asha Bhosle and Meenu Purushottam is set in a very uniquely formatted tune of a quawali in western mould.The superb use of the pause, is unique and no one has tried it except for " Dil da mmamla hai" Another interesting experiment. OPN, the tru rebel, was the original ’’hatke’’ Music composer with a unique style of his own. Above few songs showcase his distinctive talent.

OPN has left behind such a rich legacy that I can write many more pages on his music.


OPN in his last few years, without any work, had to sell off his house in Pali Hill and move into a small flat in Ghatkopar and became a homeopath.

Thanks to Sonu Nigam and Rajendra Singh, they brought him back to the limelight featuring him in many episodes of popular talent show, " Saregama". OPN showed his greatness by admitting his great admiration of Shanker Jaikishan who for some unknown reason hated him and ridiculed him. Naushad of course, had great admiration for OPN.



OPN who died as an unsung hero, lives in the hearts of every Hindi film music fan and even now makes his appearance on Nostalgia based shows such as Total Recall being aired on TimesNow.