In films, mujras hold a special place. And for me, a bit of a fascination.
The thought, of sitting comfortably on a thick cushion blowing on an ornate hookah and sipping wine served in thick silver glasses while a lady in a bright zardozi-laced dress, ornamental jewelery and aalta-smeared feet dances to the melodious strains of sitar-ghoongroo- sarangi-and-tabla, is quite an interesting and nawabi one. Dont get me wrong. I have never visited a ‘kotha‘ ever, its just a sort of fantasy which stems out from seeing the myriad mujra songs in films. Bollywood films can go awfully wrong in depicting many things, and often stick rigidly to conventional stereotypes, so I could be incorrect in my vision – any reader who has visited one can inform the same, either on the site or a personal mail (secrecy guaranteed) 
Anyways, jokes apart, the mujra songs have their own life. They come in all sizes and shapes : from the classy Chalte chalte yunhi koi mil gaya tha (Pakeezah) to the crassy Kaahe saiyan teri meri baat bane naahi (Dayawan); from the lyrically charged Dil cheez kya hai (Umrao Jaan) to the lyrically debauched Mujrewali hoon mujra karti hoon (Awaargi); from a dulcet Lata’s Pyar kiya to darna kya (MeA) to a screechy Alka’s Tawaif kahan kisi se mohabbat karti hai (Amiri Garibi) - you will find a variety of them in films pre-current-millenium. Whatever the song be, the fallen woman was always elevated by strong musical muscles. Now, the place of a mujra has been taken by item numbers.
Broadly the mujras can be divided into two categories – one, where the heroine is a tawaif, or becomes one – here, expect some highly philosophical songs on love and life; two, where the tawaif is a mere side-prop to tittilate the villain (or a wronged hero) , most such songs will be more noise than substance – of course the two categories overlap, and exceptions exist in both.
So, here I list a few mujra numbers sung by Lata Mangeshkar – let’s see how many of them match with your own. In the list I have taken some songs that might not be exactly a hard-core mujra but has been picturised on a ‘kotha‘, hence here. In most, Lata’s pristine voice helped a great deal in establishing the purity and freshness of the lady-in-wrong-trade!
Salaam-e-ishq meri jaan zaraa kabool kar lo – Muqaddar Ka Sikandar – the mother of all mujras in terms of popularity and reach. Rekha and Amitabh scorches on-screen while Lata and Kishore ignite with their sparkling vocals. As I said, Lata’s voice gave a gilt-edged glitter to Rekha’s, giving life to her love and passion which transcended the dirty limits of her profession.
Chalte chalte yunhi koi mil gaya tha / Thaare rahiyo o baanke yaar / Inhi logon ne – Paakeezah - outstanding music in all, lovely songs, and the best movie on the life of a nautch girl. And thank God for ‘thaare rahiyo’ without which antakshri gets impossibly stuck if you get the letter ‘tha‘. The beats in ‘Chalte chalte’ are mesmerising while Lata’s voice is impeccably thoughtful and seductive at the same time, as required by the song’s mood!
Mujhe rab jo kahe tujhe chhod doon – Ustaad - One of the good old Anu Mallik numbers in which he accompanies the diva with his raspy voice. Picturised on Jaya Prada and Vinod Khanna. Very good interludes, an easy tune and fine singing make the song a winner.
Unko yeh shikaayat hai – Adalat – Madan Mohan and Lata Mangeshkar combine for this collossal score. Not exactly in the true mujra format. Nevertheless, a great song.
Kya kahen aaj kya ho gaya – Teri Paayal Mere Geet - A later stage Naushad-Lata combination in a flop Govinda-Meenakshi starrer. The film was boring, the songs werent. This, and ‘Mohabbat ka ek devtaa mila’ were excellent numbers.
Jab pyaar kiya toh darna kya – Mughal E Azam – A song that needs no introduction or description – its an all time any time hit!
Thoda resham lagta hai thoda sheesha lagta hai – Jyoti - The song that triggered the remix malaise in the country was a forgotten number till it appeared in some english rap song, and from thereon to Harry Anand’s remix factory. As ever, I prefer the original. Good music, nice tabla and Lata’s awesome voice!
Mujre ki hai yeh raat aakhri – Yudh – The sole Lata and old fashioned number in an otherwise techno-induced heave ho typical eighties score. Though Kalyanji Anandji were officially credited as music directors, I suspect Viju Shah’s handiwork in the score. However, this Lata mujra picturised on the ever-ethereal Hema Malini retained a old-worldly charm and was listenable.
Jind le gaya woh dil ka jaani – Aap Ke Saath – Again, not a typical mujra, but was picturised on the kotha itself with Smita Patil lamenting the loss of her love. Strangely, most T-series cassettes carry the Anuradha Paudwal scratch version. It is with great difficulty that I found the proper Lata Mangeshkar one.
Lo saahib mai bhool gayi yaad mujhe kuchh aaya tha – Maati Maange Khoon – a newly aquired number in my collection, it’s a superb number with the sound of ghungroos reverbarating menacingly within the sorrowful premise. RD Burman provides thumping music; the varying rhythm and beats add to the listening thrill !
Kab talak shama jali yaad nahi, shaam e gham kaise dhali yaad nahi – Painter Babu – Uttam-Jagdish’s debut film had this top song. The rest were pretty chaaloo kinds. A detailed note on the song is available on my older site. Read here.
Sanam tu bewafaa ke naam se mashhoor ho jaaye – Khilona – quite a typical L-P song from seventies, like it only for Lata Mangeshkar’s voice. Two more similar numbers follow the list immd. this one.
Humhin karen koi soorat unhe bulaane ki, suna hai unnko toh aadat hai bhool jaane ki - Ek Nazar – another song which is similar in flavor as the above one. Same musical team of L-P-Lata. The film had one more mujra, Pahle sau baar idhar aur udhar dekha hai.
Sharaafat chhod di maine – Sharafat – A third similar number from L-P stable , once again with Lata’s lovely voice at the helm.
Atharah baras ki tu hone ko aayi / Imtehaan hai aaj tera imtehaan hai – Of the two Suhaag numbers, I love the latter one. It gives a good lesson on non-drinking. Plus, as a kid I used to often hum the opening lines on any exam day so the number is intertwined with vivid childhood memories. And Rekha’s has perfected her courtesan act. (Aishwarya Rai will find it impossible to match it with her limited acting skills in the new version of Umrao Jaan).
Toone har raat mohabbat ki kasam khaai hai – Ganga Ki Saugandh – A double edged sword of a number that has sweetness on one edge and vitriolic filled sharpness on the other. Awesomely sung, as ever, by Lata Mangeshkar. (The theme song of this film, also by Lataji, was quite a big hit).
Kuhu kuhu bole koyaliya – Unreleased Devdas – I reckon the song would have been picturised on Chandramukhi, though i m not sure. A very nice song overall. Quintessential Gulzar lyric with Pancham’s melodious music.
Jise tu qabool karle woh sadaa kahan se laaoon – Devdas (old) – Obviously the song would be on Chandramukhi. The lyrics are so very apparant. But was this picturised as a mujra or just a love song? SD Burman’s music in this one.
Raat bhi hai kuchh bheegi bheegi – Mujhe Jeene Do – A very romantic number with just that right tinge of suggestive element beyond the innocence. Lata’s chham chham in the mukhda is more melodious than the sound of ghoongroos even. As I wrote once, I love Lata’s singing in a semi-ghabrahat, semi-hopeful way, and of course, her ‘haaye’ can never leave me unstirred.
Tadap yeh din raat ki kasak yeh bin baat ki – Amrapali - this love-deprived courtesan’s quivering call for romance is unarguably a sensuous and scintillatiing number – Lata’s voice is a mix between purity, pain and playfulness as she sighs ‘sajan ab to bata de, bata de’… Shankar Jaikishan whip up an emotional storm with their choral sitars.
Kaun anjaame ulfat nahi jaanta – Hera Pheri (old) – is this a mujra or not? Not sure now, but i enjoy the song.
Mai har raat jaagi … tumhari qasam tum bahut yaad aaye – Gaban – I could be way off the mark with this one – so members please help. Somehow the sitar-and-tabla based music makes it sound like a mujra, though I cant be sure. As a song it’s a topper! Music is by Shankar Jaikishan, and I marvel at the way repetition of lines in the antaras are built by them!
Chham chham chham badra barse, rut barse jiyara tarse – Barkha Bahaar – a still podgy and dusky Rekha dances to Lata’s mellifluous voice in this flop Navin Nischol starrer.
Mai tawaif hoon / Mere naina saawan bhaadon – Mehbooba – The latter song is part haunting, part mujra… part classical, part populist… this monumental RDB number was a chartbuster at that time. Personally, from this film, my evergreen fav is the love duet ‘Parbat ke peechhe chambe da gaaon’. There was a more on the face number ‘mai tawaif hoon mujra karoongi’ as well. The movie, on reincarnation, was far inferior to the same lead pair’s other classic on the same theme (Kudrat).
Ek dukhiyaari kahe baat yeh rote rote – Ram Teri Ganga Maili – the visual in the prelude, where champagne flows lustily into the pure Ganga, is a very cutting critique on post-modernist moral paucity – that was a superb directorial touch from master storyteller Raj Kapoor. The song itself is wrought with intricate images – the diamond soul wrapped in the soiled skin or the similarity betn a woman and the river … its a great theme song with an admirable picturisation.
These are the ones that I could recall when I first wrote the post for some other group. There were more additions done later on , eg Raina beeti jaaye from Amar Prem (not a mujra,per se but still picturised on a kotha, hence can be added here), Rahte the kabhi jinke dil mein ( Mamta ) and O Aaanewaale ruk ja (Devdas).
Sister Asha Bhonsle also has many memorable mujras – from Umrao Jaan, Tawaif, to name a few hit films- but I am not too keen to go into those details. However, still I will end this post with one unknown gem from her ouvre.
Kaise mukhde se nazrein uthaaye ke tujh mein hi rab dikhta – English Babu Desi Mem – It’s a bit hard to swallow that this shimmering number is created by Nikhil-Vinay. But as they are officially credited, I will go by it. The song has a faint qawaali tinge to it and the lyrics are nice. To top it all, there is an ethereal looking Sonali Bendre dancing to the beats in a flaming red dress – the overall effect is fantastic!