In Ritusamhara, Kalidasa paints a highly romantic picture of the pre-winter season. Given the lower temperatures, metallic embellishments get avoided by the delicately nurtured. The fabric chosen for clothing undergoes a subtle change. The pastes and lotions to be applied to the body are different. Liquors come into play. Passions get aroused by the sheer promise of the winter season which is yet to arrive.
When it comes to capturing different shades of passion and putting across suggestions of love-making, Bollywood is never found wanting. Snow-covered mountains, gently murmuring rivulets, enchanting lakes, flying birds and lotuses in bloom form the perfect backdrop for romantic songs. Heroes can be seen aggressively pursuing lissome heroines clad in figure-enhancing dresses.
Here are some of the couplets from Canto Four of Ritusamhara and the kind of songs which could possibly do some justice to the poet’s evocative portrayal of nature and romance.
“Delightful are trees and fields with the outgrowth of new tender-leaves and crops; Lodhra trees are with their blossomy flowers, crops of rice are completely ripened, but now lotuses are on their surcease by far, for the dewdrops are falling. Hence, this is the time of pre-winter that drew nigh. [4-1]
Hamraaz (1967, B R Chopra)
Jewel Thief (1967, Vijay Anand)
Silsila (1981, Yash Chopra)
Veer-Zaara (2004, Yash Chopra)
“Unbearable is the touch of metallic circlets on wrists and bicep-lets on upper-arms of the couple of arms of vivacious women, or the touch of new silk cloths on the discoid of their waistline, or fine fabric on their robust breasts. [4-4]
Madhumati (1958, Bimal Roy)
Bees Saal Baad (1962, Biren Nag)
Chandni (1989, Yash Chopra)
“Overspread with abundant rice crops and ornamented with herds of she-deer, and delightfully reverberated by the ruddy geese, with their calls and counter-calls, the complacent corridors of confines are captivating hearts. [4-8]
Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke (1969, Dulal Guha)
Aradhana (1969, Shakti Samanta)
Prem Pujari (1970, Dev Anand)
Saathiya (2002, Shaad Ali)
“Now the lakes are adorned with fully blossomed black-lotuses, and elaborated with swan-like water fowls in their excitement, and sheeted with considerably coldish waters that are depurated, thus these lakes are stealing the hearts of men, for men look up to them as the visages of women that are with black-lotus-like hairdo, with swan like eyes, and whose bodies are cold, wanting a warm hug. [4-9]
Hum Dono (1961, Amarjeet, Vijay Anand)
Ek Musafir Ek Hasina (1962, Raj Khosla)
Tere Ghar Ke Samne (1963, Biren Nag, Vijay Anand)
Who Kaun Thi? (1964, Raj Khosla)
Sangam (1964, Raj Kapoor)
Kabhie Kabhie (1976, Yash Chopra)
“Oh, dear, the Priyangu plants that give fragrant seeds are ripened by the snow caused coldness, and they are frequently wobbled by the snowy winds, and they now appear like the fragrant and frisky women gone into paleness and wobbliness by their dissociation from their lovers. [4-10]
Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965, Suraj Prakash)
Prem Pujari (1970, Dev Anand)
Aandhi (1975, Gulzar)
“Let this season hemanta, dew fall, pleasant with many an attribute, a stealer of the hearts of women, fields of villages abundantly overspread with rice-crop, sky overlaid with garlands of ruddy geese flights, and which always is a heart-pleasing season, endow comfort to all of you passionate people. [4-18]
Waqt (1965, Yash Chopra)
Dil To Pagal Hai (1997, Yash Chopra)
Saathiya (2002, Shaad Ali)
Veer Zara (2004, Yash Chopra)
Lakshya (2004, Farhan Akhtar)
During this season, the sky is a clear blue, the water is sparkling clean and the trees are lush green. Flowers are in full bloom and fields are about to deliver a bountiful harvest to humanity. Snow has just started reminding us that winter is not too far away.
Kalidasa captures the pre-winter season in all its glory, interspersed with some details of passionate love-making. Bollywood strives hard to catch up with the poet and, quite understandably, leaves much to the imagination of the viewers. Poets obviously enjoy certain degrees of freedom which our dream merchants lack, though they often make up for it by bringing in lewd lyrics and suggestive body gyrations in what are euphemistically referred to as ‘item numbers.’
[Note: Translation of ‘Ritusamhara’ courtesy Mr. Desiraju Hanumanta Rao:http://www.sanskritdocuments.org/sites/giirvaani/giirvaani/rs/rs_4.htm]
(Related Posts:
https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2016/05/14/the-six-seasons-of-kalidasa-in-bollywood
https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2016/05/15/the-six-seasons-of-kalidasa-in-bollywood-summer
https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2016/05/20/the-six-seasons-of-kalidasa-in-bollywood-monsoon
https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2016/05/27/the-six-seasons-of-kalidasa-in-bollywood-autumn)
Reblogged this on Truth Troubles: Why people hate the truths' of the real world.
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Thank you for the honour!
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An interesting series! And a great collection of songs, though I am personally more biased towards the oldies. Coincidentally, three years ago when I had just started blogging, I too wrote about this connection between Kalidasa and Hindi films. Perhaps, you might be interested – https://beautyishisfootprint.wordpress.com/2013/07/12/yeh-raat-this-night-and-the-thought-of-kalidasa/
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Lovely post!
Yes, old songs have lyrics which are far more pregnant with meaning. Also, the orchestra does not dominate the lyrics, as is the trend these days.
Thank you for your kind comment.
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