When Rafi sang for Surinder Kaur

Col DS Cheema (Retd)

MOHAMMED RAFI was invited by Punjabi Kala Kendar, Delhi, to perform at an event to celebrate Baisakhi at Chelmsford Club in 1964. ‘Nightingale of Punjab’ Surinder Kaur’s husband Prof Joginder Singh Sodhi was to manage the stage for the event, being the centre’s secretary. She was to join the programme in the evening after her show in Patiala. Everyone in the hall was eager to listen to the great Rafi and the master of ceremonies was finding it hard to keep the crowd under control. Finally, Rafi appeared on the stage to a thunderous applause.

While performing, Rafi suddenly stopped, looked in a certain direction and said in a sing-song tone: “Hum kaale hain to kya hua dilwaale hain, hum tere tere tere chahnewaale hain.” Everyone looked that way, curious to know which person he was addressing that song to. Lo and behold, it was Surinder Kaur, who had just entered the hall from the side entrance. The entire hall erupted in clapping and she went up the stage on Rafi’s invitation. Keeping a hand on her heart, she started singing for Rafi, ‘Hum kaale hain to kya hua dilwaale hain, hum tere tere tere chahnewaale hain.’ The duo kept singing the same lines, much to the amusement of the crowd. This memorable event during which two legends sang for each other left the audience speechless.

Dolly Guleria, gifted daughter of a famous mother, has penned these details in her autobiography Wagde Paaniyan da Sangeet. Dolly closely watched and understood myriad aspects of her mother’s life.

Surinder Kaur was born in Lahore on November 25, 1929. Her journey as a singer started with All India Radio, Jalandhar, in 1953, but it took off when the family moved to Bombay and her husband became an assistant director to his friend Ramesh Sehgal, who helped Surinder meet several music directors. She sang in about 35 films, working with the likes of Husan Lal, Bhagat Ram, C Ramchandra, Ghulam Haider, Sardul Kwatra, S. Mohinder and Hansraj Behl. She had a flair for learning languages, including Bengali, Marathi, Dogri, Pashto, Russian and Chinese. She used to jokingly say about her dark skin tone, ‘This is why I have been bestowed the title of Koel.’

Later, the family shifted to Delhi. She was appointed permanent representative of cultural delegations going abroad by Jawaharlal Nehru. This gave her an opportunity to travel to countries such as England, Russia, Poland and China.

For her exceptional contribution to the field of music, Surinder Kaur was awarded the Padma Shri in 2006, the year she left this world.

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