The Phenomenon called Rahat Fateh Ali Khan!!

Ye mera geet,jeevan sangeet,kal fir koi dohrayega....when Mukesh gave voice to these lines little would he have realised that the wish expressed here will largely remain unfulfilled.In the years and decades that have followed the Rafi-Mukesh-Kishore era,no male voice came close to recreating the magic of these legends.I am often accused of being prejudiced against new songs,though I always have tried to maintain a balanced viewpoint on the issue.In fact I do like many modern ones,but they have failed to create(with a few notable exceptions) the magic of the evergreen oldies.Singers are pretty good,lyricists range from below par to brilliant,Music directors from very bad(Xerox machine pritam) to good ones.Even with several godly lyrics by Gulzar sir and music by likes of SEL and Rahman,songs came and went without creating themagic that my music loving heart craved for.Something was amiss,that extra spark which could make me fall in love with the song.There are several songs which I can easily listen to ten times at a stretch(during last sem,there was a period of half a month when I listend to 'zeehale muskin" for whole morning...everyday!!),but just a handful such from the last decade or so.

I remember downloading the ringtone of Jiya Dhadak dhadak on my cell phone when I had just heard it on a couple of occasions.This summer when one of my friends asked me about my favourite singer among the present crop,I named Kumar Sanu and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan,which was a new name for him then.But now he is a big fan of his...and so am I.Slowly and steadily my admiration for this immensely talented,incredibly wonderful singer singer has increased."Bol na halke halke" took the liking to a certain fanatic level,while "Teri Ore" sung by my favourite contemporary combo intensified the feelings."Lagan laagi' was discovered a little late but again it was special. After listening to the song "mohabbat to ek javeda zindagi hai' for more than 30 times today,I realised what I had discovered.Now I feel that since Mukesh Mania happened 5 years back,no voice has had this kind of effect on me(this isnt comparable to the craze level I have for Mukesh songs,yet this is special).Hemlatas and Shreya ghoshals did sound very cute, but this is ultra special.Maybe this was the extra spark that I longed for.I may now start taking interest in newer music albums with a hope that it will have some "rahat" in the offering.This is one voice which can drive me to a level of appreciation where I can listen to it on and on and on .....I cant tolerate two similar songs from Atif but with Rahat,its special stuff.Mediocre lyrics may be forgiven and the similarity in songs would also not be looked upon by a critical insight,as this is Rahat Fateh Ali Khan at his vintage best.In fact I appreciated Himesh for giving "teri yaad saath hai",though his music clearly wasnt the sole reason. Finally I have something in the music of my generation that makes me crazy.I have heard a few of his earlier non filmy ones,and they are only a shadow of what he is producing today.So credit must go to the composers who have known how to exactly use him.I earnestly hope that bollywood keeps on getting the best out of Rahat...for the moment...I will just enjoy....."Mohabbat ki hai daasta zindagi,mohabbat na ho to kahaan zindagi..mohabbat to ek javeda zindagi hai"