When news of SP Balasubrahmanyam’s deteriorating health began to arrive on Thursday night, his playful ‘Dhat Teri Ki’ in the interludes of ‘Aaja Shaam Hone Aayi’ turned into a worm. Watching Maine Pyar Kia as a kid, I used to find that part of the song cute and funny, especially since it was hard to imagine him portraying Prem’s mischievous humor in his baritone. But that was the versatility of Mr. Balu, who lent his voice to various songs, regardless of mood, in more than one movie starring Salman Khan. In those movies, whatever the scene, it was SPB’s voice that complemented Salman’s emotions on screen.
He literally counted down to ‘start the fun’ on ‘Yeh Mausam Ka Jaadu’ (Hum Aapke Hain Koun), and kept the same mood on ‘Dhiktana’ and ‘Wah Wah Ramji’ in duets with Lata Mangeshkar for the film. 1994. This was a time when a singer became the recognizable voice of the hero and sang all the songs for him. So when Prem (Salman) confessed his feelings for Nisha (Madhuri Dixit) in ‘Pehla Pehla Pyar Hai’, he teased her in ‘Didi Tera Dewar Deewana’ or shed tears in ‘Mujhse Juda Hokar’, it was only through the melodious performances of SPB.
In Bollywood, SBP is probably best recognized as the voice of Salman, thanks to the success of Maine Pyar Kia and Hum Aapke Hain Koun. He has also delivered hits for other actors, such as Kamal Haasan in Ek Duuje Ke Liye or Arvind Swamy in Roja. But SPB identified himself as the voice of Salman in the 90s, just as Kishore Kumar became the voice of Rajesh Khanna during the 70s.
Salman himself acknowledged SPB’s contribution to his career in his tweet the day before the singer’s death. He said, “Bala Subramaniam, sir. All the strength that hope desires from the bottom of my heart for a speedy recovery n thank you for every song you sang about me n made your dil dewana prem hero, Love u sir, special. “‘Dil Deewana’ is from the Maine Pyar Kia soundtrack. All 11 songs from the 1989 film, including the famous ‘Antakshari’, were huge hits. SPB sang each of them. Maine Pyar Kia became the band best-selling soundtrack of that decade, which helped immensely to bolster the popularity of Salman, who was a mere newcomer back then.
If you thought 11 was a lot, Hum Aapke Hain Koun had 14 songs, and except for a few solos by Lata Mangeshkar, they all had the voice of SPB. It was the best-selling Bollywood soundtrack of the year and one of the top four sellers of the 1990s. The successful Salman-SPB combination also solidified Balasubrahmanyam’s position as one of India’s top male singers.
For much of the next decade, SPB continued as the romantic singing voice on the soundtracks of Salman’s films. Songs like ‘Bahut Pyar Karte Hain’ and ‘Dekha Hai Pehli Baar’ in Saajan (1990), ‘Sathiya Tune Kya Kiya’ in Love (1991) and ‘Yeh Raat Aur Ye Doori’ in Andaz Apna Apna (1994) are still popular. among Salman fans. Patthar Ke Phool, Chandra Mukhi, Jaagruti, and Dil Tera Aashiq are some lesser known Salman movies that had songs from SPB.
It’s hard to imagine Salman from the 90s without the voice of SPB ringing in your ears. The iconic pairing of SPB and Salman has produced many unforgettable romantic numbers that will remain on the Bollywood Top Songs chart for decades to come.
.
