In the 1970´s, Laxmikant-Pyarelal and R.D. Burman were spurred on by each other´s success to create the most melodious and highly popular chartbusters. Between this interesting rivalry, Kalyanji-Anandji were in danger of being overshadowed and of facing an early demise of their prosperous careers. In the 1960´s, K-A were glowing in the limelight of their beautiful jewels, in the form of albums like "Himalay Ki God Main", "Jab Jab Phool Khile" and "Saraswatichandra". In the next decade, they found that the situation had changed. There were new superstars (Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna and Feroz Khan), films had turned more and more formulaic and the trends dictated a more boisterous and racier style of music. After an initial struggle, Kalyanji-Anandji adapted themselves to the brave new world and churned out successful soundtracks ala "Don", "Muqaddar Ka Sikandar", "Qurbani", "Dharmatma" and many more.

Mukesh, too, faced a similar situation of sorts. His workload decreased as music directors had enough trouble trying to choose between Mohammad Rafi and Kishore Kumar for their songs. But it was not really a bad decade at all for Mukesh as K-A and L-P continued to tap into his potential (encouraged by his fans, Feroz Khan and Manoj Kumar). He was still a regular singer for soundtracks of Raj Kapoor productions (while others rediscovered him through "Kabhie Kabhie"). Sadly, he passed away before he could witness the true impact of these evergreen popular songs.

Kanchan sounds too uncomfortably similar to Lata Mangeshkar in her duet with Mukesh, "Kya Khoob Lagti Ho, Bari Sundar Dikhti Ho". This aspect aside, her rendition is an impressive one. She expresses the heartfelt desire very well, capturing the nuances of emotional joy without accidentally venturing onto the pitch of dard. “Jeevan ka har sapna ab sacha lagta hai” Mukesh glides through the playful number terrifically.

Kanchan sounds different in another duet with Mukesh, “Tumne Kisise Kabhi Pyar Kiya Hai? Pyar Bhara Dil Kisiko Diya Hai?”. Perhaps she changed the sound of her voice because she was singing for a different heroine (Rekha… the last one is picturised on Hema Malini). Whatever the reason, it works. While Kanchan depicts the first flush of new love, Mukesh indicates a pessimistic attitude towards love. His answer to Kanchan’s probing question is, “Pyar kahan apni kismat main, Pyar ka bas deedaar kiya hai”.

Kishore Kumar carries another address to Hema Malini’s beauty, “Tere Chehre Main Woh Jaadu Hai”. It is songs like these that speak about a pretty face that remind you how she was revered by the film industry and the public as the Dream girl in the groovy seventies. Kishore brings to the number an enthusiastic and cheerful tone of voice that is full of admiration. The following line describes how the heroine has captivated the hero but it may also sum up the pull that Hema had on the audiences at the time: “Jaana hai aur kahin, Teri aur chala aata hoon”.

The prelude to Lata Mangeshkar’s “Meri Galiyon Se Logon Ki Yaari Barh Gayi” may as well be a separate song by itself. It is two minutes long and sung by Mahendra Kapoor. It has a different tune to the main part by Lata but Mahendra’s nasha-fuelled rendition is a show-stopper. “Tu hi mera pyar hai, Tu hi meri bandagi, Tu hi mera khwab hai, Tu hi meri zindagi” It is picturised on Danny Denzongpa and his gang of cronies so maybe that is why this part is kept so short. We can’t have Danny hogging five minutes of screen time dancing to a tune, can we? It could be that the temptation of a song is what led to Danny accepting this forgettable role and turning down the oh-so-minor role of Gabbar Singh in “Sholay”. Oh, the career choices that some people make! The main part by Lata is catchy and the music takes on a louder and deafening ambience. This goes well with the cheap camera tricks that the director pulls such as zooming fast in and out on Hema, disco ishtyle.

The rest of the album has three instrumental pieces, “Theme Music”, “Cabaret Dance Music” and “Pathani Dance Music”. Most instrumental pieces are often quite dull as they are usually employed as album-fillers. But these works are fascinating to listen to as they demonstrate the way that Kalyanji-Anandji have composed and experimented with pulsating rhythms. Un-missable!

With recent Feroz Khan productions disappointing everyone with its very average scores (“Prem Aggan” and “Jaanasheen”), it is worth revisiting “Dharmatma” to remember how the star once had great taste in music.