Cinemaazi remembers Sardul Singh Kwatra on his death anniversary

Remembering Sardul Singh Kwatra, the famed music director from Punjab, on his death anniversary. Known for simplifying classical ragas in his songs, he composed music for both Hindi as well as Punjabi films. Born in 1928 and trained in classical music, he made his debut as music director with the Punjabi film Posti (1950), which was produced by the Kwatra family. It became a box office hit. His music, especially the songs Do guttan kar mariyan and Jaa bhairha posti, became popular. He modified Punjabi folk tunes for the film, and also introduced Asha Bhosle and Jagjit Kaur as playback singers for Punjabi cinema. His most popular songs were from films like Goonj (1952) which starred actress-singer Suraiya, Pilpili Sahib (1954), and Mirza Sahiban (1957) which starred Shyama and had songs rendered by Lata Mangeshkar. He scored music for Punjabi films such as Vanjara (1954), and Billo (1960) for which he modified popular ragas to portray the nuances of subtle romanticism. He established the Chandigarh Film Institute, and in 1978, left for the US. Sardul Singh Kwatra passed away on 6 July, 2004.

Featuring the song Chali pyar di hawa mastani from Posti (1950)