Manek Premchand

Manek Premchand is an Indian writer and historian of film music at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, who has written several books pertaining to history of Indian film music and biographies of musicians. He has hosted shows on WorldSpace Satellite Radio and been a consultant with Saregama.

Manek Premchand
OccupationHistorian of`Indian film music
NationalityIndian
EducationUniversity of Mumbai

In 2003 he completed his first book, Yesterday’s Melodies, Today’s Memories, with the aim of giving songwriters credit. It was followed by Musical Moments from Hindi Films (2006). In 2010 he became part of the Mohammed Rafi Academy's governing body and two years later produced Romancing the Song (2012). He contributed an essay on Shivkumar Sharma in Shiv Kumar Sharma: The Man and His Music (2014), and released a biography of Talat Mahmood the following year. In Hitting the Right Notes (2016) he focusses on songwriters and composers, the difference the music made and the trends they produced. He devotes a chapter about Mubarak Begum in The Hindi Music Jukebox: Exploring Unforgettable Songs (2018) and published a biography of Hemant Kumar in 2020.

Early life and education

Manek Premchand spent his early childhood in Delhi as the youngest of six children. He was introduced to music by his mother who use to sing. By the age of ten, he had moved to Mumbai, where he became acquainted with the nearby qawwali singer Jaani Babu Qawwal, who arranged for him to learn the bulbul tarang.[1] His education has included a diploma in journalism and an arts degree from the University of Mumbai.[2][3] Prior to his career in writing he spent many years abroad.[2]

Career
Manek Premchand & Camaa Mustafa Sikander (2010)

Premchand has hosted shows on WorldSpace Satellite Radio and been a consultant with Saregama, for whom he has compiled CDs.[1][4] He is an adviser to Manipal University Press and teaches broadcasting to post-graduate students at Xavier Institute of Communications, a part of St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, where he is an historian of film music.[4][5]

Writing

Premchand began writing his first book, Yesterday’s Melodies, Today’s Memories, in January 1997, with the aim of giving songwriters of what he calls "the golden era of Hindi film music", credit.[1] It took almost seven years to complete and was released in 2003.[1] In his research he interviewed several people including singer Manna Dey, poet Majrooh and lyricist and composer Prem Dhawan.[1] He estimated that 4,334 Hindi films made between 1930 and 1970 depicted around 36,000 songs.[6] The book was described as having "excellent short sketches of the major composers, singers lyricist and arrangers" in Bollywood travels of Hindi song and dance.[7] It was followed by Musical Moments from Hindi Films (2006).[2]

In 2010 Mohammed Rafi's son Shahid Rafi launched the Mohammed Rafi Academy with Premchand as part of the academy's governing body.[8] Two years later Premchand produced Romancing the Song (2012),[2] in which he clarifies who really was the male voice in Kismet's "Dheere Dheere Aa".[1][2] In the 2014 book Shiv Kumar Sharma: The Man and His Music, a biography of Shivkumar Sharma, he contributed an essay alongside a piece by Pandit Vijay Kichlu.[9]

In 2015, he released a biography of Talat Mahmood, published by Manipal University. It contains chapters written Mahmood's daughter Sabina Talat Mahmood Rana, and son Khalid Talat Mahmood.[10] Mahmood was a favourite of his and his mother and he stated in an interview that "my book on him was a way of saying “Thanks Talatji, for the hundreds of hours you gave me joy ... and sometimes tears”.[1] The following year he produced Hitting the Right Notes (2016), which reveals who blew the whistle in Kati Patang's '"Ye shaam mastani".[1] The book focusses on songwriters and composers, the difference the music made and the trends they produced.[2]

His 2018 The Hindi Music Jukebox: Exploring Unforgettable Songs devotes one chapter to Mubarak Begum.[11] In 2020, he released the biography of Hemant Kumar in a book titled The Unforgettable Music of Hemant Kumar.[2]

Publications
  • Yesterday’s Melodies, Today’s Memories, (2003), including forward by Ameen Sayani.[2]
  • Musical Moments from Hindi Films (2006).[2][12]
  • Romancing the Song (2012).[2]
  • Shiv Kumar Sharma: The Man and His Music (2014). (Contributor).[2]
  • Talat Mahmood: The Velvet Voice (2015)[2]
  • Hitting the Right Notes: Hindi Cinema's Golden Music , published by Manipal University Press December (2016).[2]
  • The Hindi Music Jukebox: Exploring Unforgettable Songs (2018).[2]
  • The Unforgettable Music of Hemant Kumar (2020).[2]

References
  1. Deepa (27 January 2017). "Manek Premchand – A Beacon For Music Travellers". TheSongPedia. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  2. Mondal, Antara Nanda (13 July 2020). "The Unforgettable Music of Hemant Kumar: In Conversation With Author Manek Premchand". Silhouette Magazine. ISSN 2231-699X. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  3. "Manek Premchand's Author Page – Notion Press". notionpress.com. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  4. "Our Authors | Blue Pencil Publishers". Blue Pencil. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  5. "The Faculty | Mass Media Courses – Mass Communication, Journalism, Advertising and Marketing, Diploma Courses and Certificate Courses by Xavier Institute of Communications (XIC)". www.xaviercomm.org. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  6. Bhugra, Dinesh (2013). Mad Tales from Bollywood: Portrayal of Mental Illness in Conventional Hindi Cinema. Hove: Psychology Press. p. 69. ISBN 978-1-84169-646-1. ISSN 0076-5465.
  7. Gopal, Sangita; Moorti, Sujata (2008). "Introduction". Global Bollywood: Travels of Hindi Song and Dance. University of Minnesota Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-8166-4578-7.
  8. "Mohd Rafi's son to launch music academy". siliconindia. 31 July 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  9. "Immerse yourself in melody, books this World Music Day". The Statesman. 20 June 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  10. Zaman, Sahar. "In fond remembrance of the ghazal's 'velvet voice'". www.sunday-guardian.com. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  11. Ojha, Abhilasha (26 June 2020). "Mubarak Begum: Bollywood music's shooting star". The Week. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  12. Bamzai, Kaveree (5 February 2007). "Manek Premchand's new book relives musical moments of Indian history". India Today. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
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