The image of O.P.Nayyar as the creator of songs filled with fun and romance to the beats of horse hooves or Punjabi dances is so deep that people tend to overlook the wealth of creations that this man has done that run much deeper, that are completely what Nayyar is not famous for.. the quality of these songs is very high which is why I am continuously surprised that the man remains so typecast.. Here are some songs which are my personal Nayyar favourites :

i) is bevafaa jahaa.N me , raat suhaanii ha.Nsate taare , path samajh nahii aaye : All three songs are C.H.Atma renditions in Nayyarsaab's first film in Hindi films, Aasmaan. All three are magnificent songs though they are sound similar to each other. Atma and Nayyar had combined earlier to deliver one of the most famous non-film songs of all time in priitam aan milo. These songs are quite same kind of songs. Atma renders with deep pathos and the arrangement of the song is wonderful to hear.

ii) more ni.ndiyaa churaaye gayo : A Rajkumari gem, again from Aasmaan. Nayyarsaab was a self-confessed admirer of Anil Biswas and this is a song which I am sure Anilda would have been pleased with. A charming number where Wajkumari sounds so sweet.

iii) mujhe dekho hasrat : This is one of the three songs that Nayyar composed for Talat Mahmood. And this is also one of the two songs I can recall that Talat playbacked for Guru Dutt. A superb, slow song from Baaz which is perhaps Guru Dutt's only "bad" film :) A song that seems to have been created just for Talat..

iv) merii nii.ndo.n me tum : A soft romantic duet of Kishore with Shamshad Begum - a gem of a melody. This was the period when Kishore was still fluctuating between trying to be an Indian Danny Kaye or the like, and an addition to the list of serious singers of the time. He did some great work with Anil Biswas and S.D.Burman before this and OPN gave him this gem. But Kishore couldnt really break away from his comic-singer image for close to another 15 years.

v) kabhii andheraa kabhii ujaalaa : One of Asha's finest songs ever and one of her earliest songs for Nayyar in this form. Its a moving song beautifully rendered. The two went on to create a wealth of masterpieces with time and the Asha-Nayyar combo is one of the greatest ever, superior to the Asha-RDB combo which the lady sells all the time. O.P.Nayyar now gets just a side mention in her interviews - how rude indeed considering that it was mainly because of this man that she managed to survive as long as she did.

vi) jaa jaa jaa jaa bewafaa : It seemed Nayyar created two versions of "sun sun sun zaalimaa" in "Aar Paar" - one for the masses, and one for himself. This is a Geeta solo - an absolute stunner rendered to perfection by Geeta. The pathos in the song is rendered with such subtelety that we are moved without being pushed to tears. Never another like Geeta.. how we wish OPN had used her a lot more..

Thats it for now...