Madhumati (1958) | Salil Chowdhury

Film Information

Language: Hindi

Lyricists: Shailendra & Majrooh Sultanpuri (Song #11)

Widely regarded as Salil Chowdhury’s greatest soundtrack, Madhumati is an extraordinary fusion of Nepali, Assamese, Kumaoni and Polish folk traditions — all sculpted into unforgettable cinematic compositions.

Songs

Nr	Song	Singer(s)	Hnd	Mal	Tam	Tel	Kan	Bng	Oth
MM1	suhaana safar	Mukesh	✔	-	-	-	-	OS64	-
MM2	aa jaa re pardesi	Lata Mangeshkar	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM3	kanchaa le kanchi le	Asha, Sabita Banerji, Ghulam Mohammed, Chorus	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM4	zulmi sang aa.nkh laDi	Lata, Chorus	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM5	ghaDi ghaDi meraa dil dhaDke	Lata Mangeshkar	✔	-	-	-	-	SC26	MW1
MM6	dil taDap taDap	Lata, Mukesh	✔	-	-	-	-	JB4	OS64
MM7	chaDh gayo re paapi bichhuaa	Lata, Manna Dey, Chorus	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM8	jungal mei.n mor naachaa	Mohammed Rafi	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM9	Tute hue khwaabo.n ne	Mohammed Rafi	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM10	Hum haal-e-dil sunaaye.nge	Mubarak Begum	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-
MM11	Tan jale man jaltaa rahey	Dwijen Mukherji, Chorus	✔	-	-	-	-	-	-

Notes & Background

Madhumati is universally celebrated as Salil Chowdhury’s greatest work — a soundtrack that revolutionized how folk music could be used in Indian cinema.

“suhaana safar” (MM1) remains Mukesh’s most iconic outdoor song, and has a Bengali counterpart (OS64).

“kanchaa le kanchi le” grew out of a Nepali folk tune, while “zulmi sang aankh laDi” draws from Kumaoni folk.

“chaDh gayo re paapi bichhuaa” echoes Salil’s childhood in Assam and its rhythmic folk tradition.

The haunting “dil taDap taDap” (MM6) is based on a beloved Polish folk melody “Szła dzieweczka do laseczka”.

The deleted Dwijen Mukherjee song “Tan jale man jaltaa rahey”, written by Majrooh, was inspired by the American mining protest classic “Sixteen Tons”.

Every track in this album is unique, timeless, and remains a masterclass in melodic imagination.