On RD Burman’s birth anniversary, here are some lesser-known facts about the artist

Rahul Dev Burman, most commonly known as RD Burman, was one of the most acclaimed music directors in Indian cinema. From the 1960s to the 1990s, the artist did major work with his wife, Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar and made many of the songs that went on to become classics. He has also composed many songs sung by his sister-in-law, Lata Mangeshkar. RD Burman was nicknamed Pancham Da, and he was the only son of the popular music composer Sachin Dev Burman.

RD Burman was mainly active in the Hindi and Bengali film industry as a composer, and also provided vocals for a few compositions. On the occasion of his birth anniversary, here are some lesser-known facts about RD Burman. Read ahead to know more details:

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RD Burman’s lesser-known facts

• RD Burman would spend hours at his house balcony for the perfect recording of the sound of raindrops.
• It is a known fact that swimming and playing the mouth organ were Pancham Da’s passion, so during an event in Calcutta (now Kolkata), he played the mouth organ while he was floating in the water.
• RD Burman has sung/composed music for about 331 movies in various different languages.

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• The song Mere Naina Sawan Bhadon from the movie Mehbooba (1965) is considered by critics and fans as one of the best works of Kishore Kumar. However, Kumar had initially refused to sing it because he felt he was 'beyond him’. It was only after R. D. Burman convinced him that Kishore Kumar lent his voice to the song.
• RD Burman would use everyday instruments like soda bottles, flour mills running on the hydraulic force, etc to create music. In fact, reports have it that he would also use his musicians’ back to drum so that he can create his own unique sound for his music.

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• For the movie Ijazat (1987), the song Chhoti Si Kahani Se became very popular. But, the fun fact was that he created the song from a record player and a ceiling fan after the film was complete and insisted the song be included in the film they were then working on. Since there was no suitable situation for the song in the film and the shoot was also complete, it was used in the movie’s title and cast introduction.
• About his personal life, RD Burman married Rita Patel in 1966 and after 5 years, they parted ways. In 1980, he married Asha Bhosle and lived with her until his death.

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