If there’s a little Bollywood love flowing in the blood of any person who’s trying to become a guitar player, then they definitely try some of Bollywood’s iconic tunes on their guitar. One of such tunes is the tune of the song ‘Ek Hasina Thi’ from the 1980 film ‘Karz’. The guitar tune in this song is also in the theme music of the film. It’s interesting to note that when ‘Karz’ was released in theaters, it didn’t exactly set the box office on fire. In fact, the film’s actor Rishi Kapoor and director Subhash Ghai have both admitted in interviews that the movie flopped. However, the music of ‘Karz’ became incredibly popular, and many people later started watching the film just for its songs.
The music composition of ‘Karz’ was done by the renowned music composer duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal. But, as it often happens, composing music doesn’t necessarily mean that they played all the instruments themselves. So, who was the magic behind the guitar in 500 films like ‘Karz’, ‘Aashiqui’, and ‘Ek Duuje Ke Liye’? The answer lies with Gorakh Sharma, a guitar magician who brought the iconic theme of ‘Karz’ to life.
Gorakh Sharma was born on December 28, 1946, to Pandit Ramprasad Sharma, a music director in the Golden era of Hindi cinema. Gorakh’s father was a knowledgeable musician who had taught many big music directors like Naushad, C. Ramachandra, Uttam Singh, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, and Anu Malik. Gorakh, who took basic training in music from his father, learned to read music notation at a very young age and could play many musical instruments. He had a special mastery in playing wire musical instruments, one of which is the mandolin, an instrument you might remember seeing in Shah Rukh Khan’s hand in ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’. Gorakh made his debut in films playing the mandolin.
Early beginnings
Gorakh was part of a small musical group called Bal Suril Kala Kendra, which included artists like Hridaynath Mangeshkar, Usha Mangeshkar, Meena Mangeshkar, Laxmikant Kudalkar, and Gorakh’s elder brother, Pyarelal Sharma. All of them went on to achieve great success in their respective careers. Laxmikant started composing music for films, and Pyarelal’s younger brother Gorakh became a regular companion of the duo. In the 1960s, Gurudutt’s iconic film ‘Chaudhvi Ka Chand’ featured a mandolin tune played by Gorakh, who was only 14 years old at the time.
Gorakh’s journey with the guitar
Gorakh, who mastered the mandolin, learned guitar from the legendary guitarist Enable Castro. Castro was often called India’s best Jazz Musician and was named alongside international legends like Larry Coreel and Miles Davis for his guitar skills. Gorakh’s guitar tunes would go on to echo in film songs for the next three decades. He was reportedly the first music artist to play the bass guitar in the Hindi film industry.
A top-grade music artist
In the Hindi film industry, the Cine Musicians Association used to decide the grade of music artists, which determined their fees. Only three musicians received the top-grade rating: Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, known for his santoor playing; Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, a famous flute player; and Gorakh Sharma. Before passing away in 2018, Gorakh had a career spanning 50 years in the Hindi film industry, during which he played music for about 500 films and over 1,000 songs. Some of his famous songs, adorned with his magic, include iconic numbers like ‘Jab Dil Mile’, ‘Sansar Ki Har Cheez’, ‘Main Sharabi Nahi’, and ‘Mere Mehboob Qayamat Hogi’.