Today marks the 42nd death anniversary of Bharat Vyas, the writer of the timeless prayer song “Aye Malik Tere Bande Hum” and many other classic songs in various films.

Today marks the 42nd death anniversary of Bharat Vyas, the writer of the timeless prayer song “Aye Malik Tere Bande Hum” and many other classic songs in various films. Bharat Vyas was a leading lyricist of the golden era of Hindi film music, writing songs for movies in the 1950s and 1960s. He was well-known for his work with the famous director V. Shantaram, penning lyrics for many memorable songs. Some of his notable films include Navrang, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Rani Rupmati, Do Aankhen Barah Haath, Kavi Kalidas, Saranga, Janam Janam Ke Phere, and Stree. Born in Churu, Rajasthan on December 18, 1918, he moved to Bombay after finishing his studies in Calcutta. Bharat Vyas began his Bollywood career as a lyricist with Duhaai (1943), writing all nine songs for the film. The music of Duhaai caught the attention of producer-director W. Z. Ahmed, who owned Shalimar Pictures. At Shalimar, Bharat Vyas wrote 12 songs for the film Prem Sangeet. His major success at Shalimar was Man Ki Jeet (1944), where his song “Aye Chand Na Itarana, Aate Hein Mere Sanyya” became a big hit. He developed a close working relationship with composer Khemchand Prakash, creating musicals like Ziddi, Bijalee, Tamasha, and Muqaddar. The 1950s were the most productive years for Bharat Vyas. He collaborated with top directors like Bimal Roy, V. Shantaram, and Vijay Bhatt. During this time, he wrote some of the most beautiful songs for films like Chandralekha, Parineeta, Toofan Aur Diya, Do Aankhen Barah Haath, Sahara, Anhulimal, Suvarna Sundari, Kavi Kalidas, Navrang, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Rani Rupmati, Saranga, Janam Janam Ke Phere, Hum Hindustani, Stree, and Boond Jo Ban Gayi Moti. He also tried his hand at film direction with Rangeela Rajasthani (1949) and a few other Rajasthani films. Despite his success with many social films, Bharat Vyas became typecast as a lyricist for historical and mythological films, with most of his work in the 1960s falling into these genres. He continued to work through the 1970s and early 1980s, but the number of films he worked on decreased during this period. Bharat Vyas passed away in Mumbai on July 5, 1982. At the time of his death, he was working on a project to present the Ramayana in poetic form, set to music by Shyam Sagar. He was also directing two Rajasthani films. A brilliant poet, Bharat Vyas is remembered for his pure Hindi. Anyone with an appreciation for the language can quickly recognize his genius.