New Delhi, May 29 -- There are certain Hindi film songs that catch you by the scruff of the neck demanding they be heard because they are 'different' from the Hindi film-song template.

Six years earlier, another song created the same impact. It was so unconventional in its composition that it stood out conspicuously from other songs. Whether it was good or bad was a subjective view, but it was unlike any other. As children, we were fascinated by the way it showed defiance to the customary rules of the game, and smiled each time we heard it on the radio.

The song was 'Dekho Dekh Raha Tha Papiha' (Fariyaad, 1964) sung by Mahendra Kapoor and Suman Kalyanpur (an unusual pairing). Mahendra Kapoor hits the ground running (or rather, sprinting...