The 30s cannot be complete without a dekko at Shanta Hublikar’s "Ab kis liye kal ki baat" in Prabhat’s 'Aadmi'. Conceptualised by V. Shantaram, Hublikar opposite Shahu Modak was such a draw that the young lady was left singing the number in Urdu, Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil and Telugu, apart from Hindi.
Shanta Hublikar was born on 14th April 1914 at village Athergunchi, near Hubli. She was one among three sisters. The eldest was Neelamma, the second was Shanta, but her name was Rajamma ( she was called only Raju) and the youngest was Sharada. She was fluent in Marathi and Kannad and could sing very well. When she was about 18-20 years she went to Kolhapur, which was an active centre of Film making. Her first film was 'Bhedi Rajkumar' aka 'Thaksen Rajputra (1934) and her role was a minor one.
Her first major role was in film 'Kanhopatra' (1937). She was picked up by Prabhat stalwarts for their film 'Mera Ladka' in 1938. (Majha Mulga in Marathi). Her acting and songs impressed V.Shantaram.
Shantaram was planning a path breaking film 'Maanus' ('Aadmi' in Hindi) in those days and was in the process of finalising the cast. Vasant Desai who was Shantaram's chela in those days was aspiring to become a Music Director. He started his career as an actor in small roles and he sang songs too. He had very high hopes that Shantaram will do something for him. One day Shantaram called him and said," I am planning a new film. You will be the Hero and Shanta Apte will be the Heroine." Vasant was very happy. His auditions were good.
Meanwhile 'Mera Ladka' became quite popular and its songs particularly,"dekhoon kab tak baat ("Paahu re kiti waat" in Marathi) by Shanta bai and composed by Keshavrao Bhole was a great Hit. Impressed with her effortless acting and natural singing style, Shantaram changed his mind and decided to cast Shanta Hublikar and Shahu Modak as the lead pair for 'Aadmi'.
Shantaram called Vasant Desai and told him," Be ready for a shock. I have decided to make Shanta Hublikar and Shahu Modak as the Hero and Heroine of my new film. You will have to wait. But your time will come " Vasant Desai was heart broken. With Shantaram's permission he composed music for 'Shobha' and 'Aaankh ki sharm' in 1942 and 'Mauj' in 1943. He had worked as an assistant to Tembe, Krishnarao Bhole and Mainkar. He had acted and sang in Amar Jyoti. His time came when Shantaram gave him 'Shakuntala' in 1943 as its Music Director.
Meanwhile Shanta Hublikar fully justified her selection for 'Aadmi' (1939). Her songs and acting became hits. Her multilingual song "Ab kis liye kal ki baat" in Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu and Bengali became a landmark song in Hindi films for ever.
Shanta did not do many films. She did a few Marathi, Kannada and Hindi films - 'Thoratanchi Kamala' and 'Pahila Palna' in Marathi, 'Jeevan naatak' in Kannada and 'Prabhat', 'Ghar ki Laaj', 'Maalan', 'Kulkalank' and 'Jeewan Chhaya' in Hindi.
After that Shanta married Bapusaheb Geete, a rich businessman from Poona and propriator of Deccan Cloth Emporium in Poona. She did try a comeback in 1958 with Filmistan's 'Saubhagyawati Bhava' and 'Ghar Grihasthi' but that was the end. She then retired from films.
Shanta Hublikar passed away on 17 July, 1992.
She will always be remembered for for her role and songs of 'Aadmi', as long as Hindi films remains.
(Courtesy - Shri.Arunkumar Deshmukh Photo credit: www.ebay.com)
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