The Indian audience was in awe and shock when Asha Bhosle sang "Dum Maro Dum" in Dev Anand's "Hare Rama Hare Krishna" while Zeenat Aman smoked a chillum without a care in the world. After watching the song in which Asha Bhosle sang one of her most iconic numbers up to that point, it honestly didn't look like the film was criticizing marijuana users (at least in this song), but in fact, it almost appeared as if this was the most glamourized version that one could imagine. The 1971 film was designed as a comment against the "hippie movement" that was beginning to find more and more followers in the subcontinent. Despite the fact that the film was designed as a comment against the "hip Perhaps that was the reason the song was banned by All India Radio and Doordarshan decided to remove it when the movie was shown on television.
When Prashant, played by Dev Anand, discovers that his sister Janice, played by Zeenat Aman, is living a free-spirited life in Kathmandu, he takes it upon himself to bring her back to sobriety. This is when the song kicks in. Therefore, he sings "Dekho O Diwano" with the lyrics "Ram ka naam badnaam na karo" after she sings "Dum Maro Dum," which is followed by the chorus of "Hare Krishna Hare Rama."
The story of how the song came to be is one of a kind because lyricist Anand Bakshi and music composer RD Burman took it upon themselves to deliver more than was requested, rather than because director Dev Anand wanted a glamorous number. The author and lyricist were forming the Kishore Kumar track 'Dekho O Diwano' that would be picturised on Dev's Prashant as he argues to the medication imbued youth to quit smoking up. Prashant enters the party and observes Janice smoking a chillum. Dev had asked the composer to create an introduction to the song that could be played in the background. RD Burman talked about this incident in an interview from 1974. He said that Anand Bakshi wrote the lyrics that were perfect for the situation, and they had a song before they knew it.
This line had been around for ages. "We thought of using it here because people would often say "Dum maro dum, mit jaye gham," as Bakshi can be heard saying in the video. The song "Dum maro dum" was given to Dev by RD Burman and Anand Bakshi when he returned the following day to continue the music sitting. When Dev Saab heard it, he said, "Ram ka naam" (Dekho O Diwano) will lose all meaning. Burman laughed as he revealed that he was extremely concerned about his song. The group of the film loved the melody so they held it, however just for the recorded collection. They all agreed not to visualize the track. However, the choice was switched after the melody was recorded on the grounds that clearly this was the best tune of the film. Even then, Dev decided to shoot only one antara because he was certain that "Dekho O Diwano" wouldn't be taken seriously after this song and wanted to minimize the damage.
Yet, even inside Dev's nearby circle, not every person was a fan. This was RD's first collaboration with Dev Anand, and SD Burman, who had worked on numerous Navketan films, was about to hand over the reins to his son. The book "R D Burman:" written by Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Balaji Vittal, SD Burman decided not to participate in The Man, The Music because he did not like the film's theme. According to Dev Anand, "Dada Burman could have done without the subject of radicals." He was also "disappointed" when he first heard "Dum maro dum." Was it a rejection of cultural inheritance? Is this an effort to divorce his father? According to S D Burman by Khagesh Dev Burman, "Rahul saw his father slowly walking out of the studio with his head bowed down." The Universe of His Music.
It is beyond difficult to envision 'Dum Maro Dum' without Asha's vocals yet that is not the way in which the melody was at first considered. The song was originally intended to be a duet with Usha Uthup and Lata Mangeshkar, and it was planned to be filmed on Mumtaz and Zeenat. In the movie, Mumtaz was the typical "good girl," and Lata was supposed to sing for her. Zeenat was the "bad girl," and Usha was supposed to sing for her. According to Vikas Kumar Jha's authorized biography of Usha Uthup, titled The Queen of Indian Pop, Dev Anand offered Usha the song after hearing her sing at a Delhi hotel. His offer specified that it would be a Lata-Usha duet. The song was supposed to be a duet between Asha Bhosle and Usha when Lata Mangeshkar left for unknown reasons, but even that didn't happen. Usha talked about how she spent days practicing the song during an appearance on Kapil Sharma's show. On the last day of recording, when she didn't hear from Pancham da's office, she was shocked to learn that it would now be an Asha Bhosle solo. She "upset" herself by saying, "Gaane gaane pe likha hai gaane wale ka naam," which made her feel better. Instead, she was asked to sing the English parts of the song "I love you," which was just as popular as this one but not as much.
Even after Asha got the song, the singer had a hard time because Dev Anand, a rebellious filmmaker, considered dropping the song altogether. He might have foreseen that doing so would not only defeat the film's intended message but also cause a lot of controversy. When RD Burman informed her that the song was going to be cut days after she recorded it, she rushed to Dev Anand's office to argue her point. I was very disturbed and gone directly to chief Dev saab's home. I advised him that it is an excellent number and should be kept at all costs. In an interview with The Hindu in 2020, she stated, "Because you are saying so, I shall."
At the time, the release of the song sparked numerous debates. All India Radio banned it, but Radio Ceylon, known for its Binaca Geetmala, had the song at the top of the charts every week for months. It even received the title "Sartaj Geet," which was given to songs that remained at number one for more than 12 weeks. On Doordarshan, which was the main TV station in India for a long time, the tune would be cut when the film was played. Asha mentioned in an interview with Rediff in 2003 that she received a lot of "criticism" for it. I had to deal with a lot of criticism back then. The Indian government banned my song "Dum maro dum." Radio stations would not play it. Additionally, the song would be cut if the movie were shown on television, as there was only one channel at the time, Doordarshan.
However, the song's euphoria was something the creators had never experienced before. In a 2020 meeting with Parchment, Asha reviewed that even at a show where any semblance of Madan Mohan, Shankar-Jaikishan, Kalyanji-Anandji, were performing, RD Burman's 'Dum maro Dum' got the greatest commendation. " At the point when Pancham [RD Burman] came and started with Dum Maaro Dum, almost a lakh individuals stood up and began applauding. They claimed that this was our song. It is still their song today," she stated.
Apple used the song's opening guitar melody when the iPhone 13 was released a few years ago. The song's timeless nature was once more demonstrated by this.
The melody is north of 52 years of age right now and even with a shortened video that praised maryjane and the way of life that went with it, Dum maro dum is still conceivably one of the most well known tunes of its time.