Rafi, a legendary playback singer who has lent his voice to many tunes in Indian films, will turn 100 on December 24.
A pre-recorded stage performance of “Abhi Na Jao Chodkar” was produced by pianist Sourendra Malik and singer Soumyojit Das, who also appear in the 5.44-minute video shared on their official YouTube page on Tuesday.
“Presenting our first song of the World Music Day 24 concert, ‘Abhi Na Jao Chodkar’, originally sung by Evergreen Mohammad Rafi. His music lives in our hearts and here is our tribute to him,” said Sourendra-Soumyojit.
“Celebrating 100 years of Rafi Sahab,” read the closing credits.
Rekha Bhardwaj, Vishal Bhardwaj, Lesley Lewis, Papon, Shweta Mohan, Usha Uthup, Mame Khan, Ornob, Lopamudra Mitra, Aninda Chatterjee, Aruna Sairam and others were in the program.
As of around 11.30, the video has received over 19,000 views and over 1,800 likes on YouTube.
Many fans commented on the clip, thanking the makers, who have nearly 2.8 million subscribers on YouTube, for their initiative.
“Love this arrangement…..so emotional and goosebumps ahead……thank you so much sir for this beautiful performance,” said one fan.
“Love of Nepal….. Happy Birthday Mohammad Rafi Saheb.”
Another observed that the video felt like a tribute to several industry veterans who passed away this year, including tabla player Zakir Hussain.
A fan said he misses the voice of maestro Rashid Khan, who died in January at the age of 55 after a long battle with cancer. Khan had previously collaborated with Sourendra-Soumyojit in 2022 for the song “Mere Naina Sawan Bhado”.
“The whole production is musically rich. An absolute masterpiece. Quite literally,” wrote another.
Sourendra-Soumyojit’s social network Instagram and Facebook also have 55 lakh followers and 2.4 lakh followers respectively.
Featured on Dev Anand and Sadhna, “Abhi Na Jao Chodkar” was originally featured in the 1961 film “Hum Dono”. Written by Sahir Ludhianvi and composed by Jaydev, the song is a duet sung by Rafi and Asha Bhosle.