Famous Music Director S. Mohinder Is No More

The oldest living music director of Bollywood, S Mohinder died on the morning of Sunday September 6th, 2020 due to old age related complications in Mumbai at 4:45 am. His daughter Nareen Chopra informed me.Since 1980s, he lived mostly in the Southern suburbs of Washington D.C. in Virginia USA. For the past year, he was back in Mumbai. He was born on February 24, 1925 in a non-descript village Silanwala in the then Montgomery district of Pakistan portion of Punjab. By the age of 10, the family moved to Lyallpur district of Pakistani Punjab, where he learnt the basics of classical music from a very popular musician Sant Sujan Singh.

Also Read -Jaani Chor - Jay Randhawa's Upcoming Movie

A few years later, the family moved to Sheikhupura, where he learnt the subtleties of classical music from an iconic musician Bhai Samund Singh in Nankana Sahib. Since his father was in government service, the family kept moving from one station to the other. S. Mohinder was enrolled in Khalsa High School in village Kairon in the then district Amritsar.

In 1944, he was approved as a radio singer at All India Radio Lahore, where he sang once a month. On one such day, when he was at All India Radio Lahore, he had to leave for India in a jiffy, when serious rioting erupted in Lahore and he boarded a train for Bombay, while he had a ticket to Lyallpur in his pocket.For a brief period, he had to undergo training in classical music in Benares and then returned back to Bombay. He composed music for the following films:

Also Read - Sanjay Dutt 

Sehra 1948, Jeevan Saathi 1949, Nili 1950, Shrimati ji 1952, Veer Arjun 1952, Bahadur 1953, Paapi 1953, Naata 1955, Alladin Ka Beta 1955, Sau Ka Note 1955, Shahzada 1955, Sultan-E-Alam 1956, Shirin Farhad 1956, Karwan 1956, Pataal Pari 1957, Sun To Le Hasina 1958, Khoobsurat Dhoka 1959, Do Dost 1960, Jai Bhawani 1961, Baanke Sanwarya 1962, Reporter Raju 1962, Zarak Khan 1963, Captain Sheroo 1963, Sarfarosh 1964, Sunehre Kadam 1966, Professor X 1966, Picnic 1966, Nanak Naam Jahaz Hai 1969, Man Jeete Jagjeet 1973, Dukh Bhanjan Tera Naam 1974 and Dahej 1981.

Also Read - Pachtawa - Shavinder Mahal

His music for Shirin Farhad was appreciated by the fraternity of music directors. But he received the President of India’s Award for composing the finest music for the year in film “Nanak Naam Jahaz Hai”.Lately he was not in good health and today September 6th, he left this world. After the demise of another music director Khayyam, he was the oldest living music director of the golden age of film music.