Lalji Pandey, born in the streets of Banaras, was a brilliant lyricist whom everyone knows as ‘Anjaan’. As much as Lalji’s career was a superhit, his early days were equally full of struggles. He fulfilled his daily needs by giving tuition to children. Before entering Bollywood, he used to support his family by solving mathematics problems.
beginning of the unknown
His poems started getting published in the newspapers and magazines of Banaras and he started winning the hearts of people by reciting poems in his melodious voice in local poetry seminars. At that time, Harivansh Rai Bachchan’s book ‘Madhushala’ was very popular and Anjaan wrote a parody of it, ‘Madhubala’, which became very popular among the youth.
Why did you come to Mumbai?
The decision to come to Mumbai was necessary for him for both health and career reasons. He was suffering from severe asthma and doctors said that he would not survive if he lived in a dry environment. So he decided to settle somewhere near the sea shore and headed towards Mumbai. After coming to Mumbai, Anjan had to start a long struggle. His Banaras friend Shashi Babu introduced him to singer Mukesh, who listened to his poems and encouraged him to write songs for films.
earned my living by giving tuitions
With the help of Mukesh, he got work in Premnath’s film ‘Prisoner of Golconda’. The songs of this film were written by an unknown person, but this film was a flop, but the audience liked the songs. This was the period when unknown people had to give tuition to children to earn their living. Teaching tuition was not just a means of earning money for him, but it was also an important part of the story of his struggle and hard work.
17 years of struggle
His hard work and dedication paid off and after a long struggle of 17 years, he got a chance in the film ‘Godaan’. The songs of this film gave him recognition and brought stability in his work. After this he got the opportunity to write songs in Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz’s film ‘Bandhan’, in which his song ‘Bina Badra Ke Bijuriya’ became very famous.
unknown songs
After this he worked with Kalyanji-Anandji, Bappi Lahiri, Laxmikant-Pyarelal and R.D. Worked with legendary musicians like Burman. He gave Bollywood hit songs like ‘Khaike Paan Banaras Wala’, ‘Pipra Ke Patwa Sareekha Dole Manwa’ and ‘Bina Badra Ke Bijuriya’. The sweetness of Bhojpuri and Purvanchal was reflected in his songs and his writings touched the hearts of people.
son of unknown
Anjan died on 3 September 1997 at the age of 67. His legacy is not only his songs but also his struggle and hard work. Lalji Pandey’s son Sameer Anjaan is also a big name in Bollywood. Like his father, he is also a lyricist who has written songs for films like Deewana, Aashiqui, Dhadkan and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.