Binaca Geetmala was a Radio Show that ranked Bollywood Hindi Songs. The show started on 3 December 1952 and was initially broadcasted from 8 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Binaca Geetmala started broadcasting in 1952 on Radio Ceylon and lasted until 1988. After 1988, the program shifted to Vividh Bharati of All India Radio. The show continued until 1994.
Contents:
- Brief History
- Binaca Geetmala and Ameen Sayani
- Popularity Rating Method
- Top Song Every Year (1953 to 1993)
- Binaca Geetmala Silver Jubilee
- Binaca Geetmala-History and Aim
- Radio Ceylon
- Changes in the Binaca Geetmala
- Annual Lists (1953-1993)
- End of the Show
Binaca Geetmala-A Brief History
Geetmala, popularly known as Binaca Geetmala was the show was the very first countdown show of Hindi Cinema Songs and became immensely popular not only in India but also in many foreign countries.
Ameen Sayani hosted the Geetmala throughout its entire run and gained immense popularity. Binaca Geetmala is considered the most popular radio show on Bollywood Film songs during its run.
Binaca Geetmala was a weekly show aired on Radio Ceylon every Wednesday from 8 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Later the time duration increased from half an hour to one hour, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Geetmala did not intend to rank songs initially. Thus, seven contemporary Hindi songs were part of the first show. Those songs were not in a particular order. Later the program started ranking the most popular Hindi film songs.
Popularity Rating Method
In the beginning, a combination of gramophone records sold by certain selected shops and listeners’ votes decided the popularity of Hindi songs. Afterward, hundreds of Listener Clubs (Shrota-Sangh) [श्रोता संघ] situated in various cities became part of the voting system.
Every week, the Shorta Sanghs used to prepare a list of popular songs after discussing them with their respective members. The reason behind including these Shrota-Sanghs was to get the public intent towards a record by those who do/can not buy the gramophone records.
Some representatives, on behalf of film producers, also used to check the list before finalizing the same. Shriram Bohra, B.R. Chopra, and G.P. Sippy were some of the producers who acted on behalf of the producers.
Top Song Every Year (1953 to 1993)
Here is the list of Top Songs (Songs ranked #1) in the Annual List of Binaca Geetmala:
List of Top (Ranked #1) Song of Binaca Geetmala
- Ranked #1 Songs 1950s
- Ranked #1 Songs 1960s
- Ranked #1 Songs 1970s
- Ranked #1Songs 1980s
- Ranked #1 Songs 1990s
Binaca Geetmla Top Most Songs (Ranked #1) of 1950s
| Year | Song | Film Name | Singer | Music Composer | Lyricist |
| 1953 | Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai | Anarkali | Lata Mangeshkar | C. Ramchandra | Rajendra Krishan |
| 1954 | Jayen To Jayen Kahaan | Taxi Driver | Talat Mahmood | S.D. Burman | Sahir Ludhianv |
| 1955 | Mera Joota Hai Japani | Shree 420 | Mukesh | Shankar-Jaikishan | Shailendra |
| 1956 | Ae Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahaan | C.I.D. | Mohammed Rafi, Geeta Dutt | O. P. Nayyar | Majrooh Sultanpuri |
| 1957 | Zara Saamne To Aao Chhaliye | Janam Janam Ke Phere | Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi | S. N. Tripathi | Bharat Vyas |
| 1958 | Hai Apna Dil Toh Awara | Solva Saal | Hemant Kumar | S.D. Burman | Majrooh Sultanpuri |
| 1959 | Haal Kaisa Hai Janaab Ka | Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi | Kishore Kumar, Asha Bhosle | S.D. Burman | Majrooh Sultanpuri |
Binaca Geetmla Top Songs (Ranked #1) of 1960s
Binaca Geetmla Top Songs (Ranked #1) of 1970s
Binaca Geetmla Top Songs (Ranked #1) of of 1980s
| Year | Song | Film Name | Singer | Music Composer | Lyricist |
| 1980 | Dafli Wale Dafli Baja | Sargam | Lata Mangeshkar | Laxmikant–Pyarelal | Anand Bakshi |
| 1981 | Mere Angane Me | Laawaris | Amitabh Bachchan, Alka Yagnik | Kalyanji Anandji | Anjaan |
| 1982 | Angrezi Mein Kehte Hain | Khud-Daar | Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar | Rajesh Roshan | Majrooh Sultanpuri |
| 1983 | Shayad Meri Shaadi | Souten | Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar | Usha Khanna | Saawan Kumar |
| 1984 | Tu Mera Hero Hai | Hero | Anuradha Paudwal, Manhar Udhas | Laxmikant–Pyarelal | Anand Bakshi |
| 1985 | Sun Sahiba Sun | Ram Teri Ganga Maili | Lata Mangeshkar | Ravindra Jain | Ravindra Jain |
| 1986 | Yashoda Ka Nandlala | Sanjog | Lata Mangeshkar | Laxmikant–Pyarelal | Anjaan |
| 1987 | Chitthi Aayi Hai | Naam | Pankaj Udhas | Laxmikant–Pyarelal | Anand Bakshi |
| 1988 | Papa Kehte Hain | Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak | Udit Narayan | Anand-Milind | Majrooh Sultanpuri |
| 1989 | My Name Is Lakhan | Ram Lakhan | Mohammed Aziz | Laxmikant–Pyarelal | Anand Bakshi |
Binaca Geetmla Top Songs (Ranked #1) of 1990s (till 1993)
Binaca Geetmala and Ameen Sayani
Binaca Geetmala was very popular, and so was its presenter Ameen Sayani. His mesmerizing voice kept the Geetmala warm and enchanting throughout its entire run.
The 100 songs with commentary from Ameen Sayani’s Geetmala (Volume 1) were uploaded on YouTube on 15 December 2017. In the show, Ameen Sayani confessed that he started Geetmala for merely Rs. 25/- in 1952. He received an extra Rs. 100/- for every annual list.
Ameen Sayani also accepted that he had not a good command of the Hindi Language. However, he hosted Binaca Geetmala throughout its runtime from 1952 to 1954 and made it immensely successful.
The popularity of Binaca Geetmala
Geetmala had its listenership ranging from ten lakh to twenty lakh. The listenership range implies how popular it was in India. The massive popularity of Binaca Geetmala made the Radio Cyclon more popular. After that, the Radio Cyclone became the essential source of Indian Film Music for Indian and Indian subcontinent audiences.
Silver Jubilee of Binaca Geetmala
Geetmala celebrated its silver jubilee on 12 December 1977. Since the Geetmala belonged to the music industry, many renowned Singers, Lyricists, and Music composers gathered in Bombay (now Mumbai) on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee of Binaca Geetmala.
Two sets (volumes) of gramophone records were released during the Silver Jubilee of Binaca Geetmala. These records contained top Bollywood songs from 1953 to 1977.
Volume I contained Top Bollywood Songs from 1953 to 1964, and Volume II had Top Bollywood Songs from 1965 to 1977. The mesmerizing voice of Ameen Sayani was also a part of these records.
History of the Show and the aim to start the Geetmala
In General Election 1952, the Indian National Congress party emerged as the biggest winner and had a landslide victory. B. V. Keskar became the Information and Broadcasting Ministry (I&B).
Mr. Keskar was against the westernization of Indian filmy songs and supported Indian classical ones only. He forced the audiences to listen to only Indian Classical songs. To make it practically feasible, Mr. Kelkar made a ban on filmy songs on All India Radio (AIR). He also proposed that Indian citizens should hear traditional music only.
Mr. Keskar wanted to air only songs that contain the sound of Sitar, Tanpura, and Flute instead of drum, guitar, and any other western music instrument.
Mr. Keskar ordered a mandatory scan for all songs before they aired on All India Radio. He further imposed a quota of 10 percent of all program time.
Further, the minister ensured that even if a Filmy song aired, the film’s name would not be announced because he considered its advertising.
This act of the minister joined the film industry together. They raised their voices against the minister and his policies.
The Broadcasting film producers decided to withdraw the broadcasting licenses given to All India Radio (AIR) consequence of the decision of the Ministry of Information. It resulted in a complete blackout of filmy songs on AIR for around three months.
Expansion of Radio Ceylon
During the era of the non-airing of filmy songs, Radio Ceylon found an opportunity. Accordingly, Radio Ceylon planned a show for ranking Bollywood film songs that resulted in the renowned show Geetmala, popularly known as Binaca Geetmala.
The show was dedicated to Bollywood Filmy Songs. The Host & Presenter, Ameen Sayani, made it more interesting. He made his style commentary and used to give filmy details during the interval between two songs. His unique style helped the show to become more popular.
Changes in the Geetmala
- Binaca Geetmala became Cibaca Geetmala in the year 1986. The show aired on 21 May 1986 with the new name Cibaca Geetmala.
- Binaca Geetmala started airing on Wednesday from 8 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on 3 December 1952.
- Later the time duration increased the Binaca Geetmala started airing from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. (one hour) every Wednesday.
- On 27 October 1988 the time slot changed from Wednesday to Thursday from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. instead of 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- From 1952 to 1982, only filmy songs remained part of Binaca Geetmala. Two non-filmy songs also became part of the Binaca Geetmala 1981.
Annual List of Binaca Geetmala
Geetmala started the year-end lists, compiled based on points earned by songs throughout the year. Here is a list of the Annual List of Binaca Geetmala from 1952 to 1994.
Binaca Geetmala 1952-1994
Binaca Geetmala Show 1950s
| Binaca Geetmala 1952 | Binaca Geetmala 1953 |
| Binaca Geetmala 1954 | Binaca Geetmala 1955 |
| Binaca Geetmala 1956 | Binaca Geetmala 1957 |
| Binaca Geetmala 1958 | Binaca Geetmala 1959 |
Binaca Geetmala Show 1960s
Binaca Geetmala Show 1970s
Binaca Geetmala Show 1980s
Binaca Geetmala Show 1990s
End of the show
The last show of Binaca (Cibaca) Geetmala aired on 4 April 1994. However, the show made an unforgettable impact on the music industry and undoubtedly remained the Top Radio Show for forty years. Geetmala Geetmala will always remain memorable in the heart of Indian music lovers.
