Ameen Sayani leaves behind an enduring legacy and a voice that will stay with us
Published Date – 22 February 2024, 11:45 PM
Ameen Sayani. Photo: X
For a newly independent India, still nursing the wounds of partition, his mellifluous voice was like a balm; soothing, affectionate and reassuring. The passing away of Ameen Sayani, the iconic radio presenter whose legendary ‘Binaca Geetmala’ influenced generations of listeners, marks the end of an era and leaves behind an enduring legacy. For decades, millions of people in the sub-continent looked forward to Wednesdays when the trendsetting programme on Hindi film songs, hosted by inimitable Sayani, used to be aired on radio. His style was informal, playful, conversational, witty and full of anecdotes that became a rage with listeners of all ages. “Namaskar behno aur bhaiyon, main aapka dost Ameen Sayani bol raha hoon…” were his familiar opening words for an hour-long programme packed with interesting tidbits and glimpses of the upcoming movies and songs. It was not just about entertainment and playing top ten songs but he always made it a point to spread social messages through his programme. The fact that he always mentioned ‘behno’ before ‘Bhaiyon’ spoke volumes about Sayani who revolutionised the broadcasting medium. Binaca Geetmala, the stuff of nostalgia for generations of Indians, was an incredibly successful show which has few parallels in the history of radio. From 1952, the programme ran till 1994 — an incredible 42 years! Put together, Sayani produced or hosted over 54,000 radio show episodes and 19,000 commercial spots in his six-decade-long career. In those days, the success of any radio show used to be measured by the number of postcards that it received.
Sayani’s incredibly popular show received 9,000 letters in its first outing and the number soon climbed to 65,000 letters a week. He was a quintessential radio presenter; joked with the audience, teased them, gave interesting trivia, interviewed celebrities, and punctuated it all with “filmi sangeet”, the kind that was a rage among the youth at the time. What made Sayani stand apart was the warmth and affability of his voice that was a pleasant departure from the authoritative baritones and puritanical diction associated with the state-owned All India Radio. Always a people’s person, Sayani had an infectious charm that endeared him to people of all age groups and was known for landmark radio interviews with some of India’s biggest names from the music industry. Sayani’s self-confessed approach to radio programming was to strike an intimate relationship with each of his listeners as if they were bonding like friends during the show. He chose words that were vivid, which almost allowed the listener to ‘see’ the show. His magical wordplay entertained and engaged people in a way no one had done before. Among his non-film radio work, the “Bournvita Quiz Contest,” which he took over from his brother Hamid Sayani in 1975 after his death, was extremely popular. The doyen of Indian radio has left us. But his voice will stay with us.
