Ameen Sayani, golden voice of radio, falls silent

His voice was his face. Everyone recognised it. From homemakers in Jodhpur to college students in Jhumri Telaiya, from paan sellers in Benaras to bank clerks in Akola — millions would tune in to Radio Ceylon every Wednesday at 8pm and be welcomed by the friendly and familiar greeting, “Behnon aur bhaiyon”. Binaca Geetmala wasn’t just a blockbuster radio programme; it was a debating point, a social glue, an audio addiction.
Mumbai-based radio personality Ameen Sayani, 91, who hosted that iconic hit parade of film songs from Dec 1952 to April 1994, passed away following a heart attack on Tuesday.
Sayani shaped & expanded golden era of radio
From 1950s-70s, radio ruled indoor entertainment in India. With a voice that seemed to be shaking hands and a style that was intimate, Sayani not only personified “the golden years of radio” but also shaped and expanded it. At a time when songs sold films, his show was pivotal to the fortunes of the Hindi feature. It spawned hundreds of shrota sanghs (listeners’ clubs) in towns and kasbahs. Overcoming the faint and wavering sound of short-wave radio, hundreds would press their ears to the ‘transistor’ to engage with a weekly register of songs. The programme’s emotional bonding with the listener is hard to explain, impossible to replicate.
Binaca (later Cibaca) Geetmala was born at a time when Hindi songs were banned on All India Radio by Union I&B minister B V Keskar, a classical music purist. Radio Ceylon grabbed the opportunity.
“Geetmala came on the scene as a low-priced experiment. I was given the job because none of the senior broadcasters cared much about it,” he told this reporter in a 2009 email interview.
The job entailed listing songs, writing the show’s script, presenting it and handling the feedback for Rs 25 per week. “Within a few months, AIR lost a major chunk of its popular listenership,” said Sayani, who was mentored by his elder brother Hamid, a reputed broadcaster.
The format of playing 16 hit tracks of the week for an hour (initially 30 minutes and seven numbers) was novel and exciting. But it was Sayani’s voice that became the 41-year-long show’s endearing USP. At its peak, the show received 65,000 letters every week.
Sayani’s easy, relaxed and flowing style led to first-rate interviews with major composers, lyricists and singers of the time. Bournvita Quiz Contest and S Kumar’s Ka Filmi Muqaddama were two other popular 70s show of his. Prolific with ad jingles, he also occasionally worked in the movies. The radio compere introduced Dev Anand’s Teen Devian (1965) with a background commentary and did a cameo for Mehmood’s Bhoot Bangla (1965).
Born into an enlightened and well-heeled Khoja family, Sayani graduated in history from St Xavier’s, Mumbai. Not many know he assisted his mother, Kulsum, in editing, publishing and printing a fortnightly journal for neo-literates on Mahatma Gandhi’s instructions. The fortnightly, Rahber (1940-60) was published in Devanagari, Urdu and Gujarati scripts.
Sayani also brought out a highly popular CD and cassette series, “Geetmala Ki Chhaon Mein”, which was peppered with film star interviews as well as digressions into the music of the past. He received Padma Shri in 2009.
On X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mourned his passing with a tribute to the charm and warmth of Sayani’s golden voice. “Through his work, he played an important role in revolutionising Indian broadcasting and nurtured a very special bond with his listeners,” he wrote.
Union information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur posted, “For most of us, he was the voice of the radio, who, with his magical wordplay, entertained and engaged us in a way no one had before.”