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| Manna Dey on G.M. Durrani and other singers |
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| Written by Gajendra |
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Thanks to Asad Kidwai for sharing this on Saat Sur.
This is what Manna Dey says on page 190-191 in Memories Come Alive, An Autobiography.
"The male singers I had to initially compete against included Mohammed Rafi, Talat Mehmood, Mukesh and G. M. Durrani. Rafi's renditions were like an early spring morning with its varied hues and shades and appealed to me immensely. I had the opportunity of singing quite a few duets with him and enjoyed the sessions. Talat Mehmood was something of an aberration in the sense that he seemd to lack perseverance and abandoned his singing career prematurely for reasons that remain a mystery. Mukesh was tranquility incarnate. One could not have asked for a better human being, but it was rumoured that when training him to sing a number, music directors were hard put to conceal their impatience. Once he had mastered the song, however, none could find fault with his rendition. Durrani-ji had a mellifluous voice, but lacked staying power and failed to survive as a singer. To reach the heights of success, it is neccessary to be practical as well and this is where Durrani-ji fell short. I learnt a great deal from his failure. I realized that when a producer spends a fortune on his film, he expects everyone in his team to put in his best effort to make it a success. And putting in one's best meant being ingenious and innovative, qualities without which an artiste is likely to get lost in the wilderness. That, precisely, is what happened to Durrani-ji and I cannot help feeling sorry for the way his career turned out." 
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