Gumsum Si Khoi Khoi - Badaltey Rishtey by Kishore Kumar, Anuradha Paudwal

Few songs from 1978 have held their ground as well as Gumsum Si Khoi Khoi - Badaltey Rishtey, a track that keeps finding new audiences. The arrangement here is the work of Laxmikant, Pyarelal, and it shows genuine craft in how it builds and releases.

The voice of Kishore Kumar, Anuradha Paudwal carries Gumsum Si Khoi Khoi - Badaltey Rishtey effortlessly, which is the highest compliment a song can give its singer. Hearing Gumsum Si Khoi Khoi - Badaltey Rishtey without thinking of Jeetendra, Reena Roy, Rishi Kapoor, Asrani, A.K. Hangal, Urmila Bhatt, Shubha Khote is almost impossible for anyone who has seen Badaltey Rishtey.

By the end of 1978, Gumsum Si Khoi Khoi - Badaltey Rishtey had moved well beyond its original audience and into everyday playlists. It fits the playlist for almost any occasion, which is rare — most songs have a narrow emotional window. This one does not.

Running to 7:39, the song is exactly as long as it needs to be, which is the hardest length for a songwriter to find. It is, at the end of it, a very good song — and sometimes that is the only explanation that matters.