Ameen Sayani, a legendary figure in Indian radio, passed away in Mumbai at the age of 91 after suffering a heart attack, as confirmed by his son, Rajil Sayani. Known for his rich, melodious voice, Sayani began his career as an English-language announcer for All India Radio (AIR) in Bombay, with his entry into broadcasting facilitated by his brother Hamid, who was already a broadcaster there.
However, it was not at AIR but at Radio Ceylon where Sayani’s path to stardom truly began. In 1952, when Balakrishna Vishwanath Keskar, appointed by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as the Minister for Information and Broadcasting, pushed for the promotion of Indian classical music over Hindi film songs, leading to a ban on the latter on AIR, American businessman Daniel Molina seized the opportunity. Molina hired Hamid Sayani for his radio operations in Ceylon, and Hamid brought in Ameen to host the Hindi film song program “Geetmala.” Sponsored by Ciba’s toothpaste brand Binaca, “Binaca Geetmala” aired every Wednesday starting in 1952 and became an instant hit across South Asia.
Ameen Sayani’s engaging presentation style, his warm address to his audience as ‘sisters and brothers,’ and his close connections within the Hindi film industry contributed to the show’s massive popularity. In 1989, “Geetmala” made its way to AIR’s Vivid Bharati service, only to end in 1994 due to the rising popularity of television countdown shows. Nevertheless, Sayani’s influence and popularity never waned. Over his career, he hosted approximately 58,000 radio programs and voiced 19,000 radio commercials and jingles. His work extended beyond film music; he notably took over the “Bournvita Quiz Contest” from his brother in 1975 and produced “Swanaash,” a 13-episode series on HIV/AIDS for AIR.
In his later years, Saregama, holding the music rights for the golden era of Hindi cinema, released a 10-volume compilation titled “Ameen Sayani Presents Geetmala Ki Chhaon Mein.” This compilation celebrated the show’s history, featuring Sayani’s interviews with luminaries such as Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar, and Amitabh Bachchan, among others, thereby immortalizing the golden age of Indian radio and Sayani’s monumental contribution to it.
