When I bought a copy of the very first edition of the first published volume of Hindi Film Geet Kosh (1951-1960) in 1980, I was overjoyed. I had never seen anything like it. After a few months I calmed down and started finding misprints. One of the most annoying was the name of this lyricist spelt as Raja Mehndi Ali Khan (with an extra 'n'). I hesitated to contact the author because, I thought, it is too late to do anything. Also surely, somebody must have told him by now.
Imagine my surprise when I obtained the Revised Edition in 1997, it had the same mistake! To this day I deeply regret not having sent him a postcard in 1980.
It turns out that it is a very common mistake, even producers of films, who hired him to write the lyrics, misspell his name.
See here a title card from Jab Yaad Kisee Kee Aatee Hai (1967)
Please note that his name has the word Mehdi, not Mehndi.
Note: This has been corrected in all the latest editions and the Database Website.
Now You Know!
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