Ameen Sayani, The Leading Voice Of Radio's Golden Era, Passes Away At The Age Of 91

Ameen Sayani, the legendary radio presenter of the popular show ‘Binaca Geet Mala’, passed away on Tuesday following a heart attack at the age of 91. Sayani’s son, Rajil Sayani, confirmed the news of his father, and informed Indian Express that his father was taken to HN Reliance Hospital, Mumbai, where he breathed his last. Rajil stated, “The doctors at the hospital attended him but couldn’t save him and he was declared dead.”

Ameen Sayani was born in 1932, and during his early years, he used to assist his mother, Kulsum Sayani, in editing a fortnightly journal called ‘Rahber’, initiated by Mahatma Gandhi. Ameen’s brother was the eminent English broadcaster Hamid Sayani. 

Ameen finally kicked off his stint with Radio Ceylon in 1951. “Namaskar bhaiyon aur behno, main aapka dost Ameen Sayani bol raha hoon,” his voice from radio sets hooked the audience like no other. His presentation and show emerged to be a hit after All India Radio banned Bollywood tracks. With his show, he used to promote simple Hindustani, and it connected people across the country.

His show, ‘Binaca Geet Mala’, which began as a 30-minute programme on Radio Ceylon became a huge hit in the 1950s. It went through several name changes, including Binaca Geetmala, Hit Parade and Cibaca Geetmala, over its running course of 1952 to 1994.

Ameen was known to compare over 54,000 radio programs, and held a record in the Limca Book of Records for his contributions as a voiceover artiste. He also used to interview the stars of the Golden Era, including Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammad Rafi, Kishore Kumar, and Raj Kapoor.