Manohar Lal Sonik the senior member of the Sonik-Omi team that had made their presence felt in the decades of 1960s, 70s and somewhat in the 80s.
Manohar Lal Sonik and Om Prakash Sonik were uncle and nephew respectively. He was visually handicapped and still he achieved a lot in music direction with his nephew.
He was the first to get into the profession, and as he was visually impaired,his nephew Om Prakash Sonik came to Bombay as his eyes. Sonik was born in 1926 on 26th November, in Sialkot (Pakistan). In childhood, as early as two years, he was afflicted with a malady, as a result of which he lost his eyesight, much before he turned three. The laws of nature worked, and the child Manohar developed a strong acumen and a strong interest in music. His first level of education happened in the Lahore College of Music. He subsequently went to Lucknow, for further learning at the famous Morris College of Music. Returning back to Lahore, he became assistant to Pt Amarnath. When partition happened in 1947, he came to Delhi and worked for some time at the All India Radio. Around 1950, he came to Bombay. He worked as an assistant with Husnlal-Bhagatram team for some time. He gained reputation as an exemplary harmonium player, and many music directors would call upon him for this skill.
In 1952, he got a chance to do his first independent film as a music director. This film is ‘Mamta’. It has a beautiful song sung by Mukesh – “Bhor Bhai Ik Pari Gagan Se Utri”. Although the film had some good songs, it failed to make an impression at the box office, strong enough to sustain the career of this new entrant into the industry. And without any further offers as an independent music director, he continued to work as an assistant to Madan Mohan and Roshan, and as a music arranger for many others.
By the time 1960s came about, his nephew, Om Prakash Sonik had also joined him in Bombay. Om Prakash, better known by the name Omi, had also worked at the All India Radio at Delhi, before making his way to Bombay. Together they had worked as assistants for Roshan in the film ‘Dil Hi To Hai’ (1963). Being impressed by their work, the Rawal brothers (BL Rawal and CL Rawal), assigned the music direction responsibility to this duo for their next film ‘Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya’ (1966).
Credited with over 120 Hindi feature films, this uncle-nephew team stole the limelight with debut film Dil Ne Phir Yaad Kiya, with all the songs rated as super hits.
Sonik-Omi were a formidable team in their days, and they produced some of the best songs in films like Truck Driver, Sawan Bhadon, Mahua, Umar Quaid, Abroo, Agar, Mujrim, Beti, Ram Kasam, Zulm Ki Pukar, Raftaar, Bhai Ho To Aisa, Rang Khush, Dharma and Do Chattane.
