After the success of "Guide" (1965), Shailendra was the obvious choice for writing the lyrics for this film's songs. However, he had lost his will to write songs after the debacle of his production "Teesri Kasam" (1966). Director Vijay Anand pursued the lyricist relentlessly and even got him to pen this song for the film but eventually opted for Majrooh Sultanpuri on Shailendra's recommendation. The melancholy in this song was perhaps an indication of Shailendra's state of mind during his last days.[1][2]
The word "mera" in the song's title was initially written by Shailendra as "tera". He changed the word to "mera" at director Vijay Anand's suggestion.[MR21]