Vishal Vaid and his band explore a traditional South Asian musical form in this mesmerizing improv performance. Sit back and let his music transport you.

About Vishal Vaid

Vishal Vaid brings a modern perspective to the traditional music of India, creating melodies that evoke his culture’s past while shaping popular music’s future.

Vishal Vaid has trained in the traditional art of ghazal (an ancient form of poetry, often performed in song) since he was three years old. Today, his performances blend Eastern and Western, ancient and contemporary to create spellbinding music. He has performed throughout the world, appearing on television shows in New York, London, India, and Morocco, and has worked with renowned artists Anoushka Shankar, Bill Laswell, Michael Franti, Karsh Kale and Midival Punditz. He had in fact sung in MP’s last album Hello Hello

In addition, he provided vocals to the electronic-oriented band Bhoom Shankar formed by Karsh Kale and credited with beginning the popular genre of music known as Asian Massive within the electronica community.

Sajda provides a marvellous opening to the proceedings of My Name Is Khan, Richa Sharma and Rahat Fateh Ali at their classical best in rendering this song that falls in the league of SEL‘s Mitwa et al. Of late I generally get turned off when those telltale dholak/tabla beats come up in SEL songs but in this case the instruments sound so beautifully part of the song!I am totally caught on to that “Ab jaan loot jaaye.. Ye Jahaan loot jaaye” hook. Rahat seems to have turned over a new leaf (rather turned over to his older leaf!!) in 2010, with twowonderful songs totally befitting his style in the first week itself. Richa Sharma sounds solike Rekha Bharadwaj in terms of voice and rendition. Rather unfortunate that she hasn’t got her due as yet in Bollywood. And I am glad they didn’t go for a remix version of this one. Would have totally spoilt the beauty. What follows is an even better song called Noor-e-Khuda. While we were doing our 2009 musical roundup me and Anirudh had noticed that songs featuring acoustic guitars have a general tendency to be pleasant experiences. This song further cements our hypothesis, though it moves on to more than just acoustic guitars as it progresses, the occasional drone of the sarangi in the background being one of the highlight factors adding to the longing feeling conveyed by the song.  Shankar Mahadevan, Shreya Ghoshal and Adnan Sami impart a sort of fusion element to the vocals, the former two going about in a classical-tinged manner while Adnan follows his usual Westernized style. Good return for Adnan after a very quiet 2009, barring that forgettable composing work for Chance Pe Dance.

The dholak-tabla template returns with Tere Naina, the tune also quite suggestive of the SEL handiwork. The song appeals nevertheless, mainly due to Shafqat Amanat Ali‘s prayer-like rendition. Ustad Rashid Khan debuts for SEL with the sufi Allah Hi Rahem. Compared to the songs so far though this one does not impress much, sounding pretty bland. If you are a fan of Rashid Khan’s singing you may want to listen to this, otherwise there is nothing much to the song. The guitar template for Rang De, sung by Shankar Mahadevan and Suraj Jagan, sounds straight off the Rock On rack, only a tad slower. But the trio add a twist in the tale with a sarangi springing up in the middle and another percussion instrument that sounded South Indian, to accompany Shankar’s sargam at the end. In spite of all this, I didn’t find this song very impressive, either because of that overpowering sense of deja vu in the arrangement or that in Shankar’s singing. Finally there is an instrumental theme, SEL building up to a grand orchestral mood starting with a piano loop. Having said that, the track sounds sort of forced, not something that will have you spellbound or anything. In my list it would rate below SEL’s previous themes for DCH and TZP.

Like I had said in my annual roundup of 2009, I was not quite looking forward to this SEL album, being a Karan Johar movie and all that. But SEL have really sprung a surprise with three wonderful compositions, and three other average songs, not quite the effect they might have wanted to produce after such a wonderful start.  Nevertheless, I would give My Name Is Khan a rating of 7.5/10, for those three songs.
Recommended tracks: (Quite obviously!) Noor-e-Khuda, Sajda, Tere Naina

Director: Abhishek Chaubey
Producers: Vishal Bhardwaj, Raman Maroo
Music Directors: Vishal Bhardwaj
Lyricists: Gulzar
Label: T-Series

Music review: Here

Dil Toh Bachcha Hai

(Rahat Fateh Ali Khan)

Aisi uljhi nazar unse hatthi nahin
Daant se reshmi dor katthi nahin
Umar kab ki baras ke sufed ho gayi
Kaari badri jawani ki chatathi nahin
Wallah yeh dhadkan badhne lagi hai
Chehre ki rangat udane lagi hai
Dar lagtha hai tanaha sone mein ji
Dil toh bachcha hai ji
Dil toh bachcha hai ji
Thoda kachha hai ji
Haan dil toh bachcha hai ji

Aisi uljhi nazar unse hatthi nahin
Daant se reshmi dor katthi nahin
Umar kab ki baras ke sufed ho gayi
Kaari badri jawani ki chatthi nahin

Kisko pata tha pehalu mein rakha
Dil aisa paaji bhi hoga
Hum toh hamesha samajhate the koi
Hum jaisa haaji hi hoga
Haan yeh zor karein, kitna shor karein
Bewaja baatohn pe aye-weh gaur karein
Dilsa koi kameena nahin
Koi toh rokey, koi toh tohkey
Iss umar mein ab khaogey dhokhe
Dar lagta hai ishq karne mein ji
Dil toh bachcha hai ji
Dil toh bachcha hai ji
Thoda kachha hai ji
Haan dil toh bachcha hai ji

Aisi udhaasi baithi hai dil pe
Hassne se ghabra rahe hain
Saari jawani katra ke kaati
Piri mein takra gaye hain
Dil dhadakta hai toh aise lagta hai woh
Aa raha hai yahin dekhta hi na woh
Prem ki maare kataar re
Tauba ye lamhe katthe nahi kyun
Aankhon se meri hatthe na ye kyun
Dar lagta hai tujhse kehne mein ji

Dil toh bachcha hai ji
Dil toh bachcha hai ji
Thoda kachha hai ji
Haan dil toh bachcha hai ji

Ab Mujhe Koi Lyrics

(Rekha Bhardwaj)

Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan
Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan
Woh jo behate thhe…
Abshaar kahaan

Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan
Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan
Woh jo behthe the…
Abshaar kahaan
Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan

Aankh ke ek gaon mein
Raat ko khwaab aate thhe

Aankh ke ek gaon mein
Raat ko khwaab aate thhe
Chhuney se behate thhe, bole toh kehte thhe
Udate khwaabon ka aitbaar kahaan

Udate khwaabon ka aitbaar kahaan
Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan

Jin dino aap thhe
Aankh mein dhoop thi

Jin dino aap rehte thhe
Aankh mein dhoop rehti thi
Ab toh jaale hi jaale hain
Yeh bhi jaane hi wale hain
Woh jo tha dard ka qaraar kahaan

Woh jo tha dard ka qaraar kahaan
Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan
Woh jo behate the abshaar kahaan
Ab mujhe koi intezaar kahaan

Ibn-e-Batuta

Ibn-e-batuta ta ta ta..

Ibn-e-batuta ta ta
Bagal mein joota ta ta
Ibn-e-batuta ta ta
Bagal mein joota ta ta
Pehne toh karta hai churrr
Udh udh aave aa aa, daana chugey aa aa
Udh udh aave aa aa, daana chugey aa aa
Udh jaave chidiya phurrr

Ibn-e-batuta ta ta

Bagal mein joota ta ta
Pehne toh karta hai churrr
Udh udh gaave, daana chugey ye
Udh jaave chidiya phurrr
Phurrrrrrr ..

Ibn-e-batuta

Ibn-e-batuta

Yeehehh Agley mod pe, maut khadi hai
Arey marne ki bhi, kya jaldi hai

Ibn-e-batuta

Agley mod pe, maut khadi hai
Arey marne ki bhi haiii kya jaldi hai
Horn bajake, aawat janme
Hoo durghatna se, der bhali hai
Chal udh ja udh ja phurrr phurrr
Ibn-e-batuta ta ta
Bagal mein joota ta ta
Pehne toh karta hai churrr
Udh udh aave aa aa , daana chugey aa aa
Udh jaave chidiya phurrr

Ibn-eeeeeeeee-batuta

Ibn-eeeeeeeee-batuta

Dono taraf se, bajthi hai ye
Aaye hai zindagi, kya dholak hai

Dono taraf se, bajti hai ye
Aaye hai zindagi, kya dholak hai
Horn bajake, aa bagian mein
Arrey thoda aa gaye, gatirodhak hai
Arrey chal chal chal udh ja udh ja
Phurrr, phurrr, phurrr

Ibn-e-batuta ta ta
(Ibn-e-batuta ta ta)
Bagal mein joota ta ta
(Bagal mein joota ta ta)
Pehne toh karta hai churrr
Udh udh aave aa aa
(Udh udh aave aa aa)
Daana chugey aa aa
Udh jaave chidiya phurrr

Badi Dheere Jali

(Rekha Bhardwaj)

Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina
Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina
Raaton se haule haule, khali hai kinare
Akhiyon ne taga taga, bhor utaari
Khari akhiyon se, dhuan jaaye na
Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina

Palkon pe sapnon ki, agni uthaye
Humne to akhiyon ke, aalne jalaye
Palkon pe sapnon ki, agni uthaye
Humne to akhiyon ke, aalne jalaye
Dard ne kabhi loriyan sunai toh
Dard ne kabhi neend se jagaya re
Bairi akhiyon se na jaaye dhuan jaaye na
Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina
Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina

Jalte chiragon mein, neend na aaye
Phoonkon se humne, sab taare bujhaye
Jalte chiragon mein, neend na aaye
Phoonkon se humne sab taare bujhaye
Jaane kya kholi, raat ki pitari se
Khola to koi bhor ki kinari re
Suji akhiyon se, na jaaye dhuan jaaye na
Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina
Badi dheere jali raina
Dhuan dhuan naina

Got this question from another quizzing site.

What is this? (remember there should be a musical connection)

Answer in comments.

Answer: This is Spinal Tap, famous as the name of the fictional heavy metal band which was also subject of a mockumentary titled “This is Spinal Tap”. Cracked by Debasish, Mahesh, Kaushik.

Our friend Anusha joins us today in wishing A R Rahman a very happy birthday!

I asked my friend when it was that he started recognising Rahman. He said that he started his search for him after he heard the violin interlude in ‘Veerapandi Kotaiyile’ from ‘Thiruda Thiruda’. For me it was ‘Minnale’ from ‘May Maadham’. For many others it must have been ‘Roja’ itself. Whatever the song, Rahman has grown a lot from thence. For music, it’s age no bar. That’s why, the Isai Puyal(“Musical Storm”) like his fans (or fanatics call him!!!) still celebrates music like a child. From National awards to Oscars and in the year 2010, the Grammies (All the best!!), ARR is going to decorate his house with every possible sculpture available in the world of music. He has made writers rephrase the following line: ‘His music has created waves throughout India’ to ‘His music has created floods throughout the world!!!’.With Slumdog millionaire, the whole world took note of him as a creator with a different essence of music. He is spreading music now amongst the talented with his KMMC (started last year).

On his birthday, we humbly wish this maestro and just want to say the words which have always been told to him in different forums, but are indeed true, ‘We are proud to say we live with you, to see you, to hear you!!!’

Happy birthday Rahman!!!!

First decade of the third millennium is drawing to a close. The 2000′s have been momentous in all walks of life. One of the most remarkable things that happened during the last decade is the dissemination of information through the medium of internet. Entertainment, especially music, in terms of reaching out to listeners has gone through a revolution. Youtube, file sharing and digital download, proved to be a boon to the music fan, music became really accessible. Writing about impact of music during the last decade is beyond my pay grade, I will rather concentrate here on the last year, 2009.

2009 in music will most probably remembered as the year when Michael Jackson died. The King of Pop was mourned all over the globe with his hits topping the charts everywhere. Musically 2009 was a very vibrant year too, lots of new music was released. One of the major releases of the year was U2‘s No Line on the Horizon. The CD was a bold experiment, U2 consciously trying to move away from their comfort zone and the result was an album with Brian Eno as a co-creator, but it did not achieve the kind of success it’s predecessors could boast of, nevertheless the band showed that they still have the creativity and guts to go where not many had dared to go. Bono and Edge had reportedly spent a considerable amount time setting music for the Spiderman musical which is something to watch out for in 2010. U2 also embarked on a world tour with a custom made stage in biblical proportions and performed before sell out crowds. I wonder when they will come to India.

Talking about pleasant surprises, it can’t get better than what happened on Britain’s got talent on 11 April 2009, when Susan Boyle sang I Dreamed a Dream from Les Misérables. The event went on to become one of the most watched events in 2009.

In the world of pop it was the year of Lady Gaga. She  became the first artist in nearly ten years (after Christina Aguilera in 1999 and 2000) to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with their first two chart entries (Just Dance and Poker Face). Green Day released 21st Century Breakdown, the punk rockers delivered a first class album. Their previous release American Idiot had raised the expectations of the fans and the band definitely met it, if not exceeded it.

The Beatles, arguably the world’s greatest band ever, continued to exert their influence over us, but this time in a slightly different manner, through the Beatles’ version of Rock Band video game series.  Liverpool Hope University also did their bit in honouring the local heroes by introducing a Master of Arts in The Beatles, Popular Music and Society!

I had the fortune to listen to a lot of new music during 2009. One of those bands who caught my attention was Blackbud. This indie group have generated lots of interest and they have already been compared to some of the greats of the olden days. Blackbud released an eponymous album last year,its a superb album and I recommend you to check it out on youtube.

Early last year the dance rockers Franz Ferdinand had released their third album, Tonight. The single Ulysses is one of the best songs of last year. Pearl Jam‘s Backspacer too was a good effort with Just Breathe standing out, the song has the potential to enter any greatest hit list, given the size of Pearl Jam canon, I guess I am taking too much liberty. Kasabian is another group from the 2000′s whom I feel will, go a long way (actually lots of others also have the same feeling). Just listen to Fire from their 2009 album West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, you will get hooked. The pyrotechnic rocksters Muse released The Resistance the album was noted for it’s classic musical influences, these guys might well be the Queen of our age. Other releases of note are supergroup Monsters of Folk’s self titled debut album, Modest Mouse‘s No One’s first and You’re Next, Rammstein‘s Liebe ist für alle da (German: “Love is there for everyone“) and Porcupine Tree‘s Incident.And Our lady Madonna released her third Greatest Hits album titled Celebrations. I am sure there are many more, but right now this is all I can recollect.

Nine Inch Nails, the alter super ego of Trent Rezner was dissolved this year. Talking about band splits Oasis‘s nasty break-up and Aerosmith‘s reported split are what caught my attention last year.

In India the scene is emerging, bands like Lounge Piranhas, Avial, Motherjane, TAAQ and Themclones to name a few are getting more and more popular. Last few years have seen major international acts touring our country, this Mr Big chose India as the first stop for their re-union gig. Another high point will be Porcupine Tree headlining Mood Indigo. 2009 had been a very vibrant year for Indian bands, they had a busy time traveling across the country, many bands released CD’s, many like Indian Ocean and Raghu Dixit toured even abroad. And lots of clubs have started playing live music and it has helped bring the bands closer to their listeners.

So 2010 will be interesting. There is too much to wish for. Indian music had arrived on international scene when Beatles released Norwegian Wood, but its been a long time, waiting for a full fledged Indian outfit making a mark on the international scene. Lets hope that will be one the surprises 2010 will throw at us.

This 1974 R’n'B album was in news again sometime in the last decade. Fundae.

Answer in comments.

Although 2009 was a good year for music with a lot of revolutionary albums such as Dev.D and Gulaal coming out in Hindi movies and lot of international artists such as U2 and Bruce Springsteen also coming up with some great albums, the year was also marred by the deaths of some of the most legendary artists from the world of music. While welcoming the new year and expecting a lot from it, we would like to take some time out and pay homage to artists whom we would be missing for the years to come.

Michael Jackson

Though his final days were marked by controversies of various sorts, the fact remains that to most people alive today, Michael Jackson still remains the embodiment of pop music. The day was December 1, 1982 when his path-breaking album Thriller was released, the album that topped the US charts for 37 weeks, the album that sold over 104 million copies worldwide, the album that forced MTV to abandon its white rock-oriented scheduling. The man has ruled our hearts ever since. The year also saw the posthumous release of his album and the documentary film by the same name “This is it”.

Les Paul

The man who “made the sound of rock and roll possible” passed away in August this year. Les Paul will be most remembered for his contribution in developing the solid body electric guitar. Besides, he is also popular for developing a lot of other sound effects such as tape delays, phase effects etc. Although majorly known for his sound engineering skills, Les Paul was also an accomplished guitarist. While playing for numerous well-known jazz and blues artists such as Georgia White and Django Reinhardt, Paul found himself unsatisfied with the sound of acoustic guitars and hence created several versions of his own that were later also used by some of the greatest names in Rock’n’Roll.

Asheem Chakravarty (Indian Ocean)

Christmas did not bring much joy to Indian Ocean – one of India’s most pioneering fusion bands as their percussionist and singer Asheem Chakravarty passed away of a cardiac arrest in Delhi. Asheem had shown his musical prowess at a very early age when he surprised musicians with his proficiency in the table without any formal training. As a member of Indian Ocean he played the tabla, tarang and various other percussion instruments. Without Asheem, the band will miss a major Indian element in their music.

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan

Held by violinist Yehudi Menuhin as ‘The Greatest Musician in the world’, this sarod maestro was instrumental in taking Indian music to the west. He was most known for his collaborations with Sitar Maestro Ravi Shankar. In his career the Ustad travelled across the globe and also established music schools in California and Bern. During his career he was nominated for 5 Grammys and was also accorded with Padmavibhushan in 1989.

Gangubai Hangal

Born in Dharwad in 1913, Gangubai got trained under the tutelage of the renowned Sawai Gandharva in the Kirana Gharana. A strict purist, she always believed in the classical tradition of music. In one of the rarest instances of recording for a movie, she sang a song in the Marathi movie Vijachi Lagan. Gangubai was awarded with the Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award at different stages of her life, for her outstanding contribution to the world of Hindustani music.

D.K. Pattammal

With the demise of the Carnatic doyenne in July we lost the last remaining member of the famed female trinity of Carnatic music, M S Subbulakshmi and M L Vasanthakumari already dead. Overcoming the oppositions imposed on her by the orthodox traditions of her family, Damal Krishnasamy Pattammal made it big in the then male-dominated carnatic world. She was known as an authority on Muthuswamy Dikshitar’s compositions. She also dabbled in film music, though only for patriotic and devotional songs. She was part of the A R Rahman-Bharat Bala project Jana Gana Mana which featured over 35 top artistes in Indian music.

The wait is finally looking to get over! One of the biggest albums that music fans down south have been looking forward to since the fag end of last year was the A R Rahman-Gautam Menon romantic flick Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya. And the appetizers to the musical treat are out for the taking with one song from the movie, Hosanna, already doing the rounds on the internet. The song is an absolute beauty, a breezy pop-ish melody sung by Vijay Prakash and Suzanne D’Mello, spruced up with Blaaze‘s rap. It was promo’ed on BBC World early last week alongside an interview with Rahman about his post-Oscar days. Gautam has done a fab job of the picturization as well (at least in the 30 seconds that were shown on TV), Trisha especially looking ravishing.

Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya’s lineup consists of seven tracks in all, two of them featuring Malayalam lyrics. This is the first time Rahman is composing for Gautam, the director so far having stuck to Harris Jayaraj. And if Hosanna is any indication, I doubt if Gautam will revert from Rahman after this! You may listen to the song online on youtube, but kindly buy the original CD once the album releases.

With its Sufi elements, the mellow retro-styled Dil to Bachcha Hai will have you hooked right from the start, Vishal doing a magnificent job with the instruments, the claps, the accordion (or harmonium, I am not quite sure!) et al. And Rahat Fateh Ali sounds so beautifully at home rendering this track as compared to the songs he sang last year. The remix also has an alluring arrangement, but doesn’t quite capture the magic of the original. The English part sung by Clinton Cerejo doesn’t gel in with the actual lyrics. Ibn-E-Batuta starts off exuding a heady feel akin to Raat Ke Dhai Baje, Dil Haara and the likes. But somewhere along the course of the song the effect starts wearing off, in spite of the high energy vocals by Mika and Sukhwinder. The two remixes can be steered clear of, totally lacking the class or the charm that was there in the Dil To Bachcha Hai remix. The first remix in fact sounds more of a travesty with its annoying chipmunkish processing of Ibn-E-Batuta.
Rekha Bharadwaj gets behind the microphone to deliver Ab Mujhe Koi, a conventional ghazal set to a rather unconventional background consisting of guitars, keyboard and drums. Needless to say Rekha does a wonderful job of rendering the song. She returns to sing the last track of the album, Badi Dheere Jali, a track set to raag Miya Ki Todi I think. The arrangement sees a wonderful fusion of western and eastern instruments.
After giving a very massy soundtrack in Kaminey, Vishal this time opts for a mix of the massy and the esoteric. For that reason Ishqiya‘s soundtrack is not going to enjoy the widespread acceptance that Kaminey’s did, barring the first two songs. Nevertheless Ishqiya once again demonstrates the class act that Vishal Bharadwaj is. And in Dil To Bachcha Hai I already have my first entry for the top 15 tracks of 2010!

Music Aloud rating: 7.5/10

Recommended tracks: Dil To Bachcha Hai, Badi Dheere Jali, Ibn-E-Batuta