Great grand daughter of Pandit Motiram. Grand niece of Pandit Jasraj. It comes as little surprise then that Shweta Pandit became a playback singer at the time she did, recording for Ilayaraja as early as at the age of 4, Currently a regular fixture in AR Rahman’s World tours, the lady has recorded songs in a handful languages apart from Hindi – Telugu,Tamil, Sanskrit to name a few. We present to you our interview with the prolific singer.

Tell us about your musical beginnings. Given the kind of musical lineage you have, music must have been by default for you?

Yes, blessed with music and I do believe God had already planned my destiny to be a vocalist even before i did. There’s no other way I can explain how I recorded with veteran composer, Ilaiyaraja at the age of 4 in Mani Ratnam’s national award winning classic film Anjali. But music was not a default profession.. My father was always particular that if I wanted to be a singer when I grew up, I should do atleast 8 hours of practice everyday! Which I even did.. So wouldn’t say it was easy.. Sweat, tears and hours of patience went into it. But I do feel blessed as I learnt Hindustani classical music from my own grandfather Pandit Pratap Narayan ji (elder brother of Padma Vibhushan – Pandit Jasraj ji)

So what was your contribution in the Hindi dub of Anjali? Was it as a dubbing artist or as a singer?

I sang in all the songs.. And I also dubbed for the little girl in the Hindi version of the film.. Basically both.

You have been part of ARR’s Jai Ho tour and his other concerts. How did that opportunity come about?

The tour was one of the best experiences of my life.. Working with AR Rahman is something you’d always cherish.. Standing on the same stage as him and performing his songs to an audience of almost 80 thousand people screaming at you.. That’s something that will always stay with me forever..

I did a TV show with him on the channel 9x called Mission Ustaad.. Quite a unique show and ahead of its time. It had Bollywood singers composing music and those songs were being judged by AR Rahman and Javed Akhtar.. Rahman sir spotted me on that show and asked to join him on his world tour.. It’s been a beautiful 4 years now and I have travelled with him to every corner of the world.

Though you have been part of his concerts you are yet to sing a song for ARR. Any movie projects coming up?

Now that’s a secret I cannot reveal.. Only time will tell

But in terms of work, I’ve had some good releases in Bollywood in 2011 with Yamla Pagla Deewana, Tell Me O Khuda, Angel, Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl and Mere Brother Ki Dulhan.. All the songs which I sang were hits so i can only thank God and my audience for all the love.. Even in Telugu I’ve had some amazing songs out with Panjaa, Bodyguard, Badrinath which has also just got me a nomination for best singer.. And yes I’d love to sing more tamil songs too.. Vettai has just released.

You are one of the few Bollywood singers to have made fair inroads into South Indian music scene. How did that start off? And how has the experience been? Did the languages present a major challenge?

Singing in languages comes naturally to me.. I started recording Sanskrit albums with Pandit Jasraj ji when I was only 14 years old.. And I was the lead singer in all those albums.. They are Mahalakshmi, Dashavatar, Sukh Samriddhi Suraksha & Ganesha (all released by Times Music). In fact, Mahalakshmi is one of the biggest albums in terms of sales and sells over 20 lac copies every year during Diwali, even today.

I won my first Filmfare award for a Telugu song – Nenani Neevani from Kotha Bangaru Lokam.. That’s a bigger reward for me than anything else as a singer coz it’s been given to me for a language I cant even speak.. My grand uncle Pandit Jasraj ji, told me that it is the biggest compliment for a vocalist to be acknowledged in a language not known to him/her.. And now i truly believe so.. Coz everytime I meet someone from South India they come up and tell me that they hear the song atleast 20 times a day.. Now that’s my biggest award. This adulation means the world to me. I am also nominated this year for my song for MM Kreem (a composer I regard as one of the greatest in our country) for a song Vasudhaara from Badrinath which is a duet with him as well.

Tell us about your sister and her role in your musical life.

My sister is my greatest inspiration. She taught me everything about film music that I know today. we both have the same training, but our sensibilities have a wide variation and our styles are very different. Our approaches to life and work are different too. She’s quieter than I am, but I am equally an introvert. we come from a very protected home and it wasn’t easy to break into an industry which is all about glamour and constantly talking about yourself.. I’ve technically been working here for 11 years (Mohabbatein was my first film, at age 12) but even today, I feel like I dont know anything. So it’s not a very simple industry to work in.. Trends and times change very soon here. But I believe if you work hard, people do acknowledge it sooner or later.

My sister has been my biggest strengths at all times and all phases of my career.. She has faced more detractors than I have, but she’s a power house of talent and I believe when you are blessed by God and have worked hard, you will surely make a mark with your work. She’s truly a woman of substance.

You also tried your hand at lyrics recently. Any more plans on those lines?

I write sometimes and that’s something I usually don’t share with anyone. Haha.

But yes, I did write my songs in HISS. I would love to write my own songs for my albums.

Though I believe my sister Shraddha is a better writer & composer than me. She’s incredibly talented and even AR Rahman sir said this in one the episodes of Mission Ustaad, where she won the competition for Best Composer. She’s now even writing lyrics for films and composing as well.

Any plans to start off composing yourself?

Not really for me.. My focus is more towards vocals.. But I do so, everytime I get a chance as composing music is a very fulfilling experience.

Tell us about your production company. What plans with that?

We do events, albums and studio work.. So new talents are always welcome to share their work.

You can listen to the soundtrack here.

The bubbly arrangement of Chinna Kanniley with its lovely use of kids’ chorus et al is a delightful throwback to Raja’s Anjali days. Shreya Ghoshal rules the rendition, sidelining a strangely nasal and off-colour Naresh Iyer. The composer’s adeptness at orchestration, particularly with the guitar, comes to the forefront of Vaangum Panathukkum – the raw sound of the acoustic guitar (nylon string?) present all through the song, backed by some classic Raja sounds. Bliss. And matching him in sounding his best is SPB; what singing! The scatting towards the second half is especially brilliant!

Sweeping orchestral elements and Ilayaraja’s sincere rendition greatly help Thaavi Thaavi Pogum whose tune might otherwise have made it tedious after a bit. The brief pauses before the interludes seem to contribute much even in their silence! Finally Vilayaattaa Padagotty wins you over with its simple tune which the composer beautifies with a fabulous strings-led arrangement. There is a prayer-like earnestness in the singers’ renditions – Hariharan and Shreya in the male and female versions respectively – which even betters the whole affair.

After a long gap the maestro gives us a flavor of his vintage stuff once again. Delectable is the word!

Music Aloud Rating: 8/10

Top Recos: Vaangum Panathukkum, Chinna Kanniley, Vilayaatta Padagotty

57th edition of Filmfare Awards is on, and since the music category has been announced, thought of putting an update. Best Composer, yes, A R Rahman indeed, his filmfare no. 15! Rockstar won two more in the musical section – Mohit Chauhan as male singer and Irshad Kamil as lyricst for Naadaan Parindey. Two of the nicest things from the awards came in the remaining two categories though. Krsna winning the RD Burman Award for Upcoming Talent in Music for his spectacular score in Tanu Weds Manu. May this be a beginning to many more his way. And the second was Usha Uthup winning her first award in over 40 years of her musical career, alongside Rekha Bhardwaj for Darling. Ranjit Barot scored yet another one for his Shaitaan BGM. I don’t care much how the rest of the awards go, I am quite happy with the music awards. Waiting for the next one now.

Atif Aslam is not my fav singer. In fact I hate his singing in many songs. Post his Jal days that is. But there have been occasions that I had to grudgingly admit to liking his singing. Piya O Re Piya is one such. Strong flavours of past songs, especially of the Pritam kind, but the endearing quality of the song remains, and the contrast in Atif and Shreya’s styles makes for a nice combo here. Even the short, lighter-on-orchestration Sad version works, the lyricist Priya Panchal replacing Shreya and doing a wonderful job herself. The remix by DJ Suketu is listenable. The devout sound in Jeene De is fabulously done, the use of oud/saaz one of the highlights. Mohit Chauhan is perfect choice for vocals, though his presence coupled with parts of the arrangement does bring to mind songs like Pee Loon. The song gets a fresh makeover in the Coffee House Version.

In Pee Paa Sachin Jigar manage to present a techno Punjabi song without invoking the tedium frequently inherent with the genre of late, thanks to a quirky arrangement and a very exuberant Diljit Dosanjh on the vocals. The other folksy item number, Fann Ban Gayi, might have ended up a sub-par product if not for the interesting jazz-up job done by the composers and more importantly the singing by Sunidhi Chauhan. Her accent is especially killer here rendering the whacky lyrics, with Kailash Kher seconding quite nicely. This should make a hit video. Both the tracks have remixes done by VIP Records – the first one doesn’t work much, but the second is pretty imaginative with some sargam elements et al thrown in. Atif Aslam returns, joined by Monali Thakur and Priya Panchal for a second track, the last song – Tu Mohabbat Hai. The only song in the soundtrack that feels truly commonplace. And yes here the nasality of Atif did come back to annoy me! DJ Suketu’s Remix works as well as the original.

Not the best quality work from the composer duo, what with the borrowed elements and all, but an engaging product in the end.

Music Aloud Rating: 7/10

Top Recos: Piya O Re Piya, Jeene De, Fann Ban Gayi

You can listen to the soundtrack here. The first three songs also have music videos featuring the artists, which you can watch by clicking on the song title.

With a nursery rhyme-ish lilt about the tune and a piano-led unplugged arrangement from Shantanu Moitra that matches the simplicity of the song, Roopkathara is winner all the way, impressing in both male and female versions – sung respectively by Rupankar Bagchi and Shreya Ghoshal. The scale change at the end is a particularly nice touch. Bola Baron too is built around a similar ditty, but with a rock flavor. And some excellent employment of the veena. Anindya Chattopadhyay does his job well behind the mic, with the composer playing chorus.  Brishti Biday, thanks to the sweet rendition by Shreya Ghoshal and the breezy metropolitan feel, is also quite soothing – even as the said feel evokes faint memories of songs from Life In A Metro in places.

Moitra smartly ensconces Shreya’s classical-based rendition (raag bihag-based?) in the predominantly rock-flavored Take Me Home, the rock part of the vocals being handled by Bonnie Chakraborty. Chhaya Bhitu Chhaya sounds like something Moitra might have made for his epic work Parineeta. Even here the charm is intact, Hamsika Iyer only adding to it with her spotless singing. And finally there is Shadow Tales, the composer making controlled use of Suraj Jagan’s voice to splendid effect, accompanied commendably by Monali Thakur. Lovely listen again, acoustic guitars never fail.

A fine piece of work from Shantanu Moitra, Aparajita Tumi. Even if you don’t understand Bengali, this soundtrack is a must-listen! First the Dewarists song and now this, Moitra is in sparkling form right now. Waiting for him to end his Bollywood break with more such brilliance.

Music Aloud Rating: 8.5/10

Top Recos: Roopkathara, Chhaya Bhitu Chhaya, Bola Baron, Shadow Tales

You can listen to the soundtrack here (link courtesy @iPeeKay)

Mild flashback elements apart, Kunwara is a catchy dance-y piece that makes smart use of the shehnai wedding motif. The Kolaveri Di-inspired video featuring Salim Merchant on vocals has already been making its rounds on the web. Bipasha has a distinct “Pritam in Dhoom” flavour with Hinglish lyrics that remind of Sheila, at least the English part. And I wonder why the reference to Bipasha, the actress isn’t even called that in the movie as per wiki. Anyways, I have never been a fan of Pritam’s music in Dhoom, this didn’t work much either. The vocals are mention-worthy though, Shraddha Pandit sounds fabulous, with good support from Shadab Faridi. The remix surprisingly sounds slightly better than the original, albeit by a small margin. Jab Main Tumhare Saath Hun is a beauty though, Shilpa Rao’s mild classical-laced sequences suddenly giving way to breezy take-offs by Benny Dayal and Salim Merchant.

Darmiyaan is sweet and soulful – Salim Sulaiman take care of the former and Shafqat Amanat Ali the latter, with backing from Clinton Cerejo. But thanks to SEL and subsequently other composers’ dholak-based escapades this song too is riddled by an overwhelming heard-beforeness. And in the absence of the said template, the Reprise version fares much better, the composers letting Shreya Ghoshal take the lead, and she does that superbly. Mujhko Teri Zaroorat has only Salim credited as the male vocalist, but there seems to be a second voice, apart from Shraddha Pandit’s backing. Good song btw. The remix has Rahat Fateh Ali Khan taking on the lead vocals, but by then the tune starts getting slightly tedious.

Definitely better music than Ladies vs Ricky Bahl this, but Salim Sulaiman’s score for the Jodi Breakers still is below expectations. The reusal habits have just got to go.

Music Aloud Rating: 6.5/10

Top Recos: Jab Main Tumhare Saath Hoon, Kunwara, Darmiyaan (Reprise)

I know it is a bit late to be coming out with this list, but since I have been getting multiple suggestions to compile a list of singers I decided to go about it anyway. So here you go: the top 10 playback singers of Bollywood in the year 2011 – male and female. Hope to make this too an annual affair from here on. The choice of songs has been more on quality – both of the rendition, and of the song – than on the number of songs. And considering just this year of course, with no bias towards the artist’s general repute. For each singer I have also provided the link to one fav song of his/hers from the year.

Top Male Singers

1. Mohit Chauhan – One word: Rockstar. The man who owes his first inning in Bollywood to ARR who gave him that lovely song in Rang De Basanti, was of late being extremely typecast with the regular melody tracks. And once again ARR appeared to deliver him salvation, casting him as the voice of Ranbir Kapoor for the movie. The choice worked big time, Mohit delivering the songs with finesse and giving us the soundtrack of the year. But apart from Rockstar the singer had other songs too, in Tanu Weds Manu (Yun Hi), Aarakshan (Achcha Lagta Hai), Chillar Party (Chatte Batte) to name a few. Hence he is our top singer of the year. Fav Song: Jo Bhi Main (Rockstar)

2. Vishal Dadlani – As composer Vishal had a so-so 2011, just the one standout soundtrack being Ra One, but as playback singer this was quite a productive year for the man – in at least four soundtracks the best song was delivered by Vishal. There was Aitbaar (No One Killed Jessica), Aadat Hai Woh from Patiala House, Ek Junoon in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and a handful of other songs, including that ultra whacky Dheaon Dheaon where the singer was almost unrecognizable! Good enough for the number 2 spot. Fav song: Aitbaar

3. Roop Kumar Rathod - Roop Kumar has been extremely choosy when it comes to Bollywood songs.  As a result he has had an almost 100% strike rate in terms of quality. This year too he sang just two songs (I have not considered the brilliant O Saiyya from Agneepath due to release date) – Piya for Tanu Weds Manu and Saaware in Shor In The City, but both of them were mindblowingly awesome. Ergo, he is our singer no. 3 for 2011. Fav song: Piya

4. Papon – The Assamese singer with his “dhaai kilo ka voice” made his Bollywood debut this year in Dum Maaro Dum, and then went on to sing two more songs for MPKK in Soundtrack. Excellent consistency he has displayed so far, and his pop album, though I am yet to hear it, is apparently a musical treat. So here is looking forward to much more from Papon in 2012. Fav song: Jiyein Kyun (Dum Maaro Dum)

5. Mohan – Agnee’s frontman had made his Bollywood debut in 2010, singing two wonderful songs for SEL and Amit Trivedi, last year he followed it up with two more top quality songs – Shor (Shor In The City) and Saaye Saaye (I AM). Neither got noticed much, which was unfortunate, but we noticed, and that is the reason Mohan is no. 5 on our list. Fav song: Shor (Shor In The City)

6. KK – KK had quite a few songs in 2011. Not everything worked, but due to sheer numbers he had a fair share of good songs across genres to make it to no. 6 on our list. Some prominent ones were Bhojhal S3 and Issi Baat Pe (I AM), O Mama (7 Khoon Maaf), Yaadon Ki Album (My Friend Pinto) etc. Fav song: Bhojhal Se (I AM)

7. Kirti Sagathia – Kirti too had a good 2011, getting some prominent songs in soundtracks like Delhi Belly and Shaitaan, songs that utilized his classical background quite well. Hence, no. 7. Fav song: O Yaara (Shaitan)

8. Rahat Fateh Ali Khan - In 2010 he floored us with just that one song in Ishqiya. 2011 didn’t yield a song as impactful as that, but Teri Meri (Bodyguard) and Isq Risk (Mere Brother Ki Dulhan) were fairly entertaining with the singer displaying his trademark soulfulness in the renditions. Fav song: Isq Risk (Mere Brother Ki Dulhan)

9. Shahid Mallya – Another prominent debutant from the year, Shahid sang some good numbers in Yamla Pagla Deewana, Mausam and Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. There is a slight risk of getting stuck in the genre given the voice and style, but hope he gets more variety in 2012. Fav song: Rabba Main To Mar Gaya (Mausam)

10. Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan - Not many songs Shafqat got to sing in 2011, and even among the ones he sang very few did justice to the kind of singing prowess he has. Nevertheless he becomes our last entry on the Male Playback singers list, coz I quite liked his Dildara and Chhayee Hai Tanhayee. Fav song: Chhayee Hai Tanhayee (Love Breakups Zindagi)

Top Female Singers

1. Shreya Ghoshal – It was just a matter of deciding between Shreya and Sunidhi as to who should be given the top spot, both had such diverse spread of music last year! In the end I chose Shreya coz of the slight lead in terms of classical-based songs. From the beautiful Kaun Si Dor from Aarakshan to Ooh La La from Dirty Picture to Saibo in Shor In The City to Mehki Mehki from The Game, the lady was on fire in 2011. Even in other languages she gave some brilliant songs but that is not for this post. Fav Song: Saibo (Shor In The City)

2. Sunidhi Chauhan – So like I said above, even Sunidhi had a lovely set of songs added to her repertoire in 2011, Tu (My Friend Pinto), Ishq Sufiyana (The Dirty Picture) and Mannu Bhaiyya (Tanu Weds Manu) being my favs. Just because Shreya edged her out by a slight lead, she occupies the second spot on our list. Fav song: Tu (My Friend Pinto)

3. Rekha Bhardwaj – Mrs. Vishal Bhardwaj had four songs, Darling (7KM) and I Love To Love You (Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster) had the singer take on a flippant avatar, while in Yeshu (7KM) and Saye Saye (I AM) Rekha was at her sublime best – Saye Saye being the prize catch. And the primary reason for her being the no. 3 entry. Fav song: Saaye (I AM)

4. Suman Shridhar – One of the most unique voices I have heard in recent times, the singer made waves with the only two songs she rendered in Bollywood this year, both coming in the same movie, Shaitan, both highly imaginative remixes from Mikey McCleary. She did sing a couple more for his album The Bartender, but the reason she is no. 4 on this list are Khoya Khoya Chaand and Hawa Hawaii. Fav song: Khoya Khoya Chaand (Shaitan)

5. Aditi Singh Sharma – A lady whose career graph has been on a steady high since her debut in 2009 with Dev D, 2011 was definitely her best year so far, the singer getting to sing some major chartbusters. Dilli Dilli, Dheaon Dheaon, Choomantar and Kaun Hai Ajnabi were the best among the lot. Hoping that 2012 sees her continue on that upward trend. Fav song: Dilli Dilli (No One Killed Jessica)

6. Harshdeep Kaur – Just one prominent song the young sufi exponent sang last year, but a gem of a song. A song where Harshdeep brought out the playful side of Heer way way better than Nargis Fakhri did on screen. And that song is enough for us to put her at No. 6. Fav song: Katiya Karun

7. Shilpa Rao – Though the biggest achievement of the singer in 2011 happened outside of Bollywood, in the form of the album Rewind – Nine Lost Memories from her band The Band Called Nine comprised of Neelesh Misra and Amartya Rahut, Shilpa had quite a rewarding stint at Bollywood too. Uh Oh from Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge and Jazba from Ladies vs Ricky Bahl were quite engaging, Shilpa doing an uncharacteristically lively rendition in both cases. But the clincher was Yeh Pal for Amit Trivedi, a composer with whom she has always had memorable songs. Hence our Fav song: Yeh Pal (No One Killed Jessica)

8. Nandini Srikar – Like Harshdeep, Nandini too is on this list for just one song – the best song of Ra One, the classical-rock fusion song Bhare Naina whose high point was undoubtedly the impeccable rendition. Hope to hear more of her in 2012 and ahead. Fav song: Bhare Naina (Ra One)

9. Usha Uthup – After a long hiatus the pop legend returned to the Bollywood scene this year. Two songs – the energy-packed Darling from 7 Khoon Maaf and the sinister Hai Ye Maya which was the saving grace of the Don 2 soundtrack. Quite a comeback, no? Age has done little to the power of that voice, it was adequately proven with these songs. According to wiki she has one lined up for 2012, here’s wishing her more in the coming years. Fav song: Darling (7 Khoon Maaf)

10. Hamsika Iyer – Chhammak Chhallo might have been one of the biggest hits of 2011 and all that, but I hated it. For most part, that is. The only part I marginally liked in it was the brief Tamil portion, that too mostly owing to the singer – Hamsika Iyer. Apart from that cameo she had just one other song last year, a beauty from Amole Gupte for Stanley Ka Dabba called Jhoola Jhool. Listen to that and you will agree with me she is one of the most under-rated singers in the industry today. Fav song: Jhoola Jhool (Stanley Ka Dabba)

And that will be all. Your comments are most welcome.

The 18th Screen Awards got announced some time back. And guess what, NO DABANGG! But seriously, this time the awards seem to have displayed a bit more fairness, though I did notice some absolutely outrageous ones. In the music category though, things were pretty much as expected – at least from the nomination list given. A R Rahman quite understandably won the Best Composer award for Rockstar. I guess that will be a constant at all awards. And Mohit Chauhan got adjudged Best Playback Singer (Male) for the same movie. Shreya Ghoshal won the Best Playback Singer (Female) for her risque rendition of Ooh La La from The Dirty Picture, and Prasoon Joshi‘s quirky lyrics for Achcha Lagta Hai from Aarakshan got him the Best Lyricist award. Best Background Score went to Ranjit Barot for Shaitan, I was hoping that either him or Amit Trivedi win it, glad one of them did.

Well that’s about it. You can see the rest of the award winners here.

If one were to ask me for my fav things about Bangalore, the first in the list would undoubtedly be its vibrant arts scene. And one of the loveliest and the most large scale showcases of the same, the Bengaluru Habba, kicks off its 9th edition today. From today to the 22nd of January various venues in Bangalore shall have free-for-all events catering to almost every category of art lovers – music, theatre, films, dance.. Below is the schedule of just the musical part of the Habba. You can see the complete schedule here. So while you figure out what event to go to, I am off to watch Sanjay Divecha’s Acoustic Jazz concert at UB City.

The Jazz and Rock festival is to be held at UB City Amphitheatre, Vittal Mallya Road.

13-Jan   7:00 PM   Sanjay Divecha Duet  (Acoustic Jazz)

13-Jan   8:30 PM   Moon Arra   (Jazz)

14-Jan   7:00 PM   Caesar’s Palace   (Rock)

14-Jan   8:30 PM   Bhoomi   (Rock)

15-Jan   7:00 PM   Infusion   (Jazz)

15-Jan   8:30 PM   Warren Mendonca & Blackstrat Blues   (Jazz Blues)

16-Jan   7:00 PM   Farenheit   (Rock)

16-Jan   8:30 PM   Live Banned   (Rock)

17-Jan   7:00 PM   Groove #3   (Jazz)

17-Jan   8:30 PM   Chronic Blues Circus (Jazz Blues)

 

The classical music festival, called Sangeetha Sambramha – Bharatratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Vedike, is at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, Kumarakrupa Road

13-Jan   6:30 PM   Kum. Aditi Prahalad Rao  (Carnatic Vocal)

13-Jan   7:30 PM   Pandit Vidyabhushan  (Dasavani)

14-Jan   6:30 PM   Smt.Lakshmi Natraj Kum. Vidya Nagaraj, Mysore  (Carnatic Vocal)

14-Jan   7:30 PM   Shri Prakash Sontaki on Hawaian Electric Guitar Dr. Jyotsna, London on Violin  (Jugalbandi)

15-Jan   6:30 PM   Pandit Venkatesh Kumar, Dharwad  (Hindustani Vocal)

15-Jan   7:30 PM   Ustad Umakant Gundecha & Ustad Ravikant Gundecha – Dhrupad Vocal, accomapnied by Igino Brunoli – Saxophone, Virginia Nicoli – Silver Flute & Akhilesh Gundecha – Pakhawaj

16-Jan   6:30 PM   Smt. Madhavi Ganesh Prasad, Bhadravati  (Carnatic Vocal)

16-Jan   7:30 PM   Dr. Kadri Gopalnath  (Carnatic Saxophone)

17-Jan   6:30 PM   Shri Sanjiv Korti, Bijapur  (Sitar)

17-Jan   7:30 PM   Shri Parameshwara Hegde  (Hindustani Vocal)

18-Jan   6:30 PM   Shri H. R. Vinay & Shri K. V. Krishna Prasad  (Carnatic Vocal)

18-Jan   7:30 PM   Shri Sridhar Sagar – Saxophone Shri Bharath -Flute  (Jugalbandi)

19-Jan   6:30 PM   Kum. Malasri Kanvi & Shri Kumar Kanvi, Gulbarga  (Vachana Gayana)

19-Jan   7:30 PM   Shri Chintan Vikas & Group, Mysore  (Janapada)

20-Jan   6:30 PM   Smt. Sridevi Kalasad, Dharward  (Hindustani Vocal)

20-Jan   7:30 PM   Ustad Rais Khan, Pune Ustad Hafiz Khan  (Sitar)

21-Jan   6:30 PM   Kum. Varija Shree & team  (Fusion)

21-Jan   7:30 PM   “Baa Illi Sambhavisu” Songs dedicated to Shri C. Aswath Design & Direction – Shri Sudarshan (Sugama Sangeetha)

You can listen to the album here.

The title song provides a sparkling start to Rangeele, the highlight of course being Kailash Kher’s singing and the lyrics, the title hook especially lilting. The arrangement is primarily acoustic guitar with other elements like sax and flute and some other exotic-sounding touches in places. Tu Kya Jaane follows up nicely, a smartly done breezy arrangement mitigating to quite an extent the heard-beforeness in Kailash’s singing. The minute-long stretch towards the end where Naresh & Paresh’s chorus is juxtaposed with Kailash’s vocals to an overdrive of strings in the background is the high point of the song. The déjà vu factor seems to get stronger with each song, Albeliya a notch up on that front, even as Kailash’s voice and guitars (is there something like an oud involved?) form a truly intoxicating combo good enough to have you hooked. With an orchestration that slightly reminds one of Bhatt flicks, Yadaan Teriyaan has an effect quite like the previously said Bhatt flick songs have, the haunting kind. The hauntingness is quite reduced in the acoustic version. Daaro Na Rang piques the attention more for the contrast between the orchestration and the vocals than for the song as such, which starts to get tedious after a bit.

Kathagaan provides another fresh burst to the proceedings, Kailash getting into a super-exuberant story rendition backed by an immensely engaging arrangement (guess the lead instrument is a banjo). And the song is rounded off with some brilliant kanjira+konnakol. Babbaji is the exact opposite though, having pretty much nothing new to offer. The attempt at comedy in Hudkaan Maan Bitti falls flat. And the only thing that is fresh about Dharti Pe Jannat is the fact that there is Amitabh Bachchan doing a cameo towards the end – overwhelmingly repetitive otherwise. Ujaale Baant Lo that closes the soundtrack is relatively better, but even that isn’t without an overall Kailasa-ness about it.

An album that has some excellent music but is largely evocative of the band’s past. At least some of those songs work this time, but once more shall be cutting it too fine. Which would be rather unfortunate for a band of Kailasa’s proficiency.

Music Aloud Rating: 6.5/10

Top Recos: Kathagaan, Rangeele, Tu Kya Jaane, Albeliya