by Sujoy on August 30, 2010
in Music
Remember the age of just two channels on TV viz. Doordarshan and DD Metro? Remember the golden age of Indipop when it all began with the likes of Baba Sehgal, Remo Fernandes, Parvati Khan, Sharon Prabhakar and Alisha Chinai scorching the idiot box in our living rooms? Indipop has come a long way. Or has it really? We’ll discuss that in a separate post. For now, let’s concentrate on what we set out to achieve.
10 tracks, many contributors. Since time immemorial, collaboration or jugalbandhi has been synonymous to musical awesomeness. And Indipop is full of such awesome gems. Here I have listed 10 of my favourite ones from the top of my head. There is no such criteria involved in the selection. Just the first 10 which I could easily recollect. If you have some more in mind, you can always shout it out in the comments section. Right-e-o, let’s begin. And please, do not fill the comments section with hate mails. I can understand your passion for music, but that does not mean that since I left out a song, I should be considered as a punch bag. Thanks for keeping it clean 
Clarification: Indipop -> Not necessarily pop. Collective name for Non-film music album.
10 Awesome Indipop Collaborations.
Euphoria – Shubha Mudgal – Dhoom
The debut album and song of Euphoria, this song features Shubha Mudgal singing a Maajhi interlude which is undoubtedly the best part of the song. Coupled with teracotta colours of Banaras by the banks of Ganges, this is a track to die for. DJ Bhaduri’s bass rules the pulse of the song, and Palash’s vocals supply the high-fuelled energy of the song. And above all, the awesome elements of the Rajasthani folk strings complete the experience.
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I have a love/hate relationship with the rains. I love the rain when it means a relief from the scorching heat that burns the day. At the same time, rain also means floods, damp and battered roads and splish splash on clothes. I hate going to work when it rains. None of this makes any sense with the title of the post. So, I’ll try and explain.
Suniyo Jee Araj Mhaariyo from Lekin(1990) is one of those rare songs which create a rain-like ambience with extreme ease. It is not a Raag Malhaar song . Based on Raaga Maand, this song depicts of the pathos and longing of a woman longing for her beloved. It is the rainy season – Saawan, which has been portrayed as the season of love, and with the advent of the season, the woman pleads to her lover to take her home. The sensuousness and feeling of loneliness occupy the emotional outcry of the woman.
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by Sujoy on August 4, 2010
in Music
EUPHORIA !!! The word itself fills my thoughts with splashes of colours and happiness. And that’s how Euphoria’s music is - vibrant, melodic, beautiful and very Indian, and not in a dumbed-down way. And along with the upbeat songs of the folk genre, they have also some really heartwarming love ballads and even Qawwalis. Euphoria’s spectrum of music genre is spread wide and can be defined only as what Palash calls it – Hind Rock! And each of their videos has a story to tell, a proper story, like a mini-movie of sorts.
For the uninitiated, the band line-up as of now is :
Back row: Palash Sen (lead vocalist, standing)
Front row L to R: Ashwini(drums), Benny (Keyboard), Irshad(dholak and percussions), DJ Bhaduri (Bass Guitar),
Reshu (dholak and percussions), Hitesh (Guitars).
I, personally, have seen them perform live once at my college campus (NIT Silchar), and there is only one thing which I want to say bout it. Man, they performed for almost 3 hours straight. And what a flawless set. They sing their favorites from the albums released so far, and apart from that do covers as well such as – Another One Bites the Dust, Every Breath You Take and Smoke on the Water. It has been almost 4 years now since that concert, and I can still vividly remember the wild fun that I had. And so, in memory of that awesome one wild night, here I list down 10 of my favourite Euphoria songs.
10. Raja Rani
This begins with a high pitched Palash belting out a Rajasthani folksy lyrical syllable. The instruments used are also reminiscent of Rajasthani folk. And so is the video, which is filled with beautiful deserts, puppets, colorful turbans and a cutesy love story. And the lyrics has elements of national integration – Multani, Bangaali, Dogra. How can you not love this?
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This is a repost of a post I did a long time back. I completely forgot to post it on the right day, i.e. June the 27th, the birthday of one of the greatest composers of India – Rahul Dev Burman.
Happy Birthday BOSS. Janamdin Mubaarak ho Panchamda!
Each and every word or phrase written in his praise falls short..because he is THE PAPA of all Music Directors on the face of the Indian Music Industry…because he is the reason why today’s “music directors” wanted to be it,.. because the entire Remix industry exists because of his yesteryear’s hits..because it is for his albums that DJs and retro nights exist..because he can make Asha Bhonsle sound the best – whether it is a ghazal, hindustani classical song, cabaret, or simply bollywood. Because he is Pancham, RDX, Rahul Dev Burman..because he is THE BOSS.
To the Baap of Bollywood Music..this is my heartfelt “paay-laagu” or “pairi-pona” of sorts. Because I am so small to talk of his genius. But that is not going to make me stop writing this blog about him. Because I have grown up on his music, totally breathed it, have literally lived on it till today, and I am sure will, till I die. This is not a chronicling of the body of work of Panchamda, but is more of a celebration of his melodies which have left an indelible impression on our minds, bodies and soul.
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