Posts Tagged ‘Shankar Mahadevan’

Rewind 2018 – Best Bollywood Songs Of The Year + Playlist

Posted: December 19, 2018 by moifightclub in cinema, music, Year end special
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In the last 5 years, 2018 was easily the best when it came to film music. It was also the year in which the drip irrigation music release technique (‘release one song when you want and let them wait for the album’) was at its peak(?). At the time this post is getting baked, albums for the music release of Simmba (to be released on 28 December) and Zero (To be released in 3 days) are yet to hit the music listeners. So Boo you makers! for being so insecure and under-confident about music. I hope some sense penetrates your nonsensical surround sound system you cover yourself with, filled with Yes-men and favour seekers (who can also make a playlist for you, I hear). I have so much to say but I guess we should just get down to the business end now.

We have picked  one song per album, a rule I wish I could go around but am thankful it exists. Do suggest your favourites which aren’t on the list for I am sure I have missed some gems. Also, there is a separate Dinchak playlist that would be tagged along with the non film music post.

If you are in no mood to read, just scroll down to play the embedded playlist.

If you just want to have a quick look at the list, here you go.

No. Song Singer Lyrics Music
1 Adhura Main Deepak Thakur Vineet Kumar Singh Vineet Kumar Singh
2 Aaj Se teri Arijit Singh Kausar Munir Amit Trivedi
3 Binte Dil Arijit Singh A M Turaz Sanjay Leela Bhansali
4 Lae Dooba Sunidhi Chauhan Manoj Muntashir Rochak Kohli
5 Lo Safar Shuru Jubin Nautiyal Sayeed Quadri Mithoon
6
 Shraddha Mishra
Faiz Ahmed Faiz
Sandesh Shandilya
Papon
7 Ae Watan Arijit Singh Gulzar Shankar ehsaan loy
8 ishq di baajiyan Diljit Dosanjh Gulzar Shankar ehsaan loy
9 Saansein Prateek Kuhad Prateek Kuhad Prateek Kuhad
10 Tera fitoor Arijit Singh Kumaar Himesh Reshammiya
11
 Jonita Gandhi
Irshad Kamil
Niladri Kumar
Arijit Singh
12
 Ammy Virk
Shellee
Amit Trivedi
Shahid Mallaya
13 Har Har Gange Arijit Singh Siddharth-Garima Sachet-Parampara
14 Naina Banjare Arijit Singh Gulzar Vishal Bhardwaj
15 Wo Ladki Arijit Singh Jaideep Sahni Amit Trivedi
16 Mere naam tu Abhay Jodhpurkar Irshad Kamil Ajay Atul

 

Adhura main – Being a fan of Deepak’s Harmonium accompanied voice since humnee ke chhori ke, it was easy to love this earthy song with emotions spilling all over the senses. Vineet, the composer and lyricist, has summarised the entire struggle in this fabulous song. You cannot listen to this song on repeat, that is how devastating it is.

Aaj se teri – Endearing, melodious, rich, simple and filled with love.

Binte dil – Though I am madly in love with Nainowaale ne and Ghoomar, I just couldn’t get beyond this mad mad song that has everything and a little more. Of course the song is composed and written very well, but for me, the refreshing whiff is Arijit‘s effortless singing. Those who tell you they loved Ranveer Singh because of ‘khali bali’, are actually thinking of this song. Yep.

Lae dooba – A song filled with Shiv Kumar Batalvi‘s mainu tera shabaab lae baitha vibe, Lae dooba gave us Sunidhi Chauhan the way we are almost forgetting she can touch your soul.

Lo safar shuru ho gaya – When Mithoon composes happy romantic songs without the Aashiqui-sque familiarity, such pleasant songs emerge and boy what a delight they are!

Raat yun dil mein – The first duet I liked this year. I dislike romantic songs but when Faiz is done right, it feels…Jaise beemar ko…bewajah qaraar aaye..The song cures you of ailments you didn’t know you had.

Ae watan  – A song in 2018 that celebrates ‘desh prem‘ subtly, a rare event these days. Pahuchu mein jahan bhi meri buniyaad rahe tu. Though towards the end of the song, I felt like I am listening to the end notes of ‘Noor e khuda’, it only made me love the song more.

Ishq di baajiyan – Though I didn’t enjoy the backup vocalists going a bit too hard on ‘door na jaa’, S.E.L.’s masterstroke of using Shankar Mahadevan‘s voice smartly did me in. Though it is the least ‘repeated’ song this year amongst all here, how can you not fall for Diljit Dosanjh’s charming voice?

Saansein – Main apne hee mann ka hausla hu, Hai soya jahan par mein jaga hu..Main peeli seher ka nasha hu…Main madhosh tha..ab main yahan hu. Prateek Kuhad, you beauty!

Tera fitoor – There is always time for an old fashioned, non autotuned fantastically composed romantic song from Himesh Reshamaiyya isn’t it? I don’t care how the video is, I love this song a bit too much for my own good I guess. Arijit Singh, are you human?

Ahista Ahista – Laila Majnu, the album delighted me in ways that A.R. Rahman’s albums used to. There is too much to thank this album for and I choose Ahista Ahista for the playlist. Irshad Kamil has penned easily the best film song of the year here. Doori ye kam hee na ho, main neendo mein bhi chal raha. Truly a song worth dying for.

Daryaa – Mannmarziyaan was no Dev D, still it came dangerously close and broke everything that came its way this year. Both versions of this song are super good, still I feel the rush much more thanks to Ammy Virk‘s version. I could write pages about the way Ammy makes me soar. Most importantly, don’t forget – Shellee.

Har har gange – The most intense yet calm song of the year. Off late, We seem to hardly get spirituality right in Hindi films, let alone music. This is a beautiful exception. Tera karm hee hai jo sang tere hee jaaye. No intellectualising, just a simple message, delivered simply. Arijit singh, I love you.

Naina Banjare – I was so tempted to put the title song here, still this mad song took the better of me. Giri re giri babua, beech bajaare. Did you notice Arijit call Naina as Nahena…?

Wo ladki – The overarching tune, magnificent composition, irresistible singing and what atmosphere! Amit Trivedi, the dominator of the year!

Mere Naam tu – The only reason I have not put any song of Dhadak is because even the title song (which wasn’t as embarrassing as other ‘dubbed’ songs) had the stamp of Ajay Atul and you could predict the pace and sound of the song. This one however, has a ‘Jaadu teri nazar’ madness and that with the confident Abhay Jodhpurkar on the microphone is just too difficult to put away. Lastly and most importantly, Irshad Kamil. Yep.

P.S. – I feel compelled to mention a few more things here.

Genres that Hindi film music touched this year which I absolutely loved:

Friendship – Tera yaar hu main from Sonu ke Titu ki Sweety – If that horrible qawwali detour wouldn’t have existed in the song, this would have made it on the list above. Still, a good addition to the genre.

Sensuous done right –  Mujhe Chaand pe le chalo – A.R. Rahman misses a lot and hits far too few off late. Nikita Gandhi and Irshad Kamil ensured this one is a hit and boy does it stay hit! (With No-hea Kakkar-isation of every song these days, it is difficult to extract real emotions from the barrage of autotune-ness these days…and this is why, Mujhe chaand pe le chalo feels even more delicious).

Inquilaab – Azaad Kar – The film had other gems as well but somehow it was reassuring to hear a wistful Swanand Kirkire pay tribute to times we are living in.

Me, as I am – Tere jaisa tu hai – I love the song but for occasional shrillness. What I absolutely love are the opening lines. Hear them again if you cannot recall them.

Kashmir – Katyo Chukho – It would have been unfair to ‘trap’ this song in the main list above. This is the best song I have heard this year and this is a song for which I would always be thankful to the makers of Laila Majnu. They gave me Alif. A song to live by and die to. It is what Channa vey wanted to and what Agar tum saath ho was.

Infinite Joy (a.k.a. Bitiya rani) – I cried all 3 times that I saw the song on screen. Yep, this one. What brilliant work by Sunny Bawra-Inder Bawra, Kumaar and of course Shubha Mudgal.

2018 – One of the most difficult years to make this playlist and am glad it was so.

 

Movie Recco : Subodh Bhave’s Katyar Kaljat Ghusli

Posted: November 27, 2015 by moifightclub in Marathi, Movie Recco, movie reviews, Regional
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Knowledge is acquired.
Art is inherent.
Knowledge solves complexities.
Art gives birth to those very complexities.

There is a whole scene dedicated to this Knowledge V/S Art (Vidya V/S Kala) debate in Katyar Kaljat Ghusli — and it is easily my favourite part in the movie. A musical maestro’s protege aches for knowledge. The knowledge that can hone his skills, set him apart. But he completely overlooks the fact that even without the knowledge, what he already has within him — the raw art of music — is far more valuable.

Anybody who has grown up in a typical Marathi household has heard their mothers and fathers sing Ghei Channd Makarand. It won’t be blasphemous to say that it is our equivalent of a Bachchan or Tagore poem, if not as widely popular. So when the film adaptation of the cult musical, Katyar Kaljat Ghusli, was released, all of us got a call from home urging us to go see what a spectacle it is.

And I’m happy to report that it has lived up to the hype. The plot is simple: Pt. Bhanushankar of Vishrampur (Shankar Mahadevan) discovers Khan Sahab (Sachin Pilgaonkar) in one of his mehfils and brings him back to his town. But Khan Sahab’s talent always ranks below Pt. Bhanushankar’s, and a fierce sense of competition starts to rise within him. Competition culminates into sabotage and Pt. Bhanushankar loses his voice as a result of a vicious scheme. As Khan Sahab settles into the comforts of the palace and new his designation of the Royal Singer, Pt. Bhanushankar’s protege, Sadashiv (Subodh Bhave) enters the scene to win his mentor’s honour back.

The most interesting thing about Katyar… is the use of music. It feels as important to the anatomy of the film as a limb (props to writer Prakash Kapadia, who has emerged as the master of the Indian epic. His next is Bajirao Mastani). While most films about music add songs just to authenticate the genre (here’s looking at you, Aashiqui 2), Katyar’s music takes the narrative forward and keeps you glued to your seats even through songs. While Ghei Channd will always remain a favourite, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s Sur Niragas Ho and Yaar Illahi could easily become the next generation’s favourites.

I may be at a disadvantage, having not seen the original musical, but my father tells me that the film was about 80% true to the source material, which is not a bad percentage at all. The dialogue is dense with beautiful lines about music, art, the value of commitment, envy and the evil in one’s heart. Shankar Mahadevan appears to be surprisingly comfortable in his role and Subodh Bhave — with his ability to be believable as Anybody — is honest. Sachin Pilgaonkar has walked away with the lion’s share of compliments, but I can never shake the feeling that his brand of acting is similar to Aamir’s — where, with each movement and each gesture, he wants you to know just how good he is. Frankly, he overdid some scenes, but let’s not focus on that.

The good thing is, the movie has released with subtitles and, for once, the person who has done the subtitling deserves a pat on the back. They have masterfully turned colloquial Marathi phrases into English lines, and successfully translated the humour when required.

Yes, the plot is predictable and spoon-fed to viewers, but if you’re in for a true musical with hair-raising compositions embedded into the story, and the magic of simple storytelling as well, this is your pick.

– Nihit Bhave

(Nihit Bhave is a freelance writer based in Bombay. Was Features Writer with Hindustan Times’ Sunday magazine, HT Brunch until recently)

Music Recco : Katyar Kalijat Ghusali

Posted: November 24, 2015 by moifightclub in cinema, music, Music Recco, Music review
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If you don’t know it by now, I am the mendicant who is always on a lookout for music and I must say, thanks to twitter, I have had great success in getting some great music over the years. A lot of it happens to be non-hindi as well. Katyar Kalijat Ghusali is different. I was told about this film by a co-worker who plays super tabla. Going to work has finally made sense!

Getting down to the music of the film, Divya kumar, Arshad Mahmud, Arijit singh and back up vocals participate in Yaar Illahi which is a qawwali. You cannot change how a qawwali is done but even then thanks to the first-rate lyrics by Sameer samant and solid tonal treatment, the qawwali doesn’t weigh you down. The opening chants in Sur Niragas ho are so well done that you would want to give out a grand salute to the backup vocalists. A layered marathi devotional song, this one has Shankar Mahadevan and Anandi Joshi at the top of their game. The super super super talented Rahul Deshpande teams up with a fluid Sarangi to arrest our senses in Dil ki tapish. Right from the opening alaap, the way Sarangi accompanies Rahul is heavenly. I would surely like to know who has played the Sarangi. ‘Spectacular’ is the word for Mahesh kale’s Aruni Kirani and the Sitar in the song has a character of its own in the song along with a very ‘by the beat’ Tabla. It transported me to a big hall where I was sitting in a corner marvelling at an artist who had the entire attendance spellbound. Shankar Ehsan Loy have so much left in them, I wonder why they haven’t been giving such a durable treatment to their hindi projects off late?

In Bhola Bhandari, Arijit Singh has given us a song that sounds familiar and earthy, setting wise. Arijit is real and not trying too hard and that is always good. Composed by Late Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki, Shankar mahadevan’s Din Gele sounds vintage thanks to the Long play disc ‘bite’ sound in the song. Ghei chhand, sung neatly and with a lot of character by Shankar mahadevan and Ghei Chhand Makarand sung breezily by Rahul Deshpande are also composed by Late Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki. Both these songs are a treat to the senses. The richly ornamented theme is simple and while the humming was a bit contemporary for me (almost AR Rahman-sque), the theme is soothing and leaves  you with a sense of calm amidst the echoes of friendly instruments in a way only Indian classical music can. In what is Pandit ji’s old and extremely popular composition, you will realise the beauty of moderate instruments and pakki gayaki. I am talking about ‘Lagi kalejwa kataar’ in Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki’s velvet voice. It was a task to move to other songs, trust me on that.

We know how infinitely gifted Shankar Mahadevan is. In Man Mandira, Shankar Mahadevan makes it sound easy to the point of deception. Deception because you can be easily tricked into singing along with him only to realise your limitations. Structure wise, I just loved the song. That said, Shivam Mahadevan’s Man Mandira will give you goosebumps right from the first second of the song. The innocent voice (which is not a note off, mind you) dazzles the senses to put it mildly. The slight harkat in his Mandiraaa at about 1:53 mins in the song is assuring that we have yet another voice that knows pakki gayaki. What a relief!

Muralidhar shyam sung by Shankar Mahadevan is a short piece but quite addictive and the ‘bite’ sound makes you long for it more. Rahul Deshpande’s Sur se saji is clean, grand and quite nicely penned by Sameer Samant and Prakash Kapadia. Surat Piya ki is yet again a piece that is grand in character and a riot melody wise. The variations presented by Rahul Deshpande & Mahesh kale will give you a high no LSD can ever provide, trust me on that. Tarana is short yet quite effective because of the gifted backup vocalists. Tojonidhi Lohagol by Shankar Mahadevan opens with a signature alaap by Shankar Mahadevan. The composition and singing is top class especially the short appearances by Sitar.

An out and out winner of an album with not a single second that is wasted on silly theatrics to sound grand. Don’t worry if you don’t understand the language, the excellent music setting of the album will not let you notice the linguistic limitations. I still cannot believe that such a rich album has come out in 2015. I cannot write enough words of appreciation for the makers for showcasing to us Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki. Somehow, all the artists who have built melodious legacies remain popular within their niche set of followers. I hope at least one listener who wasn’t aware of Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki earlier digs deeper and uncovers the gems he has left for all of us, and then passes them along to one more listener and so on. Nothing can be more exciting than to see our legendary artists being showcased again and again and that too for a wider audience. No praise can be enough for the entire band of technicians who have made this album possible. Sameer Samant, Mangesh Kangane, Mandar Cholkar, Shankar-Ehsan-Loy, take a bow. The sound piques your senses to find out more about the film and oozes melody. I cannot ask anything more from an O.S.T.

The film revolves around musical rivalry in the court of a king. It is playing with english subtitles in Mumbai. I know i am watching it. Are you?

– Rohwit

‘Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola’ music review – ख़ामाखा का doubt

Posted: December 22, 2012 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, film, music, Music review, reviews
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Light play, clever shooting angels, or whatever people might be waiting for, when Vishal Bhardwaj announces a film, there is a breed of people that waits for the music of his film because even if it is ‘7 Khoon maaf’-ish, the music album comes packed with a lot of ‘Gulzar Goodies’. Save for the mess that the music release of the film created, we really can’t complain much because as someone wise once remarked ‘If it’s worth the wait, then shut up!’

1. Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola – Sukhwinder…O Sukhwinder! You have done so much on the same lines already, yet you make it sound all so easy and peppy! Excellently arranged and marvellously penned, the song gives a lesson or two to some ill-fated idiots who think in order to sound catchy (and in order to use the name of the film in a song) they have to have an ‘item’ to endorse it. The splendid African weaving in between (with a continuous guitar note in the background) gives the song a certain amount of class that is always missing when it comes to halkat sheilas who are talking about munnis all the time. The bass effect that ‘stops and starts’ gives just the adequate thump to the song. 2 Thumbs up!

2. Khamakha – Beautiful ‘evening’ guitars, accompanied by a coral like backup group (with African lyrics?), excellent bass and, and, and Vishal Bhardwaj! Sung like a madly in love ‘aashiq’, this is easily one of the best arranged songs by Vishal ever. The simple yet never so beautifully expressed habits of those in love (sleeping by the window, for example) are a forte of Gulzarsaab. What amazes simple listeners like us is his ability to convey love every time in the simplest manner without EVER repeating words. Anyway, the end of the song, the last 1 minute and 14 seconds of the song, tell us why there is an ever-growing army of hopeless romantics who wait for a Vishal Bhardwaj music album. The song is pregnant with a range of varied emotions that haven’t been explored before. The note on which the song starts and the note on which ends will tell you exactly what we are talking about. 3 Thumbs up!

3. Oye Boy Charlie – ‘Singerwala Shankar Mahadevan’ starts the song and the song shoots higher thanks to Rekha Bhardwaj and Mohit Chauhan. There is a bit of saxophone and then there is a bit of nasal Shankar Mahadevan (that is just too good!) and then there is a good amount of ‘motorwala mouth organ’ in between along with good guitar. ‘Vishal purists’ might not like the song much because there is an element of cacophony in between, where you feel VB is trying too hard to arrest your attention by throwing in too many elements altogether. There are way too many elements that I missed in the first hearing. It is a fun song with an element of ‘Jhoom Barabar Jhoom’ and ‘Kajra re’ and ‘Satrangi re’ and some comedy and this and that!

4. Lootnewaley – Sukhwinder and Master Saleem start the song. If you play the song with the ‘Awara’ expectation from Master Saleem, you will be a tad disappointed. Sukhwinder emotes better than Saleem to convey the anger. The track is serious. The words are direct and effective. Clearly, a revolution is being hinted. At times chaotic (which may be intentional), the song won’t set music charts on fire. You might argue that any other set of singers could have done the same job as Sukhwinder or Master Saleem have done. The fantastic possibility that these two names promised is clearly missing. How we wish they were exploited better!

5. Sha ra ra – Prem Dehati starts the song again with the typical mela like music arrangement. The brass bands sing along with the singer to elevate the effect of the song. A very short track that begins and ends leaving the brass bands in your mind.

6. Badal Uthiya – The track starts beautifully with Prem Dehati echoing at a distance and then the music setting takes a completely contemporary turn with generous dose of sitar in between. Rekha Bhardwaj does a splendid job (What’s new?) with this track and even though the Prem Dehati version of the song is my favorite, this track can’t be sidelined at all. Rekha Bhardwaj in her typical ‘soul drugged with romance’ voice makes it very hummable.

7. Char dina ki – A Haryanvi kickass item that just elevates the level of the album and how! Excessive usage of brass bands and some real catchy lyrics ensure that it has a very roadside feel. The beginning of this track has shades of ‘chicha leather‘ from Gangs of Wasseypur. Pankaj Kapur, Prem Dehati and Imran Khan go behind the microphone for this and clearly Mr. Kapoor is having fun like only he can. Excellent track! (Mind it – ‘Char dina ki chamak chandni’ will linger in your head…shart laga lo tau!)

8. Chor Police – A fun recitation by Pankaj Kapur with heavy dose of political wrongdoings that the elected government has been committing. Ends with a splash! Back up vocals, brass band and excellent tempo ‘waali’ claps is what make this track up…good one!

9. Nomvula – African track it may be, but this composition has fun written all over it. If you aren’t one of the ‘I don’t understand the words so I won’t automatically like the song’, then you will like it. A very ‘by the beach with beers’ feel. Really what’s music got to do with language?

10. Badal uthiya (Reprise) – There are few good souls that are trying their best to give the masses a taste of the sheer variety that Hindustani classical offers. This song is an addition to that effort. Prem Dehati accompanied with excellent sitar and a contemporary music arrangement hold your soul hostage. The words, the pronunciation of the same, the stillness, the sadness, everything has traces of God particle in it. If you didn’t know, God particle is generally defined as a song/composition that has mastery of Gulzar saab and Vishal Bhardwaj in it.

11. Lootnewaaley (Reprise) – A strong vocal demonstration against the shrewd landlords, Sukhwinder leads the backup singers in what sounds like a ‘lagaan-like’ track, feel wise. Word rich and music light. The track is clearly banking a lot on the visuals. It isn’t musically as structured as the other version. Clearly a circumstantial song.

Including the recitations and other titbits is the new ‘in’ thing for Hindi film O.S.T these days. Strictly ‘song-wise’ speaking, Khamakha, Badal Uthiya (both versions but Prem Dehati version), title song and Oye Boy Charlie are the ones that will remain with us and that’s a lot of them! We missed the mandatory ‘Have Vishal, so Suresh Wadkar will sing’ song.

An album that benefits (like all of us!) with the presence of Gulzar saab and showcases the obvious abilities of Vishal Bhardwaj, the composer. Also, those having silly doubts on Gulzar saab (Ref: JTHJ) have gone missing and how! ख़ामाखा का doubt, वो भी अल्लाह पे? हट पगले!

– Post by @Rohwit (who is currently देहाती.)

Coke Studio at MTV – Hits & Misses

Posted: June 18, 2011 by moifightclub in music, songs & videos
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Not sure why but I was expecting a Harmony kind of show. Remember that musical show on Sony/Set Max? But Coke Studio at MTv went to the other extreme and started without any warm-up. It opened with a jugalbandi pitching a bollywood/popular name with a folk (unknown) singer and followed the same pattern for the entire show.  And there was more jazz with every possible camera angle covered and fast cuts to show that they have it all. What i missed was thehraav. Leave the camera angles and cuts outside the music, let the singers do the jazz. Introduce the singers to us with solo numbers. Give that slow warm-up, let us absorb and then built the tempo with jugalbandi. At least that’s the pattern which every music or anything that’s musical, follows. Also, can we please have subtitles for the songs in other languages. Some of us are insane when it comes to lyrics.

Aha, that’s just the intro. This post is by Rohit, for whom music is lifeline and whose middle name these days is Coke Studio. I don’t know anyone who follows it with so much passion and enthusiasm. Don’t think even MTV was so excited about the show as Rohit was. Read on..

This is not a review. It can never be.

This is a chance to showcase an opinion. If you have one, please use the ‘comment’ box. Would love to hear it.

Being one who drives the car from a longer route because the favorite song hasn’t ended yet, it was a blessing when I came across Coke Studio Pakistan last year.

Any new sound from Pakistan has an extra oomph attached to it, and this is quite accentuated by the fact that our filmmakers have been using the Pakistani artists in our films a lot.

The first thing which struck me about the Coke Studio was its setting. A small but cozy arrangement of musicians with latest (And most of the times traditional) musical instruments weaved nicely in the presence of the vocal performer. The second was the lighting. Dull but not sad, and at times, the spotlight on the vocal lead. Looks like a concert, sounds like a studio, I thought to myself.

Then exploring began.

Most of the songs in Coke Studio Pakistan centered around Punjabi/Arabic/Urdu or a combination of these. That’s not entirely, is it? The artist set had a collective feel to it. You had folk singers from Balochistan and then you had new age ‘rockstars’ like Atif Aslam and Ali Zafar. Less popular guys with the popular ones did make a lot of impact (especiallly if you hear the likes of Season 1 rendition of Ali zafar’s allah hu along with Tufail Ahmed).

The obvious reaction was – Man! when are they coming to India? With the excessive incredible India overdose, I thought it would be amazing to see the various sounds we have in our beautiful country going at it with the popular guys to begin with.

Then I went to Coke Studio India sets.

Of course the expectations I had were at least 20 feet above the sky. There was a lot of positivity flowing in the air with artists trying variations to get it right…and the when they got it right, they tried to better it.

But why are they singing Bollywood numbers?

Especially when I heard Benny Dayal and Suzanne singing ‘kanchi rey kanchi rey’, I thought am I missing something? One reason that I could decipher was that they are changing the treatment of the song and giving the audience a familiar song to chew upon as they try to capture the mind space of the populists (because the other loyalists are already in place). The second and the final reason which came to my mind was that may be they will attempt to fuse a folk song and its ‘commercial’ counterpart in one composition and give us a hang of it.

This was proven right when the India version premiered with the folk and commercial composition interwoven in a beautiful ‘O mahi rey‘ by the folk singer (Mano) and Shaan (who should stop swaying on the mic with a smile. When you are ‘passionate’ you don’t get a smile…you just ‘be’)

Coke Studio at MTV

Of course there were hits and misses.

Am not sure why the lighting was going (at times) mad like it was a dance floor, and some camera movements (especially in the otherwise brilliant Tochi Raina and Magati song) had me confused.

Shankar mahadevan and Khagen Gogoi couldn’t touch me as yet. KK and Sabri brothers did strike a chord and that’s largely due to the fact that they were singing an old classic (chadhta suraj). Watching KK, I couldn’t help but feel that he is too ‘aware’ of his surroundings. Nope! not done. The only thing the coke studio in Pakistan singers/performers are aware is the microphone in front and NOTHING else.

Tochi, Kailash Kher, Chinnaponu, Bondu and Harshdeep Kaur managed to hit the right chord because none of these guys were aware of how their videos would come across when millions of fans would see it on youtube. Yes. That is passion. Hope we get to see that more in the forthcoming episodes…

Criticism

Coke Studio at MTV happened. Then loads of variations of the same happened tonight. People came out with loaded guns to shoot and tear it apart.

Let me try and organise my thoughts before ‘judging’ (Indian Idol isshtyle! by the way last I saw Abhijit sawant, he was doing comedy for a living. This is besides the point)

Criticism 1. Lot of bollywood influence – Hmm. This is true. I guess the endeavor is towards presenting us with the sound of our country from every nook and corner, and to mingle it with someone who is well known (bolly singers, I tell u!) and that’s not entirely bad. At least now we can bash the bolly singers better because they have their regional/folk contemporaries performing right next to them? The show opened with Shaan. But was it just Shaan? Who was singing along with him? Don’t google it. Also, when you are googling, ask yourself if you would have waited to see Coke Studio at MTV had there been 2 unknown singers going at it? (Remember the Pakistani Coke Studio had 2-3 familiar singers who were termed ‘besura‘ in India?)

Criticism 2 – Horrendous lighting, bad camera angels – Hmmm. This I will agree to. The exquisite performance by Tochi Raina (And Magathi, I guess) & Kailash Kher (with the tamil singer) was particularly spoiled by wayward camera movement and dinchak lighting.

Criticism 3 – A wanna be show – Hmmm. Aren’t we going on an overkill by expecting a little too much and benchmarking the first one hour episode against a show which is in it’s 3rd year? All of us spoiled Maggi when we first prepared, no? Anyway.

Criticism 4 – Couldn’t touch the soul – I guess it will continue to be this way for sometime. We are enamored by, and look forward to a lot of ‘Allah hu‘ like songs from Indian version from the first day. What is obviously clear is that Coke Studio at MTV will first premier all the ‘sounds’ from all parts of country (along with a popular voice) and then run a riot of ‘placing’ and ‘innovating’ within these genres more effectively.

It is a first step and I don’t say that Coke Studio at MTV is ‘Holier than thou’. We need to be a little patient and am sure that the Indian version will give us more reasons to smile than to crib about.

By the way my favorite from the night were Tochi Raina’s Mera yaar basenda mere wich and Harshdeep Kaur’s Hoo.

Wait a second! The above songs resemble (in theme and treatment) with the Coke Studio Pakistan version. Isn’t it?

May be that’s why….

(PS – And how do you explain this?)

Rohit blogs at http://almostareview.wordpress.com/

Xclusive – Coke Studio is coming to India!

Posted: April 25, 2011 by moifightclub in music, News, songs & videos, Xclusive
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Yes, it’s true! Cent percent true! So all your lovers of Coke Studio, get ready for some more music. The news has been doing the rounds for quite sometime but now the shoot is going to start soon. And here are some of the details that we have managed so far…

– The show will be on MTv and will start  by May-June. MTv? Do they still play music? Well, may be this will compensate for all the Roadies.

– The non-fiction division of Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment is producing the show in India.

– Like the Pakistan edition, this one will also have episodes of 1hour each and the idea is to get one new and young talent with an established name. They are still trying to sort this out.

– Talks are on to get Shafqat Amanat Ali to open the first season of Coke Studio India. He will be the only Pakistani singer in this season.

– And now the most important thing – the singers. Here’s the first list…..

  • Shankar Mahadevan
  • Kailash kher
  • Raghu Dixit
  • Shaan
  • Sunidhi Chauhan
  • KK
  • Richa Sharma
  • Bombay Jayashri

Talks are on to get few more. Can we please have Rabbi Shergill and Indian Ocean too?

And till then, dum ghutkoon….ghutkoon…

To know more about Coke Studio@MTv, click here and here – two posts written by Rohit.

National Film Awards list is out!

Posted: September 7, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cinema, News, Regional, Simbly South
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The National Film Awards list is finally out. Earlier we confirmed few winners including Prakash Raj For Best Actor on this post. And like always, we were right. Check out the other winners.

Best Actor – Prakash Raj( Kanchivaram )

Best Actress – Uma Shree ( Gulabi Talkies )

Best Film – Kanchivaram

Best Director – Adoor Gopalakrishnan ( Naalu Pennungal – Four Women )

Best Child Actor – Sharad Goyekar ( Marathi film Tingya ) 

Best Supporting Actor – Darshan Zariwalla ( Gandhi My Father )

Best Supporting Actress – Shefali Shah (The Last Lear)

Best Lyrics – Prasoon Joshi ( Taare Zameen Par)

Best Playback Singer(Male) – Shankar Mahadevan ( Taare Zameen Par )

Best Playback Singer (Female) – Shreya Ghoshal

Best Film on National Integration – Dharam

Best Film On Family Welfare – Taare Zameen Par

Best Film For Overall Entertaintment – Chak De India

Best Screenplay – Feroze Abbas Khan ( Gandhi My Father)

Best Music – Ousepacham for Ore Kadal

Best Film (Hindi) – 1971

Best Film (English ) – The Last Lear

Best Special Effects – Sivaji

Best Art Direction – Om Shanti Om

Best Choreography – Ye Ishq Hai (Jab We Met)

Best Cinematography – Frozen ( Shanker Raman)

Best Audiography – 1971

Best Editing – Naalu Pennungal ( Malyalam)

Best Film on Social Issues – Antardwanda ( Dir – Sushil Rajpal )

Special Jury Award – Gandhi My Father

Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film – Shivajee Chandrabhushan for Frozen

Best Book on Cinema – From Raj To Swaraj : The Non Fiction Film In India by B D Garga

Best Film Critic – V K Joseph ( Malyalam )

In the non-feature/short films category, mentioning only those few which am aware of (read friends or friends’ friend) –

Best Educational/Motivational/Instructional Film – Prarambha (Santosh Sivan)

Short Fiction Film – Udhed Bun ( Siddharth Singh)

Best Cinematography – Kramasha ( Savita Singh )

Best Audiography –  Kramasha ( Ajit Singh Rathore )

Best Music Direction – Echoes of Silence ( English/ Khasi – Zubin Garg)

For the full list of entries and winners click here.

The jury was headed by Sai Paranjpe and members included Ashok Viswanathan and Namita Gokhale. About 102 films and 106 non-feature films were considered.

The worst tribute to Michael Jackson!

Posted: August 27, 2009 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, first look, News, shit, songs & videos, Thoughts, WTF
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WTF is this! Trust Bollywood to do it! And when its directed by Samar Khan, what else can you expect.

Its called “Make It Large – A Tribute to Michael Jackson”. If you are wondering whats the funda of “Make it Large”, then click here. If Shah Rukh Khan is here, can commerce be far behind. The video is produced by Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Idiot Box. Even in this s0-called-tribute to MJ, its Royal Stag Seagram selling thier brand philosophy! The Red Chillies homepage even has a quote from Royal Stag’s VP (Marketing) explaining their brand connect with MJ! Trust the marketing guys to sell a dead man too!

The song is written by Vishal ( Of Vishal-Shekhar duo), composed by Vishal- Shekhar and features Shankar Mahadevan, Shaan, KK, Shreya Ghoshal and Prabhudeva. The video also features Shahrukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Anoushka Sharma, Shahid Kapur, and Yuvraj Singh.

We think this is the worst tribute to Michael Jackson! The lyrics redifne the word corny, music is horrendous and the voices are all over the place. No two voices in sync! We really could have done without it. Do let us know what you guys think.