THE GUITAR IN MY BEDROOM…
Every morning I wake up and see the Spanish guitar I bought from Hobbner’s years ago standing in the corner of my bedroom. It’s become like a habit and I lie to myself every morning and tell myself that tomorrow I am going to pick it up . …
Having lived my entire childhood in Bhutan I have grown up listening to Beatles, Pink Floyd, John Denver, Bod Dylan, Rolling Stones, Cliff Richards, Led Zeppelin, Queen, Bread, Moody blues, Jethro Tull, The Carpenters, ABBA and many others…. basically primarily western music…. both popular and classical. Unfortunately because of that I get more excited to hear the guitar strings being plucked and the fingers tap the keys of the Piano than the sound of Dholak, Tabla and Sitar . And I feel terribly illiterate when it comes to Indian Classical music and am ashamed of my inability to relate to it.
When I first started to work in Bombay I remember how much i would enjoy editing music montage for “Bollywood Plus”. I used to edit a show “Mirchmasala” which listed the top three songs of the week. Myself and my colleague Urmi who directed the show would take turns to put in our personal favourites on top of the charts … :).
My first step towards doing something related to music came out of my visits to FTII in 1993. My sister and brother in law were students there and that’s where I met Vivek Philip and Pritam, both students of sound design and Amitabh Varma, an editing student.
I remember Pritam singing “Alvida Alvida”( now a song in Metro) into the nights at one of the various parties we used to have. It was these nights that made me want to get into music production and partly fulfill the promise to the unplucked guitar.
In 1995 my friend Nameeta and I decided to produce a music album called ARIA. Pritam was to compose the music, Vivek Philip arrange the songs and Amitabh Varma write it. We thought lets work on a new concept. Try something different. It was the early days of indi-pop and we decided to put together India’s first mixed performing band.
We started to work on the lyrics and the music. We decided that each song would have a story and the order of the songs in the album was in such a way that it would take the story forward. Soon we started to audition talent. It was like a mini Indian idol hunt done years ago. After auditioning hundreds of potential singers we finally selected two male and two female singers. we named then Arpana Reshab Ishaan adn Arasha and hense ARIA….
While the recording started parallel to it we started to groom the talents in how to address the press, getting clothes made for them, sending them for swimming , dancing, gym, etc. Looking back sometimes I think that more than them Nameeta and I took this as an excuse to do all these things along them. 
I remember how sometimes in the middle of the night Pritam would call up and start to sing a new tune, and the next thing would be that we are on a conference call listening to the tune, talking about lyrics, content etc….. exciting days indeed.
By 1997 our album was ready…. a lot had changed by then. Two of our lead singers had last minute backed out because the music company wanted some very rigid terms and condition. We had to replace them last minute. The music was not composed to their voice and capabilities. They were never as good as the originals, moreover they were not a part of the whole process and so the belonging factor was not there. But by then we were running low on budgets and time was becoming a factor…. we had to go ahead. Once the album was ready we went off to shoot the video in Moscow.
shooting for ARIA in moscow. Myself sitting extreme right.As luck would have it. we landed at the Moscow airport to the crash of the Russian Economy. The Rouble fell from being 5 to a dollar to almost 20 to a dollar. No one would accept roubles. The prices just doubled. There we were stuck , it would be foolish to go back without shooting. So what we had planned to shoot over ten days we had to shoot over four days. We tried to shoot as much as possibly during the day so that we would not need to hire lights…. but despite all the problems I think we were thrilled to manage shooting there. To be able to work with dancers from the Bolshoi ballet was like a dream come true. Another hidden unfulfilled desire of mine was to be a ballet dancer. (I remember living as a PG in a house in Kolkatta during my first year in college. there was a power cut. I went up to the terrace as no one was around I started to imagine music and trying my own ballet to the imaginary music. I did not realise till much later that there were neighbours on their roof top and others at some neighbouring windows who were watching me till I heard people trying to suppress their laugh er. They must have all thought I was mad. Anyway after that I never ventured into the terrace during power cuts..:) ). Over the next year we travelled across the country performing. I was working at designing the audio visuals and planning the show design. I was enjoying every bit of it. But somehow cracks were beginning to show within the group. They were not thinking of the group but each about what they could get out of the group. By the end of the year we had decided that too much of energy was being put in trying to keep them together. Both Nameeta and I thought we had better things to do.
Ever since ARIA I have been actively interested in music production. We as a team worked on two more albums… MTV PYAAR KE DHUN and GANGA with BHUPEN HAZARIKA (1998 and 1999).
My failure to pluck the Guitar found solace in music production. The whole process of the tracks being arranged, each sound being chosen, tuned, the live instrument recordings, the voice dubs, the mixing…. everything fascinated me. During the Years 2000 to 2004 music took a backseat as I was busy working on trying to make my film.
With 2004 and My Brother Nikhil I could start working on music again. I had literally no money for music . Vivek Philip did not think twice before agreeing to do the music.
When Vivek first played the track “Le Chalein” to me something touched me deep inside. I knew this was the song for the film. We decided on three versions. The first one is sung by Nikhil to his sister. A song about growing up together and love. Shaan rendered it. The next version with changed lyrics was sung by Anamika(Sunidhi ) to her brother when he is released from confinement. I remember how Sunidhi when she saw the promo of her song could not just stop crying. It brought her certain memories and has made the song a very special song for her. But my favourite was KK’s version. The one that Nigel sings for Nikhil in his death bed. I had briefed KK about the situation.Later he told me that while singing he was imagining a dear friend to be standing in front of him and he sang out for that absent friend of his. Much later Vivek told me that when he composed the song he was thinking of his father who he had just lost. This song was meant to be a song about memories, companionship. growing up together, love and loss of something very dear. I think all those emotions were there in the song because that is what Viveck was going through.
We spend a lot of time on the background of the film. Vivek and my sound designer Arun Nambiar worked very closely so that the music became a part of the sound design. we wanted the music to creep in imperceptibly… so that you do not hear it fade in and hear it fade out. we did not want it to “highlight” any gesture or moment by dramatic music and loud bangs. we wanted the music to be a part of the environment. I sometimes feel that people did not notice the background because we did not want it to stand out and be noticed. I think Vivek worked for the music over three months. he is someone who cannot work on two projects at the same time and so it meant a lot that he worked all this time on one project for very little money. But like I mentioned in one of my earlier post…. he was doing the music for himself…. not just for me.
My search for new talents in Music continues. after MBN I introduced music director Mithoon with “Tere Bin” in BEP and for my forthcoming film I am using another new music director from Delhi called Gaurav Dayal. Also I am using all new singers for this film. I think we need some fresh voices….
But despite all this i still have not managed to pick up the guitar at the corner of my room…. but I still promise myself a tomorrow…
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another gem of a post!! keep them coming…
and will be waiting for the music of your next!!
regards,
PerfectMisfit!!
Chandni muskuraaye… jab hawa kuch kahe…
Samjho meri sadaye… hai tere saath main…
Onir, I never said this to you before but above all your strengths and successes and beyond all your mistakes and failures, you are the master of creating cinematic moments… moments that stay with us forever… moments we can go back to and see our own moments… Expecting so much from you… Le chale, le chale…
Along with the guitar promise to keep sharing such touchin moments with us over and over again Onir..spellbinding!
hey perfectmisfit….Thank you.
Pratim I am so touched that you remember the lyrics… and am touched by your comment. Hope I can take you back to some of your special moments through my successes and failures
Krysh… Thanks.
hey onir,
i always say that people who crave to learn music or play some musical instrument have a great flair for music… they get people to create music that expresses what they are unable to… you have always had that special ear for music… your music has always been sombre, tasteful and melodious… pritam, vivek, mithoon, amitabh have always lent expression to your feelings… to have a keen ear for melody is much more important than actually having an intricate ‘knowledge’ of music… music is meant to be recreational, moody and tugging at your heart-strings… you have achieved that so far…
keep going buddy…
[...] Every morning I wake up and see the Spanish guitar I bought from Hobbner
Hey Hansal
Yes I think I try and realise my desires in the music that comes out from my friends. It is the satisfaction of being a part of the creation something close to one. Thanks for putting it so nicely…. and whenever you have a preview of your film… please let me know. promise I will also catch it at the theatre.
The “Guitar” took me in ‘flash back’ which is
nice.
I request you to pick the Guitar up now and let go the ’story’ ahead with the Guitar.
It is too tied of sitting in a corner now, I believe it will add more music in your story ahead. I mean story of you life.
Best luck with Guitar!
Inspirational, Onir… Very very nice and deeply emotional. How come this never came up all the while I’ve known you?!!!! Y’know, Binnoy used to play drums. Maybe you should learn the guitar soon and put together a rock group! Your hair is just about right now!!!
Amazing post… reminds me of my guitar, lying in my room. I look at it every morning and night.. and decide to play it the next day.. but that next day is not coming…
@Bahvani… hahaha… How come I also do not know about Binnoy and the drums all the while i have known both of you !!! :). Now that I have one possible band member… maybe I will actually pick up the Guitar… as long as you promise to write some inspirational lyrics
:d
Hey Suchita…. now with all these neglected guitar stories I am reminded of a song…
“… while my guitar gently weeps”. Maybe we should get together someday and treat out Guitars to an evening of Plucking.
Thank you Nitin for your comment. you have personalised my guitar so much that the next time I look at it I will feel a pair of reproachfull eyes looking at me.
Hey Onir, that would be a great idea..although I am still to brush up my playing skills, perhaps you can teach me a chord or two, a musical instrument anytime.. music makes the world go round and around..don’t you think so?? besides stories ofcourse
Suchita… what makes you think that my skills are more “brushed up” than yours… LOL. Music at least makes me go round and round… besides POT…hahaha.
ha ha Onir, then lets get to brushing each others playing skills and the dust piling on the guitars will get brushed away in the process….So when are we doing the playing sesssion??
Lets set a deadline to start…. on independence day…. set ourselves free from the fear of the Noise emitting from our Guitars…
good idea..:d
The guitar can be one of the most intimidating instruments you can come across.It looks easy to play,but unfortunately it isn’t :(.Loved the article and looking forward to your next work because i feel you are getting better and better
Vikram that was what did the trick. Looks are deceptive… and at a very young age I got seduced and deceived by the guitar and am still struggliing with the unrequited love of mine. :). Thanks for your comment.
Hey Onir!!! i’m sure the guitar part could be anyone’s story. I myself have tried picking it up so many times but maybe I never was dedicated enough. getting fed up have moved on to drums lately. for now atleast, the going seems to be better than guitar. BTW KK’s “Le Chalein” is one my all time favorites..
——————————————-
The 60s are gone, dope will never be as cheap, sex never as free, and the rock and roll never as great.
— Abbie Hoffman, American activist
——————————————–
1 !!!!!!!!!!! ????????????????
Panjaj… Now I do not feel so much of a villain. We could open our own guitar deserter’s club…. and yes yes… to be transported back to the 60’s 8->
Brother Onir…
what an awsome post… love the good old days memories we all have, its so touching to go back down the memory lane… Loved every bit of this info, never knew u were a part of the video circuit too…
Plus i am also happy to see so many newcomers being given an opporunity to do something… hey… Onir, that reminds me of myself, arent u looking for new directors??? LOL… I too am waiting for my debut to happen… winkkk…
Keep them flowing Onir
“Go ONIR Go. We are with you”
( I belive, all personal):
More than the music and lyrics
“Chandani Muskuraye…jab hawa kuch kahe…”
the portrayal of emotions by camera was superb…nerve endings of heart moved after pictures made love to eyes…
Hey Onir
Where in Bhutan did you grow up? Oh man you probably had the best childhood of all the people here. I grew up in bongaigaon & gauhati. Bhutan was 4 hrs away & we used to drive there every month. Did it for years.
I miss the mangos of Malda!
MBN would not have been MBN without Le Chalein. The song actually became as much a character in the film as any of the actors did. My Hindi being what it is (bahut accha nahin) I can’t quote the lyrics as well as some of the others here, but even without subtitles the song speaks to me. It’s one of those songs that will lodge itself in your cerebellum and refuse to be budged.
So — even if you never pick up that guitar Onir, the music you make through your films is clear. It may not be notes on a scale, but it is music nonetheless.
Hey Onir,
Though, you still have that guitar hanging in your bedroom..for me, you are a rockstar. As, the music from your films, figure amongst the most played tracks on my ipod.
The songs from your films, be it the emotionally resonant “Le chale” (which instantly connects me to the simpler, uncomplicated days of childhood..and such evocative lyrics ..”layenge hum savere, tere liye”..)…or the richly textured “ashq bhi”, have always been head and shoulders above, what the marketplace churns out.
So here’s to you, making more beautiful music , and “dancing like no one’s watching”
Thank you.
Cheers
Hey Surendra… Yes I started my career in Bombay as an editor with Plus channel, and after the first six months started free lancing. That is when I directed a couple of music videos. And as far as looking for new directors go- I look at myself in the mirror every day while shaving… sorry BAD ONE.;)
Thank you Vasan and Srinivas.
@Kumar… your comment sounds like lyrics :)…Thanks… I think the visuals for the songs were a result of what the song inspired…. both behind the camera and in front(actors)
hey Mainak. I was born in a very small town in Bhutan called Samchi. And then spend my entire schooling days in Thimphu Bhutan. I think of myself as fortunate to have had a childhood minus television, lots of trekking and fishing and outdoor sports… and no pressure to score 90% at school. … and I miss my home terribly, since my parents migrated back to India about fifteen years back. You must have come to Phuntsholing often, right? the border town. I remember Bonggaigaon … because sometimes we took the train Kamrup express from there.
James… I am sorry I did not realise that the DVD did not have subtitles for the song. I will email you the translation. I think you will like it. Have you heard the fourth version… that is in English. Sung by Vivek. Its in the aditional features. Background to a scene where Victor and lilette are dancing. Anyway will email you the translations. And yes the song has a character of its own in the film. I just wish Vivek and amitabh logs and reads what beautiful things you all have to our song.
Hey Prashant.R. Thanks . “ashq Bhi” good to know that you liked one of the lesser promoted songs from BEP. you know I used to feel like as if the music company was neglecting the other kids and just pushing for one… but I suppose thats is market logistics taking over matters of the heart.
onir,
thanks for writing about your feelings and thoughts.its good reading.it helps to understand your creative process ad stuggles too.
Thank you Ajay.
WOW! As with all your posts, this post too was a treat. I can soooo relate to it. A couple of us right now are exactly going through the same rig that you mention here. He’s the music director n singer n your truly,the lyricist.
I think the ‘process’ is the most important and fun part than sometimes the actuality of it.The kinda fun that we’ve have creating it is unmatched. And I sooo hate the empty feeling you get on the last day (be it a recording or a last song)It’s a combination of anticipation and regret. You seem to have been there, done that
PS. We would be honoured to have your opinion and or guidance on our stuff.Since I dont have ur mail id here’s mine - gopiputhran@rediffmail.com.A blank mail from you wud make my day
where was the location of nikhil’s house? it was beautiful. that house had a river in its backyard?!
Hi friend,
Did we actually do all of that??:)seems like such a long time ago and all of us have come such a long way! But i guess memories are made of these…I always believe it taught us so much …One life to live i remember was our motto! And we must visit Moscow again…You pick up your guitar and i shall re start my piano lessons…hows that for incentive:)…Nameeta
Honestly, didn’t feel drawn to MBN till I heard the song…yes, the music in your film truly “tugged the heart’, as Hansal put it..
Onir,
Sorry, I guess I mis-stated. The DVD DID have subtitles for the song (though I’m not sure they were entirely accurate in some places), but feel free to email me the lyrics in both languages if you get the chance. I probably learn as much of the language from songs as anything. Though honestly, I think sometimes lyrics take liberties with grammar to make the flow of the song better.
I’m not fluent enough at this point to give up subtitles, but between my books and internet resources I get reasonably good instruction on vocabulary and sentence structure and the movies help with pronunciation and conversational expressions.
Anyway, what I was trying to say before was that even if the subtitles HADN’T been available, the song still would have spoken to me. Even though my grasp of the language isn’t all that good, the emotional component translates with no trouble at all.
Oh, and yes, I heard the fourth version in the special features. I remember thinking the lyrics were way different, but I don’t remember exactly what the English version said. Plus it was supposed to sound like a Gramophone record, so it wasn’t as “clean” as the others. Lots of “record noise”, but that just means they played the record a lot. I know when I replaced some of my old vinyl with CD’s a lot of my favorite albums didn’t sound “quite right” without all the snap-crackle-pop that I was accustomed to.
hi Onir, i didn’t notice that i had read all that till i reached da last line. It’s a brilliant post…
by the way, i have da same tomorrow-never-comes habit with my Yamaha Keyboard… and i thought i was da only one :d
Hey Gopi… will definately send you a mail and would be happy to be of any help within my abilities. Yes I always actually look forwards to the music recording to get over because then I can start to put images to the music. I usually do not use a choreographer and love to shoot my songs. For me the Happy sad feeling omes when the whole product is finally ready. Happy because of the journey, Sad because its over but happy again that another new one begins there… :0
@Amit…we shot the whole film in Goa. The house was in Ribander. and yes there was a river flowing by the house.
@Aditi… the song for me encompassed the soul of the movie.
@ Nameeta… yes its been ten years since Moscow. Time to revisit and relive all those memories…. and hopefully there is no economic crash this time :0
James… I will try and email you the english version minus the record noises.
Shahid… thank you. I think Suchita, pankaj, u , me should start a club. maybe we could motivate each other.
Onir:
No connection but post is like memories narrated by some guest, at the roof of a hostel where things go deeper than usual gossip.
This post reminds me, somehow, dont know why and whats the connection, Dev Anand’s film ishq Ishq Ishq, it was a complete musical film.
A western dosed film with Indian characters but recall a Chrous and dance of Kabir Bedi.
Hope some day some director can create that magic of music again on screen as Dev saab did in this song. That humming of Ungha Ungha is still so live in ears. Though its said film was misreably flopped when it was released. But it was a good watch on TV.
Its true, fresh voice is needed atleast in male singers. There were 2-3 good male singers in Indion Idol and Sare gama of last years. Two guys were from Hyderabad. One was in Indian Idol who looked like Abhishek Bachchan rather he looked more like son of Mukesh Rishi. and other was in Sa re ga ma. Perhaps one was kartikey and others name was Hemant or something like that.
But if ever you feel to use matured old voices in songs please bring back Amit Kumar, Suresh Wadekar and Nitin Mukesh also.
Nice interesting post.
Hi Onir
Loved your post! Keep sharing more titbits from your life. I guess many of us have a guitar story to tell (just looked at mine lying in the corner of my bedroom).
I remember I first picked up a guitar when I was 12. Couple of false starts in school and college happened but I finally made my best attempt to learn it whole heartedly around this time last year and am very happy with my own progress. Never thought I would have the energy to learn something new at 28. It’s given me a new lease of life.
Go for your Hobner man!
ha ha ha Onir…
That was a good one…
Hi Onir,
WOW! A post related to music and guitars. I can so relate to it. And the song “Le Chalein” is so close to my heart…it brings back a lot of memories. I play the drums and I want my band to perform this song but can’t find a singer who can do justice to it. I was talking about this song with my bandmates during our jam session yesterday.
Oh and if you feel the guitar is difficult, just start playing the bass guitar
(I did the same in my last 2 bands and part of the reason for the name FenderBender!!)
Hi Onir,
Am a little late getting in on this one. And, I have a very selfish question to ask. If there is any chance that Gaurav Dayal is looking for new voices for this project, I would like to submit a demo. Where / how do I? If you could be kind enough to mail me about it, I’d be grateful - kartics@gmail.com. Thank you, and goodluck
Hey RK… I vaguely remember Ishq ishq Ishq … I was still in Bhutan in school and remember we were all excited because of the mountains in the film and of course we would be constantly singing “ishq ishq… jawani mein jo karte hain”. Thank you for suggesting the singers from Indian idol, sa re ga ma. Will talk to my music director…. to figure out if any of the voices might suit our film…. but this film i want to work with fresh young voices.
Thanks surendra/
@Dazedandconfused. Thats encouraging to hear…. mabye tomorrow wont be just another day
@FenderBender…. no Bass guitar for me… its the Lead or none :)… good to know that so many love the song. Hope you find a singer soon and perform Le cahle..
@kartik where are you based? yes Gaurav is still looking for new voices for the film because we have not finalised all the voices. but we are looking for singers from delhi as we are recording there. will email you his contact details.
Onir: Runner up of Sa Re Ga Ma @2006 (Hem Chandra)
and Runner up of Indian Idol @2006 (Karunya) both are young voices, both were under 25. Both were trained in clasical music and had good voice. Perhaps Hem Chandra, has started singing in Telugu films. Both young singers have good future before them and it will be good for Hindi films if they get chance to sing there.
Its a pity that Judges of these talent contest like Anu Malik, Adesh Srivastava, Ismail Darbar, Himesh Reshamia said very big words during the show and during their fights with each other they even took oaths to make career of these young singers but we dont find anybody singing in their films.
Its a good to know that you are in search of new voices. Like acting singing shd now belong to singers who can fit in particular songs. and for that whole lot of new singers are needed.
Directors like you may bring fresh wind in the stale atmosphere by giving chance to new talents in every field of film making.
Rk thanks… will try and get my assistants to find out their contact details. and if their voices suit my character/song will definately use them. Have shortlisted two male singers from Delhi… there is this boy named Abhishek, plays for a band there. really good.
Karunya is coming out with his album, this month. He has also been singing in Telegu Industry, I think. Also Vidhu’s sister was a fan of Karunya, so she asked his brother to get Karunya to sing a song for Lage Raho Munnabhai. And so he sung Aane Char Aane.
Naresh Iyer was spotted in V Channel’s talent thingy, in which Naresh Iyer was kicked out, so A R Rahman said don’t worry you will sing for my songs. And as people say, rest is history.
Sunidhi and Shreya Ghosal both were spotted in this sort of competitions and now their career…..
Honhaar
I am sure these compitiion bring to light many unknow talents. Some are lucky, some miss the bus…. but thats the story everywhere… I have heard( am sorry am a totally not TV person) that there are some good singers in the Indian Idol contest this time too… now there are so many contests that its difficult to keep track….
aye. you get some good people and you get some crap people.
i have been watching indian idol 3. there are a few good talented people (Ankita, Chang and Amit Paul) who could be next Alisha Chinoy of Made in India or Lucky Ali. But everyone (even the contestants )wants them to be playback singers and yet they keep talking bullshit like you need good looks, need to dance a bit… the show is so confused. But I like watching it.
I think the reason everyone wants to get into playback is that ultimatley pop/band have not made it still big in India. Once one has a couple of film songs… shows pour in and thats were the big bucks and also the fame and glamour bit comes in… That is the reason why so many Pakistani band singers are really keen on Hindi film songs.
Onir: This is true abt Bands. In India success is counted by how many hit film songs one has sung. Moreover not many are in to attending shows done by bands. and these band people organise their shows in metros or some big cities while a film song can go far and wide across the nation and thus audiences are more for film songs.
There was the time when Qawali singers used to travel across the nation and they used to organise shows in small cities also hence they were widely known and their success and fame was not dependent on films, rather because of their popularity film people used their talents.
Pop and rock music based bands have limited scope in India as their audiences are limited in numbers. Film is the criteria in India to judge their potential if they have hit songs there then people can go to their shows.
Film music has earned this status because of great works done by great music maestros of past.
they are already popular - have a fan base via the show, so they just need to come out with a good album, and then do concerts through the country. No need to do playback singing. That is what Abhijeet Sawant or his team did and hence, he has been able to release his second album.
Don’t get me wrong I like Film soundtracks, in fact, more than films. But I would like to see more of Rabbi Shergills, Kailsa group, Lucky Ali, Indian Idol, etc…
why has sonu nigam got sick of playback singing? why is he more interested in doing concerts and his own music.
will playback singing be a big thing in future?
@Rk I totally agree with you.
@Honhaar… I slightly disagree with you. You have to realize that Abhijeet sawant was the first of the India Idols and this will remain something special for a year or two… but now there are so many such concerts and every year so many winners that it is not easy to sustain. If you check with any music company (I have a little knowledge because I have produced both film and Pop music) sales of Pop music albums in India is no where close to Film music.
Today is it Rabbi or Kailash Kher everyone is pitching for film songs…. because it gives them a wider audience and scope for shows…. OF COURSE THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS.
It is not just about Sonu Nigam being tired of Playback…. It is to do with also there being other good singers, who are getting some of the better songs and probably willing to work for smaller fees. he is obviously interested in doing concerts because that is big buck and he already has a huge bank of songs… FILM SONGS mostly is what he is know for… i do not know too many people remember his non film songs. Also he is trying to do his own music because that is probably a creative urge… a natural step for some singers. … And I won
Agree it is not easy to sustain - they all could disappear tomorrow - but it is sustainable. Abhijeet Sawaant has got every chance to have a good career, if he plans it properly. Anyway, rest of it meks pretty much sense…
btw, (in my previous post) i meant i would like to see more of…. Indian Ocean (not Indian Idol)
LOL that makes sense….
@Suchita,Fender Bender,Dazedandconfused, Pankaj, Gopi… just wanted to share something with u after so much talk about the Hobbner’s guitar. The guitar that Nikhil uses in the film is my guitar. So at least it created some music on screen.
Amit Paul from the small town of Shillong has a very melodious voice in Indian Idol this season.
There are few good ones in this season SRGMP too.
Karunya, Hemachandra cousins last year were good.
Private albums get popular but they alas always remain a second cousin to film music. Hope that scene changes soon though.
Hey Onir..thats awesome, infact starting the guitar deserters idea is amazing.. LETS DO IT GUYS!!!!
What a sexy post Onir!! n this reminds me of the violin,still not in my room but in my head only. Its one of the few things that i wanna do before i die. when in school,started once but then thats it. hav been thinking of learning it since last few years. but this n that n it never happened.
Guys,anyone of u know of good teacher for violon classes…do help me out. email id phoenixnu@hotmail.com
Onir,u can hav one more band member..ok if violinst can be counted…
n great that u r giving break to new guys!! all the best for ur music. i dont understand hwo people complain that they had to go thru this n that during their struggle but when they cross to other side,they dont want to work with new guys.
“1″ ??
@lovehifi… thanks for adding one more name to the list… and I have been to Shillong, people in general out there are so music literate… love the music scene there, both folk and western.
@Suchita, remember tom is the day to start.
@Phoenixnu… you are welcome to join the band, we have guitars, drums, keyboard… and now a violin… all we need is someone who gave up singing :0…and thank you …yes I think it is sad when we who have gone thru a lot to get to making our films just become a part of the machinery that supresses new talent and suck up to the star system( sometimes even when the “star” does not come with the talent ). I know its easier said than done, do not mean to be judgemental… but I think there should be a conscious effort to find ways where one can also find space for new talent/ untapped talent/ upcoming talent in ones soace.
hey Onir, forgot to mention earlier, but the concept of your album where each song is a story and the order takes the story forward is really awesome. One band that made that concept a success was Queensryche with their album Operation Mindcrime. I’m sure with your mentioned taste in music, you will love them.
This is one super talented band, but never really got their dues. Their lead singer is a trained opera singer, but he gave up opera as it was too restrictive…too many constraints…so he ventured into rock for the freedom of expression…and the results are there for all to hear.
And the next time I am in Mumbai or if you happen to visit California, we need to jam…put that Hobner to good use
“Concept albums” aren’t new, but they’ve always intrigued me. The Who’s rock opera “Tommy” is probably considered the seminal example of the form, along with The Eagles’ “Desperado” a few years later. Both of those bands leaned toward the “concept album” in later works, though The Who probably more so with albums like “Quadrophenia”. Pink Floyd also got in on the act, and is probably the most well-known for their mastery of the style most obviously with “The Wall” and “The Final Cut” and to a lesser degree with the earlier “Dark Side of the Moon”. So the idea isn’t new, but it’s not especially easy to pull off. not only do the songs have to “fit” together as a story, they also have to fit together musically. Otherwise the album sounds like a musical version of “Darna Mana Hai” where the stories are only peripherally connected to a central theme.
So it’s a challenge to make it work, but when it DOES work it’s really something special.
@Fender bender… Thats a deal :). will try and look for Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime on the net. Let me share something more with you. My music director Gaurav recently went to New York to record a Jazz song for my film. It was sung by this Nanette Natal. she is really super. We thought that it would be a good idea to have a real jazz singer sing a Jazz song then suddenly having a romantic hindi number in a Jazz cafe in Vancouvere(might shoot my next film there)…
@James… absolutely agree that the music has to also have a unifying element uncless discord is the element used to unifies. By “new” I meant what was not very widely done here in India in the pop music scene back then in 1997… and Pink Floyd is GOD.
Awesome…nothing touches your soul like some good Jazz
And it’s one of the most difficult forms of music to master. Too bad that there aren’t many youngsters who appreciate it. Will be looking forward to the song in your film 
No wonder Le Chale touched everyone’s heart…Onir, it seems everyone associated with the song brought in their own unique memories, thoughts and emotions and poured all this into it…I love all the three versions, but the best I find is Sunidhi’s…The piano notes, followed by Sunidhi’s humming and then the Sunidhi’s aawaz dabaake gaane wala technique (sorry but i just couldnt find an appropriate english phrase for it)…it’s just amazing!!! Thanks a lot for such a beautiful song…Funnily, none of the moments you described when the song appears in the movie are there in the VCD. I think it somes only when the titles roll in the beginning…and then the instrumental version as background ones in a while…But I dont remember any of the other version that you have mentioned in the VCD…I hope they werent cut…The first thing I am going to do after going back to my hostel room is to check the cd again
Fender,
You’re right when you say nothing touches you like good jazz! The operative word here being “good”. Jazz isn’t so hard to play, it’s just hard to play WELL. My son is an amazing sax player (and sophomore at Crane School of Music in NY) and he likes to quote (I think) Jamie Abersoll (sp?) who says “The saxophone is an easy instrument to play… badly”. He started out as a young player trying to emulate Charlie Parker. Then he discovered Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane. Those two are both masters of the tenor, but for completely different reasons. ‘Trane was a master of modalitites, tone and technique. He’s probably as close as you’ll find to “flawless” among tenor players — at least of his era. Rollins, on the other hand can sound technically … “sloppy” I guess, and still render some of the most amazing stuff you’ll ever hear simply because you never know what he’s going to do next. You can REALLY hear the difference when they got together on “Tenor Madness”, which has always been one of my favorites. That’s a great showcase to illustrate how two guys whose styles are so radically different can both be awesome.
Alok, you’re 100% right in your assessment. The song had everybody involved in making it putting their own personal stamp on it and just like the movie, everybody was completely devoted to making it as good as possible. When everybody is pulling in the same direction with that kind of passion, good things result no matter what the project is. And that’s probably why I said initially that MBN without Le Chalein would not have been MBN.
Onir, I pretty much knew what you were trying to get across with the “new” concept. “New” is always relative to the context, sort of like saying you bought a “new” car when it’s actually 4 years old with 70,000 miles on the clock. what I was trying to point up was the challenge in making a “concept album”. The fact that we can identify only a few select examples illustrates that it’s not that easy to do. If it were, we’d see a lot more of them.
And next time you’re looking for some fresh young musical talent, you should look up mera beta. He’s not only talented, he’ll probably work really cheap!
Hey, Onir, did you begin the guitar yest. My day was bad, my lap top konked so couldn’t do much .. the band seems to have already formed.. I think I will begin relearning in a few days..
@Alok… did you buy a pirated VCD… otherwise it has to be there :(… or did you feel asleep every time the song came … hehe
@James… Point taken and will seriously consider Junior James…:)
@suchita… I actually picked it up, cleaned it and fingered it a bit… :)… lets see if I can sustain it.
Very late comment I know, but I can’t not comment on anything to do with My Brother Nikhil. It’s one of the best films I’ve ever seen Onir, hats off to you. And “le chale” is unforgettable (KK’s rendition is my favourite too, though now I’m dying to hear the English rendition now), it never fails to bring a lump to my throat. Looking forward to many such films, songs, posts from you
ha ha ha Onir, what about the guitar deserters club?
Bryan (my son) and I were talking about all of this last night while walking the dogs. Turns out he only got to see about half of MBN the first time through. So of course that had to be remedied. But in his expert opinion, Le Chalein ROCKS. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear a solo sax version of it emanating from the garage where he practices at some point. If not immediately, then possibly when he’s home on fall break. I also wouldn’t be surprised if he’s already figured out the melody well enough to play it. I’ve seen him do it before with other pieces — and with less exposure — even when he was much younger. But I’ll stop now before I start sounding (more) like Navin.
@Sal1ma… Thank you. whats ur email. will send you the english version.
@Suchita… well tomorrow is yet another Day…
@ James… wow… a big hug for Bryan from me.
Hey Onir I see you were up rather early this morning. Maybe the happy bloggers out here want to know somethin about your serious early morning gym routine :-\” … while the guitar in your bedroom still gently weeps. Hey bro this is such a lovely (and may i say flattering) thread. All the great feedback i keep getting for Le Chale raises the standard that much higher that it makes me anxious to measure up and reach there with every following attempt…
A lot of people liked Dheemey Dheemey, Ashq Bhi & Zindagi (from Bas Ek Pal) but Le Chale is closest to my heart… for many reasons… besides personal, besides technical,… its the aura, the magical vibes, that i experienced while making the song, like the interaction with people i closely relate to - Amitabh (who penned those beautiful lyrics), Prasaad (for those sweet piano and string parts), Kalyan (for that brilliant Clapton-ish guitar plucking… he’s to blame for some peeps thinking i lifted a Clapton song :o), Eric (the crazy recording engineer who aptly calls himself ‘Future Sound of Bombay’) Tina (who touched me with her lyrics in English, and inspired me all through my efforts on the film), and most of all, Onir…
Yes, Onir… I’ve admired this guy since we started working together in 97. I had “arranged” music for lot of his work.. docus, ads, etc, and albums that he produced (Aria, Bhupen Hazarika’s Ganga & other hits, Pyaar ki Dhun, etc). Onir got me to arrange Bhup-su’s songs in Kalpana Lajmi’s films Kyon and Daman, for which he was also the editor and… guess what… choreographer!!! Anyway, i was, in his words, his “fab arranger”
Then one day, he calls me and says he’s ready with his film script and we need to talk. I was like “Ok great, who’s the music director and when do i start arranging the songs” (see i was kinda confident he would want me, fab arranger, to arrange the music :)). Thats when he dropped the bomb - he asked me to compose the songs and direct the music for My Brother Nikhil. I was like “shit man, I dont know if im ready for this ‘break’ or whatever its called”. And was this guy crazy opting for a newbie for his first film? Anyway.. the rest is history… Le Chale happened.
Also, what made the song and background score something special and exciting to work on was the film itself. The beautiful thoughts that went into the script found their way into the music too. Everytime Onir and I would sit and discuss the music we would end up feeling excited (now dont get the wrong idea guys). And its a breeze working with this guy as he has the uncanny ability to look beyond and hear what i hear in my head, before recording even a single note. I could go on about this dude but its not my thread so let me stop by saying that working on MBN was a pleasure and a heartening experience. Thanks Onir, and I hope to hear you strummm your gibbson soon, as long as you dont decide to play on my songs
Love u guys.
Sorry.. i meant hobbner, not gibbson. And why do my emoticons show up all wrong? :-??
HEY VIVECK… finally the man behind LE CHALE =d>=d>is here. so good to have your impressions here buddy…. and lol I have graduated from Gym to Kick boxing now… you are not keeping in touch :). And Phi… you making me feel all emotional… by the way are you thru with all your albums, etc?…WE NEED TO START WORK SOON…. and I have more reasons to tank you for always being there … so do not embarrass me by thanking me…
Hey Onir, will wait to hear the English rendition (and comment :)) My email ID is salimapoonawala@gmail.com Thanks!
Wow, a visit from none other than the master who created Le Chale. Quite possibly one of the best songs of any genre in any language I’ve ever heard.
What’s next? All I need now is a post from Urmila and… *sigh*
(Had to get my fix you know…;) )
Nice Post Onir! I would also love to hear about making of the music of BEP and working with Mithoon!
And since I am it, let me be the exception here and say that I loved BEP. I found it to be a bit better than MBN. I thought you could delve a bit more into Sanjay Suri-Urmila initial attraction before the incident. But save for that and the climax, I thought it was a very well made and an intelligent movie. The only slight dampener was that the story was inspired from a Spanish movie (?). I caught the movie at Osian Film Fest, Delhi and found a lot of other people also liked it.
I also have to add, who cut the promos and what was the thought process behind those promo, since I thought they told the viewer very little about the movie?
Anuj… the making of BEP music is another long story. I will write about it in another post soon. Like I mentioned in some of my earlier posts too… For me BEP was a step ahead. I think I learned a lot more about technique, style and storytelling. MBN was a simpler story told in a simple manner. But I do not usually compare them … they are different films.
Some other people also felt that I should have had one more scene between Sanjay and Urmila to reinforce the strong attraction later.
Yes I admit that my start point (that is being inspired by Live Flesh) was a wrong step.
You are absolutely correct about the Promos. i had a huge disagreement with my producer regarding it. But the music company and he decided it. For me I feel angry that after all the hard work your work is misrepresented. The promos spoke nothing about the film. Were badly cut and actually misguided the audience.
@Onir.. thanks for responding… You have great sense of melody and poetry. I loved both the music of MBN and BEP. Le chale particularly gives me goosebump, especially the Sunidhi Chauhan version. The girl rocks!
Are u student of JU? then we are Alma Mater
Yes, I too had many friends from Shillong and they are generally musically oriented. Infact even Manipuris are very artistic people. I would really love to see a mainstreme cinema based on people of that region. How about a story based on Sports or Dance? Khasis perhaps are a Matriarchal society as opposed to the Patriarcal we mostly have. that aspect facinates me too.
All the best for your next film. I hope you give us a great film and fabulous music. Subho Kamona ebong Bhalo theko
@Onir - I passed the link to this post along to Bryan and here’s a bit of his response.
“You know what this means, right? This means I’m internationally acclaimed now. I’ll give you my autograph later. It might be worth something some day.
And let him know that if he ever DOES need some musical talent, I might even be willing to do it for free. Essentially for the same reason you’d be willing to work on a film of his for free; just to get the experience of a lifetime and to travel to a beautiful country with a bunch of gorgeous women.”
I still haven’t heard a solo-saxophone version of Le Chale coming from the garage, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened. Or maybe he thought it would work better on solo flute — he took his flute out there last night, but I didn’t eavesdrop (he’s funny about his practice sessions that way).
BTW, does anybody proofread the English in the subtitles in any of these films? I catch all kinds of things in pretty much every film — even the big-budget ones — that doesn’t quite make the translation. That might be a good job for me
Hey Lovehfi
Yes I am a student of JU. When were you there and which dept? I was a student of comp litt from 1986-91. I would love to set a film in the north east, but difficult in terms of both finance and logistics. Thanks for your best wishes. :0
hey James
Sometimes (and that is really rare) directors get to either check or get someone they think reliable to proffread the subtitles. but thats rare:(
Hey Onir,
since you seem to be receptive to suggestions and inputs from fans like me here is something I have always wondered?
Why has the industry ignored a talented actors like Farooque Shaikh? He was so good in early 80 movies with Deepti Naval.
Yet I hardly see him nowadays in any movies(only serials). He could play very good roles (since we have got saturated with Anupam Kher, Paresh Rawal etc.) If you are considering a comedy movie
do consider him. It will be a refreshing change.
hey Shantanu. Strange that you mention Farooque Shaikh. I do not know if the industry is really ignoring him or he chooses to be that way.I was really keen on casting him. He is just so difficult to access. After months(he seems mostly travelling out of the country) I finally manged to speak to him. Have sent a script to him. Actually Shabana who is acting in my film had suggested. And I thought that it was a great idea. But he just does not respond or revert back. When I call back I am told he is travelling. I am absolutely ok with an actor not likeing a role, refusing a role…. but he does not give any feed back. I gave up and finally and am casting Boman.
Thanks for the info. I also hope someone considers Amol
Palekar for a substantial role. (I understand that he has refused offers). One should see Lakhon ki baat to see how good farooque
shaikh can be in comedy.
@Shantanu. I think bothe Farooque and Amol P are fab actors. and comic without trying too hard( like our current day heroes in comedies who think making all kinds of faces is comedy). what was wonderful about bothe these actors is that they succeeded in being comic without it turning into slapstick.
If I could wander way off-topic for just a moment, I just learned of the bombings in Hyderabad yesterday and want to express my deepest and sincerest sympathies to the families of those killed and injured in the blasts. I have two friends at work from the city, and I can’t bear to think that one or both of them may have had a friend or relative hurt in the senseless atrocity.
When something like this happens, it truly puts everything else in a whole different perspective. And it hurts all of us who — perhaps naively — hope for peace in our time.
Very cool post onir…
totally reminded me of my guitar that i took out of my storage area the other day ‘n now its been sittin in the storage area… should start followin that hindi sayin little more often “Kal kare so aaj kar, aaj kar so ab” ..
@Baarishh. Thanks for your comment. a lot of us here at PFC i realise have this same unfinished dream
^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^^:)^
Sir you are a complete rock(*)
I’ve never told you this before but,I’ve never met anyone like you who can unequivocally portray such simple things in life so beatifully.I am sorry to put in this comment so late.Please don’t ask me why:)=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>=d>
Sir will you please send me the eng version of le chalein????please please please please[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<[-o<
@sulakshana. Thanks for your comment. will send you the english version of Le Chalein.
admin note: please do not advertise your products on PFC.
I must say it was a a very very touching post
Hope things are moving in fuller force with you now since we last met (At the Licence to wed premiere) — Im ex Sony, we met for the first time on the Indian idol set
anyways hope things r better for you now
would love to meet you soon and discuss a few things
lemme knw when
cheers
@Akansha thank you for your comment. well kind of on the starting line… waiting for the signal. working on a couple of projects, travelling. first week of nov would be a good time.
hi onir
wher u have disappeared now a days … no new post..
I think it time for u ot comw with something exciting and intersting on post and on cinema also..may be it seems u r the only filmamker to come up with a movie…looking at the films released this year…it seems u r the only option left with something real and exciting….
waiting desperately for a movie from your side..:-w
@ Priyank… yes admit that its time i wrote my next post. was travelling around kashmir, working on a new script… just back today.Promise that my next post will come soon as there is so much i wanna share about my experience there which is giving birth to a new film
hey onirbhai..well thats a good news..you have started working on your new film…may be it will hit the screen next year…hope to see a lot of good quality pereformance in your film…i was just reading earlier comments in which you mention that u wanted to work with Farooq … but he doesnt respond u.. hard luck…but he hardly works in films now a days… i personally think they are various other good actors who seldoms works in films like naseruddin, raghuvir yadav…i cant figure out why they are so rarely seen in films..may be they are not getting good scripts and role or they donot want to workmore..i hope u have better answeer fot this:-?
Hi onir
loved music of both BEP and MBN I am thankful to u for introducing Mithoon and Vivek.Mithoon has given excellant music for Anwar.Who is ur fav music director in Hindi film music?My favs are RD Burman,Salil Choudhary,Ravindra Jain,Jatin Lalit,Vishal Bharadwaj.What is ur opinion about these music directors?just curious to know
@priyank…. i think sometimes it is not just about getting good scripts… its also about being bitter, some of them feel that they deserve( and sometimes rightly so) much more…. so the kind of money they quote becomes unrealistic.
@sharath… Am glad that you liked the music of MBN n BEP…. my fav music dir is I think RD/ I also love a lot of Hemanth Kumar/ AR. Rahaman and Jatin Lalit
Hey Onir…
just wanted to share something about MBN…i didnt know abt this film till i started working on a BBC show which was about raising HIV AIDS awareness…and i was researching on broadcasted material on the subject, found the film listed, saw it, saw it again, saw it yet again …in one night…
It was just sooo wonderful….you had so wonderfully said everything yet left so much unsaid… the beauty of involving the audience with the story, the beauty of putting us through our imagination test and not being out there to make a statement but to bring around a point of view…
..and as luck would have it … i met you in Mumbai when we did another story with Juhi…and it was great to put a face to someone i related to as ‘one good guy’ !
Just simply brilliant !! … Would love to work with you sometime… Looking fwd to seeing so much more from u !!
Cheers Onir !
@Sonia
Thank you for your comments :)…and its nice to be able to put a face to the person who comments :)… lets catch up sometime. are you still working with BBC?
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Hey Onir,
That is quite a emotional bit. Loved every bit while going through it.
Nostalgia we all love and live by. It is not just a post 8 pm phenomenon.
They are real…..
@Rajesh Parmer… thank you :0