Song 18: 4 April 2013
It's been a season of remakes. This song was recently replicated in the movie 'Student of the Year' and it was surreal to watch my daughter go completely crazy dancing on it almost 30 years after I did! Himmatwala 2 tested our patience while Chashme Baddoor 2 is ready for release tomorrow, interestingly being released alongside the original Chashme Buddoor on the same day! Zanjeer, Aashiqui, Satte Pe Satta and Satyakaam are some remakes being awaited! We've already had a decade of song remixes doing the rounds. Maybe in a creatively challenged environment, a remake is a subtle form of flattery.
But nothing to beat the original. Which is why this video shot at some event is still so refreshing to watch. Nazia Hassan accompanied by her brother Zohaib Hassan were household names in India owing to the fresh vibe their music brought in. They provided a breath of fresh air and vitality to the particular sound of that era. True talent and star appeal know no boundaries. One can also relate to the very sub-continental tradition of sending the brother along just to chaperone a pretty young girl to a performance, even if he had to sing and dance for effect to please sister dearest! Even otherwise the sub-continent has a history of shared musical roots in Hindustani classical music. The artistes of Pakistan have always been loved immensely in India and to quite an extent have been better cultural ambassadors than the state heads. Stars from across the border-Aatif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Ali Zafar to name a few-at times help us challenge our own limits in healthy competition. That sis of mine, Bitty Didi I spoke about in previous blog, is today an accomplished ghazal/thumri singer, Dr. Radhika Chopra, who has travelled to many countries for her concerts, but she admits that the warmth that she always encounters in Pakistan is something else!
Whatever be our political conflicts and tugs of war, it brings some relief that our language, clothing, music, food and now literature too bind us together. At times of sudden conflicts I have tried my best to hate some of these visitors from the core of my heart. I have been nasty on social media forums, venting anger and trolling some. I even sniggered as to why does Ali Zafar use so much make-up or that why he over-acts, to try and be a detractor and have told him (on Twitter) to 'go back' on some tense occasions. But one had to see him in 'Mere Brother Ki Dulhan' and then 'London Paris NewYork' to see how utterly entertaining he is on screen. I am sure he will spring some surprises in Chashme Baddoor though I cannot still get over the original Farooque Sheikh. And replicating Deepti Naval's Miss Chamko?! Well that would be sacrilege for sure. But probably my daughter's generation could not even sit through the original version today. And come to think of it, neither could I sit through original versions of Devdas and Parineeta but thanks to recent interpretations, I love both these stories/movies. So if at the end of the day peace wins, culture wins, the arts win, our literature wins, I would say these remakes and exchanges are a win-win.
Which brings me to a heart-warming story yesterday where a young girl of 7 in Rajasthan drifted into Pakistani territory and how the Pakistani Rangers took great care of her, assigning a lady officer to look after her, and finally let her come back to India safe and sound, with a new dress, shoes, candy and few other gifts! To me such stories are little beacons of hope. Also Twitter has made me aware of some amazing people, writers, journalists in Pakistan today who relentlessly keep up the good work of saying the right things, standing up for difficult stances courageously in what can be called rather dangerous, chaotic and perilous circumstances there. Let's hold on to these little harbingers of peace. Let's give them all our support. Beyond the boundaries, today I believe that if you are not supporting the positive forces, you are indirectly contributing to the negative forces. The math is as simple as that. Hopefully the bad guys will fade into the twilight soon enough.
It's been a season of remakes. This song was recently replicated in the movie 'Student of the Year' and it was surreal to watch my daughter go completely crazy dancing on it almost 30 years after I did! Himmatwala 2 tested our patience while Chashme Baddoor 2 is ready for release tomorrow, interestingly being released alongside the original Chashme Buddoor on the same day! Zanjeer, Aashiqui, Satte Pe Satta and Satyakaam are some remakes being awaited! We've already had a decade of song remixes doing the rounds. Maybe in a creatively challenged environment, a remake is a subtle form of flattery.
But nothing to beat the original. Which is why this video shot at some event is still so refreshing to watch. Nazia Hassan accompanied by her brother Zohaib Hassan were household names in India owing to the fresh vibe their music brought in. They provided a breath of fresh air and vitality to the particular sound of that era. True talent and star appeal know no boundaries. One can also relate to the very sub-continental tradition of sending the brother along just to chaperone a pretty young girl to a performance, even if he had to sing and dance for effect to please sister dearest! Even otherwise the sub-continent has a history of shared musical roots in Hindustani classical music. The artistes of Pakistan have always been loved immensely in India and to quite an extent have been better cultural ambassadors than the state heads. Stars from across the border-Aatif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Ali Zafar to name a few-at times help us challenge our own limits in healthy competition. That sis of mine, Bitty Didi I spoke about in previous blog, is today an accomplished ghazal/thumri singer, Dr. Radhika Chopra, who has travelled to many countries for her concerts, but she admits that the warmth that she always encounters in Pakistan is something else!
Whatever be our political conflicts and tugs of war, it brings some relief that our language, clothing, music, food and now literature too bind us together. At times of sudden conflicts I have tried my best to hate some of these visitors from the core of my heart. I have been nasty on social media forums, venting anger and trolling some. I even sniggered as to why does Ali Zafar use so much make-up or that why he over-acts, to try and be a detractor and have told him (on Twitter) to 'go back' on some tense occasions. But one had to see him in 'Mere Brother Ki Dulhan' and then 'London Paris NewYork' to see how utterly entertaining he is on screen. I am sure he will spring some surprises in Chashme Baddoor though I cannot still get over the original Farooque Sheikh. And replicating Deepti Naval's Miss Chamko?! Well that would be sacrilege for sure. But probably my daughter's generation could not even sit through the original version today. And come to think of it, neither could I sit through original versions of Devdas and Parineeta but thanks to recent interpretations, I love both these stories/movies. So if at the end of the day peace wins, culture wins, the arts win, our literature wins, I would say these remakes and exchanges are a win-win.
Which brings me to a heart-warming story yesterday where a young girl of 7 in Rajasthan drifted into Pakistani territory and how the Pakistani Rangers took great care of her, assigning a lady officer to look after her, and finally let her come back to India safe and sound, with a new dress, shoes, candy and few other gifts! To me such stories are little beacons of hope. Also Twitter has made me aware of some amazing people, writers, journalists in Pakistan today who relentlessly keep up the good work of saying the right things, standing up for difficult stances courageously in what can be called rather dangerous, chaotic and perilous circumstances there. Let's hold on to these little harbingers of peace. Let's give them all our support. Beyond the boundaries, today I believe that if you are not supporting the positive forces, you are indirectly contributing to the negative forces. The math is as simple as that. Hopefully the bad guys will fade into the twilight soon enough.
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