Ask any citizen of our country if there is a song that describes the spirit of being Indian – truly a tough task considering our immense diversity – and most of them will name Pandit Bhim Sen Joshi’s iconic ‘Mile Sure Mera Tumhara’. Released on 15th August 1988, this song brought together maestros from varying fields, to signify our unity as Indians. While this classic was ground-breaking when it came out, it was definitely in need of an upgrade. Now, 33 years later, a new take on Mile Sur Mera Tumhara was released this 15th August, to mark the momentous occasion of India’s 75th Independence Day. ‘Synthesis – The Indian Muse’ which brought together 16 different artists across styles and genres of Indian classical music and dance, reminds one of Mile Sur Mera Tumhara, but with a modern, more relatable sound.
Nanni Singh, CEO of ShowCase Events was the person who conceptualised this new take on Mile Sure Mera Tumhara. Speaking about Synthesis – The Indian Muse, she says, “There was a need to create a sound that stood for what our country stands for – unity in diversity. Music is beyond all barriers. This song is an amalgamation of the sounds and moves of our country. 16 artists and 6 members of the production team, stepped in together to create what we call OUR SONG. We have created a Synthesis and the Indian Muse. We are ready to synthesise with sounds and moves from any part of the world without having to dilute ours.”
Just a look at the tremendous line-up will have you excited to hear this soulful tune and beautiful number of Synthesis – The Indian Muse, which is indeed a worthy upgrade and new take on Mile Sur Mera Tumhara:
Music Composition: Ravi Iyer – A composer and a fusion guitarist, has been in the industry for over 35 years
Lyrics: K C Loy – A lyricist-song writer of good acclaim
Mix-Master: Aslam Khan – Headroom Studios – A master in the industry who is known for working with the best.
Vocalists:
Dhanashree Pandit Rai – one of the leading Indian Classical vocalists in India today, her specialty being the ‘Thumri’ or semi-classical genre of music
Sonam Kalra – The famous voice of the Sufi Gospel Project/Partition project
Kutle Khan – highly acclaimed Rajasthani folk musician
Anushree Gupta – A young very talented artist from Bengal
Sunita Bhuyan – The well-established and very popular Assamese folk singer and violinist from Assam
Instrumentalists:
Ustaad Hidayat Hussain Khan – Son of Ustaad Vilayat Khan Saheb – Sitar
Ambi Subramaniam – Son of the maestro Dr L Subramaniam – Violin
Pt. Ajay Shankar Prasanna – A doyen of the Benares Gharana, a three-time Grammy nominee – Flute
Nazir Ganaie – The original famous Rabab Player from Kashmir – Rabab
Sunita Bhuyan – Assamese folk Violin
Pt. Naviin Gandharv – Belabahaar
Percussionists:
Ustaad Fazal Qureshi – son of Ustaad Alla Rakha Khan Saheb – Tabla
Sridhar Parthasarthi – a legendary Mridangam exponent – Mridangam, Kanjira, Morsing
Vijay Chavan – The backend for all top music directors for his Marathi Dholki
Nathulal Solanki – The Nagara Maestro – Nagara
Kutle Khan – popularly known as King of Khartaal
Dancers:
Aditi Bhagwat – internationally renowned Kathak and Lavani expert
Sohini Roychowdhry – A fine exponent of Bharatnatyam, taking it beyond barriers
Programmer: Abhinay Jain
Video Production: Rajshree Agarwal
Backend Support: Naina Kukreja
Supported by: ShowCase Studio and RRE Studios
Since its release a few months ago, the song has been covered by leading media publications including Rolling Stone Magazine, BusinessWorld Loudest, New Indian Express, Sunday Guardian and YourStory, among others.
It has garnered nearly 2 lakh views on its official video and been hailed by industry stalwarts and music lovers as, “The Song of the Year”.
The comments on the YouTube video were full of appreciation and love:
Rajendra Shinde says, “Very nicely composed tribute for our NATION, all great artists of INDIA.”
Qayyum Khan says, “Very beautiful presentation. Soul drenching performances by artists and very aesthetically recorded composition.”
CookedbyRKSHT says, “Blows my mind that this entire composition has been recorded/came to be virtually! Such a lovely amalgamation of Hindustani and varied music/artistic styles from across India, sounds fabulous, the entire video + audio combo. Massive props to everyone involved in the production/composition of this masterpiece, looking forward to fantastic music like this further.”
Biplob World says, “Sometimes you come across a track which is bliss to hear and a visual delight. Synthesis, composed by the inimitable Ravi Iyer is a rare track that achieves both with aplomb. Kudos to the person who visualized this and the team that made it happen!”
Sid says, “Food for the soul, surely! What an amazing idea and effort to get so much talent under one roof. Salutations to all the artists.”
Have you heard the song yet? Let me know what you think of this new take on Mile Sur Mera Tumhara in the comments section below and remember to share it with others!
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This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Voxbox.
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*This is a sponsored post.
**Copyright in pictures and content belongs to nooranandchawla.com and cannot be republished or repurposed without express permission of the author. As I am a copyright lawyer by profession, infringement of any kind will invite strict legal action.
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