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Phir Euphoria
Thirteen months and Euphoria is back with Phir Dhoom. Will they
break the dhoom barrier? Or go pichuck? Lead singer-composer-lyricist
Palash Sen speaks for the band...
By
Ambica Sharma
Why call this album
Phir Dhoom? Was dhoom your lucky word?
It just came to me. Whatever is going to happen
on this album is phir wahi experimentation, wahi attitude, wahi
band! It is like load and reload. It's euphoria all over again.
 Another
band that couldn't resist the Punjabi pop pull?
Tell you what, I am sick of Punjabi on every
channel-even though my wife happens to be Punjabi. And you know
what? I found the reason for this. The highest number of record-buying
people in this country are the Punjabi people. They are the best
consumers in the country. They will buy everything new that comes
into the market. If there is a new TV in the market, they will be
the first to buy it. Because they like to live well and they don't
mind spending for it. So I thought why not try something different
this time, something that's not bhangra. Punjabi music is not only
bhangra. I am half North Indian too, and I have been listening to
other types of Punjabi music, that people have not even heard.
The scenes of rural Punjab in the "Maaeri"
video-a girl carrying a pot on her head, butter being churned,
aren't these all rural Punjab visual clichés?
But tell me how many clichéd things do you see
on TV anymore? It is very sad that people in this country don't
really know about these very small things. And how many times do
you see rural Punjab on video? I have not seen rural Punjab on a
single video and I watch videos all the time. I'll tell you, people
see Varanasi all the time on TV, but when we did a video there,
people went mad! The idea was to appeal to the younger generation.
You know, they are totally cut off from this kind of thing. Tell
me, how many girls do you see nowadays sitting on a bullock cart
eating sugarcane? Let alone eat it, just looking at sugarcane! All
these scenes make the "Maaeri" video very, very Indian.
The song "Maaeri"- was it shot on a real train?
This video has been directed by Pradeep Sarkar.
We shot it in a small village in Haryana, called Tainthad Gaon.
It was the first week of Jan and it was very cold. From there we
took a train to Mumbai, Dehradun Express, which takes around 40
hours to reach. It stops at every damn place. It's like if someone's
house is on the way, they will stop for them, too. The whole unit
was there on the train and we had a lot of fun out there.
Why have you called that song "The Journey"?
That is because it is a journey through emotions
and memories. The catchline is "Yaad woh yaad woh aye ree". It's
about this guy singing to his mother about his beloved who has gone
away and he is remembering and missing her. This whole album is
about emotional upheaval.
Who is your inspiration in music?
Definitely Elvis Presley. I adore him, I worship
him.
But his style is very different from the type
of music you play...
Yeah, but that is now, not earlier. He is something
I want to be, the way I have always wanted to be. So my biggest
influences are Elvis, the Beatles, Deep Purple, Dire Straits, Led
Zeppelin. We still write our lyrics in the rock format, the way
we always did-though we have commercialised it-where there is a
verse, a chorus, a solo and a change. It is not like mukhda-antara,
which happens in the Hindustani system.
Which bands do you think are tops in India?
Oh, Junoon obviously, although they're
from Pakistan. You know what, this whole idea of forming your own
rock band has come from them, they have been doing this since 1991.
There may be 20 bands in Pakistan who have been doing rock in Urdu
for god knows how long. Much as I would hate to admit it, we got
the idea from them. In India, the band that made the difference
has been Silk Route. They came out with a fresh and different sound.
They created original music, which I like.
How is the market for rock music in India
now?|
See, it is very difficult for a rock band
in this country to make it big. The average person does not know
or understand rock music. We started to sing in Hindi and have reached
more people than we could only have dreamt of, if we had been singing
in English. The masses will never be rock followers. All over the
world rock is dying, and that is because rock was the only format
of music where people didn't change or adapt. They kept doing the
same thing over and over. That is why all this boyband stuff is
happening, people want change every day. But I think we have succeeded
to quite an extent. People listen to our music, they follow what
we are singing. I've got everything I wanted. All this now is the
bonus.
Are you being honest?
Yeah, very honest. Showbiz has taught me one
thing. It's all a sham, it's superficial, there is nothing real
about it. And maybe because I already have a profession I feel this
way (he is a practising doctor). Whatever little you get in it or
don't get in it, you should be thankful to your stars that itna
mil gaya hai, bahut hai.
Shiamak's
Song 'n' Dance!
"I like to be perfect,"
says Shiamak Davar and his new video "Dil Chahe" is almost that.
With 70 mm sets, sizzling costumes, pretty faces and, of course,
Shiamak. He has finally gone and directed a video all by himself,
just the way he likes it done...
By
Ambica Sharma
 What
was it like directing the video? Do you think some other director
would not have been able to do the job?
I had a great time directing the video, was
a little nervous, but luckily all went off well. I have wanted to
make a video for a long time, wanted to take the risk and really
go for it. I wanted to do the video my way. I did the conceptualising,
the direction, of course, editing, choreography, costumes and visualising.
I wanted to have total control. Normally, I would have to work around
the vision of the director of the film, Mr Yash Chopra for Dil
To Pagal Hai and Mr Subhash Ghai for Taal. This time I was the
director and had total control of this so-called vision.
Aren't there too many dance-based videos already?
Yes, there are many dance videos, but somehow
this one stands out. I am not being pompous, but the result is such
after a lot of dedication, hard work and a joint effort of all the
people involved, behind the scenes and in front of it. It was the
combined effort of one director, one vision, and an extremely professional
and organised team.
You have choreographed for movies. Is that
why the costumes and the whole look of the video is like that?
As far as the look goes, the combination of
Indian and Broadway is my forté, so that was woven into the look
to maintain an authentic look and at the same time make it look
different, but glamorous and westernised. I love the combination
of jazz and western music and that is exactly what I have done,
even in the visuals, to make them look appealing. The musical pieces
are visualised with me doing the jazz jumps in one part, the dancers
all in a line-up in the other part. The red outfits are designed
in such a way that they look authentic and sensual, with the pelvic
movements done very subtly. All in all, the look of the video is
a blend of Indian rhythms with jazz movements-Indianised, with a
subtle touch of Indian film choreography.
Didn't you want to strengthen the concept
of the song through the video? Why a purely jazz dance based video?
I wanted to enhance the song with a good video...
in fact I feel all good videos enhance the song and indirectly give
good mileage, say a good 60 per cent, but eventually the song needs
to be good too.
What was it like designing the costumes?
I have been designing all the costumes for
my shows, plus the look-that's what I have done for this video,
too. It is a creative process like any other. I enjoy it very much
because I know the look and accordingly, with the help of a person
who knows the technicalities of garment making, we put together
the entire look of the show/video.
Who conceptualised the set?
The set was my vision and I knew that I wanted
to make the theme of the song-white on white. Opus Planet, the event
management company headed by Omung Kumar and Tarun Chopra, designed
and executed the sets. I told Omung what I wanted and he would add
to the ideas and see what the practicality of the whole thing would
be. The sets, as you see, were huge, and they took two days to erect
at the Famous Studio at Mahalaxmi.
How much do you contribute to the making
of the album? Is it like when everything else has been fixed you
come and sing?
No, this album and all my other albums have
always been a joint effort. Even this one we decided together, my
producers Ashutosh (Phatak) and Dhruv (Ghanekar) and I discussed
the feel of each song. I tell them what each song should sound like.
I make sound pictures in my mind, like a story, that I would like
to perform on stage and the rhythm of the full album. Of course,
the rhythms, lyrics and compositions are all a joint effort.
In the 'thank-yous' in the inlay you have
thanked a monkey. You have a monkey for a pet?
No, the monkey is not a pet and it is a secret
which I will not let go of.
MOST FUN - "Chak Dhoom Dhoom" from DTPH
TOUGHEST - Dance Of Envy from DTPH
BORING - None - I would not do them
then.
YOUR FAVE - Dance Of Envy
THE BEST DANCERS IN HINDI FILMS - Helen,
Govinda, Madhuri, Meenakshi, Kamal Haasan
YOUR FAVE ACTORS - Ajay Devgan, Shah
Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Naseerudin Shah, Paresh Rawal
YOUR FANMAIL ADDRESS - sdipa@shiamak.com
 "People
who lip-sync have no talent"
Down to
earth, yes, but without sounding immodest he tells you that he knows
he is a crowd-pulling singer. Perfectionist, yes, so Jasbir Jassi
gets into the whys of Kudi Kudi not making it as big as his earlier
album.
By
Ambica Sharma
Have
you ever been in a "Kudi Kudi" situation-attracted to someone you're
working with? How did you get into singing?
I used to watch my cousins sing. They used to
sing for a lark and I wanted to sing too. That is how I got into
singing. I was always musically inclined. I had started to do my
engineering also, but then I left it to pursue a career as a singer.
The letter 'K' is lucky for you, because
your earlier hit song and this new one both have the K word... kudi?
We did not plan it that way, but it happened.
But yeah, personally I feel that the letter K is lucky for me. I
have noticed it quite a few times now.
Will you be able to repeat the success of "Dil Le Gayee Kudi Gujarat
Di"?
Once you have given a hit album or a song and
you have created fans for yourselves, then if you continue to do
okay work, those people will continue to listen to you. They will
buy your albums. The number of fans keeps increasing. This album
Kudi Kudi is also doing well. It started off very slowly, but now
the sales are picking up and the album is doing well. Maybe not
as well as the earlier album, but it is doing well.
Have you given any thought to playback singing
or featuring in movies?
I have got offers, but I am not taking them
up. The reason being that the viewers will see us on TV and listen
to our cassettes-that they are doing even now. I am getting publicity
now, too.
A song is not up to your standards, but the producers/ directors
think it's fine...would you let it go?
I am never satisfied with the songs I have sung.
I keep thinking of ways to improve. If I feel, even after two months,
that the song can improved, I will want to get it recorded again.
But you know that singers have to go with what the company wants,
because it knows what will sell. So mostly, singers will not get
to sing the kind of songs they want to. People no longer want to
listen to slow, meaningful songs, like the kind the singer actually
wants to sing. So all that we can do is try and do something good
with the dance tracks. Like, I am not satisfied with this album
Kudi Kudi-it was made under a lot of pressure and in a short time
and that's why it may not have come out so well.
I believe you never lip sync at a concert...
I always sing live, my band is also live. I
have had a lot of practice singing live. In Punjab, I have done
so many concerts, which we call akharas there. In any case I cannot
lip sync, I find it so difficult to sing to a tape-it is playing
at some speed, I am singing at some other speed, sometimes it runs
faster. People who lip sync have no talent, no practice as a singer,
they just get up one day and decide to be singers.
Why do you think people prefer listening
to fast songs and inane lyrics?
See, people don't have the time and the energy
left to listen to slow and meaningful songs. They do not want to
use their brain.
Do you consider other Punjabi pop singers your rivals?
No, they are my friends. And I am not in competition
with them. I am already doing well, very well, so if I compare myself
to them I will have to step back and compare with them. It is like
I am already a month ahead of them. I compete with myself and not
others.
What is the first thing you utter when you get up in the morning?
I say 'remote'!-and put on the TV. Before going
to bed I cue it to what I want to watch in the morning. ¨
The Best of Bryan Adams...
Adams is back with the best of me,
a compilation of some of his greatest hits through the years. Get
the best of the Adams attitude-get loaded on one of the best Rockers.
Born in 1959...
Under the sign of Scorpio, as Bryan Guy Adams,
in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. He has gone on to become one of the
most popular mainstream rockers. Adams has had his ups and downs,
but for his fans he has remained "Rock Steady."
1983... was
his breakthrough year in music-after two previously unsuccessful
albums, Cuts Like A Knife went to number 8 and platinum in the USA.
He was now set on the collision course with big time success.
With heavyduty chartbusters like "Run To You", "Heaven", "Summer
Of '69" and "It's Only Love" with Tina Turner, he was constantly
in the top ten in the US charts. By the late 80s however, the Adams
fever began to cool a bit. He said he was taking stock of his career-recharging.
But his songs were faring less well.
Then in 1991... It
was to change, and how! All because of a movie by Kevin Costner-has
the bulb lit yet? Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves featuring the evergreen
"(Everything I Do) I Do It For You." Adams could not stop this thing
he started. Every song he sang seemed to touch heaven. He even won
a Grammy for it!
When he sang "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?" for the movie
Don Juan de Marco, people were more than amazed and confused! Adams
doing a Spanish tempo and lightweight song? This rocker was turning
smooth! Adams tried to restore his image of a rocker with the release
of 18 'Til I Die, but it didn't do the trick, well, not the way
Bryan wanted it done.
The 21st century... and
Bryan is back with The Best Of Me, the second album featuring some
of his greatest hits. This new album includes two new songs, the
sway number "The Best Of Me" and the toe-tapping dance track "Don't
Give Up". Bryan Adams and his power trio of Keith Scott on guitar
and Mickey Curry on drums are all set for collision course with
success-part III.
Does anyone want to be in their way?
1998 - Juno Award
Best Song Writer "On A Day Like Today."
1997 - ASCAP
MOST PERFORMED SONG AWARD "Have You Ever Really Loved
A Woman?"
1996 - CHANNEL
[V] INDIA MUSIC AWARDS Top International Rock Album 18 'Til
I Die
1994 - AUSTRALIAN
MUSIC ASSOCIATION International Artiste of the year-Male
1993 - WORLD
MUSIC AWARDS Best Selling Canadian Artiste.
1992 - GRAMMY
AWARDS Best Song specially written for a motion picture or television
"(Everything I do) I Do It For You."
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