Ghazal exponent Pankaj Udhas, while speaking to dna about his new album of devotional songs, said “I wouldn’t say I am moving out of ghazal singing. After all, it is a form very dear to me and has given me everything I have today.”
The new album being released by Udhas is called ‘Hey Krishna’, and contains bhajans about the blue-skinned, prankster god.
Udhas recalled how he had been approached on several occasions to sing devotional compositions in the past. “This became more frequent when I sang at a special Krishna concert at ISKCON in the early eighties. I always declined, thinking I was not ready to do it.”
Then the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai changed all that. “I felt that reaching out to God for protection and solace was the only thing to do. That was how the Hanuman Chalisa album came about.”
This latest mix of contemporary bhajans by composers such as Sudhakar Mishra, Narayan Agarwal and traditional Meera bhajans have a distinct influence of the music of Rajasathan and Gujarat. “This is the first Krishna bhajan album with a mix of the contemporary and traditional, a very unusual musical back-up and melodious tunes. There are a few chants which are especially peaceful and meditative.”
It was during a session with music composer duo Ali-Gani when Udhas happened to hear some of their work on Lord Krishna. “I was gripped and immediately reminded of my old commitment to record Krishna bhajans,” says the man whose rendition of ‘Chithi Aayee Hai’ has made him a household name to millions of non-resident Indians because of the pride and emotions it evokes.
“Whether Persian, Urdu or Sanskrit, the compositions in both genres of ghazals and bhajans talk of love. One is on a human level and the other is on a spiritual level,” he explains, before breaking into a Krishna invocation.
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