Top header Banner
Top header Banner
Middle top Banner

Interview with Amarpal Gaind, Saregama PLC

As the pioneers in their field, Saregama PLC has once again done what others have been unable to and that bring a legendry star on to UK shores for an elite crowd.

With Asha Bhosle arriving in the UK for her much awaited tour later this month, we caught up with Saregama PLC Europe’s Operations Head, Amarpal S. Gaind to find out more about what the concert has in store and future assignments.

How has the response been like when you first announced this Asha Bhosle concert?
The response to this concert has been excellent. Ashaji is a legend and to be able to see her live in concert at this stage of her career will be a privilege for any music aficionado. We are presenting her in a new avatar with the Naina Lagai Ke tour. She is teaming up with Shujaat Khan who is not just a celebrated ��sitarist�۪ but also an accomplished singer too. We have always been interested in creating new concepts for our shows and artists. Naina Lagai Ke tour fits this profile perfectly. It will be interesting for audiences to see two master musicians do what they do best.

How is this concert different to others that Asha Bhosle has done?
Well for starters she is not performing alone and not doing just classic Bollywood numbers that people expect her to sing. Ashaji will be performing with Shujaat Khan. She is obviously known for her contribution to Indian cinema. But there is so much more to her as an artist. The duo has put their skills together and have come up with something rather special – that all music lovers will appreciate.

Why did you choose Shujaat Khan as the pairing with Asha Bhosle for this concert?
Shujaat Khan is a master musician and when I first heard works from the album I was very impressed. There could be no one else to do this performance with her. The chemistry between Ashaji and Shujaat is electric and we wanted the audiences to see that.

Will the concert only feature tracks from the recently released ��Naina Lagai Ke�۪ CD?
No, we think of everyone who comes to our shows and we fully understand that there are going to be a few upset fans if they don�۪t get to hear some of their favorite Asha Bhosle songs. So yes, there are going to be some quintessential Asha Bhosle tracks from films like Umrao Jaan, Ijaazat and Yaadon Ki Bharat to mention a few along with tracks from the Naina Lagai Ke album.

What new concerts can we expect from Saregama in the UK?
We have Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan returning in the summer 2011. Dates will be announced on our website soon. We will also have a tour in October 2011 but are still in the planning stages for that.

Future album releases?
We are launching an album titled Sarhadein featuring a
variety of artists across generations, from Lata Mangeshkar to Nevaan Nigam (Sonu�۪s three year old son). Javed Akhtar conceived the album, initially as an Indo ��� Pakistan peace album but during the three years in the making of Sarhadein, a lot of water passed under the bridge so we decided to focus the album not on border relations but about music breaking all barriers in general. The lyrics are by Javed Akhtar and music composed by Mayuresh Pai. The album features tracks by Sonu Nigaam, Hariharan, Suresh Wadkar and Rekha Bhardwaj to mention a few.