Archive for the ‘Song’ Category
Hindi TV Serials – Long running music talent program – new season of Indian Idol on Sony TV
On April 28, 2010 in Drama, Hindi Serial, Indian Idol, Music, Reality Show, Singing, Song, Sony, TV, Talent, Video
Indian Idol is a long running serial on Sony TV, now running on the 5th edition (the show itself being modeled on a popular American serial of the same type and format). The concept of the show is fairly simple; people from all over the country can apply to showcase their talent (and by now, the auditions of Indian Idol are huge, with a large number of people from all over the country wanting to apply), and then take part in several rounds, being judged by eminent musicians and singers (a jury of 3, out of which Anu Malik seems to be the ever-present member).
Over a period of time, the winner of the contest gets a lot of fame, the opportunity to get a break into the singing industry, and also huge awards from the sponsors (in this case, a 1 year contract with Sony BMG, and also 1 crore as prize money). The winner of the First Indian Idol was Abhijeet Sawant, who is also one of the presenters for the show, the other being Prajakta Shukre (who placed 4th in the first season of Indian Idol). The judges for this season have been changed, with Anu Malik remaining (he remains the judge with the sharpest tongue, claiming that he is a straight talking person), with the others being the singer, Sunidhi Chauhan, as well as the musician and singer Salim Merchant. Both of them are a bit softer on the contestants, but otherwise have their own opinions, and it is also pretty clear that they will take their own decisions (not swayed by Anu Maik). In addition, it is also rumored that the channel would prefer that there be always some amount of conflict so that the show also remains interesting.
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Music reality program – Star Plus – Amul Music Ka Maha Muqqabla, a music contest between teams
On March 28, 2010 in Competition, Contest, Hindi Serial, Melody, Music, Reality Show, Singing, Song, Star Plus, TV, Talent, Video
This was a reality contest, of the music genre, with 6 teams. Typical reality contests are between individuals striving to become an overall champion (like the Indian Idol), so this type of contest is more interesting. The show appeared on Star Plus, starting on December 13, 2009, with a total of 13 weeks, lasting till March 2010.
The show was compered by Ayushmann Khurrana, with the teams fighting it out bitterly. In the case of people such as Himesh Reshammiya, the contest could really become bitter, with him being sarcastic or taunting on many occasions. The teams had some well known singers (with many of them having come from some of the music programs). Within each round, there are 5 contests (what this means is, every episode would have 5 contests), with all members of the team (including the leaders) having to sing.
The teams were led by the following well known personalities (and their team members):
Shaan – Debojit Saha, Anwesha, Harshit Saxena, Shadab Faridi
Shreya Ghoshal – Abhas Joshi, Ujjaini, Aneek Dhar, Rehman Ali
Mohit Chauhan – Amey Date, Hemachandra Vedalal, Ravi Shukla, nikitha Nigam
Mika – Lakhwinder Wadali, Toshi Sabri, Himani Kapoor, Tajinder Singh Ahuja
Shankar – Rahul Vaidya, Sharib Sabri, Sanjeev Kumar, Neeti Mohan
Himesh Reshammiya – Raja Hasan, Vinit Singh, Munawwar Ali, Ashwariya
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Movie – Abhimaan (1973) – A remarkable movie from Amitabh’s early career
On January 26, 2010 in Bollywood, Lyrics, Marriage, Melody, Movie, Romance, Singing, Song, Video
Abhimaan was released in the year 1973, the year that saw Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bhaduri officially tie the knot and become husband and wife. In fact they got married just seven days prior to the filming of the song ‘Teri Bindiya Re”. For many industry watchers the plot of the film could have become a real life incident, had Jaya Bhaduri not put on the breaks on her career after her marriage. People still speculate as to whether real life would have imitated reel life had not the superstar’s wife sacrificed her career. However all that is conjecture and takes away from the breath taking sensitivity of this wonderful film.
Subir Kumar (Amitabh Bachchan) is a popular singer who rules over millions of hearts courtesy his songs. His dashing good looks and silken voice are especially irresistible to his legions of female supporters. Subir himself is a carefree young man who enjoys his stardom and his bachelorhood. Chandu (Asrani) is his manager cum best friend and someone keeps him rooted to reality. Subir goes to meet his aunt (Manju Mausi, Durga Khote) and there he meets Uma, whose golden voice enthrals him and whose earthy unaffected charm attracts him. He ends up falling in love with Uma and the two ties the knot.
Movie – Mr. Natwarlal (1979) – Starring Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha
On January 22, 2010 in Bollywood, Lyrics, Melody, Movie, Music, Song, Video
Mr. Natwarlal, the film releases in 1979. Starring superstar Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha it features some superb song tracks and a very interesting story line. It also has Amitabh Bachchan crooning for the first time for any film of his and the number “Mere Paas Aao, Mere Doston” has continued to entertain kids and adults down the years. In fact the song even fetched him a Filmfare nomination as Best Playback Singer (Male) along side being nominated for the Best Actor Award for the same film.
The story of the film resolves around Natwar (title role played by Bachchan himself) who lives with his beloved older brother and caretaker, police officer Girdharilal (Ajit). He has been assigned the case of apprehending notorious gangster Vikram Singh ( Amjad Khan). But the wily criminal entraps the honest officer and gets him arrested, dismissed from employment and imprisoned. The young Natwar remains a silent spectator to his brother’s victimization and swears to take revenge. He grows up and creates a secret identity for himself, posing as a powerful and mysterious underworld figure named (eponymous) Mr. Natwarlal. He becomes a modern-day Robin Hood, who steals from the rich and bad to help the poor and good.
He is successful in locating Vikram Singh who resides in the hilly regions of North India. Accordingly he relocates himself to be in the same area as his enemy. He also finds himself falling in love with a local girl (Rekha) who reciprocates his feelings. However punishing Vikram Singh proves to be a difficult task as he is a formidable presence in the area. On top of that he has to convince the suspicious villagers that he is not the ‘bad’ guy and tackle a man-eating tiger. Whether he is able to ultimately avenge his brother’s ill fortune and bring Vikram Singh to his knees forms the climax of the film.
