Music veterans overwhelmingly feel old wine in a new bottle isn’t a trend that bodes well for Bollywood
Subhash K Jha (DNA; August 6, 2016)


‘To eliminate the original is a very different task’ - Lata Mangeshkar
“I think it is principally incorrect for singers to give voice to others’ songs. Let me recall an incident. There was a time when I’d sing a lot on stage. I was once asked to sing a song by Suraiya. I refused. The organisers argued that I’d do full justice to the song. But according to me, a Suraiya song was a Suraiya song in the public’s mind. To eliminate the original is a very difficult task. Once someone asked my opinion on a song of mine that another singer had sung. I said, “Dekho main unees hoon aur woh bees hai. Lekin mein apni jagah pe unees hi rahungi, woh nahin ho sakti. One of my tracks Thoda Resham Lagta hai composed by Bappi Lahiri for the film Jyoti and made into a track by the American rap band Truth Hurts. Quite frankly, I didn’t remember this number at all. When I heard it in the number by Truth Hurts, I asked my family where it was from. It was they who told me that I had sung it in a film called Jyoti. I had no idea who Truth Hurts was. I didn’t pay much attention to the song Thoda Resham Lagta Hai. I didn’t mind it being used in the American song because they haven’t tampered with my voice or the composition in any way. It’s far more preferable to the remixes in our country.”

‘No point clinging to the past’ - Asha Bhosle
The world has moved on. Earlier, the female singer sang at a high pitch and the male singer at a low pitch. Now that has been reversed. There’s no time for slow soft sentimental songs. No point in clinging to the past and pining for nostalgia. If you remember, happy occasions whether it is the mehndi ceremony or a wedding, have always been celebrated with songs. Every individual wants to dance and sing. Rhythm ka zamana hai. No one listens to the words. You can’t stop the world from moving on. If you try you’ll get left behind. It’s not as if we don’t have talented singers. Sukhwinder Singh is inviolable. I am open to singing any kind of songs as long as the words are not cheap. People at my age are confined to retirement. I am still singing. The language isn’t of primary importance as long as I sing something that I and my fans are satisfied with. I’ve done two albums of his remixes.

When I did Rahul & I, I wanted to be faithful to the original. But my son Anand, who’s a big fan of Burman Saab and who looks after all my interests, told me to just leave it to him. I surrendered to him. He designed it according to today’s tastes. And he was right. The album was a resounding success. No one can stop others from doing re-mixes. People are forever cashing in musical names. You’ll see big posters of Lata Didi and mine at concerts. They turn out to be shows of our songs sung by other singers. CDs have our big pictures and a small ones of the actual singers. Music and musicians have suffered heavy losses because of these deceptive imitations. But what to do? Duniya aisi hi hai. You can’t fight it. But please, if you doing remixes, do be thoughtful towards the original. I didn’t tamper with one note, one lyric...no changes at all. Only the instruments have been modernised. As for the cynics, they’re bound to have their say. When some years earlier, I did my songs of RD Burman in the album, Rahul & I was criticised even by those who were my admirers. But I remember a four-year-old boy at a restaurant coming up to me to sing, Piya Tu Ab To Aaja. I was so happy that a new generation would be familiar with RD’s tunes.

‘Hindi music is finished’ - Amit Kumar
From the day remix songs and even cover versions of popular songs started, I immediately said to myself, ‘The downfall of Hindi film music has begun.’ Whether it is a renewal of the original’s shelf-life or a sign of desecration, I don’t know. All I know is, Hindi film music is finished. I’ve heard some re-mixes of my father (Kishore Kumar)’s songs which made me shiver.”

‘Nothing beats the high of composing an original’ - Shankar Mahadevan
It all depends how one does it without destroying the aesthetics of the original composition. On the plus side, these classics are made accessible to younger generations who have probably never heard these songs. But due credit must be given the original composer. Sometimes these remixes are embarrassing to listen to. But all said and done, there is nothing to beat the high of composing an original song.”

‘Directors get desperate’ - Lalit Pandit
An alarming number of songs are being re-recorded and reshaped with modern programming and also a lot of modulation in style of singing is also being done. I wonder why! Firstly,the older song is already popular and heard by generations of people and since there is familiarity with the tune, what is the point of re-mixing the song? Why would we want to hear Lataji’s Lag Ja Gale or Ashaji’s Dum Maro Dum in any other voice? Producers and directors are desperate looking to have a hit in their films. This is an easier way to achieve success. Secondly, it’s easier for composing for a composer because then there is nothing to compose,except rehash the already composed song. It saves a lot of trouble and hard work for both teams, composer and producer/director. I wouldn’t say that composers today are not capable. It’s just that directors get desperate and sometimes don’t even know what they want. It’s at this stage that an old song rehash option is worked on.”

‘They’re just attempts to cash in on original songs’ - Adnan Sami
Remixes are nice when done with a ear on nostalgia. But sometimes, they are just attempts to cash in on iconic songs. I wouldn’t want to do a re-mix of a Bahon Mein Chale Aao or Lag Ja Gale because Lataji has taken the songs to the pinnacle of perfection. You can’t take them any further.