Guru Randhawa, Saba, Irrfan and Sukhbir post a song shoot
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; March 31, 2017)

Cultural ties between India and Pakistan, which had strained last September, now seem to be limping back to normalcy. Or so it seems, post elections in Uttar Pradesh and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls here.

Irrfan is filming three promotional tracks for his next project, Hindi Medium, with Pakistani actress Saba Qamar in Tbilisi, Georgia. A unit hand says, “Saba and singer Atif Aslam flew down from Pakistan while Sukhbir came from Dubai. Fellow composers Guru Randhawa and Arjun arrived from the US. All of them were quite ecstatic about the shoot.”


Saba Qamar with Ahmed Khan and Atif Aslam on the set in Georgia

One of the songs is a fresh spin on Guru and Arjun’s popular number, Suit Suit, which will feature Irrfan and Saba along with them. The actors also shot for a romantic number, Hoor, sung by Atif and composed by Sachin-Jigar, apart from Sukhbir’s chartbuster, Tare Gin Gin. The shoot began on March 24 and wrapped up yesterday.

Another unit hand says, “We finished the shoot in no time. Everyone in Tblisi was quite overwhelmed to have film faces in their midst. The media and the crowd stood for hours to catch a glimpse of Irrfan.”

Producer Dinesh Vijan considers his latest film album special. Says Vijan, “I wanted to collaborate with a diverse variety of musicians for an original soundtrack, so this is a tick off that bucket list. I can promise you that this will be a memorable album.” Co-producer Bhushan Kumar says, “These are super-hit cult songs and we are confident that the audience will love their recreated versions in the film."
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Soumya Vajpayee Tiwari (MID-DAY; March 31, 2017)

While actors from across the border became the centre of attention following the Indian Motion Picture Producers' Association's ban of Pakistani artistes and technicians in Bollywood, the disappointment of the other artistes affected by the move, including Pak singers, rarely got an audience.

Following the September 2016 Uri attacks, which prompted the ban, prominent Pak singers were out of work on this side of the border. But art has managed to break boundaries.

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan had lent his voice to a song titled 'Rog Jaane' for Akshara Haasan's upcoming film, 'Laali Ki Shaadi Mein Laddoo Deewana'. While the makers wanted to drop the love track, which was recorded before the Uri attacks, to avoid controversy, the film's music composer, Vipin Patwa, says he managed to convince them to retain it.

Speaking exclusively to mid-day, Vipin says, "I thought replacing his voice would be disrespectful. I managed to convince the makers to retain his version. [There would be room for controversy] if we had recorded the number post September."

When contacted, the film's producer, T P Aggarwal, admits they wanted to "play safe". "We didn't want to offend anyone. The song is amazing, right from the composition, to the lyrics, and then there is the brilliance of Rahat saab's voice."

'Rog Jaane' is picturised on Akshara and Vivaan Shah in Kashmir.