MUMBAI: A.R.Rahman launched a new album for Saregama India called Timeless Classics by Srinivas. The songs on the album are sung, by singer Srinivas. Rahman is also said to have overlooked the making of the album.
Srinivas has lent his voice for more than thousand songs in films like – Lagaan, Sapnay, Dil Chahta Hai, Rajnikanth’s Robot amongst others.
In the Timeless Classics Srinivas, the songs are voiced by Srinivas himself and the songs are Indian classical ghazals, such as – Bhooli Bisri Chaand, Patta Patta Butta Butta, Rafta Rafta, Aab Ke Hum Bichde and many more.
It is the singer’s tribute to the ghazal singer Mehdi Hassan. Srinavas said, “This album has been a labor of love for me. It echoes my love for ghazals, and the one and only Mehdi Hassan saheb. He taught me, from afar, that music can touch the deepest recesses of one’s soul and liberate him from his humdrum existence. I am forever indebted to such great masters. The uniqueness of this album is that the arrangements are contemporary and not the traditional harmonium and tabla..So the ghazal finds itself a new garb. Of course care has been taken to retain the essence and the spirit of the ghazal. I must thank my friend Hentry Kuruvila for helping me find the way and for making the musical arrangements of this album truly spectacular. Hentry’s dedication to his music is what makes this album special. And thanks to all the amazing musicians who have played in this album. Their creative inputs have enhanced the musical value of this album. My sincere gratitude to Sivakumar of AM Studio for mixing and mastering the album. I must also thank my friends, at Saregama India Ltd, who have made the release of this album possible, the right, legal way. And, last and definitely not the least, I can’t thank AR Rahman, my mentor, enough, for his valuable inputs and guidance in shaping the album.”
Saregama India head of Music Adarsh Gupta comments on the album saying, “Saregama has had a long standing presence in the Ghazal genre with renditions from the biggest names of the past. We believe this genre is in urgent need of revival and hence we constantly look for new offerings in this space. The prospect of Srinivas rendering some of the most popular ghazals from the past presented an interesting dimension for us to back.”
