Dubai musicians pay tribute to India's golden girl, Hima Das

Two Dubai-based musicians got together to compose a tribute to Das - something worthy of praise.

Soon after Hima Das created history by becoming the first Indian athlete to clinch a gold medal at the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships in Finland earlier this month, she became the subject of  a hot debate and discussion throughout India. The athlete was lauded by many, but there were others who trolled her on social media, focussing on her shortcomings rather than her historic achievement. While all this was happening in India, out here, two Dubai-based musicians got together to compose a tribute to Das - something worthy of praise.
Nikhil Uzgare, aka Nik Uzi, the frontman of the popular Dubai rock band Point of View, and Dubai-based Indian singer Nishita Charles reworked the hit Bollywood track, Aashayein - sung by KK  in Nagesh Kukunoor's film, Iqbal - to pay tribute to Das.
Aashayein, which talks about hope, is dedicated to all those who dare to dream . like Das. It was the manner in which Das beat all odds  that inspired Nik to come up with the track. And the lyrics are  a fitting tribute to the track sensation.
"Hima Das's win came as a huge surprise. No one saw it coming. News channels lapped it up while some officials mocked her 'not so fluent English'. But for me, here was another kid (she's only 18 years old) who dared to dream and achieve the impossible regardless of what others thought of her," explained Nik on why he decided to dedicate the song to her.
Nishita, who  teamed up with Nik for the song, tells City Times all about the making of Aashayein and how she got into Bollywood music. Excerpts from an interview with the singer.

Since when have you been singing? What attracted you to Bollywood music?
I have been singing from a very young age. Put simply, music runs in my family. In my early days, I was exposed to all forms of music - from Rabindra Sangeet to Bollywood songs to ghazals to pop, rock and jazz. I grew up listening to a variety of  bands and composers like S.D. Burman, R.D. Burman, Salil Chowdhury, OP Nayyar, Mehdi Hassan, Dire Straits, Sting, The Doors and more.
Bollywood music was fabulous until 1980, and then there was a lull. But sometime around the 90s, it was movies like Roja and 1947: A Love Story that brought melodic music back on the scene. That's when I started listening to Indian music again. With the interest in Indie music growing and platforms like Coke Studio and Nescafe Basement showcasing fresh talent, we witnessed some  brilliant compositions and musicians.

Which singer has inspired you the most?
Well, I cannot say that any one particular singer has inspired me the most as each one has come at different stages of my life and I have learned from them all. But definitely Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar's versatility, Geeta Dutt's soulfulness, Shreya Ghoshal and Arijit Singh's melodious voices, Shubha Mudgal's ability to cut across genres have been inspirational.

Did  it ever cross your mind that you could be a playback singer?
Hopefully someday, I will get there, but right now, singing is just my happy space.

You've already released a single. Tell us about that.
I released my first single last month. It was a cover of a song from the soundtrack of the movie Aiyaary. The song was Lae Dooba, composed by Rochak Kohli and recreated by Atif Ali. It was very well received.
    Last year, I collaborated with Dubai-based artistes Mahesh Raghvan, Riyaz Shah, Rohit Jayakaran, Pradeep Kalipurayath and Emirati singer Adel Ebrahim on the occasion of India's Republic Day for the song Mile Sur. A  mix of Bollywood, Arab and electronic music styles, the song received 1.5m views on Facebook and was also covered by local and Indian media. Mile Sur aired on January 26 on City 101.6 FM.

Is this the first time you are singing with Nik?
Yes. We met for this song and became such good friends that we are now planning on doing some more songs together.

How did the song for Hima Das take shape?
Nikhil is a very talented and popular rock vocalist in Dubai. It was Bollywood singer and composer Neeraj Shridhar (of Bombay Vikings) who told Nik about me. One evening, I got a call from Nik asking me if I was interested in collaborating with him on a project. Needless to say, I was excited at the opportunity. I met him the next day to discuss Aashayein. For us, Hima Das was the epitome of determination and humility. So we decided to dedicate this song to her and others who inspire.

If given a chance, which Indian composer would you like to sing for?
Definitely Neeraj (Shreedhar) would be one of them, and who wouldn't dream of wanting to sing with the great AR Rahman. I am a huge fan of his music.

How can music lovers listen to your songs?
I'm on YouYube, so you can tune in to my channel.
How Nikhil rearranged Aashayien
Aashayien was completely rearranged and performed by Nikhil. "I wanted to give it a more chilled out, acoustic sound. I was going to do it solo initially. But then, when I met Nishita, I really liked her voice. Moreover, she's not really out on the music scene and I felt that a voice like hers needed to be heard. So I decided to get her onboard for Aashayien," said Nik.
According to the singer, though the movie Iqbal was based on cricket, the whole concept of the film could relate to anyone who dares to dream and hustles hard to achieve it. "Aashayien is one of my personal favourites by Salim-Sulaiman (from Iqbal), and I felt like putting out a version that would not disappoint. Hopefully, it hasn't disappointed anyone!" he added.
michael@khaleejtimes.com