I am one of those boring old fashioned souls who never seem to have a taste for popular music and this holds especially true for Bollywood tracks. I simply cannot fathom my head around the senseless lyrics and the soulless music. It all seems the same and none of the chart busters last longer than a year on my playlist. Except the songs of a few who have been redefining music in cinema. One of those few is Amit Trivedi.
Amit Trivedi broke into the commercial music scene with the success of his music in the movie ‘Dev.D’. The music was as unconventional and fresh as the movie and provided a new spin on ‘commercially viable’ music. Trivedi’s talent was recognised and he won the National Award for Best Music Direction as well as the RD Burman Award for New Music Talent.
‘Udaan’ followed after and so did ‘Aisha’. The uniqueness of Amit Trivedi’s brand of music was established in these movies- a predominance of acoustics, a stripped down musical arrangement and soft raw vocals. This characteristic sound runs recurrent in all of his movies, from ‘Sham’ in ‘Aisha’ to ‘Aahatein’ in ‘Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu’, ‘Zinda’ in ‘Lootera’ to ‘Manjha’ in ‘Kai Po Che’, often adorned in his own voice.
Moreover, he has also successfully incorporated different music genres throughout the course of his career, be it soft rock or contemporary pop or jazz. Amit Trivedi has to his credit songs such as ‘Behke Behke’ that features flamenco guitar, ‘Gal Mithi Mithi Bol’ that incorporates traditional Punjabi beats, the uber melodious ‘Sanwaar Loon’ and the energetic dub step ‘Aafaton Ke Parindey’, all of which are a proof of his love for experimentation.
Trivedi’s music has that feel of subtlety and elegance tinged with a dreamy and nostalgic vibe that renders it longevity. His music is not one that hits the charts and then disappears after a bang. His music never falls short of making you feel something, anything…like the songs that always have a new meaning to offer, that always have something new to be discovered in them. These are songs that never lose their charm. They are not merely notes strung together; they are melodies.
My ultimate Amit Trivedi playlist would comprise of the following. See if you can add some more-
1) Manmarziyaan – Lootera
2) Sham – Aisha
3) Behke Behke – Aisha
4) Iktaara – Wake Up Sid
5) Udaan – Udaan
6) Gubbare – Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu
7) Jhallah Wallah – Ishaqzaade
8) London Thumakda – Queen
9) Pardesi – Dev D
