Thank God I didn't miss this! Marvelous write up for a marvelous song. This is one of the best reviews I have ever read. . . Thanks Dasun.
On Wed, Feb 20, 2008 at 10:57 AM, Jai Kothari <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > sorry dasun.. i did not read the article earlier due to lack of > time..jst completed reading it and immidiately thought of mailing u > first..this is one of the most beautiful write ups i have ever read...i dont > like reading...but the very quote u have wrtitten made me read the entire > thng...i see myself in the song......trust me on that....had tears in my > eyes reading the last few lines...i too did not understand the deeper > meaning hidden in the song...jst no words to describe the > masterpiece....thanx for making my day.... > > LONG LIVE ARR!!! > > *Dasun Abeysekera <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>* wrote: > > As promised..here's my take on Do Kadam. Enjoy! :) > > Do Kadam – A Sublime Journey and A Sorrow that Lingers > > "If a music artist wants to blossom into a full-fledged person, it's not > enough if he knows only classical music; nor is it enough if he is > well-versed only in raagas and techniques. Instead, he should be a > knowledgeable person interested in life and philosophy. In his personal life > there should be, at least in some corner of his heart, a tinge of lingering > sorrow." > > When I first read this profound quote by ARR, it sparked, deep inside of > me, something very sincere and beautiful; these words may have been that > little pinch the sleeping artist within me, who I had forgotten due to the > constant pursuit of survival instincts and was consciously trying to > restrain by offering traditional societal expectations as excuses, needed to > rub his eyes and wake up! I had a natural interest in life and philosophy; > it was as if these subjects were written into my genes, and I was always > grateful to my parents and to my Buddhist upbringing for inculcating that > sense of understanding and intuitive wisdom so early on in my life which > made my life a little easier and more balanced during the typically > turbulent teen-ages, though it often seemed to outsiders a very difficult > and restrained one. It is this same intuitive sense of balance and > understanding, now I realize, that drew me to the naturally symmetrical > music of my life's early heroes - ARR and Yanni - at the age of 13 and made > me appreciate and grow with their exquisite music. But, until the moment of > reading this quote, I had not made the connection between these natural > interests of mine and the awe-inspiring and divine profession of the true > artist. What is lacking within this dormant artist that keeps him from > getting out of his cozy bed? What is this tinge of lingering sorrow that ARR > has in a corner of his heart? What sorrow could lie in the heart of this > man, who, to me, embodies all that is beautiful, happy, and heavenly? Is it > this sorrow that I lack? > > Years passed as an uninterrupted supply of beautiful music and incredible > artistry from the maestro continued to subconsciously alter my spiritual > state of being for the better while I contently lived with my latent artist > trying to figure out what this sorrow is and how and where is it that he is > going to find it. Then, in early 2004, I bought an album I had anxiously > awaited for quite some time; it brought together India's foremost painter – > M.F. Hussein – in his second directorial venture with India's foremost > composer – A.R. Rahman! I knew I was going to get magic from this album > well before its release! The music was true to expectations, very colorfully > crafted, and quite deftly and intricately woven with ARR himself attempting > to reach the abstract heights of an M.F. Hussein painting in the two > instrumental pieces; however, one song stood out every time I listened to > the entire album. It was something very special and the sounds and emotions > spoke to my heart directly; yes, this song was divine! Do Kadam gave me so > many goose-bumps each time I listened to it that I started to skip all the > other songs (except, perhaps, for Rang Hain) and play only that over and > over again; that is a high compliment given the quality of the entire album! > I did not understand the Hindi lyrics (by Rahat Indori) fully at first > except for a phrase here and there, though it was enough, I thought, to put > together a rough sketch of what the song was about. I was wrong! This song > could not be enjoyed in its fullest being by putting together its pieces in > a haphazard manner like I did. In fact, to this day, I find some deeper > meaning to the creativity in this song. As with any divinely inspired song, > the first few notes and sounds captured my attention: it was synthetic, it > was mystical, and it was vintage ARR! Enter the classy Sonu Nigam… > > Lyrics: > Zindagi, haath mila; saath chal, saath me aa; > Umr-bhar saath rahi > > Trans: > Life, take this hand; come, come along with me; > We will walk together forever > > And a gentle synth base guitar lick in the background picks up volume > lifting you up as if you were in a helicopter taking off from earth. > > Lyrics: > Do kadam aur, sahi, do kadam aur, sahi II > > Trans: > two more steps, all right, two more steps II > > …and a happily persistent string section leads the protagonist, (given the > movie's context, an artist: a writer), in a casual two step walk, guiding > him down a sun lit path towards a golden land as the music bathes you in > brilliant bright light. > > Lyrics: > Koi suraj ki dagar, koi sone ka nagar > Chaand ke rath pe chale, jahan tehre yeh nazar > > Trans: > Some sunlit path, some golden city > Walk in the path of the moon, where, this gaze would freeze > > And the synth lead guitar applies a slight break along the way followed by > a wonderful panoramic scan of the scenes, which beautifully sets up the next > lines. > > Lyrics: > Dhoop Daryaon mein hain, phir safar paon mein hain > Dil ka awara diya, doosre gaon mein hain > Aaon, chale hum wahin > Do kadam aur, sahi IV > > Trans: > There's sunlight in the rivers, there's journey in your legs > This wandering heart's lamp is in a different village > Come, let us go there > Take two more steps, all right IV > > Just listen to the magic created by the tangent chord that is touched just > for 'doosre gaon' before returning immediately to the base. And the same > persistent string section, almost turning around toward his follower from > time to time, gesturing with his hands to make haste, never stops saying > come on, two more steps! All right? Now as they get closer to this > mysteriously beautiful place, the grand Timpani starts to roar from a > distance and the majestic horns can be heard trumpeting its glory. Leading > up to the next narrative, the walk's momentum picks up with a lively conga > layering over the soft cymbals. > > Lyrics: > Khwaab dalte hain jahan, dil pighalte hain jahan > Aaon chalte hain wahin, woh zameen door nahin > Dosti hogi wahan, roshni hogi wahan > Us ujaale ke liye, jal chuke laakhon diye > Ek hum aur, sahi > Do kadam aur, sahi IV > > Trans: > Where dreams are fulfilled, where hearts melt > Come, let us go there, that land is not too far > Friendship will be there, light will be there > to light this place, many lamps have been burnt > We might as well be one of them > Two more steps, all right IV > > After this narrative, the string section returns with the conga drums, but > the background synth sounds fade out almost to a nightly silence, quite > appropriately setting up the mood for the next verse. > > Lyrics: > Kisiki awaaz hai? Sun. Yeh naya saaz hai, sun > Koun rehta hain sada? chalke dekhen to zara > Raah viraan, sahi, raath sumsaan, sahi > Har ghadi saath rahe, kitne gham saath sahe > Thor ghum aur, sahi > Do kadam aur, sahi IV > > Trans: > Who's voice is calling us? Listen. This is a new melody, listen > Who goes on forever? Come, let's go see > The path is lonely, agreed. The night is silent, agreed. > We have been together all along, we have suffered so much > Just a little more suffering, all right > Two more steps, all right IV > > The silence of the first two lines is nicely contrasted with the conga > beat picking up the momentum again for the difficult final stretch where > 'the path is lonely and the night is silent' providing the additional > impetus and enthusiasm needed to carry on the remainder of the journey; but, > the most beautiful moment of the song comes during 'kitne ghum saath sahe' > when a high pitched synthetic harmonica lingers almost clinging by a thread > to the artist's soul, as he reaches this worthy final destination; and now > loud and clear, the horns blow majestically, the timpani crash triumphantly, > and a choir of angels welcomes him to this mystical place of infinite > grandeur, sublime beauty, and immortality; and he knows that he has achieved > every artist's dream, and that all his struggles are well worth the reward: > he has created his own heaven in his mind! > > It took me, at the very least, a year to interpret all of this > mind-blowing creativity and truly come to grips with the deeper meaning of > the song; but after I had fully understood the lyrics and listened to the > lingering harmonica sound during 'kitne ghum,' I knew I found the answer to > my question: what is this lingering sorrow which ARR has in a corner of his > heart that is essential to being a great artist? To create such heavenly > beauty, divine feelings, and immortal masterpieces on earth, the true artist > and the sincere creator has to remain pure and warm at heart no matter how > vicious and cold the rest of the world may seem, he has to use in its > fullest capacity his imaginative powers, which he knows he is blessed with, > but requires him to let go of himself and find, and many-a-time, wait, for > those moments of divine inspiration, knowing, still, that after all that > mental and physical energy is spent, there is no guarantee that somebody > would have seen, read, or heard his creation and had been able to enter his > heart, mind, and soul and become one with him; for that is his divine duty: > to create a spiritually beautiful heaven on earth so that even a single > person, searching for a higher spiritual state, or maybe, hoping for a way > out of some meaningless existence, or even just looking for a momentary > escape from a hard day's pain, will see, hear, feel, and begin to wonder, > how is it possible? Where is this possible? I certainly did; and to express > my heartfelt gratitude, for ARR's 40th birthday, I wrote him this poem. > > A Sorrow that Lingers > > I look through the window; it's another cold winter morning. > The skies are so gloomy, and I see no flowers blooming. > I pour myself a hot cup of coffee and turn on the TV, > but I see nothing of hope I was hoping to see, > and when I sip my coffee, it is as cold as what I see! > > So I get into a hot shower, ponder the day ahead as it draws near, > but I snap out of it before the hot water runs clear. > I jump into my driver's seat, crank up the engine, > and while it warms up, I slip in my favorite CD. > > Tinkling drops of water, a saccharine female voice, > little splashes of water, and then a Ghattam grooves with spice. > I feel a cool shake on my shoulders, and a snappy tap on my fingers > my heart is full of warmth and I am already in motion. > > Then a moment comes which words cannot describe: > a man leaps in joy and I feel its vibe. > I too cry my heart out for I long to feel that joy, > it sends a thrill up through my spine, and I know very well why > > I see a 13-year old boy in shorts and shirt on a new day to start. > He's got a spring in his step, and a cassette in his hand, > no, he had a Rose in his hands, and it had bloomed in his heart. > He puts it in play and says, 'dad, that's A.R.Rahman!' > > I wake up to the calling of a soothing voice, he says > 'Zindagi haath mila, saath chal saath me aa, umra-bhar saath rahi he.. > Do kadam aur sahi, do kadam aur sahi, > do kadam aur sahi, do kadam aur sahi' > > And I am in motion again as I hear them beckon, > those crashing timpani and those majestic horns, > to a golden land where there's friendship and light > and to the peppy conga beat, I forget life's plights > and take two more steps with renewed delight > > I never knew a sorrow that lingers > could bring this much happiness > until I heard the beauty of your wonder > and felt the depth of your greatness > > ------------------------------ > Connect and share in new ways with Windows Live. 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