There are songs that grow on you and there are songs that you love from the very first listen. The recent-most drop by music producer Kanishk Seth, Maenziraat (sung by Aabha Hanjura), belongs to the latter category. The profusely musical notes of the santoor in the song transported us to the valleys of Kashmir in seconds while the use of beats and clapping had us grooving as if we were at some ethereal wedding celebration. To understand the creative process behind Maenziraat, we dive deep into conversation with Kanishk as he opens up about the making of the song, why Rangi Saari became so successful and what his lessons are from his mom and veteran singer, Kavita Seth.
What inspired you to create Maenziraat?
It happened very organically. We wanted to create a song in the folk-fusion space, highlighting Kashmiri instruments like rabab, santoor and a few other elements that brought the essence of Kashmir to life.
Take us through your process of creating the sonic landscape of the song?
When I release music independently, I make sure that it has a good blend of folk or Indian semi-classical/classical elements — be it in the instrumentation or vocals with refreshing contemporary electronic music. In this song, my process was more or less the same: I wanted to record the santoor, rabab and claps but with a nice groove. The idea was to focus more on Kashmiri culture.
The visual artwork of the song is really stunning. How did that fall into place?
A lot of discussions went into the visual art of the song. I would like to credit Shikha Sharma and Adarsh Panicker, who have been my constant collaborators since 2021, for the fabulous job. With Maenziraat, we were very particular that we wanted to show a nice blend of both the prevalent religions in Kashmir and how the mehendi raat event takes place before a wedding. So, you can see some really interesting elements in the artwork — there are rabab players, santoor players and one particular dancer in the middle performing the popular bacha nagma dance, which is usually performed by men. There are some women singing and putting mehendi on the bride as well.
Newer renditions of Kashmiri wedding songs have always been lovingly accepted — be it Roshay or Bumro. Why do you think the sub-genre appeals to listeners so much?
There is this instant connection you feel while listening to any folk song, since the roots are so deep inside us. It does not matter if you belong to a certain culture, you can relate to any form of folk music.
Conservatives believe such renditions also water down the essence of the original songs. What is your take on that?
The best example that I can share is of Rangi Saari, which we released during COVID-19. I grew up listening to the Shobha Gurtu version — a thumri in dadra — with a different time signature. But when I made a different version of the song, I did it out of pure love for the song and with the undying spirit to experiment with newer renditions. And while I was trying to do that, I realised that it is very important to keep the soul of the song intact while making new renditions of the song. What worked with Rangi Saari was the fact that there is electronic music but I did not confine the vocals that have been sung beautifully by my mother, Kavita Seth. The whole idea is to give respect and space to an artiste who is from that form. And the moment you do that, you’re essentially trying to collaborate with the artiste.
On that note, what is the one advice about music you have received from your mother Kavita Seth that you will take to your grave?
The biggest advice that I’ve absorbed from her was to keep the ego away while you’re working and be more open during collaborations. Also, she’s always made me believe in expression during a music session more than how in tune the vocals are, as it is always the expression that stays in the song.
What next can we expect from you?
Lots of indie music, songs for web series’ and films. Oh, and the biggest one – Coke Studio! From March 14, you can also catch my latest song with Hanita Bhambri and Devashri Manohar for the series Big Girls Don’t Cry on Amazon Prime Video.
Quick Five
Your favourite raga?
Jhinjhoti
Your favourite album?
Continuum by John Mayer
Your favourite music director?
Trent Reznor, AR Rahman
Your all-time favourite singer?
Kavita Seth
Your favourite contemporary song?
Dil Gira Dafatan by Ash King and Chinmayi
Maenziraat is streaming on all leading music platforms.
Email: prattusa@newindianexpress.com
X: @MallikPrattusa