Ishan Krishan on crafting 'Tera Banke Rehna' and collaborating with Shirley Setia
Musical spaces in the indie scene have been offering audiences a range of exciting artistes who present a wide array of songs. While today the spectrum of genres often mixes and the emotions are often felt irrespective of the associated form of music, sounds like those of Ishan Krishan’s music begin to feel like that familiar tune that listeners once had a personal connection with and then forgot for a long time. It is often revisiting these tracks that reminds us of memories associated with those tracks. Ishan’s latest release, Tera Banke Rehna, sonically functions in that space. Embedded in the roots of simple soft pop arrangements and an even simpler tale of love, this track (also featuring singer Shirley Setia) is a quiet discovery of, “the true essence of love,” as Ishan puts it. We catch up with the singer to talk about Tera Banke Rehna and how its collaboration came about.
Crafting memories through music: Ishan Krishan on his indie pop journey and the making of 'Tera Banke Rehna'.
Tell us about the thematic and narrative idea that inspired Tera Banke Rehna, including the visuals of the music video?
The idea behind Tera Banke Rehna was simple: to make a love song that everyone can relate to and that is catchy in the sense that it keeps bringing people back to it. I just wanted to express the true essence of love in a simple yet impactful manner. For the visuals and music video, a big chunk of the credit goes to the team behind it, which did a great job coming up and executing the idea. All I wanted to ensure was that the video kept the song’s simplicity intact!
What studio moment made you realise Tera Banke Rehna had captured the emotional weight you aimed for?
I think the groove is the backbone of every song. And for this song, the groove was defined the moment the bass and drums sat together in the production. Coincidentally, those were the first two elements that were laid down by the producer, Vaibhav Pani and the moment he played me the groove, I knew that the song was taking shape exactly as I wanted it to.
How did the Shirley Setia and Vaibhav Pani team-up for the track? What did each uniquely bring to the recording process?
Honestly, the collaboration came together because of Universal Music Group for which I am really grateful for. But, in the process, we became great friends, due to which there was a very comforting, yet creative flow of energy in the studio. Vaibhav Pani brought the entire soundscape to life with this unique style of production and Shirley made the song even more beautiful with her soft yet expressive vocals.
How do you protect the raw, intimate feel of your acoustic or indie demos when shaping them into a full-scale pop release?
In my opinion, the foundation of any song is the chords and chord progression throughout. Once the chords are figured out, the production can be moulded in whatever direction we want to go, yet keeping the original feel intact.
As an artiste carving out a distinct niche in the indie pop space, what has been the most rewarding part of creating music directly for the audience alongside your steepest learning curve?
I think independent music is slowly, but finally, finding its place in the hearts of the Indian audience. And I love being a part of that process. The most rewarding part for me is hearing from my audience once they listen to my new songs. I feel lucky to have such a responsive audience that resonates with my music! My steepest learning curve has been building an online/social media presence, which portrays my true self to my audience, but at the same time, not going too far with it.
Tera Banke Rehna is streaming on all audio platforms.