What I am doing these holidays

Ah, this is the holiday season for me. And I am enjoying the change in the season - from winter to summer. It's good to see the sun getting hotter and hotter day by day (it'll be better if the sun gets hottest, so that I can sleep under the AC!). Most of the students these days are busy in their exams, parents are busy in their office work and I am busy to find a thing that can keep me busy :)

Well here are somethings I found which succeded in keeping me busy:

Blog: Although, I am not updating it with a good speed, but still it's keeping me busy for sometime (like now). I'll write whenever I want to, otherwise Blogging will seem like a punishment to write everyday, and it'll burst my holidays too.

YouTube: Yup, actually this little (?) site is keeping me busy for hours. I watch Sonu Niigaam's videos and other singers' performances to keep my singing spirit up.

Music Learning: I've started learning Classical Music (Indian) from my Guruji. And I hope it will always be interesting while keeping me busy. Music flows in my blood, actually. In fact, one day I shall be struggling in Bombay (aka Mumbai) to become a playback singer. And one day, I WILL BE a playback singer - note it!

Aamir's Blog: Yeah, Aamir Khan is back on his Blog with updates. I'll spend sometime reading his blogs and commenting there while hoping that I can get a response (I've never gotten one).

So Happy Holidays to myself! I'll be back here within a week with something new.

Best Sonu Niigaam Concert!

I was surfing on YouTube recently and as a BIG Sonu Niigaam fan, I found this concert to be the best he has ever done! It consists all his best songs from Soniyo, Mere Haath Mein, Mera Rang De Basanti Chola to Dil Mangta Hai Dildaar. I know what you are thinking now, "Oh, it seems to be a very nice concert," Well, it is! And its's a must watch to all Sonu fans. Here is it:


Part 2:


Part 3:


Part 4:


Part 5:

Translation: Soniyo (Raaz - The Mystery Continues)

The sweet new track Soniyo is one of the best songs sung by Sonu Niigaam and Shreya Ghoshal. And I've loved it every time I listened to it. It's such a beautiful song, and Sonu has sung it on many occations, especially on the stage of Indian Idol on which he came as a mentor. The music to this song is given by Raju Singh, who has composed background scores of many TV shows and films. Sonu and Raju have been good friends for a while, and I really enjoyed this interview. (That's a must-watch interview if you liked the song). Here's the video of Sonu performing the song on stage:



Here are the lyrics of the song (my translation is at the bottom of the post):

Baby, come stand by my side
Come and be my guiding light
I’ll be what you want me to be
I’ll give all my love in whole of my life

Soniyo, o soniyo
Tumhe dekhta hu to sochta hu bas yahi
Tum jo mera saath do, saare gham bhulake
Jee lu muskuraake zindagi
Tu dede mera saath thaam le haath
Chahe jo bhi ho baat, tu bas de de mera saath
Tu dede mera saath thaam le haath
Chahe jo bhi ho baat, tu bas de de mera saath

I get this feeling now, I cannot wait no longer
I know your love will keep me happy
Will keep me stronger
I get this feeling now,
I cannot live without you
I know your love’s the only one so true

Raho me, tanha hu saath le chal yun
Sang tere safar poora karun
Kya kahu ae zindagi
Tu hai meri saans, rehna tu paas har ghadi
Tu dede mera saath thaam le haath
Chahe jo bhi ho baat,
Tu bas de de mera saath

Tujh ko jo, paaya toh hai yeh lagta kyu
Baho me bas teri mehfooz hoon
Tum bano, saaya mera, zindagi mein aao
Zindagi bitaao bas yahi
Tu dede mera saath thaam le haath
Chahe jo bhi ho baat
Tu bas de de mera saath
Tu bas de de mera saath


Translation:

Darling, O darling,
When I see you,
I just think that if you're with me,
I can live a true life forgetting all the sadness,
You, just be with me, put your hands in mine,
Anything may happen, but you should just be with me.

I am alone in my way,
Please take me with you,
so that I may complete the journey with you,
What can I say, my life?
You are my breathe, be always with me.

After getting you, why is there the feeling
that I am safe only in your arms,
You do become, my shadow,
Come into my life, and spend yours with me,
You, just be with me, put your hands in mine,
Anything may happen, but you should just be with me.
---

A great song overall. You should buy the music CD or you can listen to it this link. Hope you like the soundtrack!

Classically Mild: Sonu Niigaam at his classical best!

Today, I'd like to review Sonu Niigaam's private album which released last year. The album was brilliant and by listening to it, one can estimate how much hard-work has been done behind it. The soundtrack is superb and Sonu has even done a video on one song, which I will share now. Hit play firstly and listen to the superb song, read the post next.

The song I like the most is Lamha Lamha Yeh Bole, which gives a simple message that life is a bed of roses -- if lived properly. It also conveys the message that we should greed money in the line "Thoda paisey ko lalchayen..." So the lyrics are very touchy.

Opposite to the first song, the second one is Sochta Hoon Main, read the lyrics: "Insaan jee ke paata kya hai (what does human gain through life?)". The first song was that life is great and the second is what does human gain through life. Isn't this a little bit confusing? Anyway, the song is also good and the drum use in the starting in flawless. Crecit goes to the music composer - Deepak Pandit. The lyrics are written by Ajay Jhingran.

Then there's the third song about a wife missing her husband and calling her back home. Soona-Soona des kahey aaja re, which is the opening line of the song. The taan (voice shaking) at "Soona Soona" is amazing. As a singing learner, I tried to do it, but I found it very difficult. I think Sonu had took much time in preparing it.

After that, there is Bheege-Bheege Nayan Jalen Jiya, which is a very sad song. If one is in love, this song serves the best. Do I need to say more?

Dhanya-Dhanya Naari Jeevan conveys the message that womens' life is dedicated to others - as wives, mothers and sisters. They never think of themselves, but dedicate their whole life to satitate our (mens') desires.

The two other great songs in the album are - Chalki-Chalki Chandni Mein and Sooratiya Matvaari. Chalki... is a very sweet romantic song, whereas Sooratiya is a Raga.

There's not even a single song which may bore someone. And here's the video I was talking about:

And here's the release of the album on the platform of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li'l Champs:


Sonu speaking at the launch of the album:


Overall its a fantastic album which gets four stars. If you're a music lover, and you've missed this one, the loss is certainly yours. Go buy it now, and enjoy the soundtrack!

Delhi 6: Good but below my expectations

To start with, I really expected a lot from this movie as it starrs Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor in the lead roles, but overall it didn't fulfill my expectations. Now that doesn't mean that I am disappointed by the movie. It was a good movie and I really liked the characters in the film. Having said that, the weak thing I feel about the movie is its story. If you've also watched the movie, you can understand what I meant (yup, that 'Kala Bandar' thing!).

Excepting the story, I really enjoyed this movie overall. And I got a chance to see my favorate old actor once again -- Rishi Kapoor in a fabulous role. **The line he said, "Pyaar karte ho to izhaar karo, varna meri tarha khali makaan khareedte reh jaogey" is great** I liked his performance the most. At that age, he has done a superb acting. I should watch the films he did when he was young :) Amitabh Bachchan was in a guest appearence.

The cinematography was a little weak at the starting and the end. But in the middle the director showed his talent, right? The background score is fitted at right places making the film more fun. And I saw Om Puri after a long time. Where was he?!

A.R. Rahman's music always takes time to grow on me. Finally, now it has grown over me and I like the soundtrack. It was fabulous. Again I say fabulous. The song Rehna Tu steels the show with Masakalli being at number two. All the other songs were also refreshing. Perhaps, Rahman should have gotten an Oscar for this film. Wasn't its music better than that of Slumdog's?


Don't know why, but I am falling in love with all the newcomer heroines. Like I falled in love with Genelia D'Souza after seeing Jaane Tu... And now after seeing Delhi 6, I love Sonam. Hmm... which newcomer will be my love now: keep guessing! :)

Movie Rating - 3.5/5 (Very Good)

Music Rating - 4.2/5 (Excellent!)

Its one of those movies you can watch with your family (except a few little scenes!) ;-)

Here's a trailer:

Celebrity Blogging

We all know that celebrity blogs are some of the most popular sites on the net. The celebrities use their blogs to discuss and promote their films. And the most popular blogs are of Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan. They've used their sites to promote their upcoming films, and now some other celebrities, inspired by the two, have started their own sites.

The first name is Lara Dutta, who recently started her own site: http://mylaradutta.com/, which she told that will contain news, gossip and stories about her and her films. And inspired by Lara, another person coming in the net world is Celina Jaitley, whom you can find at http://mycelinajaitley.com/. Kareena Kapoor was about to start her very own site, but because of some problem, it got delayed.

Now that's not the point of my post. The point is - all the celebrities use their blogs just to promote their films, not to interact with the fans or to make some friends. Aamir remembers of his blog when his film is about to release. He wrote many posts on the release of Taare Zameen Par as well as Ghajini. But after that, he was just disappeared from his site.

Karan Johar also owns a blog. You can visit his blog and see the updates - the last one was in November. He is, perhaps, busy in the production/direction of My Name Is Khan. I am sure when the film will be releasing, he'll suddenly come back with, "Oh, I am sorry for not blogging for quite a while"! When Dostana was released, Karan wrote a long ('long' did I say?) post on it. And one excerpt:

The “Dostana” website is up (http://www.dostanathefilm.com) and can also be linked via the main Dharma Productions website. Also, the music released today. Again I would love to hear what you think of the soundtrack once you give it a listen.

All actors say they don't use their sites in marketing, but their saying is not the truth, is it? These were, of course, my thoughts. But I'd like to know yours; what do you think about celebrity blogging?