Amit paul-Save him from buri(Evil) Nazar

PATRICIA MUKHIM

Music, they say, can play upon our emotions and colour our moods. No one can listen to good music accompanied by soulful lyrics and remain untouched. The Northeast has always been the abode of music. Its people have naturally melodious voices, which can be heard flowing out of churches on Sundays.

Few if any have had the good fortune of voice training and modulation in this part of the world. It is not considered necessary since everybody sings in tune and sings from the pit of their stomachs, which is where good music originates.

Noted Carnatic singer Jayashri Ramnath says music is an extremely versatile medium of communication. It is capable of exploring all the features used in verbal communication but in explicit and unstructured ways. It is not without reason that mothers hum lullabies to put their babies to sleep.

Music lulls the senses into a different kind of emotional intoxication, bringing peace to the restless soul. Music is created in the deepest recesses of the human heart and one who sings the songs thus created must also be able to emotionally connect with the lyrics and tune.

We cannot but recall the golden voice of K.L. Saigal, Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar, all legends in their own right. Their songs evoked laughter and also tears of sorrow. Though the music and lyrics were created by Hasrat Jaipuri, Shankar-Jaikishen or Naushad, it was Rafi who lent his versatile voice to so many unforgettable melodies of Hindi cinema.

Lata Mangeshkar, India's living nightingale, continues to regale us with her inimitable rendition of O mere watan ke logon and other lilting tunes. Whenever we thought of Hindi music, it was Maharashtra that immediately comes to mind. But today this myth is broken.

Now the Northeast has ventured into Hindi music and with lan. Debojit Saha of Assam won the Zee Sa Re Ga Ma Pa all-India contest amid stiff competition from his peers. He went on to become the singing sensation of Bollywood. Saha is now a brand ambassador of Hindi music across the world.

Zubin Garg, also from Assam, has become famous for his song Ya Ali from Gangster. There are hundreds of undiscovered singing talents hidden in the hamlets of the Northeast. Unfortunately, this region has received undue attention for the wrong reasons. Insurgency has not only given us a bad name but it has also detracted the attention of youth from the performing and creative arts.

However, despite the encircling gloom, there is that small spark that continues to ignite the ambitions of a few who want to make a splash on the bigger canvas of television channels. India's new quest for rare talent from every part of the subcontinent has given an opportunity for people of the Northeast to rise and shine.

Amit Paul, the current hot favourite of Indian Idol III, a Sony Television programme, is a Shillong- born kid who was very clear in his mind that he would be a trailblazer in music one day. Not given to academic pursuits, Amit Paul has the combined voice of Rafi and Kishore synthesized into one unique symphony. On July 13, Amit sang the all time favourite of Udit Narayan, Nasha Ye Pyar Ka Nasha Hai.

Amit lit up the stage with his extraordinary performance and million-dollar voice. Critics who blog on U-Tube say that Amit has sung better then the original singer, Udit Narayan. Alisha Chinai, one of the judges, spontaneously got on to the stage to dance to Amit's song. Anu Malik was ecstatic and Shabana Azmi, the guest judge, was literally floored by his flawless voice and modulation. All of them believed Amit was a natural Indian Idol candidate. And to think that Amit was a wild card entry!

Amit Paul carries the hopes and aspirations of not just the people of Shillong or Meghalaya but of 40 million people of Northeast India. This is the opportunity to vote one of our own to fame. When Debojit Saha was struggling to make it to the top, in the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa show, Assam stood as one to vote him winner. Differences between the Barak Valley and the Brahmaputra valley eased out. In fact, the Assamese-northeastern identity became a primary symbol of identifying Debojit because it also gave the region its share of publicity. Such is the power of music.

Campaigns by Debojit Saha fans reached the nooks and corners of the region. Forgetting all differences, people put their fingers to their mobile phones and voted. Public Call Centres (PCOs) were kept open till late at night to facilitate voting by those with no mobiles or landlines. Politicians put their heads together to mobilise support for Saha. He had become a musical symbol of the region. This proactive campaign finally paid off.

Today, Amit Paul is in pretty much the same situation. He has proved his singing ability beyond all doubts. He has the looks of a winner. But he can only win if we from the Northeast do not just put our hands together for this new kid on the block but also decide and determine to vote for him so he can rock the nation. If he gets voted out of the Indian Idol platform, it will be only because of one thing -— that we did not vote for him because we could not care less who wins or loses. Or, we were too busy doing something else or because we think voting for Amit is a puerile activity.

If music is the selling point of this region then it is in music that we can make our mark and get noticed. We have legends like Bhupen Hazarika whose voice has left an indelible print on the musical annals of this country and who have created their own niches in Bollywood where the megabucks are. The reason why one is repeatedly referring to the Bombay film industry as the final destination is because that is where the big bucks stop.

In this era, music has got to be more than a private activity for self-entertainment. It has to become a money-spinner and if others can do it why not us? Amit Paul is one of the many aspirants to this fascinating world of Hindi music.

In terms of big contracts from cutting your own discs, a la Himesh Reshammiya, Bollywood is the place to be. We only have to look at Adnan Sami, an NRI, who saw the good sense of singing Hindi songs instead of singing in a language he is fluent in and has grown up with.

Amit Paul comes from a humble background. If he has made it to the finals today it is only because he has invested in what he believes in. Amit is a good role model for the thousands of young people who are often termed as dropouts merely because they do not reach the bars put up by our education system. It will be another proud moment for us in this obscure region if Amit Paul becomes the Indian Idol. At this juncture he needs our wholehearted support.

The least we can do is spare a moment to vote for Amit Paul on Fridays when this budding artiste is put to the test. This is, in fact, a great moment for all those non-resident Northeasterners to connect with their roots and see Amit sail to victory.

AMIT PAUL LIVING THE DREAM

Gail T. W. Thomas

JULY: He walked into the Indian Idol audition room rather timid and low on confidence. Moments later, much to his surprise, the judges and TV audiences were left in awe.

From being just another face in the crowd, 24 year old Amit Paul, born and brought up in Shillong is thrilled to now find a huge fan base all over the country.

Amit has been interested in singing for as long as he can remember. Coming from a business background he says that it can only be God who has given him his talent. "I don't know where I got my talent from. No body in my family is into singing", he says. So serious was he about singing that about four years ago he left his studies to pursue singing. That was just after his class 12. He has been performing in Shillong and different parts of Assam for the past six years.

Amit has not had any formal training but has taught himself. He listens to different songs of various languages and tries to understand and feel the song. This training has built in him the ability and interest to sing all genres of music, whether it is pop, rock or classical.

He was filled with nervousness as he went for his auditions. He said, "I was extremely unsure. I did not know if I would make it to the next level. But I tried my level best and I'm so so thankful to all the people who have supported me."

Before he goes on stage, no matter how nervous he is, Amit never fails to pray to God and think of his parents. It is a ritual of sorts. But once on stage he is at ease and feels right at home.

Participating in a competition such as Indian Idol, Amit, like others, have to face a lot of criticisms, especially from the judges. But Amit only takes them as constructive criticisms and works on them to better his performances. From a boy performing on insignificant stages and shows, his drive has made him a national star. His voice is filled with excitement as he says, "(I feel) very nice, very very happy. When I use to go out before I was like a normal person, but now people give me so much attention. They ask for autographs, gather around me and try to talk to me."

Amit enjoys listening to Sonu Nigam, Kunal Gajawala apart from many others. In his free time, in- between recordings and shoots, Amit likes to read 'tinkle' comics and play snooker.

Like most of us Amit is also a dreamer and says that he does not expect anything out of this competition but will "just go on doing my work and continue to enjoy singing". We hope that he succeeds and inspires others who have often wondered but were far too timid to live the dream.