Vidya Vox

I think since the time that I was 12, I have this constant problem of having an earworm, which is a phenomenon where you are so obsessed with a single track that it keeps on playing in the head. I remember on my walk back from school (these are the very roads that I walk even now), there will always be a song to hum much to the consternation of strangers who look at me in a strange manner thinking that I am talking to myself.

Even now, there is this fun in singing a song for so long, learning new songs from lyrics mint or YouTube and pretending that you are in front of a huge crowd when you might just be in your glamour room having a bath. Scientists are of the opinion that to cure one earworm you need another new one; otherwise there is no cure for it.

Last year, one amazing singer that I came across is the peppy Vidya whose mashups add much to the original tracks so much that I have forgotten how they go. Like for example, the first song by her that I heard was the mashup Love Me Like U Do/Hosanna, which combines two favourites, soundtracks from Fifty Shades of Grey and Vinnaithandi Varuvaya respectively. Now, whenever I hum any of these songs, I have Vidya’s version playing in the head.

I don’t know how many times I have heard this mashup and this was one of the best earworms last year. I guess I am not the only one who adores her for her infectious energy and seductive voice. Hrithik Roshan tweeted “Vidya Vox, wherever u are , what an amazing voice u have. Listening mash up non stop!”. Her mashups are quite ingenious as can be seen from Calvin Harris How Deep is Your Love/ Balam Pichkari, Justin Bieber Sorry/ Kandukondein, Come Alive (original)/ Hasi and Selena Gomez Same Old Love/ Mere Sapnon Ki Rani. Her latest release is a remix of the Kerala boat song Kuttanadan Punjayile with English lyrics.

Vidya or Vidya Iyer was born in Chennai and was raised in the US. She is trained in classical music and has a degree in Psychology. She started posting her mashup videos on Youtube only last year and has become one of the celebrated artistes of the year. However, her popularity is not just limited to singing as she has become a fashion icon as well. She says in her blog that a lot of her fans are curious as to the clothes and accessories that she wears in the video that she has started posting details on where she has got them from.

Picture Courtesy: www.vidyavox.com

Musically Yours: Le Paponist

It has happened to me more than once that a song gets really stuck in my head that I hum it constantly (which is called an earworm ) much to my own annoyance. Then after listening to it a countless number of times doing various chores- household, academic and blogger- I get struck by the fact that I can really identify the singer's voice. So, I discover to my surprise that just like my accidentally discovered later turned favourite songs by Atif Aslam, Mohit Chauhan, AR Rehman, Arijit Singh and KK, my current playlist has many songs by the Assamese singer Papon. 

Papon is the nickname of Angarag Mahanta, the lead singer and founder of the folk-fusion band called Papon and The East India Company. He  is famous for the unique fusion of Assamese songs and new generation electronica. Be it the playfulness of "Kyon" (Barfi), the absolute magic of "Kaun Mera" (Special 26), the pathos of "Jiyein Kyun' (Dum Maro Dum), the yearning of "Humnava" (Hamari Adhuri Kahani) or the desire of "Moh Moh Ke Dhaage" (‘Dum Laga Ke Haisha), his soulful rendering makes listening to them an uplifting experience. 

My favourite is his Coke Studio version of Kaun Mera and I find myself on cloud nine when listening to it just like he sings in : 

Ho Gaya Hoon Tera Jabse, Mein Hawa Mein Hoon, Tera Asar Hain
( Since I became yours, I am in the air; it's your effect)

So this year, just by the number of times, I have listened to this song, I need to be called a Paponist! 

Musically Yours: 2015

At times, a very small change in thinking can bring about significant changes in life. For me, the most dramatic change last year was the acquisition of a Windows phone. Before that, I guess, I have been running somewhere in the Middle Ages of ignorance and darkness. Suddenly these observations shock me considerably:

·         That I can do so much with my phone

·         That I can leave so many chores unfinished and sit with my phone

·         That I can’t do without it any longer

·         That I can kill hours with it altogether

·         That I can listen to favourite songs endlessly

This year, the songs vary in theme and style, but they have managed to be a kind of foothold in a slightly confusing reality.

Most of these songs were accidentally stumbled upon but they have played in this habit of playing in the head so much that they have become part of yearly event calendar this year. The best of the English earworms are Ed Sheeran- Thinking Out Loud , Ellie Goulding- Love Me Like You Do, OMI- Cheerleader , Selena Gomez- The Heart Wants What It Wants and Alexandra Burke- Hallelujiah

Among the desi ones, the best song with each version vying with the other for its magic is Tere Bin; be it by Uzair Jaswal, or the song from Ek Paheli Leela sung by Tulsi Kumar that accompanies Sunny Leone’s assets or even the Bhojpuri version.  

So are the songs from Hamari Adhuri Kahani especially Yeh Kaisi Jagan Le Aaye Ho Tum, Samjawaan from Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya and Naina from Khoobsurat. However, the best cheer-up songs for me are Dheere Dheere recreated by Honey Singh and Gulabo from Shandaar. So are Vidya's remixes of Love Me Like U Do/Hosanna, Mere Sapnon Ki Rani/ Same Old Love and Balam Pichkari/ How Deep is Your Love. 

So, this post celebrates a year of songs played, replayed, lost, found or forgotten, just like every single year.