Cover photo by Ishani Das
Delhi based neo-Hindustani classical duo Shadow and Light have released a new single titled ‘Yarum Illai’ in collaboration with celebrated playback singer Haricharan from the Tamil film industry. The duo being Pavithra Chari and Anindo Bose, this single marks their first original song in the language.
Yarum Illai’s lyrical narrative depicts the journey of seeking inspiration while creating art, and it also seamlessly lends itself within the mould of a love song. It is Shadow and Light’s first single out of a schedule for more to come in the coming months. This will be followed by their fourth album later this year. About the collaboration, the duo says “We had heard his work and were very impressed with his artistry, and in the sense of writing a Tamil original he was the best fit because of his experience in the language. The idea wasn’t really to collaborate with a ‘playback’ singer per say, but an artist with complimenting musicality to ours. And we are thrilled with the result!”
A somber Shadow and Light peculiar styled arrangement by Anindo Bose is successfully supplemented by Pavithra and Haricharan’s vocal delivery, which seems like a balanced dialogue between the vocals of the two singers. Pavithra who is a Tamilian living in Delhi, connects with her roots on this single as she took help from her mother to put down some of the lyrics. Haricharan too steers away from his world of film music and gets involved in the aspect of composition on this single. A collaborative effort through and and though, this single is another feather in the cap of these accomplished musicians. “Though he did not collaborate on the arrangement (that is completely Anindo), he did contribute the melody and lyrics for the bridge section! We liked his composition so much we kept it as is – since it was his first attempt at songwriting, he was also very excited to add to our existing structure.” says Pavithra.
