They enthralled us and entertained us with their eclectic mix of peppy and soul-stirring music. And this time they are back with a bang and have gone global too.
Foreign shores
Kailasa, the troika of singer Kailash Kher along with musicians Paresh and Naresh, are back with their third album Kailasa Chaandan Mein. The album will be released this month internationally by New York-based World Music Label, Cumbancha Records, while Sony Music will release it in India. Cumbancha records is a sister concern of Putumayo label which specialises in Latin, Afro-Cuban music and other genres of world music.
Kailash Kher is a happy man. "It is always nice and encouraging when you get recognition at home. But if you make a mark in other countries, it's a great thing. You feel honoured that your talent is not only limited to just one country," says the talented singer, who is known for his mellifluous voice.
Kailasa will also perform at foreign music festivals this year. Their first performance will be at the 72nd season of the Stern Grove Festival in San Francisco and later at the Hollywood Ball in Los Angeles. But the international recognition came after two years. "The label's agents liked our work in Kailasa, our first album. Finally, they contacted me in Chennai last year through my manager in New York and we struck the deal."
Earthy sounds
Quiz him about his new album and the singer says excitedly, "Kailasa Chaandan Mein literally translates to Kailash meaning paradise in moonlight. We have used a lot of folk music and instruments. We have deliberately not used popular words. India has a rich cultural heritage which has a treasure trove of various dialects and languages. We wanted to explore that."
The album has an earthy feel. The lyrics are in Devnagari script and language used is Khadi-Boli, a dialect that is largely spoken in the Hindi-speaking states of India. During our conversation, he sings a couplet from the album and soon translates it for me.
True to his style, the album explores various facets of a relationship between two lovers. After working for six months, the troika of Paresh, Naresh and Kailash collaborated with musicians across the country and composed eight songs.
Cricket calling
The talented singer is also hosting a radio show Dhun Daar T20, a musical extravaganza on a popular radio channel. Along with Abhijit Sawant, Kailash will sing songs and cheer the Indian cricket team at the ICC Twenty20 World Cup.
Ask him about his stint with cricket and he reminisces, "Honestly, I don't know the ABCD of cricket. But in a way, my career started with the game during World Cup 2002. I had sung a jingle for a popular product. The ad would air frequently and my voice got noticed." After that, there's been no looking back for the singer-composer.
Filmi ventures
After giving music to movies like Chandni Chowk to China and Dasvidaniya, Kailasa, the band, will soon compose music for Allah ke bande and Warner Bros new film Basra. Kailash, the singer, will lend his voice to movies like Ketan Mehta's Rang Rasiya, Vishal Bharadwaj's Kaminey, Ahmed Khan's Paathshala and international venture Bhopal starring Martin Sheen and Tannishtha Chatterjee.
Here's looking forward to hearing more of the singer's rustic voice.
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