ABP Ideas Of India: Day Two of ABP Network's Ideas Of India Summit saw a special session with singer Usha Uthup, filmmaker Ramesh Sippy and violinist L Subramaniam, who have a big thing in common other than the entertainment industry — they were all born in 1947, the year India got Independence.
Along with India, they are also celebrating their 75th year on earth, and at the ABP Ideas Of India Summit they were part of the discussion titled “Freedom’s Children: Remembering The Country They Grew Up In”.
The session, chaired by senior journalist Vir Sanghvi, began with a conversation on the cinema of those early times, especially Sippy’s films like Sholay and Shaan, which steeped in unique Indian sensibilities.
Sippy said the reason is still unknown but what he believed worked was the appeal of “direct storytelling, subtlety in the acting and a brilliant script” that keeps its relevance alive. He also narrated how Amjad Khan happened as Gabbar Singh, as a last-moment replacement for Danny Denzogpa, and how he was advised to dub his voice and laughter — the two things that stood unique to Gabbar.
From Gabbar to choosing Amitabh Bachchan who wasn’t that big of a star then, to shooting a dacoit film in the villages of South Bangalore, Sippy said he always saw it was about what new he could do, venturing into new territories.
This had both kinds of results, he said. While Sholay worked, Shaan didn’t.
But what is still remembered is Shaan’s music, composed by RD Burman, and its title song sung by Usha Uthup, who said the song provides “roti, kapda, makaan” to so many artistes till date.
The session saw the launch of Usha Uthup's biography titled “The Queen Of Indian Pop”, written by Srishti Jha. Usha also enthralled the audience with her beautiful rendition of Shaan’s title song, to thunderous applause.
She later sang Rabindranath Tagore’s classic 'Jodi Tor Dak Shune Keu Naa Aashe’ to dimmed lights and full hearts. The performance left quite a few teary-eyed, including the singer herself, who believed that the song should serve as a reminder for what the future of India should look like.
After the overwhelming response, she revealed how it was often difficult for her to get songs since her voice did not match the voices of actresses, and recollected with amusement how she is perhaps the only singer who sang for Mithun Chakravarty too.
When asked about her message to young India, she said: "Believe in yourself and hang in there. There is no substitute for hard work.”
A very similar message was shared by Ramesh Sippy, who said that the one thing that needs to be remembered is to believe in yourself and to believe in the future of the country and to never give up. While the country has had a glorious past, the future is in our hands too.
The discussion moved forward with Dr L. Subramaniam, who has been playing the violin since the age of 6 and has composed tunes for India @40 and many more, and would be doing so for the 75th year as well. The discussion ended with a soulful rendition by Dr Subramaniam of his piece, 'The Journey’, which left the audience spellbound.
WATCH | ABP Ideas Of India, Day 2 LIVE
ABP Network’s two-day 'Wild Stone presents Ideas of India' Summit brings thought leaders from various fields — culture, sports and cinema to technology, business and politics — talk about the journey of India so far.