It is not everyday that a young fan gets to fulfil his life-long dream of singing his favourite artist’s line in his first ever song. Assamese Opera singer Pran Saikia has released his first single Ek Tu, a romantic song which is also a clever dedication to his favourite song, I was born to make to make you happy by Britney Spears. The single was launched at Fork You, in Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village on April 7.
“I love Britney and have been following her since childhood. So, when I decided to make my first single, it, of course, had to be dedicated to her!” says the singer, who is famous in the A Cappella scene in Delhi and even boasts his own group Imfresnate. For those who are uninitiated, A Cappella involves making music without using any instrument. Yes, talk about improvisation!
But it was not all hunky-dory for Pran. When things got tough, the singer had to rely on crowd-funding to produce Ek Tu. In fact, almost the entire video was shot through public funding. “I was passionate about this project and wanted to make it happen anyhow. I am so grateful to all my well-wishers who contributed to this video,” Pran says. And in the social media age, having a large number of followers on Instagram did help. As soon as his followers heard of Ek Tu, help poured in from all sides.
In an age of remixes, Ek Tu is a refreshing take on romance and tells a beautiful love story. Pran is not only the singer, he also features on it. The song has been directed by Nishant Joshi of GoBro Studios. While Mohit Joshi is the Cinematographer, Mandeep Singh is the music director, Yamini Joshi is the stylist. Bobby Genesis, Soumik Hazarika, and Brin Desai are the Sound Engineers and mastering was handled by Blake Lagrange.
The musical journey
Pran had a very interesting journey towards being a musician. “I was not supported by my family to pursue music as a career. Although I received encouragement from my parents and provided me formal training in Hindustani Vocal but following the traditional norms in terms of career perspectives was what they actually believed in.”
However, all that changed when he moved to Delhi to pursue his undergraduate studies. Being exposed to a new and competitive Delhi University environment gave him the opportunity to broaden his perspectives and take control over his life decisions. So, while he was asked to take coaching for civil service, he actually took training for Opera and western classical music from the Neemrana Music foundation and the Delhi School of Music. This helped him a lot in understanding and enhancing his musical capabilities.
“The vocal training helped me to participate in many of the shows such as India Africa Summit 2015, where I got to sing in front of PM Modi, President and 74 African presidents.” The hard work paid off and his parents took cognisance of his love for music. “When I told my Dad about my performances, he felt proud of me and changed his mindset toward my choice of career.”
Soon, he was performing at major events like European Union day, EU Film Festival, human rights day at Australian High Commission, etc. That is when he seriously contemplated a career in music and started writing his own songs and compositions. “I took my time in giving my songs with the best music. So started searching Delhi NCR renowned musicians and coming into contact with them helped me widening my knowledge in music as a musician,” says Pran.
In future, Pran would like to use his natural skills and talent in service of children suffering from cancer and would like to raise fund for their treatment.
Singing is only one of the talents in Pran‘s long list. The 25-year old is also a part-time model and dancer by profession and is trained in Western as well as Hindustani classical music. Pran has also dabbled in Belly dancing and Ballet.
