24th April, 2024
18th May, 2017Antarman is a Mumbai-based group of 3 singers that seeks to reinterpret spellbinding folk gems from Eastern India. After their award-winning debut album that released that year, they recently released a Kamrup folk song on May 6th, 2017.
Antarman or the inner conscience that connects us through a variety of emotions to the unaltered truth of oneness - is the plain and simple foundation stone for this trio of singers. The act is primarily an outcome of pure passion for music, conceived and created by Rahul Mukherjee, Randeep Bhaskar and Pooja Shankar collectively. All three have been seasoned performing artists for a significant amount of time.
The trio takes good care to keep the genre regimes in place while interpreting the influences into their originals, even while adding a dose of Rock, Electronic Dance Music and others contemporary genres to the fare. Antarman seeks to collaborate on and thus amalgamate the folk genres of every part of the country in their vision to promote folk music.
The self-titled debut album was which released on July 27th, 2016, on Times Music, met with a stellar response from the audiences as well as industry stalwarts. Antarman – the album can be described as sincere and humble effort - of three musicians from the East - to revive the folk forms that they grew up listening to; their own renditions interspersed with songs inspired from traditional folk mines of the likes of the legendary Lalon Fakir as also the Kaamrup land, among others.
Their debut album won them the ‘Song of the year - Bangla Band’ at Mirchi Music Award Bangla for their hit number Hobe Na.. The band has released a brand new single based on Kamrup folk (from district in Assam), titled Kalankini Radha on May 6th, 2017. The composition - of this traditional beauty from Assam and the very simplicity of its lyrics - has always enamoured the group. It was only a matter of time that they decided to revisit the track, the Antarman way.
Band Members
The band performs live with a set of 10 musicians but Antarman’s core consists of three old friends yearning to pay an ode to folk genres that the society losing touch with.
Pooja Shankar is actively involved in performing arts and a gifted singer with remarkable voice texture that enhances the folk element in the album. Her ability and ease to reach the lows and the highs (voice pitching) actually inspired all three to create Antarman. Trained by her father, she is also an avid theatre artist, with several successful theatre productions and short films to her credit, wherein, it’s brought her critical acclaim, including a best actor award.
Rahul Mukherjee is an acclaimed playback singer who has participated in numerous stage shows across India. His versatile voice has an intense depth, sending the listener to a mesmerized inner quest. He has also sung jingles for various commercials in a variety of languages. A disciple of the renowned classical vocalist Pandit Mani Prasad of Kirana Gharana, Rahul was the finalist in ‘Voice of India 2’, when he began his success journey.
Randeep Bhaskar is a trained Indian classical vocalist, with numerous playback songs and commercial jingles to his credit. Also a disciple of the eminent classical vocalist Pt. Mani Prasad of Kirana Gharana and the legendary Haimanti Shukla, Randeep has been a regular casting producer of ‘Indian Idol’. He also runs an NGO to teach music to the underprivileged children in several parts of Mumbai, Maharashtra.
About Antarman’s self titled debut album\
The album consisted of 6 songs, sculpted beautifully by weaving folk forms with new age music trends, melody and arrangement. The poetic renditions in the album are created to take the listener through the many facets of life by connecting each one of them to their inner self, irrespective of language or age.
With heady folk influences of Baul, Bhatiyali, Sylheti, Bihu and a fair share of Indian classical music woven into present-day arrangements, Antarman’s self-titled debut album could be looked at, as a guided tour of some rare and rather refreshing sounds of Eastern India. The unbridled energy and rhythmic hooks in their songs however make the compositions palatable to music lovers all across, language no bar.
From the voices of tea-pluckers of Assam humming in their leisure time, unmindful of keeping their Sylheti connection alive, to the rhythmic vibrations emanating from the Ektara- complimenting the Baul songs sung true; and the rare meeting of a Bhatiyali number with the finesse of sarod's strains; there are many compelling imageries in this album.
Antarman - Juka Box Link
