Saregama India Ltd. will mark the celebrations for RD Burman’s 75th Birth Anniversary all across the digital sphere in the last week of June. Burman, or Panchamda as he is fondly known to his fans, was one of the most trailblazing music composers in the Hindi film industry.
In keeping with the spirit of Panchamda’s innovative style, Saregama will honour him with an immersive infographic. Expected to be more than 10 feet long, it will cover various aspects of the man and his music in an exciting and never seen before manner. It will be accompanied by a weeklong series of interactive events on Facebook and Twitter. There have also been CD releases planned, as well as special YouTube videos in tribute to one of India’s best loved music composers.
The most high profile music release is a set of 5 CDs, which is a Tribute to RD Burman. Each of the 5 CDs will consist of songs composed by RD Burman in conjunction with legendary playback singers. The 5 singers are Mukesh, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Mohd Rafi and last but certainly not the least, Kishore Kumar.
Mr. G. B. Aayeer, Director and CFO of Saregama India Ltd, says Saregama has had the privilege of recording and archiving the legacy of Rahul DevBurman. “On the 75th birth anniversary of this great maestro we humbly present a 10 ft infographic for Pancham’s enthusiasts all over the world who swear by his work and his compositions. The journey of discovering Pancham is an experience that no one should miss. Saregama feels that this combination of word and image is the perfect way to connect with today's youth on platforms such as social media, mobile and the Web, and also gives us an opportunity to come out with printed collectors' editions. Starting now, we shall cover all the legends in our catalogue in the infographic format at timely intervals, on occasions such as anniversaries...”
Mr. Avinash Mudaliar – Saregama India Ltd Saregama India Ltd states, “Pancham Da’s tunes are download favourites, his songs are among the most remixed and jingled. Our 10 ft infographic is not only for the legion of fans who span across generations, but specifically for the youth who connect deeply to his music. We at Saregama wanted to salute one of the greatest innovators of Indian music R. D.Burman with a humble attempt at doing something innovative and succinct. Hence this idea of a Musicographic. Every generation has its visual leit motif. If the leitmotif was Bollywood posters in the 1970s and great artistic CD covers in the 1990s, today it is the infographic for every digital native in the present age, considering its huge popularity on social forums”
The infographic, which is expected to break many records for size, will cover some major milestones in Panchamda’s life. It will also provide information about his favourite people to work with, such as playback singers and lyricists. A special yet lesser known part of his legacy, the infographic will include a section on personalities who got their start thanks to Panchamda, such as Kumar Sanu and Abhijeet. The list of movies for which he was honoured, or even nominated, with Filmfare Awards is also covered. It will then cover his most favourite directors, in terms of number of films worked. Finally, it will cover all the major milestones in Panchamda’s life. It is interspersed throughout with interesting and quirky facts about his life. This is accompanied by great visual design and pleasing image and text interface.
On social media, Panchamda will feature all week long in a series of posts celebrating some of his best songs, as well his greatest moments. A special jukebox has been created consisting of 75 of his Greatest Hits in a very interactive manner. Users can select and filter through the list to choose their favourite songs. A special video featuring various legends paying their tributes to the one and only Panchamda has been released. A special contest has been planned for this event as well.
Son of the legendary music composer Sachin Dev Burman, Panchamda started his career by contributing music to his father’s films. In 1961, he made his debut as an independent music director with the film Chhote Nawab. After a 4 year hiatus, he made it big with the 1966 Shammi Kapoor film Teesri Manzil. His major collaborators include Kishore Kumar, Asha Bhosle and Lata Mangeshkar. Among lyricists, he worked with heavy hitting names such as Gulzar and Anand Bakshi. He collaborated with the former for the first time in the film Parichay. His musical journey lasted 4 decades, with 1942: A Love Story being his swansong effort. He became a household name thanks to his talent in combining terrific melody with incredible innovation, making use of unusual techniques to create his music. Even after his passing, he has been a source of inspiration to many composers and film personalities. He was honoured with a stamp in 2013.
The celebrations will culminate in a grand signing this Friday, when Panchamda turns 75. Gulzar is expected to attend and sign a large poster of the infographic. Other celebrities will sign this poster as well.