Dreamscometrue

It's Bollywood mixed with rap for three youngSydney musicians

together managetoreki11dle thecuriosity foranold songbeforeitisfinally forgotten.

BYRAKA SARKHEL

Backin theday,whenSalman Khan's triceps used tomatch the restof his body more proportionately, be gatecrashed into the dreams of thousands of women withhis 1998 hit'OOJaane Jaa11t1� Meaty andbare-boclied withdreamy, docile eyes,the charismaticscar has been seenby someninemillion people in this number onYouTubeasof July,2015.

So,what do you tell threepassionateand aspiri11gmusicianswhenthey make a remix of sucha hugely popular song?

Youcongratulatethemontheir daring featand keepyourfingerscrossedforthem.

However,'TheGirlofJ\l[yD,-ea111s' video by StashMotion's (an Australian company specialisingin music videodirection)

DJ Sayem,featuringKaran Luthra (aka Bluntz) andAchesKhan,is nor entirely a rernixof the original song.Itonly usesthe chorus fromtheoriginal song,interspersed withSayemandBluntz's own lines of rap and rhyme and fresh vocalsfromAches (wboin theopinionof yours truly,bas a better voicethan Kamaal Khanwho sang the popular number).

Aremixis a fusionof rhe oldwith the new.ForSayem andBlnntz,whowant tosray closetotheir roots aswell as appeal tothemainstream urbanyouth, a hybrid video suitably helps theircause. Whileitconnects with young people who identify with the oomphandattitudeof themusicians,AhsanakaKingKurry's effortlesspopping,FlaviaNarayan's babe 9uotient,Mystik Bollywood's peppy moves andRaheelSharma's cinematography,

'TheGirlof1'{)'Dreallls'opens withan electronic funkintro as thechorus from the original song croons in. Thevideo alsotapsincoalargesliceof versatile talent tl1roughcollaborations witl1 these independentartists.Ittakes apeppy turn withalternaterappinginEnglish and Hincli, cateringtoboththeAustralianand Inclianidentitiesinahybridarrangement.

Seatedina noisy cafeinSydney'sCBD witl1Sayemand Karan,I am told that for independentartisrs,Sydney,or for that mattertheworld, is not aneasy place. There are billstobe paidandmouths tobe fed.Butthatdoesn'thold them backfrom staying true totheir passion formusic.So after their gruelling nine-co-fivejobs,they diligently get back totheirbasic need, that .is, creating music. They write,self-teach, improvise, conceptualise, recordandedit. Mostimportantly,they do notgive up.

As a team, they "feed off" one another. Sayem is thebrainsbehind the video and is9uite the visionary ashe wistfully says, "Everybody has adifferenttimingin life forfindingtheirtruecalling." Karan,who has adiplomain audio technology from the Austral.ian Instituteof Music,brings totbetablehis technical expertise and lovefor rappingwhichspans 17 years of personal and professionalexperiences.

Theirgoalistomakemusicandnotjust seekfame,andsomeday hittl1echarts."We haveinvesteda lot inourworkandnowwe areputtingit outthere.If therearereturns, money or fame,itwill be abonus."

ButrightnowaJJthey careabout is makinggoodmusicfortheir fansand receiving honestconstructivefeedback fromtheir critics. Drivenas they are,1 will notbesurprisedif I hear their music blazingout of a pub on aFriday night with heads happily bopping along!