Song Lines
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How Egyptian diva Umm Kulthum helped me understand the meaning of ‘tarab’
The Arabic word is almost impossible to define precisely in English.
Aditya Sharma
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Musings of a Mizo: On Vande Mataram by four-year-old Esther Hnamte and the paradoxes of being Indian
What does a patriotic song from the highlands mean at a time a boundary dispute has resulted in the highway to Mizoram being blockaded by Assam residents?
CV Lalmalsawmi
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‘Democracy gives us the right to ask questions’: Neha Singh Rathore’s Bhojpuri tunes are going viral
The young woman’s songs, recorded on her smartphone, speak uncomfortable truths.
Raj Kumar
Trending
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Seven Kashmiri students arrested after row over celebrating India’s World Cup loss
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How Uttar Pradesh’s halal ban has plunged the processed food industry into chaos
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Stolen fingerprints, empty bank accounts: How customers are paying for gaps in Aadhaar
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How Jeo Baby’s risky ‘Kaathal’ fell into place: ‘Once Mammootty agreed, everything became easy’
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Why closing schools does not protect children from air pollution
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Punjab: Two singers booked for promoting gun culture through song lyrics
A Chandigarh-based lawyer alleged that the song was sung in contempt of High Court orders.
Scroll Staff
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‘Like Holi with the blood of Hindus and Muslims’: This song about Jallianwala Bagh still resonates
Imagining how India would shape up after independence was achieved, ‘Din Khoon Ke Hamaare’ evocatively invokes the unity of different religious communities.
Sumangala Damodaran
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From ‘White Christmas’ to ‘Santa Went Crazy’: An activist-lawyer’s list of controversial X’Mas songs
Nandita Haksar remembers childhood Christmases in Lagos – and brings her legal ear to holiday tunes that have run into trouble over the decades.
Nandita Haksar
Video
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IFFI Goa: Michael Douglas tries the ‘Naatu Naatu’ hookstep, delivers Amitabh Bachchan’s dialogue
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Caught on camera: Panic after passenger jumps out of emergency exit of plane at US airport
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Watch: Rescuers celebrate after an infant is pulled out alive from the rubble of her home in Gaza
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Watch: This performing duo danced like puppets at an engagement party
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Filmfare OTT Awards: Actor Rajshri Deshpande dedicates her win to Gaza victims, Indian farmers
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Explained: The traditional roots of the viral ‘Manikya Malarayi Poovi’ song
The song is part of the Mappila Pattu genre, sung by the Muslims of Kerala’s Malabar region. This tune was originally recorded in 1978.
Scroll Staff
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Watch: A Mumbai musical battle about potholes turns sour as Shiv Sena raises the pitch
After a parody video about the city’s bad roads, a radio jockey is threatened with a defamation suit – and her mother served a notice about mosquito larvae.
Sujat Ambedkar
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Why a Welsh choir learnt a Hindi song from the students of a Mumbai municipal school
Only Men Aloud has been training girls from marginalised backgrounds for a special gig – and learning from them in turn.
Aarefa Johari
The Reel
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How Jeo Baby’s risky ‘Kaathal’ fell into place: ‘Once Mammootty agreed, everything became easy’
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Watch: Manoj Bajpayee stars in survival drama ‘Joram’
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Start the week with a film: Darbhanga blues in ‘Pokhar Ke Dunu Paar’
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Eye Spy: What doing the ‘dunki’ means – and where we first heard the term
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In music-themed ‘Chamak’, looking for the ‘spirit of Punjab’ beyond its stereotypes
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Stage production ‘Sounds of the Sufis’ aims to rescue Sufism from Bollywood
A musical theatre performance combines personal stories with Sufi history to create an immersive experience.
Manish Gaekwad
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Eric Clapton's classic Layla gets a subcontinental twist ‒ twice
Amit Chaudhuri and Krish Ashok give Indian rockers their own versions of the old favourite.
Scroll Staff