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 Why would a Stockholm-based
musician lend old melodies his own style and turn
them into chartbusters? But Neeraj Shreedhar and
his four other companions might have had a definite
purpose in mind when they decided to integrate
the city of their choice into the name of the
band that captured the imagination of the country.
Bombay
Vikings were formed in 1994
in Stockholm, Sweden. Mats introduced
Neeraj Shridhar to Oscar Soderberg. This
brought together three very talented
musicians- each experienced in his own
field. The band was born primarily
because all the musicians shared one
interest in common –the love for
Indian melodies- be it in Hindi films or
Classical Music.
Neeraj
with his voice control, diction and
sheer range became sound vocals base.
His ability to pull strings on the
guitar and to compose and write songs
– ranging from pop rock, jazz,
hip-hop, soul and reggae- took the band
to a higher plane.
Mats
– the man
with tremendous lungpower-brought in the
rich sounds of the saxophone. Mats, a
specialist in jazz, used this knowledge
to profit while composing for the new
band.
Mats
& Johan Folke, a Keyboard
specialist used their years of exposure
to the different genre of music to work
magic on the keys of the synthesizer.
The
band was soon joined by Morgan on the drums, Par on
the bass and Staffan as a Lead
guitarist.
Bombay
Vikings were now complete and
begin performance live all over Sweden
and Norway. When all the musicians got
together and began jamming, little did
they know that they would be coming out
with a new form of music. But the thirst
to do something creative for the India-
the land of their preferred brand of
music – was always there.
For
although Neeraj had
shifted base to Sweden his heart still
swayed to the music of Indian tunes such
as Oh Mere Sona Re, Mere Sapon Ki
Rani, and Mere Samne Wale Khidki Mein
played constantly in his mind but soon
he realized that though the tunes rang
clearly in his melodies the words came
with difficulty.
He
was traveling from Stockholm to Uppsala
by train. Looking out of the window he
saw a car running parallel to his train.
Flashes of Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila
Tagore in Aradhana came in
his mind, as did a clutch of words from
Mere Sapno Ki Rani suddenly, the
lyrics did a back flip in his mind, and
became:
Give
your heart to me; I’ll be your lover
boy
I’ll
be your sweetest candy and your huggy
toy!
The
words began to come in a flow and the
song was over reached the studio and
began, She’s A Heart Breakin’
Woman - and the rest is history!
His
album apart from the above-mentioned
songs had the title song “KYA
SURAT HAI” which made immediate
recognition with the youth. The album
remained on the top of all chartbusters
for almost 11months. Thus increasing the
popularity of Bombay Vikings
all over the world.
Bombay Vikings were
back again with their next album “Woh
Chali Woh Chali.” The video is
all about how the sheer exuberance of
the music makes the crowd forget their
blues and sway away to the rhythm. Neeraj,
the lead singer, gets the crowd to
groove to the title track, what with the
infectious enthusiasm that his singing
emanates.
Woh
Chali
again was on the Top 10 of all music
channels for over a year & is said
to have sold more than over 7 lakhs
units & is still going strong.The
popularity of Bombay Vikings
& the sales made the music company
to release another two videos of the
album Woh Chali on the tracks
of Jambola & later on Angel
Eyes (Video shot in Australia).
Both this numbers made an immediate
entry in all discs & parties further
lifting the sales.
Bombay
Vikings
next album,"Hawa Mein Udati
Jaaye" was released recently
at a swanky Mumbai night-club, on
September 12. Neeraj Shridhar
gave a small performance on the occasion
and those present couldn’t help but
groove to his dance numbers. Neeraj,
alongwith Shivaji Gupta, vice-president
A&R/Commercial, Universal Music
India, spoke about his new album and
gave a preview of the video and the
tracks. He spoke about his musical
influences and how he misses India since
he lives in Sweden. Though comfortable
with Swedish than English or Hindi, he
spoke extensively in Hindi, explaining
that he rarely got the chance to speak
in Hindi otherwise. He also sang a
special ghazal that his dad had composed
for him.
The
album has nine new heart beating
numbers. Two Videos Hawa Mein Udati
Jaaye followed by Tera Mera
Pyaar Sanam have already been
released and have got mind blowing
response from all over the world.
Neeraj
has also started singing playback songs
for Hindi films. His voice can be heard
in films like Jhoom Barabar Jhoom
(Hollywood) and Bhool Bhulaiya (title
track).
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