Every Conversation Matters- 25 Years of Timeless Music

This 2026 World Music Day, there was another occasion to celebrate—the 25th anniversary of Lagaan. I sat down to listen to the conversation between the maestro A.R. Rahman, lyricist Javed Akhtar, director Ashutosh Gowariker, and producer Aamir Khan. They spoke about how the songs came into being in a time with no internet, no cell phones, no advanced technology, and no Dolby sound.

There was one discussion about Ghanan Ghanan, the first song that sets the storyline of the film. More often than not, it is interpreted as a call to the rain gods, filled with hope and a longing to rid the people of despair. Twenty-five years later, the song holds so much more meaning than just the wait for rain.

As I listened to the 6-minute-11-second composition, I was reminded of another song created by the same duo of A.R. Rahman and Javed Akhtar—Yeh Tara Wo Tara, which runs for 7 minutes and 11 seconds. Two iconic films by the same director, yet what stands out in both is the genius of composer A.R. Rahman and lyricist Javed Akhtar.

In the celebratory video marking 25 years of Lagaan, Javed Akhtar points out that what makes A.R. Rahman’s compositions special is their unpredictability. He uses Ghanan Ghanan as an example. In the same breath, I would also mention Yeh Tara Wo Tara.

Compositions like Yeh Tara Wo Tara stand apart because of the earthy feeling they evoke. Yeh Tara Wo Tara changes the chorus as the same was done with Ghanan Ghanan in Lagaan. This made me realise the magic of the music I grew up with, which focuses heavily on rhythm and a chorus that a regular listener can hum.

The song has been reprised over the years and arranged in different styles. But believe it or not, the majority of Hindi music lovers still go back to the original soundtrack.

It isn’t because they want to pay homage to A.R. Rahman or Javed Akhtar. The song, through its lyrics and melody, does exactly what its music video shows—it brings a community together. As listeners, we begin to realise the depth of its lyrics.

It definitely isn’t the Shah Rukh Khan fan in me speaking. Many people don’t like either film but absolutely love the music albums of both.

This celebration made me realise what A.R. Rahman and Javed Akhtar have been creating for us over the last 25 years. Five years after Lagaan, Swades was released. At the time, the film wasn’t fully understood. But what has remained timeless is its music.

Another aspect about the duo that remains special is that they didn’t dumb down or underestimate the listeners when it came to music. They flowed against the stream; they gave us song styles that are used to date, when it comes to composition.

Music Albums like these don’t just come one day. They have grown over many years of training, work, and well, staying honest to its core.

I am sharing the lyrics here of both the songs Ghanan Ghanan and Yeh Tara Wo Tara to understand what Javed Akhtar tries to say in this video.

Lagaan Music Album

Swades Music Album

Ghanan Ghanan Ghanan
Ghanan Ghanan Ghanan
Ghanan Ghanan Ghanan
Ghanan Ghanan Ghanan
Ghanan Ghanan Ghanan
Ghanan Ghanan Ghir Ghir Aaye Badra
Ghane Ghan Ghor Kaare Chhaye Badra
Dhamak Dhamak Goonje Badra Ke Danke
Chamak Chamak Dekho Bijuriya Chamke

Mann Dhadkaaye Badarwa
Mann Dhadkaaye Badarwa

Mann Mann Dhadkaaye Badarwa
Kaale Megha, Kaale Megha Paani To Barsaao

Yeh Tara Woh Tara

e taara woh taara har taara
Ye taara woh taara har taara
Dekho jise bhi lage pyaara
Ye taara woh taara har taara
Ye sab saath me jo hai raat me
Toh jagmagaya aasmaan saara
Ye sab saath me jo hai raat me
Toh jagmagaya aasmaan saara
Jagmag taare, do taare, nau taare, sau taare
Jagmag saare, har taara hai sharaara

his post is a part of ‘Mixtape Mood Blog Hop’ hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters blog hop series

Every Conversation Matters-The Unconventional drama!

We belong to a generation shaped by the early years of pop culture — Tommy Hilfiger shirts, chains with snakes or the word cool, and Bollywood families that looked perfect on screen. We grew up watching films like Hum Saath-Saath Hain and Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, believing in the idea of the “happy family.” At the same time, we became the first generation to openly talk about toxic family dynamics, emotional guilt, and the damage hidden beneath those smiling photographs.

Families have always been complicated, but those films sold us an illusion — one big joint family where love conquered everything. And we swallowed it completely.

Now, twenty-five years later, we continue to recreate the same image online. Families pose together for reels, photos, and celebrations. Everyone smiles until the camera cuts. Then the masks fall off, and people return to keeping emotional distance from one another. We have learned to recognise who harms us, who drains us, and who truly cares once the performance ends.

Still, families are pushed together for appearances. We are expected to sit in the same rooms and pretend everything is fine so the world can see a “happy family.” In the process, we ignore discomfort. We ignore the aunt who body-shamed us throughout childhood. We ignore the uncle whose stare made us uneasy. We ignore the brother-in-law who borrowed money and never returned it. We ignore the teenage cousin making inappropriate gestures toward young girls.

We ignore all of it because family, apparently, must stay together.

I remember my own parents encouraging me, the elder daughter, to “hang out” with my cousins. I almost laughed. Part of me wanted to ask, “Did you check whether they even want to spend time with me?” I never said it out loud, and that hangout never happened.

Even now, whenever I see cousins online acting inseparable, I scoff a little. Sometimes I laugh. Sometimes I feel sorry for them. Perhaps some of them are genuine, but the internet has taught us how easy it is to perform closeness.

Words like family, bond, and connection are used so casually today that they are beginning to sound like corporate slogans. “We are one big happy family”, the popular slogan.

Everything feels transactional now. Every post, every story, every carefully edited video carries a price tag.

Reading this, people will probably ask, Who hurt you?

And my answer is simple: Who do you think?

Then comes the next question: Who is your family, then?

Perhaps my sister. Perhaps my mother.

That is my reality.

I have seen too many performative families — including my own — to believe completely in the fantasy sold by films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham… or even Kal Ho Naa Ho. Still, I appreciate stories that dare to look beyond the illusion.

Every day, I wake up hoping my mother and sister are safe, healthy, and alive.

Perhaps that is my version of family.

Sordid, maybe. But real. Absolutely real.

This post is a part of ‘Fam Jam Blog Hop’ hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters blog hop series

Samaya in How to Win A Breakup:#BlogchatterA2Z

This year too, I decided to write about something I relate to the most. I didn’t do a theme reveal because I wanted to create a special surprise moment with everyone. So here goes.

My A to Z this year will feature fictional characters from movies, books, and series. I’ve chosen to put special emphasis on the fact that they are fictional because, though we often find them deeply relatable, they are, at the end of the day, not real.

That’s why this year, I’ve titled my series The A to Z of Never Never Land.

I start with the letter S: Samaya from the young adult novel How to Win a Breakup by Farah Heron.

The story follows our protagonist, Samaya, as she carefully plots her revenge against her ex-boyfriend who dropped her suddenly like an old purse, never looking back.

Samaya was an absolute treat to read, thanks to her vibrant personality and strong, distinctive identity. She is a brilliant maths whiz who is passionately into gaming, yet she remains deeply emotional and sensitive at the same time. As I turned the pages, all I could think about was how incredibly cool she was. To me, she quickly became an icon.

What I loved most was that she wasn’t written as meek or forced into any tired stereotype. Even though she worked hard chasing top marks and good grades, she never lost her emotional maturity or depth of feeling.

Samaya was heartbroken, a Canadian Muslim girl with Indian roots, but she stayed unapologetically herself while still allowing herself to be beautifully vulnerable.

Farah Heron never portrayed Samaya as an infamous “tomboy.” Instead, she beautifully showed that a girl can be exceptionally good at studies, madly in love with someone, and completely obsessed with video games—all at once.

Reading about her extraordinary energy and the serious focus she brought to every gaming battle felt so refreshing and empowering.

On top of everything, she also had an amazing sense of style and totally rocked every outfit she wore.

Samaya along with the author Farah Heron gave me belief that we as girls/women have power to break out of this BOX the society puts us in.

This post is a part of Blogchatter A2Z Challenge 2026

Every Conversation Matters: The blurring lines of mystery and thrillers #PlotTwistBlogHop

I don’t remember the last time I didn’t enjoy a domestic thriller or a murder mystery. I have been actively reading both genres for 28 years. As time flew by, I started enjoying the subgenres of Mysteries and Thrillers. The most attractive subgenre for me was murder mystery and domestic thrillers. These two always had me by the throat. I couldn’t get my eyes off the book. I’m known to ignore calls and messages while reading these subgenres. (Sometimes a work call too)😛

Today for World Book Day ECM #PlotTwistBlogHop I will tell you of three major points that make these two sub-genres stand out for me.

World-Buiding

Now you must be thinking that’s the basic that every mystery and thriller books have. Which is not entirely true. A good murder mystery and domestic thriller doesn’t open it’s cards out front. These two sub-genres keep the characters on the front and give a past to the protagonists keeping in mind how these characteristics will get connected to the main plot. 

An example is the opening of a recent book I read “The Jasmine Murders” where the book opens with an intrguing one line but what follows is the foggy introduction of the protagonists and what the two are doing in that space. We don’t know them,we get introduced to the world of the book categorically through the main characters. As you go further in the book,you see the world through the eyes of the characters, not just making you addicted to the plot but also wonder about what’s their fate going to be in the end.

Detective-lens writing

This isn’t something I have come up with. It does exist in every good murder mystery and Domestic thriller. There is suspicion but then there is a lens that the narrator looks at the scenario in front of you. The precision is what makes you go ahead in the plot and doesn’t let you drop the book. It rather makes a detective out of you. There are things that you start noticing on your own and the author successfully makes you,the reader, part of the mystery or the domestic thriller. I want to show an example of the detective lens writing from the book “The Jasmine Murders”. Don’t miss the image below.

Then comes the final and most important aspect that ties the entire plot together and that’s the slow burn. The pacing. 

Pacing

There definitely are people who might disagree with me. But for a traditionalist like me, the pacing cannot be fast. These days we want our thrillers to be fast-paced, and that’s not what makes me enjoy the murder mystery or the domestic thriller. The pacing has to simmer. Many readers feel like it is dragging, and I respectfully disagree. Thrillers, especially domestic thrillers, need to wrap up everything neatly. Only then can we finally understand the world we were brought into through the characters. The same goes for murder mysteries. Psychological thrillers and murder mysteries are often mixed. In the subgenre of murder mystery, it is about solving who the culprit is. In a psychological thriller, it is about figuring out the big WHY.

If I had to mention one “fast-paced thriller”, it might be “The Housemaid”, but it’s a forgettable psychological thriller. That’s why domestic thrillers always call me towards them. The Housemaid falls in the domestic thriller sub genre in fact and it’s a murder mystery. 

Have I given a spoiler? Though after reading some really good thrillers and mysteries,I have absolutely no idea why the show/movie was made on the book. There is absolutely nothing extraordinary about it. 

It’s maybe the thriller snob in me speaking,but there are just too many good thrillers to get adapted to.

But yes, these are two sub genres that I always enjoy because of these three components. 

What about you? Do you agree with me or disagree? Let me know your thoughts.

This post is a part of ‘Plot Twist Blog Hop’ hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters blog hop series

Currents Of Kindness Blog Hop-ECM: Where is the Writer?

After watching The Ba***ds of Bollywood directed by Aryan Khan, I came across Neeraj Pandey’s Instagram post, which sparked deep reflection. As a writer and someone who cherishes the impeccable craft of writing in books, I’ve noticed we often undervalue this skill in other media. 

Writers in industries like advertising, political campaign slogans, events, award shows, or theatre are often invisible, much like a burkha-clad woman. Even when we watch a theatrical play, we tend to remember the actor or dancer who stood out for us, but rarely the writer behind the script.

This made me question how inclusive our spaces are for writers outside the realm of books. Do we acknowledge the person who crafted the clever script of a tagline that’s on everyone’s lips now? Writers’ struggles are often dismissed, labelled as lazy or “not knowing how to write,” without understanding the reality of their challenges.

How can we create more inclusive spaces for writers? Every industry—be it a product campaign, event, or show needs a skilled writer who pours their creativity into making it seamless. Consider the writers behind a 30-second ad or a feature film. Are we asking about their pay? Are we recognizing the effort behind the finished product, or do writers remain invisible, just as they often do in movies or advertisements?

In the past decade, only a few writers, like Varun Grover and Neeraj Ghaywan, have gained mainstream recognition for their work, particularly for Masaan. They’ve become household names, but it took years for them to achieve this. Meanwhile, countless other writers toil daily, fighting to keep going without giving up.

Our spaces must become more inclusive and appreciative of writers in every industry. Their work deserves respect, and their pay should reflect their value.

In conclusion I would like to point out… I’ve noticed a troubling pattern: when writers are undervalued, recycling of ideas becomes rampant. When their hard work isn’t recognized, the potential for ground breaking creativity takes a backseat. We need to see the writer. Let’s make space for them. Let’s value their contributions and ensure their efforts are celebrated across all industries.

This post is a part of Currents of Kindness Blog Hop hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters blog hop series.

Every Conversation Matters:Mile Sur Mera Tumhara

This post is a part of ‘Embrace the Native Blog Hop’ hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters.

I am writing this towards the deadline. It shows that I initially struggled in writing this piece. Then I sat down. What’s the common thread in our house that binds the four people in my family? The answer was right in front of me. It was music.

 No, not just Hindi. Carnatic, Hindustani classical, Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam songs and musicians also cross state borders. They join with folk songs of the north belt. 

You see, I have been living in Delhi for 30 years. My mother was born and raised here. My father spent most of his young and old life in Delhi. We would all speak majorly in the Delhi slang at home. This slang was an accumulation of Urdu, Persian, and Hindi. 

No, my mother tongue is not Urdu. No one speaks Urdu in my extended family. My grandparents on both sides have passed down the Uttar Pradesh dialect, if any. They too had been living in Delhi for so many years that we all spoke through songs. Music. 

I am today going to talk about how the melodies of my life have taught me many lessons. Whether in a Dravidian language or a North Indian dialect, these melodies have enriched my life. This music has connected to many more hearts. I looked outside my family and found another music-loving family in the various languages I listen to songs today.

This song is from the ever iconic Rajesh Khanna starred “Amar Prem.” In it, the actress Sharmila Tagore is crying silently. She faces ridicule because of her profession. This song has healed me every time I have let others’ words affect me. My favorite part of the song is its first stanza and as a woman,as a person who has always taken decisions against the wave is this:

कुछ रीत जगत की ऐसी है

हर एक सुबह की शाम हुई

कुछ रीत जगत की ऐसी है

हर एक सुबह की शाम हुई

तू कौन है, तेरा नाम है क्या

सीता भी यहाँ बदनाम हुई

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6q7BVZXOUU

It is this part in particular that stops my tears because this is the essence of the song. It’s the literal translation of “ignore the noise.” The next morning they would have something to say “kyunki logo ka kaam hai kehna.”

This song was one I would listen to before Shahrukh Khan started dancing on it at events or award functions. It helped me understand love. To understand passion, the junoon of an individual and how mad one can get in love. Before there existed the OMG look for the song, this song for me was especially the range Sukhwinder Singh provides to this part:

यार मिसाले ओस 

चले पाँव के तले फिरदौस चले 

कभी दाल दाल कभी पात पात 

में हवा पे ढूंदु उसके निशाँ 

सारे इश्क़ की छाओं चले

 छय्यां छय्यां

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PimKrn3XkuU

To find paradise in the feet of the woman you love. That’s a madness only shahrukh could understand which is why it is such a banger now. Also why I am such a huge romantic at heart. If you go back to the song,you will find yourself getting the same adrenaline rush at this exact moment. 

Some ten years ago I found Vaseegara online and found my sister singing the song to herself and hook,line and snicker. I was addicted to the song. I couldn’t stop listening to the song. I played it again and again. The power of the Tamil version was so strong. I stopped listening to the Hindi version. The Hindi version is Zara Zara in the movie “Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein”. The Tamil Song is sung by Bombay Jayashri and composed by one of my favorites Harris Jayaraj. Attaching the link to the video of the song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew1fKCWb_M4

When I must have been a 7 year old kid or even younger, my father used to sing this song. The sadness and joy from this song are breathtaking. They have touched us over the many years. The hope for love, a utopian world devoid of hatred. Perhaps that’s why I have never known hate in its literal sense. I grew up listening to lyrics that wanted to make love thrive. My favorite part of the song is the first stanza. Once you listen to it, there is no going back. 

सूरज की पहली किरण से, आशा का सवेरा जागे

सूरज की पहली किरण से, आशा का सवेरा जागे

चंदा की किरण से धुल कर, घनघोर अंधेरा भागे

चंदा की किरण से धुल कर, घनघोर अंधेरा भागे

कभी धूप खिले कभी छाँव मिले

लम्बी सी डगर न खले

The magic of this song is the authenticity. The singer brings you back from the trance of the utopian world. However, this song lifts me up to spread more love. It encourages me to give more hugs and always have my arms open to get love. 

These are just four songs. My native language is a mixture of so many dialects and languages. I connect only to people who know about these songs (just kidding) 😂 or these kinds of songs. My heart connects to so many other hearts because of the songs we listen to. 

If you want to know my playlist, let me know. If you want a song recommendation from the Dravidian languages, let me know. You never know our surs match.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_8VmzWOsgs

Enough doom and glooming. Let's fight back.

https://www.cdturnerwrites.org/rebel-logs/rebel-logs-1-welcome-to-the-fight-im-sorry-were-all-here

#rebellion #rebellogs #blogs #blogwriter #writersky #writersofbluesky #writer #fascism #fightback #fightfascism

*half-hearted kazoo*

https://www.cdturnerwrites.org/stream-of-consciousness/020-earache

#blogs #thoughts #sundaythoughts #blogwriter #blogwriting #writing #writersofmastodon #writers #writerslife

less doom and gloom, more hope. or is it cope? idk

https://www.cdturnerwrites.org/stream-of-consciousness/018-i-wont-be-made-uselessi-wont-be-idle-with-despair

#blogwriter #writers #writersofmastodon #blogs #sliceoflife