MUMBAI: Much like their previous musical collaborations, Hariprem Films is breaking away from traditional and exotic stereotypes associated with Rajasthani music, especially in the folk music space, and exploring the use of modern, western compositions and instrumentation. Along with long-time collaborator, music composer and singer Prateek Gandhi, Hariprem Films has released their much anticipated tragic romantic ballad, Saans Re Dhaage. Saans Re Dhaage sits well in the sorely missed Indipop space that thrived in the 90s, except that this time, it’s in Rajasthani.

Gandhi rendered Star Sports Cricket World Cup anthem ‘Tum Khelo Dum Se’ and Hot Star’s IPL anthem, adds that contemporary punchiness associated with his previous work, notably his compositions for Benny Dayal, Ankit Tiwari, Shefali Alvares and Gurinder Seagal.

Set in Banswara, Rajasthan and directed by Nitin Samadhiya, CEO of Hariprem Films, the slickly shot music video features actors Garima Chouhan and Sonesh Arya as protagonists who battle misunderstandings in their relationship. Chouhan’s character reminisces her life with Arya’s, only to fathom what it is to lose him forever. The video, when juxtaposed with Anil Jeengar’s poignant lyrics, invites the audience to appreciate what we have before it’s too late. One look at the comments on the video, which has racked up over a hundred thousand views, and one gets a fair idea that in a world of meaningless pop lyrics, this track stands out intellectually while maintaining widespread appeal to listeners of all backgrounds and ages.

“I’ve always strived to bring Rajasthani music to the mainstream, whether it is creating popular Rajasthani folk and traditional songs like ‘Banni Sa’ with singer Mame Khan, ‘Vidaai’ with Swaroop Khan and ‘Satrangi Rajasthan’ with Priyanka Barve or something truly contemporary like Saans Re Dhaage” says Samadhiya who has for more than a decade, built a successful career in the film and music industries. As a sound engineer, he has enjoyed immense success and was even nominated for Best Sound Engineer at the ZEE Sagarika Music Awards for his work on the album ‘Kanherichi Phule’ featuring legendary Bollywood playback singer, Padmashree Suresh Wadkar. His prolific body of work also includes stalwarts like Shankar Mahadevan and Kailash Kher.