NEW DELHI: Renowned ghazal singer Satish Babbar has finally released ‘Gayatri Mantra Mahamantra – the Living Truth’, a CD that was fourteen years in the making, at a cultural programme in New Delhi

Babbar told Radioandmusic.com that the CD had been prepared by him and his daughter Vani Babbar Gutti with lyricist Ramesh Mahendru who also wrote the meanings of the Mahamantra.

Babbar, who along with his singer daughter Vani set-up a Satish Babbar Creative Music Foundation that aims at humanitarian efforts. All the revenues would go to the Gurukul School in north Delhi for orphans.

Two other CDs were at the Shaam-e-Sukhn cultural evening: ‘Bhakti- the Devotion’ and Vani Babbar Gutti’s solo album Kya Kahiye – collection of soulful ghazals’.

The entire evening was devoted to ghazals by both Babbar and his daughter Vani, but the programme also included one song by a student of Babbar, Anjali Guhare who was trained in just 15 days for the show and sang ‘Har ek baat pe kehte ho tum ki tu kya hai’ based on a renowned ghazal by Mirza Ghalib. Boston-based singer Ritu Sagar who is president of Jai Hind Entertainment which is based in United States and is currently recording her upcoming album ‘Ishq Mallang’ at Satish Babbar’s Studio, also sung some Punjabi songs.

Babbar and Vani enthralled the audience with Raaga Miya Ki Malhaar aptly based in the monsoons, and then Babbar sang a romantic ghazal ‘Chehra mera tha Nigahein uski’. Later both father and daughter rendered some more popular ghazal and Sufi numbers.

VIPs present on the show included chief guest and union minister Harshvardhan, guest of honour Bishan Singh Bedi, and co-sponsors Akhil Gupta of Fresca company, Sushil Bagga of SB Medicare, and. Sunil Lamba from Kwality Foods.

Babbar told Radioandmusic.com that the foundation is attempting to keep alive the vanishing strains of traditional music. He said there were many organisations promoting only Hindustani classical music but very few are concentrating on the real art form of Ghazals which was based on the same classical music.

He said the CD on Gayatri Mantra came to him when he was undergoing depression about 14 years ago when his sister Vandana was in coma (she died shortly thereafter). Babbar has dedicated the CD to his sister, wife Anita who looked after his sister, and his parents-Sardari Lal and Kailash Babbar.