MUMBAI: A set-up with multiple promising musicians leads to a fate that could go either way. The duo, Rahul Kannan and Kaushik Ramachandran, released a single 'Pehchaan' today. In this case, the duo carefully chose elements - from musicians to the lyrics - essential to provide an effective outcome.

The single 'Pehchaan' was shot and recorded at the Thane-based Benchmark Studios, and Ramachandran (also the vocalist of 'Paradigm Shift') believes the project had every possible resource for a successful execution. And a couple of listens into the track suggests the effort did convert into a flawless audio-visual treat. "I wanted to collaborate with a lot of musicians for a really long time," expressed Ramachandran, the vocalist. "I wanted to create a sound that could cater to an audience larger than Paradigm's," added Ramachandran.

The duo, surprised with the outcome and the response to the single, will continue with similar determination to compose five more singles. "We will work with the same musicians, who collaborated for 'Pehchaan'. These musicians did not charge a single penny for the project, and contributed entirely out of goodwill," informed Ramachandran, who sung the Hindi portions of the composition (along with Sparsh's Soham Pathak and few others), while the lyrical and vocal responsibilities for the English portions fell under Daira's vocalist Piyush Kapoor.

The song, lyrically, remains open to multiple interpretations, however, Ramachandran ensured the composition does offer the vocalist's direct expression of thoughts. Lyrically, the song mostly speaks about how one loses its identity, beyond the possibility of repossession. Call it habit or the desperate intent to express himself, 'Pehchaan' ends with Ramachandran's expression of a personal odyssey.

Seekha hai tumne, kal ki woh haar se,
ke baandho dilon mein,
Boondon ki aarzoo…

Mushkil Palon mein, dil ki duaein,
gum si gayi hain,
ab kya kahe, aur kya sahe…

Ramachandran surely needs to be credited for the refreshingly dark lyrics, however, the other-half of the initiative - Rahul Kannan - deserves a pat on his inexperienced back to stage and implement a sound that incorporated 20 vocalists and nine instruments, thus ensuring the sound does not restrict to one genre. When he joined as an intern at Benchmark Studios, Kannan's quest to find his 'sound' often created obstacles for him. The latest development in the duo's musical venture further boosts their identity in the alternative music scene. "When Kaushik explained the lyrics to me, and what it meant, I realised I cannot stick to the usual Progressive-Rock genre. It had to be more than that. The musicians associated with 'Pehchaan' helped me experiment and broaden the horizons. I am really thankful to them. Without these musicians, 'Pehchaan' would have sounded half as beautiful as it does now," explained Kannan.

The idea for the single occurred in November 2015, and 'Pehchaan' took over four months to find a release. The duo hopes to record and release the remaining five singles before the end of the year. With multiple projects lined up for the concerned musicians involved, the project might get delayed, but with the success of 'Pehchaan', the celebrations will be in full swing at the Benchmark Studios, and rightly so.. 

Check out 'Pehchaan' here -