BENGALURU: It is unlikely to find anyone who would not have connected with the simplicity in Vasu Dixit’s music. He does it again with the song Guru. Dixit has sung it along with Mohan Kumar. “It is a folk song from Karnataka which we call Tatwa pada, which has more of a spiritual and philosophical meaning,” explains Dixit.
Dixit came across Kumar and this song during his previous project Pada Project, where he was exploring some folk and tribal artists, their lives, their profession, and where their music comes from. The first episode of the project was with Kumar. “While I was interviewing him, he had this particular song called Guru. I fell in love with it the first time I heard it; it was very touching,” recalls Dixit.
He further adds, “Guru doesn’t mean like a physical guru or a teacher. But it is more like a guide, the energy that guides us into doing what is more important. The inner Guru is the buddhi or the intelligence that we all have.”
But the song didn’t take off for quite some time since Dixit was busy with his other projects and he also took a break from work due to a ligament injury. “Last June, I had knee ligament surgery. I took a break and that is when I remembered the song and wanted to learn it. So I asked Mohan to send me the lyrics. He sent me a recording also,” says Dixit.
Dixit initially added his elements to it but found something missing. “I really liked my version but then I felt it should have Mohan’s voice because that’s where the true essence of the song comes from. He and I recorded it again,” says Dixit adding, that the other artists he collaborated with for the song are Joel Sakkari, Manu Shrivastava, and Hriday Goswami.
The song was ready just in time for Kannada Rajyotsava. “This whole month is celebrated as the state festival. I didn’t plan it that way but just that the song was ready. Also, Karnataka Rajyotsava songs do not have to be only celebrating the language of the land. It is also equally meant to speak about the art and culture that this land stands for,” affirms Dixit.
Even if the team got the song right it was equally important to convey the same message in the video too. “I wanted to build a story in the video that kind of depicts this innocence of surrendering to your guru or the guide. So I tried to portray it through children’s innocence who drew an image on stone and considered it as their guru. It’s a simple message of showing that God for each and every person means something different and it should be respected,” says Dixit, adding that the video was shot in a quaint village in the Tumkuru district.