Mumbai: Grammy Award-winning musician Ricky Kej says playing the national anthem in theatres is a good idea as it is a music that is free of controversy and creates a sense of intimacy.
Cage was present to announce the new version of the national anthem, which will be available to listeners worldwide on August 14.
“Playing the national anthem in theatres is a good idea, because I believe the national anthem, especially all over the world, comes with a certain amount of controversy…
“The national anthem in India is a piece of music that is not controversial. As soon as you hear the first few notes, you are immediately compelled to stand up and pay respect to the anthem. It also evokes a sense of pride and belonging. I believe it is a powerful tune and it is good to be reminded of it,” Kej told reporters.
The musician said that theatres are the best place to play the national anthem.
“It’s an audience where everybody’s standing in front of one screen and usually nobody’s falling asleep before the movie starts. You have a great sound system and screen. It’s the best place to inspire people to remember that they have to serve their country,” Cage said.
The composer said that he wanted to give a new look to the national anthem by getting it performed by the best classical musicians.
“I approached all these amazing classical musicians. I met Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia. He agreed. It’s amazing to be in the same room with him. Then I found Rakesh Chaurasia, who has won two Grammy Awards this year.
“We have Rahul Sharma, who is a fine santoor player, Jayanti Kumaresh, who is a veena player. Then we have Mr and Mrs Sheikh Mehboob, who are flag bearers of the nadaswaram. And also, there is Giridhar Udupa, who is one of the greatest ghatam players of our generation.”
Along with renowned classical musicians, the national anthem also features around 14,000 students of the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences, who helped Cage create the Guinness World Record.
“We won a Guinness World Record. It was the instrumental version of the national anthem. They sang in four-part harmony, so they sang as a choir,” he said, adding that they converted a stadium at the institute into a recording studio with over 200 microphones.
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