Singer Sona Mohapatra’s new song for World Music Day puts a spotlight on our most valuable gift in these times — people who value us
Singer Sona Mohapatra has conceptualised a music video Portraits of Quarantine as an idea to timestamp this tough period of isolation with a ‘moving photo album’ of her band, crew, team members and the people they have shared this lockdown with. There is also a message for many who are battling depression and mental health issues to reach out and seek support. And in turn for people who know them to rally around and lean in. Everybody needs somebody who can remind them of their own value, beauty and strength.
The songstress and producer performs a soulful song Tori Surat - Unplugged with a chill lounge soundscape and Ameer Khusraus poetry with her band. The video features the faces or surats that made this period an easier one to navigate. A moving extended family ‘photo album’ to watch back in better times and remember the quarantine and it’s lessons.
Sona believes that despite the tough situation of the last few months, these are the people around her who kept her going and motivated as an artist and human being. On her worst days, she derived strength from her beloved team and band whom she misses the most in this lockdown after travelling with them across the world on an average of 16 days in a month.
Sona says, “We don’t have to have mental illness to experience psychological issues during COVID-19’s stressful impact on humanity. To cope, everyone needs connection and compassion. We are lucky if we have shared this quarantine period with someone who provides that support, be it by being physically around or even available virtually. This music video is an ode to that. World Music Day is around the corner and is a wonderful occasion that lets my whole team come together virtually to do what we do best — perform music that not only entertains people but also uplifts their soul.”
Crehyl Periera is a talented young music arranger and he produced a jazz-lounge track for Ram Sampath’s composition that she knows will be loved. “The music video has been shot individually by each team member but edited in the Himachal Pradesh by Nitesh Bisht. The piano, melodica, flutes, electric and acoustic guitars, the percussion including cajon, the Hindustani and Konnakol bols performed in this track make Tori Surat - Unplugged a truly world music gem. A perfect blend of the music of the West and the East too. The last few months haven’t been easy on any of us. Today when I look back, I feel it is important for us to cherish and celebrate our support systems — the ones we share our life with. Portraits of Quarantine celebrates that thought. Tori Surat is timeless poetry by a Sufi master and I hope my relationship with my band and team also endures similarly,” adds she.
