There’s a definite aura around Benny Dayal that makes him a performer more than a singer. Thanks to him, his affable synergy with pianist Anil Srinivasan and the untiring efforts of the Funktuation band, the curtains came down on The Hindu November Fest 2017 with utmost pomp and grandeur. Film music is known to be larger than life, so was the evening that featured hit numbers across Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films over the last four decades, giving every generation among the crowd something to identify with!
The singer who owes his career to guru A R Rahman went onto remember his school days when he felt Dil se re (from Dil Se ) affirmed his desire to be a musician. Kaise Mujhe from Ghajini and Tuhi to Mere Dosthai from Yuvraaj were proof of the singer’s range and timbre. Enna Sona , a unique addition to the latter, marked the beginning of many more surprises due for the evening. His smart, subtle changes and improvisation to the tracks and their orchestration lent a unique flavour to the melodies. There was no looking back for Benny later, Nazrien Milana gave a fillip to the singer’s playlist, the use of the saxophone enhancing the scope of the song’s wavy texture.
His special affection for Dil Se showed with his alaap-like spin to the number, juxtaposing it with Yunhi chala and Albela Sajan aayo re to perfection, the vibratory effect with his mic, being aided by the metallic air in the instrumentation, there was enough ‘dil’ and ‘jaan’ to leave the music enthusiasts in a trance.
Singer Benny Dayal, his band Punctuation performing on the third day of the Hindu November fest-2017 at Ravindra Bharati in Hyderabad
The concert took a lighter tone when pianist Anil Srinivasan tested the audience’ knowledge of Benny’s songs, the two not only wore matching hats but shared similar musical talents and tastes too. Anil Srinivasan’s piano underscored the need for lyrics, the audiences joined the two, humming and occasionally grooving to numbers like Pappu can’t dance saala , Kundanapu bomma , Aap ki nazron ne samjha and Kabhie kabhie mere dil mein . Anil’s reference to A R Rahman as ‘the man who’s now in Gachibowli’ invited loud cheer from the crowds.
Numbers like Locha-e-ulfat , Daaru Desi , Nashe se chad gayi , Bang Bang , Ek main aur ek tu reaffirmed Benny’s ability to be an entertainer. Tireless as he switched from one song to another, grooving, interacting and singing like a man who was born to be on the stage!
But we realised there was more to come — a 21-track medley that began with Disco Deewane and ended with Laxmikant Pyaarelal’s Jumma chumma de de left music lovers in awe. No wonder Anil Srinivasan mentioned he was counting the number of songs Benny crooned as he was backstage. Benny’s smart, subtle changes and improvisation to the tracks and their orchestration lent a unique flavour to the melodies. The pianist joked that the ‘aaha’ word in Disco Deewane was his way of eliciting a response from the audience. Hyderabadis in round two were also quick to identify the songs Anil played on the piano, his eclectic choices from Kanne Kalaimaane from Moondram Pirai to Chookar mere mann ko to Naa cheli rojaave to Saamne yeh kaun aaya , Piya tu ab toh aaja and Churaliya hai tumne helped.
Only Benny could be secure in pulling off a mix of Phir le aaya dil and Krishna nee begane baaro . He recollected his guru Rehman’s early days with Chinna chinna aasa and Humma humma soon. No Benny Dayal concert feels complete without Badtameez dil , the ‘dil’ series continued with Ude dil befikre . The evening culminated with Lets Nacho from Kapoor and Sons , that he found special for its mix of Tamil and Hindi, both languages that helped Benny earn an identity in the film industry.
All through the concert, the audience was visibly excited and charged up, jumping up from their seats frequently as they submitted themselves to an uncompromising, electric display of music.
