The Promising Star: Raghu Dixit

Raghu Dixit ( Kannada: ರಘು ದೀಕ್ಷಿತ್), born on November 11, 1974,is an Indian singer-songwriter, producer, and film score composer based in Bangalore, India. He is most famous for fronting the Raghu Dixit Project, a multilingual folk music band. Though a gold medalist in Masters in Microbiology and a proficient Indian classical dancer (Vidwat in Bharatanatyam), Raghupathy Dixit is now known more as a self-taught composer and musician. Originally from Mysore, he settled in Bengaluru. As the founder-front man of his band Antaragni for more than eight years, and now of The Raghu Dixit Project, Dixit has performed more than 250 concerts all over India. In 2008, The Raghu Dixit Project launched its debut album Antaragni: The Fire Within. Raghu is a self-taught guitarist and singer. The most catchy part of Raghu's concert is his unique voice which goes beyond ranges and the measured humor that he puts in without any effort. His unique combination of traditional Indian sounds mixed with western influences has brought him firmly into the spotlight

Dixit's music is an amalgamation of Indian ethnic music and styles from different parts of the world. In an interview with Vishnupriya Bhandaram of The Hindu, he mentions, "“Every 200 kilometres in this country, languages change, the dialects change and the food changes, lives and lifestyles change and my music is unique and probably the USP is that it's sung in a vernacular tongue… its adds mystery.” His lyrics are about every common man's emotions and experience. His songs Mysore se aayi, Mumbai, Antaragni, Hey Bhagwan, Har Saans Mein, Gudugudiya, Khidki are popular among his fans. Most of his songs are influenced by Shishunala Sharif, a saint and poet from the state of Karnataka in India.

Dixit has produced music for contemporary dance and theatre productions. He has composed and produced music for most of the productions by the Indian contemporary dance group Nritarutya. Girish Karnad's Hayavadana for TopCast and Black Coffee's Body Catcher have been his most famous works that brought him critical acclaim as a composer for theatre productions.[citation needed]

In May 2008 Dixit joined Springboard Surprises' Roots Festival for a number of shows, touring many towns and cities within Northeast India, with international acts including Israel's DUB LFO and England's Too Late Lucy. Raghu Dixit also composes music for feature films.

My Personal Favourites are :
1. Hey Bhagwan Mujhko Tu
2. Har Saans Mein
3. Well I’m in Mumbai, waiting for a miracle

Enjoy Hey Bhagwan from his album Antaragini

The Promising Star: Papon

Angaraag Mahanta known as Papon is an Indian singer, composer and record producer. Born to music duo and legends of Assamese music, Archana Mahanta and Khagen Mahanta, he was introduced to music early on in his childhood. His first language is Assamese and he also sings in Hindi and Bengali. His initial training was in Indian Classical and devotional and folk music. He learnt vocals primarily but also plays the khol, tabla, guitar, and harmonium. His music genres are ambient electronic, acoustic folk and new age Indian classical music and has been identified as having traces of pentatonic Mongoloid notes, local river song influences and ghazals.
My personal favorites are:
1. Jiyein Kyun
2. Main Chalta Hi Raha
3. Mon Mor Uri Gusi Jaay
4. Kyon (Barfi!)

For More details: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angaraag_Mahanta

Here's Main Chalta Hi Raha from his album The Story So Far....enjoy