This is a song about going from Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) to NoMo FOMO!
Feed में रंगीन सपने
पीड़ है ना होंगे अपने
Scroll में रैन गँवाई!
ना कहा तो, ना जग डूबा ...
हाँ कहा तो कौन अजूबा?
अंतर्मन की बात सुने जब
'नादरंग' तब NoMo FOMO!
Raga: Haveli Basant
My Feed shows me such colorful dreams
They will never be mine, my mind screams
So I scroll the night away...
Say no to the fantasies? No apocalypse.
Say yes? Still no guaranteed bliss.
Trust your inner voice, and then, NoMo FOMO!
An Indian classical take on an iconic composition by the great John Williams. The imperial march interpreted as a tarana in raga Miyaa-ki-Todi.
तोम दिरदिरदिर तोम दीम तनोम, दीम तनोम |
तोम दिरदिरदिर तोम धितन देरेना,
तनूम धितन देरेना, तादीम दीम तनोम, दीम तनोम |
तोम दिरदिरदिर तोम धितन देरेना,
तनूम (दीम तनोम) x ३।
(new original Antara)
(तोम दिरदिरदि) x ३ तोम
ग रे ग रे ध, रे नी रे नी म, नी म नी म रे, ध ग ध ग नी
(तोम दिरदिरदि) x ३ तोम
((दीम तनोम) x ३ ) x ३ |
Last week of 2025. –20°C. Arctic Circle.
We waited all night for the Northern Lights (aurora borealis), and saw nothing but clouds.
And next day, when the forecast was bleak, the sky opened for a brief, miraculous moment.
Green and pink lights danced across the darkness, impossibly alive.
That fleeting, otherworldly encounter became this song!
चलो चलो देखन Aurora!
बादरवा छाए, चहूँ ओरा
महूरत गयो, दुःखी मन मोरा |
फिर अनसोचे दरस हुए
भाग अचानक मोड़ लिए
गगन झूमत लाल हरा
झटपट निकालो Camera!
This is my first Marathi Hindustani Classical 'Bandish'. The word Vaat (वाट) has multiple meanings and all of them are used in this song. The melody is in Raga Pratiksha (Pratiksha means 'the wait') as well.
वाट बघूनी वाट लागली
वाटे वरती वर्षं टाकली
त्रास तीनशे साठ!
वाट साधकास, वाटे समर्पण,
शिकावी स्थैर्य, स्वीकृती, संयम
वाट दाखवी वाट!
(वाट बघूनी वाट साधली!)
The wait is driving me crazy!
I've sacrificed years in waiting,
Facing hurdles at every turn.
For the seeker, every wait is an act of surrender,
teaching stability, acceptance, and discipline.
The wait shall reveal the way!
Opinion
There are so many waits in life, from the mundane, to intense, to profound.
Waiting in traffic, in line, for a flight, for dinner, for a video to load, for a package, for the rain to stop (or start),
to
Waiting for test results, a job or promotion, for hammering to stop in the flat above yours, for your broken leg to heal, waiting for a loved one, waiting to be rescued from the International Space Station,
to
Waiting for your soulmate, waiting for your child to be born, for them to grow up, to heal from loss of a loved one, to find your purpose in life, for spiritual guidance and growth,
to ultimately, enlightenment!
Each wait can be a friend, a teacher, a guru.
Embrace the wait!
दीम तनन तारे दानी
ओदेतन नननन देरेना
(तारे दानी) x ३ ||
दीम तनन तारे दानी
ओदेतन नननन देरेना
(तारे दानी) x ३ ||
अब देखो ना, बोलो ना, चलो हटो!
निकट न आवो, पीछा ना करो अब,
चैन से मोको, जीने दो ||
निलज छलिये रुक! अब और नहीं!
पथ ना रोको,
सुख ना टोको,
चैन से मोको, जीने दो ||
Explanation & Context
We all need a 'fortress of solitude' now and then.
It might be a break after an argument, a refuge for introverts overwhelmed by social noise, a stalker, or a shield against greedy corporations and scammers trying to exploit you.
Don’t watch, don't speak, back off!
Leave me alone, don’t follow.
Let me live my life in peace!
Shameless charlatan - stop! Never again.
Stay out of my way,
Don’t kill my joy,
Let me live my life in peace!
तन देरेना देरेना तदीम तदीम
ओदे तन देरना, ओदानी तनन (दीम)
तदारे दानी, ओदानी दीम ||
देरना तदीम दीम, ताs रेs ताs रेदानी
( तदारे दानी) x ३ ओदानी दीम ||
आजा मंदिरवा मोरे, पिहरवा अब
बिन तोरे कैसे मैं सुख पाउँ ॥ध्रु॥
देख देख के तोरी, सुंदर सूरत ॥
नादरंग गाये इस मंगल महूरत (पिहरवा अब) ॥१॥
कैसे मन सुख पावे?
कैसे कहूँ बतिया, डर लगे जिया को,
अब रोके ना जाए!
कोई ना जाने दुःख हमारा,
छिप गयी मन की बतिया,
'नादरंग' अब कहा ना जाए!
Interpretation:
How will I ever find joy?
Fear shackles my true feelings,
that threaten to burst forth, awoken.
No one knows of my pain within,
of bottled emotions and thoughts,
that shall forever remain unspoken!
ना बोलूँ, ना बोले वो
ना कहुँ, ना सुने वो
छिप जाए अज्ञान |
Inspiration:ना मैं सोचूँ, ना समझे वो
ना मैं चाहूँ, ना माँगें वो
'नादरंग' मिट जाए गुमान |
'Maun' or 'true silence' is when body, mind and spirit withdraw into silence. First, spoken words stop, then mental words and sentences abate. With more practice, thoughts slow down, and then finally, the desire to speak fades away.
This song was inspired by the brilliant talk (in Marathi) on 'Maun' by Mrs. Dhanashree Lele. Interestingly, the song's melody just happened to be composed in Raga Vachaspati. Vachaspati is the God of Speech!
(Here, the I is the self/ego and They can be other people or the subconscious mind)
If I don't speak, they too go silent.
If I have nothing to say, they have nothing to listen to (and interpret).
Thus silence is the best way to hide your ignorance.
If thought stops, no meaning can come from it.
And once desire stops, temptation abates.
'Naadrang' believes that such a (true) silence leads to ego-death.
इतनी सी बिनती सुनलो मोरी
इस चांदनी रात में
ले हाँथो में हाँथ, सपने सजाये |
सुख दुःख में डोर बंधी हो
हार जीत में मन अचल हो
'नादरंग' प्रीत गहरावे |
Explanation:
Listen to my tiny request -
In this beautiful moonlight night,
let's walk hand in hand, dreaming of our future together.
Let our bond be strong through good and bad,
Let our mind be calm through thick and thin,
'Naadrang' hopes that our love deepens.
जय जय श्री जोगेश्वरी माता,
दुख हरनी, जगत जननी, दुर्गे भवानी,
दया करो माँ!
महा माया देवी
मंत्रमयी दयनी, चरण शरण आयो
'नादरंग' अब तारो माँ!
Early today morning, this Sanskrit verse bubbled up in my consciousness.
नादरंगं समाधिश्च साधनायां निरन्तरं ।
साधको मोक्षमाप्नोति नादयोगं समर्पयेत् ॥
Meaning:
Immersing oneself in ceaseless practice/meditation of internal sound (Naad) and color/light/melody (Rang), the practitioner shall attain self-realization by dedicating oneself to Nada Yoga.
सुबह सवेरे मिला संदेसा 📱
दिल्ली उड़ान में होगी देरी ✈️
बदला द्वार चार बार 🚪
और नगर की मारी पूरी फेरी! 🏃🏻♂️ || १ ||
निकले थे पुण्यनगरी से 😇,
पर जा पहुँचे जयपुर 🤯
सफ़र (suffer?!) किये, या थी सफ़ारी? 🤬
नादरंग अभी दिल्ली है दूर 🥵!
Interpretation:
Early morning I got a message,
My flight to Delhi had been delayed.
Last minute, they changed the gate 4 times.
and made us run all over the airport!
I'd left Pune (Punyanagari 😎) in high spirits,
but instead landed in Jaipur!
Was this a journey or a safari!?
Naadrang says - Delhi is still far away!
(Composed in Raga Shuddha Dhaivat Bibhas, Teentaal)
घूम घूम घूम जग घूमे
न घटे, न मिठे, न छूटे,
कौन हूँ मैं ? क्यूँ हूँ मैं!? ||
नैन खोल, बिंदु साधे
संतुलन पावे, संकट जावे
लौट आया हूँ मैं! ||
(Raga Shuddha Sarang, Teentaal)
Backstory:
On Christmas day, 2022, I experienced my very first, very severe, vertigo attack. I woke up with the world spinning around me. I broke into a cold sweat, mouth dry, breathing hard.
I am truly indebted to Dr. Vinaya Chitale-Chakradeo for opening up her hospital for me on a holiday and performing the Epley maneuver. I'd walked in wobbly, palpitating and panicking, and in a few minutes, I felt calm and normal!
Her advice to me was to keep my eyes open and fix my gaze on a steady point. I thought the vertigo experience and her advice were a great metaphor for life itself. When things are chaotic and you feel the world is spinning around you, helpless to stop it, focus on something steady - a loving partner, your child, a hobby, a God, etc and balance will return to your world.
Interpretation of the song:
The world spins, spins, spins - ceaseless.
It doesn't abate, it won't stop, I feel helpless.
Who am I? Why am I!?
I open my eyes, I fix my gaze.
Balance returns slowly - I breathe again.
I'm me again! I ... am back!
Haters say:
"ये मत कर, वो मत कर
ये मत कर रे मूरख
पीड़ा होगी, भूल होगी
सोना नहीं, धूल होगी
हार है तुम्हारी!" ||
Rebels Mantra:
"ये करेंगे, वो भी करेंगे
भूल हुई, तो सीख लेंगे
गिर गए, तो फिर उठेंगे
हार कभी ना मानेंगे!
यही जीत हमारी!" ||
Meaning:
Haters say:
"Don't do this, don't do that, you idiot!
You'll suffer, this is a huge mistake.
The outcome will be dust, not gold.
You will surely fail!"
Rebel's Mantra:
"I'll do this and I'll do that too.
If I make a mistake, I'll learn from it.
If I fall, I'll just get up again.
But, I'll never give up following my happiness,
Which will be my success!"
(Raga Basant Bahar, Teentaal)
Tanom Dere Naa, Tadeem Deem,
Tom Tadani, Tadeem,
Tanom Dere Naa, Tadeem Tadeem,
Ta Dere Na Deem Tadeem,
[Tadeem Tadeem, Tadani Deem,
Ta Dere Na, Deem Tadeem] x2
Tanom Dere Naa, Tadeem Deem,
Tom Tadaa*ni, Tadeem.
Tanom Dere Naa, Tadeem Tadeem,
Tom Tanana, Nanana Nanana Dee
(Based on the great John William's incredible 'Hedwig's Theme', reinterpreted as a Indian Tarana in Raga Kirwani, in Taal Khemta)
The making of the remix using NaadSadhana:
अत सताए कोयलिया ,
करत शोर,
क्यूँ इतनी बेचैन ? ||
नीर भरे नैना,
बाट तकत,
तरपत सगरी रैन! ||
Explanation:
Why is the cuckoo bird crying so incessantly?
What makes her so anxious?
The cuckoo bird, with tears in her eyes says:
"I've been agonizing all night, waiting for my partner!"
This is the vilambit partner to this drut bandish.
Harry Potter's Marauder's Map is the first known 'location-based, geo-fenced, person tracking app' in the wizarding world! And they have no privacy laws covering it.
जगत देखत मगन मन
मन को देखत आत्मन
'नादरंग' दोनों भिन्न ||
अनेक चंचल मन
एक अचल आत्मन
निरंतर सच्चिदानंद ||
Explanation:
The mind sees the world.
The Self sees the mind.
Seer and seen are distinct, so must the Self be distinct from the mind.
There are many, ever evolving minds.
There's but one, unchanging, eternal Self,
the nature of which is 'existence - consciousness - bliss'.
