Skip to content Skip to navigation

‘Drihrata’ by Farmaan , a new dimension in Assamese music scenario

The sound that can melt hearts, the melody that can be felt within & the symphony that can bring a head bangers ball, in short this is what Farmaan can be defined as. Farmaan doesn’t have a constrained genre as all the members are having varied influences and musical inclination. It likes to do constant experiments with all kinds of music varying from classic rock & metal to RNB & blues.


Away from their hometown, all the members were quite academically inclined. They have completed their engineering from the prestigious institutions and are currently working as engineers in large PSUs and MNCs. They even got a chance to complete their Masters in elite colleges like Georgia Tech, NUS and many other colleges abroad but their love for the music couldn’t allow them to go away. They stayed back so that they could hold on to their dreams, the dream of making it big & creating a revolution in the Assamese music industry.


Although they stayed back it seemed that their dreams were fading away. Frustrated in their own office cubicles they were trying to work out a plan to get out of their monotonous office work. Luck shone on them and they could find like minded colleagues. This led to the inception of ‘ Vervain Productions’. The brain child of Soumya Dash, Vervain Productions has partners who are basically engineers from colleges like IITs & NITs.


Now under the banner of Vervain Productions the band has released their first album ‘DRIHRATA’ on 23rd May 2010. ‘Drihrata’ contains 9 tracks, 5 in Assamese, and 4 bonus tracks in Hindi. The fact that all the tracks are completely different and each has got its unique style is what makes this band so special. Language doesn’t have a barrier for the band so their lyrics are both in Assamese and Hindi. In the album it can be easily seen that the band doesn’t have any constrained genre, ‘Oxanto Hridoy’ is a power ballad, ‘ Lorali ‘ is a soft rock number, ‘Xopun’ is influenced by R&B and ‘Drihrata’ is more or less a Nu-metal number. So the album has something for everyone.


The band has also released a promotional vide of their song ‘ Oxanto Hridoy ‘ which is undoubtedly one of the costliest music video in the Assamese music industry. The song is about the frustrations of people of all ages which is very aptly portrayed by Deepak Dey , one of the leading video director and choreographer of Assam. The you tube link for the video is given below:









About the band:


Farmaan was formed in 2007 when childhood buddies Neil and Gazi met in Chennai and came to know about each other’s talent. Pursuing their graduation from different cities at that time, Neil and Gazi, managed to jam with Manash(drums) making Chennai as their base for jamming. The band used to practice on every weekend, Gazi would come all the way from Trichy which was a hectic 8 hrs bus journey. Their sound seemed to be fresh but the band felt the great need of a bassist. Finally they found their mutual friend, Madhurjya(Bass) back in Guwahati who completed the sound of Farmaan. During semester breaks they would jam in Guwahati and in a span of 1 year they recorded six tracks.


The band had to face many problems in the initial stages as their language, which was initially Hindi, hindered them to participate in the rock competitions held in IITs and NITs. Hindi rock was completely new and the crowd in Chennai and Bangalore was more inclined to death metal. But the band stuck to its genres and when they promoted its recorded tracks in all the colleges in Chennai the response that they got was immense. They were constantly invited as guest artists in many events of the different colleges. In December 2009 the band also got an invitation to perform in Mood Indigo, the annual cultural fest of IIT Mumbai but due to the job pressure of the band members they had to decline the offer. But now backed by Vervain Productions the band members are not hesitating even to the slightest extent to put their jobs on stake and pursue their true love which is music.


Band Members:



Gazi Mehboob ( Lead Guitars and Vocals):


A graduate in Production Engineering from NIT, Trichy, Gazi Mehboob, a self taught guitarist, has been running his fingers on the frets since the last 7 years. His influences are basically metal acts like Iron maiden , Megadeth , Opeth but at the same time he is also inclined towards sufi and Indian classical. He is the main person behind the compositions and lyrics. He loves to fuse metal with sufi music. He is currently working as a manager in NMDC Ltd, the leading mining organization of the government.


Neil Sarmah (Lead Vocals and Rhythm)


A passed out from SRM University in Electronics & Telecom, Neil Sarmah is a die hard fan of Nusrat, Rahat and Shafqat Amanat and considers them as his prime influence. He is open to all genres. He is a self learned vocalist and his main strength lies in the high pitched aalaps that can be heard in most of the songs of Farmaan. As he has not received any formal training Neil is planning to train himself in Indian Classical Music so that he can even refine his god gifted talent. He is currently working as an Asst. Systems Engineer in TCS, New Delhi.


Manash (Drums)


A graduate from SRM University in Electronics & Communication, Manash a.k.a Max has played the tabla for 12 years and managed to get a visharad before he switched to congo and drums. He is currently working as a Network Engineer in CISCO, Gurgaon.


Madhurjya (Bass)


Currently pursuing his B.Tech in Instrumentation Madhurjya has been associated with different bands in Guwahati before he joined Farmaan. His inclination is towards Nu-Metal, Punk, Grudge and but at the same time he is also a die hard fan of Harris, which can be seen in the bass lines of some of the metal acts of the band.

Comments

Yuvi's picture

Assamese music lovers were in need of such an album ..... the songs are really fantastic .... I guess it will totally redefine the way we see assamese music.... people should watch out for 'lorali' & 'Xopun jen lage '
Priyam Biswas's picture

I need to contact Mr. Deepak Dey, can anyone help?
bhaskarnil's picture

Nice piece of work man....gazi....ur dedication really works out..a must for every neo-assamese generation...for d love of the music..
Honey's picture

neil you rocks...wht to say? just keep on doing good work and entertain us.
Parmita Borah's picture

Great to know about Farmaan.. I think the picture was taken outside St. Anthony's College, Shillong...got m all nostalgic! let me know if am wrong :)
dwarak's picture

Farmaan is rocking...waiting for the national release...all the very best rockstars
Raktim's picture

Are the persons writing comments friends of the band? How can anyone praise such a mess of singing and a video which looks so funny and out of place? Boys, please stick to your engineering. Sngfor yourselves and not for us. Thank you.
Mona's picture

@Raktim this video looks funny? what about the rest of the typical assamese video's huh?those seem to be upto the level of those directed by Sophie Mullers and Joseph Kahns for you, ain't it? I am not saying this is a very good video. atleast these guys worked hard to do something different? And being newcomers they did a gud job from the point of view of the Assamese industry.
debahuti bora's picture

neil pinky ba here u r great man i didnt know u r in a band farmaan wit such a good voice keep going we r in need of such talent. my support n best wishes r always wit u. "BEST OF LUCK FARMAAN".

Pages

Add new comment

Other Contents by Author

At least 30 passengers had a narrow escape when in a country-made boat carrying them capsized in Aie river of Chirang district on Friday. The incident took place at around 2.30 in the afternoon at Ranisundari ghat when the boat was on its way from the west to the eastern bank of the river, which is a major tributary of the Manas river. According to police, all the passengers swam safely to the shore.
The Gauhati High Court on Thursday rejected journalist Gauravjyoti Neog’s plea he moved to procure anticipatory bail in connection with the molestation case in the city. A division bench of the court of rejected the petition but directed the police to file the case diary by the next week. Neog, a reporter with Newslive is allegedly involved in the entire incident and Bhangagarh police grilled him for five hours on Sunday to extract the truth.
Properties worth one crore have been reduced to ashes when a market caught fire in Moran on Thursday. The incident took place in the wee hours when the fire broke out at a shop because of electric short circuit. Immediately, the fire was spreading to the nearby shops. Fire tenders were rushed to the spot but by then the fire engulfed the entire daily market. Local residents blamed delay in the arrival of the fire tenders which was why, the fire spanned out of control.
Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday claimed victory for Pranab Mukherjee in the presidential polls. Talking to reporters after casting his vote at the Central Hall of the Assam Assembly in the morning, Gogoi said that the Mukherjee, a veteran political leader deserves the coveted post. Gogoi said that Mukherjee is expected to get the support of more than 111 legislators in the state. He hoped that other opposition parties would also vote for the former finance minister.
Ananda Prakash Tiwary took over as senior superintendent of police replacing Apurba Jiban Baruah who was shunted following the police failure in the recent molestation case.The new senior police superintendent is understood to have taken stock of the law and order situation in the city rocked by a string of uneasy incidents of killings, kidnapping and the molestation incident.
Presidential poll begins in Assam with Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi casting his vote on Thursday. Gogoi, is among the 126 members of the legislative assembly along with member of parliament Bhubneswar Kalita who are expected to cast the vote at the Central Hall of the Assam Assembly. As soon as the question hour ended at 10 in the morning, the legislators are lined up to cast their votes. Pranab Mukherjee is expected to get support from 112 legislators. Altogether 15 legislators are expected to go with PA Sangma. Parliamentary affairs minister Nilomoni Sendeka represents Pranab Mukherjee while PA Sangma is represented by AGP MLA Bhupen Ray. The ballot boxes are scheduled to be sealed...
General Officer Commanding-in- Chief of Eastern Command, Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh called on Assam Governor Janaki Ballav Patnaik on Wednesday and apprised him of the flood relief and rescue operation in the state. Accompanied by Lieutenant General Shakti Gurung, General Officer Commanding, Gajraj Corps, he interacted with the troops and reviewed the progress of ongoing projects and the current internal security situation in Assam as well as on the Line of Actual Control in Arunachal Pradesh.
The chairperson of the National Commission for Women Mamata Sharma on Wednesday suggested a slew of measures to ensure safety and security of women in the state. During his hurricane visit to Guwahati on Wednesday, Sarma asked Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi to provide government job for the molestation victim apart from proper counseling and rehabilitation. Talking to reporters, she said that the Commission asked for better police surveillance with presence of women personnel in the entire state. She said that the Chief Minister has accepted her recommendation. She criticized the role of police in the entire incident saying that police needed 45 minutes to arrived in the spot.The NCW has...
Four persons were killed an ugly string of group clash in Barak Valley on Wednesday. Twenty others have been 20 injured in the clash. According to police, the clash took place over a five year long land dispute. The two groups used sharp weapons during the clash at Matijuri area of Hailakandi district. The deceased were identified as Mizanur Rahman Chaudhary, Nazimuddin Chaudhary, Nazrul Haq Barbhuiyan and Aziruddin Barbhuiyan.
Normal life in Sivasagar district remained paralyzed during the 12-hour bandh called on Wednesday demanding stern action against Army personnel involved in the molestation case in Demow. The bandh was total. Shops and business establishments remained closed in the entire district. Vehicular traffic off from the roads. No untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the district. The bandh was called jointly by Mising Students' Union, Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad, All Tai Ahom Students' Union and some other outfits demanding immediate action against Army personnel responsible for the alleged molestation of a girl at Demow in Sibsagar district on July 13.