Mumbai, Mar 1 (IANS): 'Damaru', the latest uptempo EDM track by Hindustani classical vocalist Suchismita was released on Tuesday on the occasion of Maha Shivratri. The track also features Grammy Award-winning composer Ricky Kej, guitar prodigy Mohini Dey and London-based rapper Maya Miko.

The music video of the song, directed by Los Angeles-based JS Arts, explores the themes of devotion, ecstasy and abundance.

Talking on the occasion of release of the song, Suchismita, who is a protege of A.R. Rahman, said that she has been harbouring the decision of releasing the song on Maha Shivratri, "I always wanted to release 'Damaru' on Shivratri since I'm an ardent follower of Shiv but owing to the turbulent pandemic I missed releasing the single over the last two years."

Commenting further on the idea behind the song, she said, "I'm grateful that I have such a phenomenal bunch of collaborators on this single. The underlying idea was to present a unique take on devotional music as I've attempted to merge diverse soundscapes such as EDM, rap and classical into one heady experimental concoction with this devotional single."

Talking about his collaboration with Suchismita, Ricky Kej said, "It was a pleasure working with Suchismita on 'Damaru'. Suchismita has a fantastic voice and is an absolute virtuoso. Her composition was beautiful and I am glad I was able to bring in a fresh production approach to this timeless melody. All the musicians did a fantastic job."

Mohini Dey, who has played the guitar in the track, added, "'Damaru' is really a special composition that employs the sounds of Indian vocals, modern hip-hop vocals (rap) electronic dance music (EDM) and slap bass. This eclectic blend is indeed a perfect mix. I had a blast working on the project."

Suchismita follows the style of Patiala Gharana and is proficient in Indian ragas, thumris and ghazals. In addition, she has also lent her voice to songs in Bollywood films like 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects', 'Ye Jawani Hai Deewani', 'Airlift', 'Mirzya', 'Jigariya', 'Tigers', 'Kalank' and 'Ram Singh Charlie'.