MUMBAI & BOSTON –Indian-American singer Anuradha Palakurthi’s “Jaan Meri” song from her Jaan Meri album has won the prestigious Independent Music Category Award at the Radio Mirchi Music Awards, the Indian equivalent of the Grammys.
Ustad Nishat Khan, a scion of one of the oldest Gharanas of Hindustani music and one of the top sitar players in the world who composed the album Jaan Meri, also won the award, along with Lyricist Bollywood’s Manoj Yadav. The album was officially released in March 2019 at MIT’s Kresge Auditorium in Cambridge, MA. It was produced by Juju Productions.
“I am grateful to the jury for recognizing Ustand Nishat Khan’s music based on classical roots and Juju Production’s utilizing 70-plus musicians in a live setting,” said Ms. Palakurthi. “It is a surreal feeling to have the inaugural Juju Productions album win recognition. Thank you to so many people who helped in its creation.”
Two of the top five nominees for the best song of the year for the Radio Mirchi Music Awards in the Non-Film/ Independent category were from Jaan Meri Album.
The annual Radio Mirchi awards are the highest recognition of music in India, and this was the first time that two songs from one album had found a place in the top 5 – and also one of the rare occasions of an American citizen’s work featuring amongst the best.
Ms. Palakurthi has been recognized as the top-rated singer of Indian origin by industry legends. She has performed live with Bollywood singers like Kumar Sanu, Suresh Wadkar, Deepak Pandit and Bappi Lahiri across the United States. Anuradha has recorded a duet with Hariharan for Ekal Vidyalaya – composed by guitarist Prasanna with drummer Sivamani and a group of 14 multiple-Grammy winning musicians from across the globe. She sings in six Indian languages and has recorded playback for South Indian films.
Here is the complete list of all winners as reported by The Times of India:
Song of the Year: Kalank (Title Track)
Film: Kalank
Album of the Year: Kesari
Indies Song of the Year: Jaan Meri
Album: Jaan Meri (Album)
Male Vocalist of The Year: Arijit Singh
Song: Kalank (Title Track)
Film: Kalank
Female Vocalist of the Year: Shreya Ghoshal
Song: Ghar More Pardesiya
Film: Kalank
Music Composer of the Year: Pritam
Song: Kalank (Title Track)
Film: Kalank
Lyricist of the Year: Amitabh Bhattacharya
Song: Kalank (Title Track)
Film: Kalank
Listeners’ Choice Song of the Year: Bekhayali
Film: Kabir Singh
Listeners’ Choice Album of the Year Film: Kabir Singh
Listeners’ Choice Independent (Indies) of the year: Vaaste
Upcoming Male Vocalist of the Year: Abhijeet Srivastava
Song: Chashni
Film: Bharat
Upcoming Female Vocalist of the Year: Aakanksha Sharma
Song: Tum Chale Gaye
Film: Marudhar Express
Upcoming Music Composer of the Year: Piyush Shankar
Song: Naina Yeh
Film: Article 15
Upcoming Lyricist of the Year: Sahib
Song: Lahu Ka Rang Kara
Film: Laal Kaptaan
Best Song Producer (Programming & Arranging): DJ Phukan, Prasad Sashte, Prakash Peters & Sunny MR
Song: Ghar More Pardesiya
Film: Kalank
Best Song Engineer (Recording & Mixing): Vijay Dayal
Song: Jugraafiya
Album: Super 30
Best Background Score: Mangesh Dhakde
Film: Article 15
Recreated song of the year: Hume Tumse Pyaar Kitna
Lifetime Achievement Award: Usha Mangeshkar
Special Jury Award for Outstanding Contribution to Hindi Film Music: Amar Haldipur
Special Jury Award for Golden Era Album of the Year (1959): Anari & Sujatha
Best Raag-Inspired Song of the Year: Dhola
Film: Yeh Hai India
Make It Large Award: Deepika Padukone
Mirchi Social Media Icon of the year: Neha Kakkar
Mirchi Trendsetters Album of the year: Gully Boy.
