The rise of independent music in recent times, has been nothing short of meteoric. With the pandemic and lockdown aiding the flow of creative juices, numerous collaborations have sprung and good-quality music has been produced. At the forefront of the Indie scene, are talented duo Archit & Smit from Mumbai. Their latest offering ‘Thoda Sambhal’, is a soulful romantic number, created in collaboration with singer Yashita Sharma, who is best known for lending her voice to hit Bollywood tracks like ‘Chaandaniya’ from the movie ‘2 States’ and the foot-tapping ‘Galla Gudiyaan’ from the movie ‘Dil Dhadakne Do’.
The soft sound offset by the impactful lyrics of the new track ‘Thoda Sambhal’, reflects the steady maturity of its creators. In this track, they have used the crisp tones of the piano and the lilting lines of the Cello, to memorable musical effect. The lyrics seek to portray the anguish of relationships, where one partner overcome by struggle and grief, turns to the other for solace and love. In some ways, the arms of a lover are the perfect escape from worldly worries, even if for fleeting moments. Many will find this theme endearing in a world where the idea of romantic love is undergoing a sea change – becoming more and more temporary by the day. Archit & Smit refer to their song as, “a wake-up call that we must cherish our present life with our near and dear ones, because we don’t know what tomorrow holds for us.”
The music video has been directed by Ritesh Singh, and the song also features bassist Govind Gowli, cello player Lavin DaCosta, with Omkar Salunkhe on percussion and udu. The mix and mastering has been done by Pune-based producer Aseem Dhaneshwar.
Without a godfather to aid their journey in this fiercely competitive industry, Archit Shah and Smit Ruparel, have worked hard to forge their identity. Their recent singles include ‘Door’ featuring Harish Moyal & Isheta Sarkar, ‘Dil’ featuring Abhiruchi Singh and ‘Pal’ featuring Nikhil D’Souza. They have also written and composed original music for other artists like Hardil Pandya and Abhishek Gaurav.
These dynamic Music Composers are also friends tied by their love of soul-stirring music. With a combined musical experience of over 30 years, Archit & Smit have particularly excelled at the piano. Over time, they have learnt and practiced writing lyrics, programming, musical arrangements and song production as necessary art streams to hone their skills and make a place for themselves in the industry. Spurred on by their great chemistry, they launched their own studio space in Mumbai called ‘P Cube Studios’, in the hope of attracting young artists for creative and collaborative opportunities.
Their collaboration with singer Yashita Sharma, is the latest in a string of many fruitful ones. As the first runner up of ‘Saregamapa’ 2009, Sharma has sung for composers like Pritam, Shankar Ehsaan Loy and Amit Trivedi among others. Sharma claims she was drawn to working with Archit & Smit, because of their “great rhythm amongst themselves.” She goes on to describe ‘Thoda Sambhal’ as distinct from any other love song. “It’s an endearing piece of musical genius, that has a lot of soul, and is made with love and honest writing that stays clear of falling into traps of generic pop song writing,” she claims earnestly.
‘Thoda Sambhal’ premiered in Rolling Stone India Magazine and has since been featured in two of Spotify’s editorial playlists – ‘Incoming Indie’ and ‘hIndies’. It is currently available for streaming on all leading platforms.