Benny Dayal spoke to I Kaur about the changes he made to original compositions like Daaru Desi to make them more peppy

When Benny Dayal moved from Chennai to Mumbai and was still fighting the pangs of separation from his friends, one of the first songs he ended up recording was Daaru Desi (Cocktail). Ever since then, the song has been his favourite because it reminds him of his friends. “It was very nostalgic. I hadn’t met my friends for a while and the song is all about friendship. Whenever I feel lonely this is the song I want to sing,” said Dayal who will be seen singing an acoustic version of the song on MTV Unplugged in November.

The singer decided to pick seven of his most memorable numbers of his career. He explained, “I have taken a set of my songs I have sung in Bollywood. It is actually a medley. The first two songs define the initial stage of my career. They are Tu Hi Toh Meri Dost Hai (Yuvvraj) and Kaise Mujhe (Gajini). These are the songs that brought me where I am today. Then I will be singing Tarkeebein (Band Baaja Baarat). I think this song in particular is a very interesting because of its variations, tonalities and the energy of the lyrics.”

He continued, “Then comes the best part — Daaru Desi. This part is like the second start to my career. Here I will sing Ek Mein Aur Ek Tu (Ek Mein Aur Ekk Tu). I love this song and thank Amit Trivedi for the composition. Next up after that is a Tamil and Telugu song called Omana Penne. I had sung this for a Goutham Menon film and the music was by Rahman ji. I recorded this song on my birthday, so it is very close to my heart. I will end the set with one of the peppiest numbers I have ever sung, Badtameez Dil (Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani). I am planning an extremely fun version, I just hope it comes through.”

Dayal has also rearranged the compositions of the songs. “The lyrics are going to be the same but  I have played around a little with the arrangement of the song. It is more live. It has a very ‘jamming’ feel to it but at the same time all the songs will be very intimate. I have made sure that the songs are toned down a little and are not too loud. Plus it is all acoustic so the experience of the song will be very different from the original,” he said.

Dayal takes his inspiration from a lot of artists and that shows in his arrangement for Unplugged. He continued, “My inspiration is my music. Apart from that I am heavily inspired by Michael Jackson, Ustad Fateh Ali Khan, Jamiroquai and Daft Punk.”

Some of his recent releases were Hey Mr DJ (Phata Poster Nikla Hero) and Shuddh Desi Romance (Shuddh Desi Romance).