Natasha Noorani’s Laiyan encapsulates the yearning for a beloved in a long-distance relationship

Natasha Noorani is one of the current singers in Pakistan whom we can count on for good music. She has proven her mantle time and again. The singer just released her second single  Laiyan, from her album Ronaq. The song highlights the travails of being in a long-distance relationship and in Natasha’s words “Laiyan is about the nature of love separated by physical distance.”

Directed by Abdul-Rehman Maliki and produced by Talal Qureshi and Bilal Khan, Laiyan is the artist’s foray into ‘Lolly-Pop’: a new genre of electronic pop music inspired by the history of Subcontinental music. The song has been composed by Natasha, who has also worked in the capacity of an executive producer for this song. Natasha has penned down the lyrics along with Zeerak Ahmed.

Natasha also shared the posts about her song on Instagram:

 

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The lyrics teleport you to a different world, making you understand the gravity of a person’s pain who is longing to see her beloved. Each frame narrates a story i.e. of longing, heartbreak, anticipation, and eagerness to see or even hear the voice of that loved one. All the emotions are intelligently and beautifully captured through the lyrics and the music video.

We see Natasha in different frames trying to connect to her beloved through various mediums using a telephone, a typewriter, a laptop, a letter, and most interestingly a tin can telephone. This representation symbolizes that love is eternal and not bound by time and age. The lyrics ‘Lambi judaiyaan, hum ko nahin hain manzoor’ [We don’t accept this long separation] encapsulates the whole song. Natasha has mesmerized the listeners with her soulful voice and we are definitely going to keep listening to this song on repeat!

You can listen the song here:

In a conversation with Something Haute, the singer spoke about her new song, the album as well as the new genre she has explored this time.

Talking about her new album — Ronaq — she said: “I’ve been building up a repertoire of songs over the last few years, and this new sound is taking shape as a collective body of work I’m really proud of. Ronaq is the culmination of all this.”

Natasha shared her experience of working as an executive producer as well.

“I’ve been lucky to collaborate with great producers. Most recently with Abdullah Siddiqui and Talal Qureshi. And it’s just a joy to be able to grow together.”

Natasha’s navigation into a new genre ‘Lolly-Pop’ seems intriguing. About this she had to say:

“Lolly-pop refers to the marriage of modern electronic pop with the yore of Lollywood and the greats of Subcontinental music. I’m a Pakistani music historian so all my research has found it’s way into my music in the most magical ways.”

It was a pride to hear about Natasha being part of the first edition of Boiler Room Pakistan. Natasha felt grateful and humbled.

“Boiler Room was a thrill. The Pakistan edition was historic and it felt amazing to be working with long time mentors and collaborators like Daniel Arthur Panjwaneey who have been such an essential part of my music journey from the start. Daniel actually gave me my first solo gig, and to be able to go back to that community with this album was a real honour,” she added.

As they say, life goes in circles!

Lastly, she talked about the struggles of being a musician in Pakistan and her hopes for upcoming musicians, especially women.

“I don’t think any musician’s journey in Pakistan is easy. Artists face constant challenges and it is an active choice to be a part of this industry. I hope my music enables other women to be able to enter the field and take up space, both behind the mixer and on stage.”

Indeed, Natasha is an inspiration and her journey paves way for many musicians who look up to her. Laiyan is an eminent edition to this year’s releases and we are already anticipating Natasha’s third song of her album Ronaq.