Playback singer Abhay Jodhpurkar has revealed that he recorded his National Award-winning Marathi song, ‘Navasachi Gauri Mazi’ from the film ‘Gharat Ganpati’, in two sessions because he initially struggled with its scale.
Jodhpurkar was recently honoured with the National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer for the song. Reflecting on the recognition, he told IANS that he was still trying to absorb the moment, describing it as overwhelming to receive the award from President Droupadi Murmu for a song that holds special meaning for him.
The singer said he had invested considerable emotion in the recording, aiming to capture the feeling of a family celebrating the arrival of Gauri rather than simply delivering a festive song.
During the first session, Jodhpurkar felt the song was too high for his vocal range and believed he could have performed better in a lower key. However, composer Sanket had already recorded live instruments, making it difficult to change the scale. The singer said he was frustrated with the result but had to continue in the original key.
He returned for a second recording session after the song had been filmed, having prepared to sing the entire track again in the higher key. By then, he had become more familiar with the melody, allowing him to focus on expression rather than the technical challenge of the notes.
Jodhpurkar said he and Sanket worked on the phrasing and flow to keep the rendition effortless and convey the song’s emotion.
The National Film Awards ceremony was also notable for being held outside Delhi for the first time in more than seven decades.
The 72nd National Film Awards honoured Indian cinema from 2024. ‘Article 370’ won Best Feature Film, while Yami Gautam received Best Actress for the film. Mammootty and Kartik Aaryan shared the Best Actor award for ‘Bramayugam’ and ‘Chandu Champion’, respectively.