Berkeley Dil Se
Encyclopedia
Dil Se is a coed South Asian a cappella
group based in the University of California, Berkeley
. It ranks as one of the top South Asian a cappella group in the nation after placing first at Anahat 2008 and Gathe Raho 2009. It was founded in the Spring of 2004 by students at the university who wished to combine the melody-based raagas of Indian music with the depth and harmony that drive western music. The group is sponsored by the ASUC.
Dil Se took first place at Gathe Raho, the annual South Asian a cappella competition hosted by the University of Iowa
, in February 2009. Performing a medley of 7 songs in their 15 minute set, Dil Se beat out groups from the University of Pennsylvania
, Case Western Reserve University
, UIUC, Northwestern University
and University of Michigan
. Michigan's "Maize Mirchi" took second.
Other notable 2009 performances have included an exhibition at Bollywood Berkeley, the largest Hindi film dance competition in the nation, and a performance at the Indian Embassy of San Francisco's annual Republic Day banquet at the Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco
The highlight of Dil Se's fall calendar is the annual Anahat, incidentally hosted by UC Berkeley's Indus. The event is usually held late in the fall. In November 2009, Dil Se took third place at the sixth annual Anahat, behind USC's Asli Baat and UIUC's Chai Town. Before winning Anahat 2008 in November, Dil Se had placed second at three consecutive Anahats - 2005, 2006 and 2007. At the first Anahat in 2004, Dil Se performed as an exhibition act.
In 2008, competing against UCLA, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UIUC Chai-town, and UIUC Chandani, Dil Se placed first with renditions of Nazrein Milana from the movie Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na
, O Re Piya from Aaja Nachle
, With You by Chris Brown, Saawariya from the movie Saawariya
, Jiya Dhadak from Kalyug, and Jaane Kyun from Dostana
.
In the fall of 2008, Dil Se's other performances around the San Francisco Bay Area included the India Community Center, Milpitas; Haas Business School, UC Berkeley; The International House, UC Berkeley; Mills College, Oakland; and Ohlone College, Fremont.
In the spring of 2008, Dil Se performed as an exhibition act at the Hindi Film
Dance competition Bollywood Berkeley, held at the Palace of Fine Arts
in San Francisco. Given the popularity of their set from Anahat 2007, they performed most of the same songs again for the crowd of over 1000. Dil Se followed up this performance with another exhibition at a dance competition. This time, at the Bay Area's
only Raas
competition, Rangeelo Raas, on March 1, 2008, Dil Se introduced two new arrangements: Ajab Si from the award-winning movie Om Shanti Om, and Mitwa from the 2006 movie Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
. Dil Se then added a new version of their 2004 arrangement of its namesake, Dil Se, at Bombay in the Bay, the largest High School Indian cultural show in the Bay Area, on April 5 at Saratoga High School, Saratoga, California. They closed out the year with performances at the world-famous Zellerbach Hall for the From All Perspectives annual multicultural showcase hosted by UC Berkeley's ASUC and at the Alumni House of UC Berkeley.
In the 2007 episode of Anahat -- the largest it had yet been in history -- included UIUC
Chai-Town
, Stanford Raagapella, UCI
Haath, UCLA Naya Zamaana, Rutgers R.A.A.G., and UIUC
Chandni
. Dil Se placed second performing original arrangements of the songs 2 Step Bhangra by The Bilz ft. So-D/Kashif, Ek Mohabbat by A.R. Rahman, Bumbro from the award winning Hindi movie
Mission Kashmir
, The Way I Are from Timbaland's
2007 album Shock Value
, and Vellai Pookal a Tamil
song from the movie Kannathil Muthamittal
.
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
group based in the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. It ranks as one of the top South Asian a cappella group in the nation after placing first at Anahat 2008 and Gathe Raho 2009. It was founded in the Spring of 2004 by students at the university who wished to combine the melody-based raagas of Indian music with the depth and harmony that drive western music. The group is sponsored by the ASUC.
History
Dil Se was founded by UC Berkeley graduate Arjun Ohri in the spring of 2004. He and his co-founders wished to fill the void on UC Berkeley's campus that had already been filled by then at schools like the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford; the lack of an a cappella team that incorporated the popular tunes of South Asia. The group thus played on the interests of second generation South Asians at Berkeley who wished to find a common ground between their western and eastern cultures through music.Performances
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
, in February 2009. Performing a medley of 7 songs in their 15 minute set, Dil Se beat out groups from the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
, UIUC, Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
and University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. Michigan's "Maize Mirchi" took second.
Other notable 2009 performances have included an exhibition at Bollywood Berkeley, the largest Hindi film dance competition in the nation, and a performance at the Indian Embassy of San Francisco's annual Republic Day banquet at the Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco
The highlight of Dil Se's fall calendar is the annual Anahat, incidentally hosted by UC Berkeley's Indus. The event is usually held late in the fall. In November 2009, Dil Se took third place at the sixth annual Anahat, behind USC's Asli Baat and UIUC's Chai Town. Before winning Anahat 2008 in November, Dil Se had placed second at three consecutive Anahats - 2005, 2006 and 2007. At the first Anahat in 2004, Dil Se performed as an exhibition act.
In 2008, competing against UCLA, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UIUC Chai-town, and UIUC Chandani, Dil Se placed first with renditions of Nazrein Milana from the movie Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na
Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na
Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na is a 2008 Bollywood film, written and directed by Abbas Tyrewala. The film stars Imran Khan and Genelia D'Souza in pivotal roles...
, O Re Piya from Aaja Nachle
Aaja Nachle
The film's soundtrack was released on 18 October 2007 composed by Salim-Sulaiman and lyrics by Jaideep Sahni and Piyush Mishra. A few songs from the final sequence of the movie have not been included on the soundtrack including "Yeh Ishq"....
, With You by Chris Brown, Saawariya from the movie Saawariya
Saawariya
Saawariya is a 2007 Hindi film based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's short story "White Nights".Co-produced by Sony Pictures Entertainment and released on 9 November 2007, it is the first Bollywood movie to receive a North American release by a Hollywood studio, shortly preceding Walt Disney Pictures'...
, Jiya Dhadak from Kalyug, and Jaane Kyun from Dostana
Dostana (2008 film)
Dostana is a 2008 romantic comedy film. It stars Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham and Priyanka Chopra in the lead roles. The film was directed by Tarun Mansukhani who previously was Karan Johar's assistant. It was produced by Dharma Productions....
.
In the fall of 2008, Dil Se's other performances around the San Francisco Bay Area included the India Community Center, Milpitas; Haas Business School, UC Berkeley; The International House, UC Berkeley; Mills College, Oakland; and Ohlone College, Fremont.
In the spring of 2008, Dil Se performed as an exhibition act at the Hindi Film
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
Dance competition Bollywood Berkeley, held at the Palace of Fine Arts
Palace of Fine Arts
The Palace of Fine Arts in the Marina District of San Francisco, California, is a monumental structure originally constructed for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition in order to exhibit works of art presented there. One of only a few surviving structures from the Exposition, it is the only one still...
in San Francisco. Given the popularity of their set from Anahat 2007, they performed most of the same songs again for the crowd of over 1000. Dil Se followed up this performance with another exhibition at a dance competition. This time, at the Bay Area's
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
only Raas
Raas
Raas may refer to:*Robot as a Service, Robot as a Service*Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, a hormone system that helps regulate long-term blood pressure and blood volume in the body...
competition, Rangeelo Raas, on March 1, 2008, Dil Se introduced two new arrangements: Ajab Si from the award-winning movie Om Shanti Om, and Mitwa from the 2006 movie Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna commonly known as KANK is a 2006 Bollywood film directed by Karan Johar and produced under the Dharma Productions banner...
. Dil Se then added a new version of their 2004 arrangement of its namesake, Dil Se, at Bombay in the Bay, the largest High School Indian cultural show in the Bay Area, on April 5 at Saratoga High School, Saratoga, California. They closed out the year with performances at the world-famous Zellerbach Hall for the From All Perspectives annual multicultural showcase hosted by UC Berkeley's ASUC and at the Alumni House of UC Berkeley.
In the 2007 episode of Anahat -- the largest it had yet been in history -- included UIUC
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
Chai-Town
Chai-Town
Chai-Town is an all male South Asian a cappella group based in the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Chai-Town specializes in mixing Indian and American songs and they are especially famous for their Antics on stage.- History :...
, Stanford Raagapella, UCI
University of California, Irvine
The University of California, Irvine , founded in 1965, is one of the ten campuses of the University of California, located in Irvine, California, USA...
Haath, UCLA Naya Zamaana, Rutgers R.A.A.G., and UIUC
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
Chandni
Chandni
Chandni is a Hindi film released in 1989. The film stars Sridevi, Rishi Kapoor and Vinod Khanna, and was directed by Yash Chopra....
. Dil Se placed second performing original arrangements of the songs 2 Step Bhangra by The Bilz ft. So-D/Kashif, Ek Mohabbat by A.R. Rahman, Bumbro from the award winning Hindi movie
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
Mission Kashmir
Mission Kashmir
Mission Kashmir is a 2000 Bollywood film directed and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and starring Sanjay Dutt, Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta and Jackie Shroff as the main characters. Mission Kashmir follows the life and tragedy of a young boy named Altaaf after his entire family gets killed by...
, The Way I Are from Timbaland's
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
2007 album Shock Value
Timbaland Presents Shock Value
Shock Value, is the second solo studio album, and fifth album overall, by record producer and rapper Timbaland. It is Timbaland's first release on his own imprint, the Interscope Records-distributed Mosley Music Group. Shock Value features a long list of guest artists, among them Fall Out Boy,...
, and Vellai Pookal a Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
song from the movie Kannathil Muthamittal
Kannathil Muthamittal
Kannathil Muthamittal is a 2002 Tamil drama film directed by Mani Ratnam. It stars P. S. Keerthana, R. Madhavan, Simran, Nandita Das, Pasupathy, J. D. Chakravarthy and Prakash Raj. The film's score and soundtrack were composed by A. R. Rahman. The film's title is a famous phrase from a poem...
.