Saee Tembhekar

I am a blessed nineteen kid. I have grown up along with the ‘internet’. I have always been fascinated with computers, gadgets, gear, software, the science of internet and how it enables us to reach and connect with each other in an instant.

I have been singing Live in concerts since 20+ years now and started to put my music out online on the internet since 2015 and the first song I uploaded was Bha Ra Tambe jee’s Tinhi Sang Sakhe Milalya. The first song that I ever composed was Saya Tujhi. A major chunk of my musical work happens to be in the marathi language (my mother-tongue) But still, when I write about music, describe how I am feeling or when I express myself, I usually do it in English.

A few ‘kind-hearted’ people also commented on most occasions as to “Why do you write in English, if you sing marathi songs ?” So here is a an honest attempt to explain why I think it must be happening.

1. Music is universal and does not necessarily limit itself in the barriers of any language, Language is just a medium to express thoughts. When I am sharing my thoughts about my music, I wish to reach maximum people (who come from different locations, countries and backgrounds )
2. English is a global language universally accepted. Expressing in English gives you a visa-free travel in the eyes and ears of anyone and everyone who is willing to accept and apprehend new ideas!
3. Though I am working in Marathi and Hindi (which are regional languages in India) my aspiration is to be a trigger in attracting everyone towards them, through my music,
4. Imagine you coming across a song which you love because of the melody and the singer’s voice, but you don’t understand the language, but the description above the song gives you a hint/summary towards what’s happening, wouldn’t it be better?
5. By no means am I trying to disrespect my language by using English to communicate but I am trying to be the reason that more people are attracted to it!
6. I grew up listening to my mom read Pu La Deshpande to me as a kid, listening to cassettes of Pt. Hridaynath Mangeshkar, Sudheer ji Phadke Shreenivas ji Khale, Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, Madan Mohan ji, RD Burman ji Salil Choudhari ji, Shankar Jaikishan Ji, Jatin Lalit, AR Rahman along with Backstreet Boys, Jennifer Lopez, Michael Jackson and Enrique Iglesias. All of this while getting my education in an English medium school makes expressing in English a bit easier to me.
7. Like I said in the beginning, language is a medium to express thoughts, you will always want them to be expressed in the best possible way for you with maximum clarity and flow, wouldn’t you? For me, thoughts come to me in English and I try honesty to utilise it in the best way to express what I feel, while being able to share my music with maximum people.
8. I used to carry the slight guilt of not being able to express so freely and easily in Marathi, as I can in English, but all of it was wiped away when my attention went to reactions from many non-Maharashtrians listening to my marathi songs. Please have a look at this image below.
9. I write/express in English just because it comes naturally to me and I value and respect every language equally. I have a fascination towards languages and make it a point to try and learn as many while singing in as many of them!
10. All creators out there today are pouring their heart out to create content that they themselves value a lot. They do this to the best of their abilities and are really lucky and blessed to have kind communities supporting them. The next time you feel like posting a negative comment or a टिप्पण्णी, please think twice : will it really add any value or will it really make anything better? I sincerely thank you for listening to my all my music, reading my blogs and interacting on my social posts. I am glad we are in this together!