Recreating 'Koi fariyaad' was need of the story: Ankit Tiwari

Bollywood singer-composer Ankit Tiwari says recreating popular ghazal "Koi fariyaad" as "Teri fariyad" for "Tum Bin 2" was the need of the story.

"In the beginning, I was hesitant to recreate a classic like 'Koi fariyaad' which is so strong in listeners' memory even after 15 years of the film. However, with a long discussion with director Anubhav Sinha I understood the relevance of the song in present time. Recreating 'Teri Fariyad' was the need of the story," Tiwari told IANS.

Sinha infused new life in the popular ghazal while retaining some parts of the original track. Along with powerful vocals by Rekha Bhardwaj, Sinha has kept some lines crooned by late Jagjit Singh. The second instalment of the 2001 film "Tum Bin" franchise is written and directed by Sinha and jointly produced by him with Bhushan Kumar of T-Series music label.

Asked about doing justice to a classic like "Koi fariyaad", Tiwari said: "Though the comparison was bound to happen, it is not the right thing. As a music composer, I tried my best to recreate the song establishing a youth connection with the sound, yet kept the originality intact. So far, I have received positive feedback from people through social media."

Tiwari, who has crooned some hit songs like "Sunn raha hai na tu", "Galliyan" and "Tu hai ki nahin", says though he is a trained singer, he has always aimed to become a music composer.

Tiwari asserts that there is no competition with Arijit Singh.

"He is a singer, I am a composer turned singer. Therefore, there is no such competition. In fact we worked together; he lent his voice for some of my compositions like 'Dil cheez tujhe dedi' from 'Airlift' and 'Ishq mubarak', 'Dekh Lena' of 'Tum Bin 2'," he said.