''Sketches of Darjeeling'' is the debut studio album by singer/songwriter

Bipul Chettri Bipul Chettri is a singer-songwriter of Nepalese descent who sings in the Nepali language and plays Himalayan folk rock music with a contemporary touch. His debut album, '' Sketches of Darjeeling'', was released in July 2014 and his follow-up a ...

. The album is a collection of songs inspired by Bipul's life around the hills of

Kalimpong Kalimpong is a town and the headquarters of an eponymous district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located at an average elevation of . The town is the headquarters of the Kalimpong district. The region comes under Gorkhaland Territo ...

and

Darjeeling Darjeeling (, , ) is a city in the northernmost region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the Koshi Pr ...

, two hill towns inhabited mostly by people of Nepalese ethnicities, that sits on the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas in the Indian state of West Bengal and close to the eastern border of Nepal and Bhutan. It explores the different elements and essence of life and culture of those areas with a blend of Nepali folk and contemporary western musical elements.

Background

The foundation for the album was laid after the song "Wildfire (Dadhelo)" spread across playlists of Nepalese all around the world. The song was uploaded on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

in February 2013 and literally spread like a wildfire. Recording session for the album begun in 2013. The album was released in 2014 on CD and online platforms. A vinyl record was released in 2021.

Production

All songs of the album are written, composed, arranged and produced by Bipul Chettri except Ram Sailee, composed by Bipul's late father, Nirendra Mohan Chettri. Recording, mixing and mastering was done by Anindo Bose at Plug n’ Play Studios, New Delhi.

Awards

The album was nominated for multiple categories in the 19th Hero HITS 91.2 FM Awards 2072 (2016), held in Kathmandu, Nepal in March 2016. Among all the competition for "Best Pop/Rock Album" and "Album of the Year", Sketches of Darjeeling picked up the "Best Pop/Rock Album" award.

Track listing

Personnel

– Vocals, Guitars * Anindo Bose – Keyboard, Bass * Rahul Rai – Bass * Upendra Raj Baraily – Drums, Percussion * Reuben Narain – Drums, Percussion * Toni Quadros – Trumpet * Lokesh Anand –

Shehnai The ''shehnai'' is a type of oboe from the Indian subcontinent. It is made of wood, with a double reed at one end and a metal or wooden flared bell at the other end. It was one of the nine instruments found in the royal court. The shehnai is sim ...

* Suhail Yusuf Khan –

Sarangi The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked three-stringed instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, Sindhi folk music, Haryanvi folk music, Braj folk music, and Boro folk music (the ...

*Manohar Rai - Cover Art & Design *Sonam Tashi - Photography & Cover Concept, Executive Producer *Anindo Bose - Recorded, Mixed & Mastered at Plug 'N' Play Studios *

- Producer

References

External links

Sketches of Darjeeling on OKListen.comSketches of Darjeeling by Bipul Chettri on iTunesSketches of Darjeeling Playlist on YouTube
{{Authority control 2014 debut albums Bipul Chettri albums