Music
Penn Masala combines various musical traditions, including Hindi film music, pop, hip-hop, R&B, rock, and Indian Classical styles. The group also uses a wide array of languages in their songs. Their compositions are primarily sung in English or Hindi, but certain songs include Arabic, Punjabi, Kannada, and Tamil as well.
Penn Masala blends popular songs to create its own independent version, which is melodically and thematically unified. Most songs fuse popular Hindi and English songs (in the past the group has covered songs by artists such as U2 and Justin Timberlake), into an a cappella rendition. Some songs are purely Hindi; for example, "Bahara" on Panoramic, and "Yeh Honsla" on On Detours and others purely English, such as "What Goes Around Comes Around" on On Detours. Other songs, such as "Aicha" and "Is Pal Mein", incorporate Hindi and English lyrics into a single song. "Aankhon Mein Tu Hai" also includes Tamil verses, "Saade Dil Te" incorporates a Punjabi song, while "Masala Dosa" begins with the Kannada hymn "Krishna Ni Begane Baaro" and "Aicha" includes Arabic verses. While most of the group's songs are interpretations of already-existing songs, the group also composes originals, such as "Main Tanha" and "Pehchaan" on the album Pehchaan, "Kal Ka Sapna" and "Distant Places" on On Detours, and "Is Pal Mein" and "Kaash" on Panoramic.
Penn Masala's music has been popularly and critically acclaimed. "Meri Sapno Ki Rani" and "Aap Jaise Koi" were both featured in American Desi, while a music video was made for "Chamak Challo", which debuted in the Top 10 on Channel India. Both "Chamak Challo" and "Bharat Humko Jaan Se Pyara Hai", a celebration of India's 50th anniversary of independence, brought immediate attention to the group in the fall of 1997, and have been fan favorites ever since. Penn Masala songs have been routinely selected for Varsity Vocals' Best of Collegiate A Cappella CD. "Bharat Humko Jaan Se Pyara Hai" was the first Penn Masala song to be honored. After that, " "Pehchaan" from "Pehchaan", "Lovestoned/Ya Ali" from "On Detours" and "Is Pal Mein" from "Panoramic" have all been selected to be on the Best of Collegiate A Cappella CD for their respective years.
In 2012, the group was named one of the 5 best college a cappella groups in the United States by USA Today and online magazine Her Campus.
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