The Berklee Indian Ensemble

Pinha, which means 'hidden within', is to celebrate a human being's spirit in the face of adversity - in this case the ghazal belongs to poet Fatima Wasia Jaisi, and is autobiographical. How she found the courage to rise above," says LA-based musician and Berklee Indian ensemble member Dhruv Goel, who also has composed, arranged and sung Pinha. Jaisi, an Urdu poet and scholar, who passed away last year at the age of 76, was considered a pioneer of her times. "She was performing at mushairas all over the world even when it was unheard of for women to do so. If there were 50 people in the audience they were all men. So she fought a lot of bias," says Goel. The original composition, that the ensemble released a month ago has been raking in appreciation on the Internet. The song deserves it. It's a soulful, melodic, get-stuck-in-your-head number, which makes you wonder why you aren't listening to Indian classical music more often.