Nitin attended Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School and studied law at Liverpool University for a short time. He then went to London, where he met Sanjeev Bhaskar. The pair became friends and created a comedy double act, The Secret Asians, together. The show sought to turn absurdly dated Asian stereotypes on their heads. It led to a contract with BBC radio and eventually grew into the award-winning BBC TV sketch show Goodness Gracious Me.
During that time he met up with an old school friend, acid jazz keyboards-player James Taylor. He joined Taylor for a 40-date tour in as part of The James Taylor Quartet. It introduced him to the jazz club scene and provoked him into forming his own band, The Jazztones. He moved on to join forces with tabla master Talvin Singh to form the Tihai Trio and, after that collaboration ended in 1993, released his debut album, Spirit Dance on his own label. Shortly afterwards, he signed with Outcaste Records.
Sawhney's music is intensely political, commonly approaching themes of multiculturalism, empowerment, identity, immigration, poverty, and spirituality. He is active as an artist in residence for five different performing arts organisations in Europe and Asia, and along with George Martin is a patron for the British Governments Access-to-Music Program which brings music education to the inner-city students.
Sawhney's skills include classical and jazz piano and flamenco guitar. He has released six studio albums, as well as countless remixes and collaborations. After releasing Beyond Skin on London's Outcaste Records in 1999, he was signed by V2 to do six albums. His first album with the Virgin subsidiary, the millennial/apocalyptical Prophesy, in 2001 won a MOBO Award and a BBC Radio 3 Music Award.
Sawhney's music is influenced by his roots in India, utilising and featuring Urdu and Hindi lyrics, Qawwali singing, tablas and other instruments from the subcontinent, and Raga phrasings in music which is often primarily meant for the dance floor.
Sawhney's work in production and arrangement has led to his working in film and television scores. He has scored television ads for Sephora and Nike, as well as more than 25 films from his London-based Spirit Dance Studios. He was nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for Film and TV Composition in 2004 for his music on Channel Four's film, Second Generation. From there, he has begun to see acceptance from the "classical" community, and in 2004 he was commissioned by the city of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Britten Symphonia to compose new performance works. London's Royal National Theatre invited him to write, direct, and score a work to be opened in 2005.
For photographs and additional information visit Nitin's official site, www.NitinSawhney.com
Tender World
Nitin Sawhney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Disappeared inside yourself
The endless game of life you played
Is faded into yesterday
Reject and owe what you held
Disappeared inside yourself
The endless game of life you played
Sa ni sa
Sa ni re
Sa ka re
Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa
Pa dha ni ni
Ni dha pa
Sa ni sa
Sa ni re
Sa ka re
Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa aah
You lived from dream to dream
Sacrificed the way between
Put your fragile life on hold
Into an empty soul
Reject and oh what you held
Disappeared inside yourself
The endless game of life you played
Is faded into yesterday
Reject and owe what you held
Disappeared inside yourself
The endless game of life you played
Is faded into yesterday
Sa ni sa
Sa ni re
Sa ka re
Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa
Pa dha ni ni
Ni dha pa
Sa ni sa
Sa ni re
Sa ka re
Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa aah
So now what memories take your bed
Chasing daydreams in the air
Sa ni sa
Sa ni re
Sa ka re
Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa
Pa dha ni ni
Ni dha pa
Sa ni sa
Sa ni re
Sa ka re
Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa aah
Reject and owe what you held
Disappeared inside yourself
The endless game of life you played
Is faded into yesterday
Reject and oh what you held
Disappeared inside yourself
The endless game of life you played
Is faded into yesterday
The lyrics of Nitin Sawhney feat. Nicki Wells's song "Tender World" lead to an insightful interpretation of the struggles of self-discovery and existentialism. The repetition of "reject and owe what you held, disappeared inside yourself" gives the impression of self-abandonment, and a loss of sense of self. The "endless game of life you played" is described as fading into yesterday, indicating that the character has accepted their past but struggles with their present. The use of "Sa ni sa, Sa ni re, Sa ka re, Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa, Pa dha ni ni, Ni dha pa" is a part of Indian classical music, and while it may not have a direct translation, it adds a unique cultural aspect to the song.
The lyrics lead to the assumption that the character has lived their life from dream to dream, sacrificing the path between. The character has put their fragile life into an empty soul, indicating that the character does not feel a sense of fulfillment. The line, "So now what memories take your bed, chasing daydreams in the air," creates the impression that the character is now attempting to remember and connect with past dreams and dreaming of a more profound understanding of their self. The repetition of "Sa ni sa, Sa ni re, Sa ka re, Ma ga re sa re ni sa pa, Pa dha ni ni, Ni dha pa" throughout the song can be interpreted as a search for harmony and balance in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Reject and owe what you held
Let go and take responsibility for what you were holding onto
Disappeared inside yourself
Lost touch with your true self and inner world
The endless game of life you played
The constant struggle and competition in life
Is faded into yesterday
Is now in the past and no longer affecting the present
You lived from dream to dream
You existed in an alternate reality, not truly living in the present
Sacrificed the way between
Sacrificed the path towards true fulfillment for short-term desires
Put your fragile life on hold
Paused your own life and progress for someone or something else
Into an empty soul
Lost connection with your own soul and inner being, feeling empty
So now what memories take your bed
What memories haunt you and deprive you of sleep
Chasing daydreams in the air
Pursuing unattainable and unrealistic dreams
Reject and oh what you held
Let go of what you were holding onto and take responsibility
Disappeared inside yourself
Lost touch with your true self and inner world
The endless game of life you played
The constant struggle and competition in life
Is faded into yesterday
Is now in the past and no longer affecting the present
Writer(s): Nitin Sawhney
Contributed by Elijah Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.