Faridkot Promise New Era with Upcoming EP ‘Ibtida’

Pop-rock act Faridkot – comprising IP Singh and Rajarshi Sanyal – have announced their new EP Ibtida slated for release on April 19th via major label T-Series, with singers including Jubin Nautiyal and Raghav Chaitanya.

Described as a “love album” by the band, the five-track Ibtida EP is their first collection of songs to release since their second album Phir Se in 2014. Translating to “new beginnings,” the EP will comprise songs like “Ek Samay,” “Tu Dass Kivein,” “Main Na Jaanu Kyu” (in collaboration with Nautiyal), “Chhad Ke Na Jaa” with Raghav Chaitanya and “Aadatein.” A music video for “Main Na Jaanu Kyu” is also in the works, directed by Post Guru and starring actors Abigail Pande and Sanam Johar.

Faridkot calls the release of Ibtida “the beginning of a new era” for the band. They add in a statement, “From releasing a whole lot of singles, we’ve evolved to making an album on love for the first time. But these are not just about romantic love between two people. It’s also about our love for music, our love for nature, our love for humanity. In times of turmoil, the only thing that can bring us out of it, is love. The conversation in all these songs represent the dimensions of love that we don’t see on an everyday basis, but are omnipresent in our lives.”

In the decade between releasing the psych-rock trip that was Phir Se, Faridkot notched up several million-streamed hits, including “Nasha” from the collaborative series EQUALS with singer Amar Jalal in 2019, which later got picked for the soundtrack to Bollywood movie An Action Hero as “Jehda Nasha” in 2022. In 2023, they released singles like “Numaani” with singer Shilpa Rao and “Chaand” via T-Series.

Ibtida is also part of T-Series’ larger plan to roll out multiple albums and EPs throughout 2024 with artists across the board, including topline singers as well as rising singer-songwriters.

Ibtida EP tracklist

1. “Ek Samay”
2. “Tu Dass Kivein”
3. “Main Na Jaanu Kyu” with Jubin Nautiyal, with a music video by Post Guru starring Abigail Pande and Sanam Johar
4. “Chhad Ke Na Jaa” with Raghav Chaitanya
5. “Aadatein”