Lady Gaga Collaborates with Salim-Sulaiman

Lady Gaga, who’s been looking to break into the Indian market in a big way, today released a Bollywood-inspired remix of her hit single, ‘Born This Way’. This remix has been produced by Salim and Sulaiman Merchant, who have injected the track with a sitar intro and dhol beats. “We collaborated with Indian music producers from across the globe to show our respect and appreciation for our desi fans and music community. We’re looking forward to more desi collaborations in the near future,” Troy  Carter, CEO of Atom  Factory, Lady  Gaga’s management company, said in a statement.

“When we started working on this, there was a feeling of excitement and a bit of nervousness,” says Sulaiman Merchant. “This was the Number One track in 23 countries, and to remix it and give it an Indian touch was something that we were very conscious about. The sitar was the instrument of choice for us when it came to creating a melodic riff. Of course there was the dholak and the dhol that always create the atmosphere of party and euphoria, but what really rocked it all was Salim’s voice to add that Indian flavour.”

Lady Gaga will also release an “urban-desi” version of ‘Born This Way,’ remixed by Culture Shock, who have earlier produced remixes for Rihanna, Sean Paul, Jay Sean and Alesha Dixon. Speaking about these remixes, Anjula Acharia-Bath, CEO of Desi Hits, who has been working closely with Lady Gaga’s team on their entry strategy for the South Asian market said, “The debut of these remixed tracks is Step One. Gaga has truly fallen in love with India, so we’re helping her pursue this audience to connect with the huge diaspora and South Asia itself.”

Videos for both these remixes can be seen below: