Exclusive Premiere: Takar Nabam’s Heartrending Animated Video for ‘Good Night’

Although singer-songwriter Takar Nabam’s song “Good Night” was intended as a tearful love story, animation artist Hage Nobin gives it a different, poignant perspective with his animated video.

Nabam – who has also just launched his new EP Red and Yellow – shared the demo of “Good Night” with Nobin two years ago and it led to the creation of a storyboard centered around Laika, the first dog in space and the first animal to enter orbit via Russia’s Sputnik 2 exactly 64 years ago, on November 2nd, 1957. Nobin says he wanted to show a connection between two souls, but not the typical boy and girl story. “I thought why not between a human and an animal and what better animal than a human’s best pal and that’s how Laika came into the picture,” he adds.

Nobin developed a story around Laika and Soviet biologist/scientist Adilya who aided the dog to space and “how an experimental animal became an emotion for her.” The sweetly animated story shows how Laika was trained and launched into space by the Soviets, perhaps unbeknownst to her future place in history. Nabam says, “What Laika did for us, we can’t repay her back. The least we can do is commemorate and celebrate her bravado and the legacy she has left behind. It was selfish and also preempted, as the Soviets weren’t really ready for this one. They just wanted another Sputnik miracle, and unfortunately, Laika had to pay the price for it.”

Watch the video for “Good Night” below.

While “Good Night” was originally released with a lyric video in August, the music video coincides with the release of the five-track Red and Yellow EP. While the music video for “Good Night” feeds off of the storytelling in the song, Nabam has stories at the center of this EP, on songs like the playful and semi-autobiographical “Quiet A Story.” A somber and deeply personal family story is told on “Ashes” and “A Crime” draws from a solo trip Nabam took to Montreal. The Nyishi track “Nyokum Yullo Buya” rounds off the EP, being an experimental, family-led song featuring lyrics by Runiang Nabam (a cousin) and Brazilian ace percussionist and drummer Mauro Refosca.

Producers on the EP are spread across the world, including Jake Owen in New York, Andy Dollerson in London, plus co-producer Haggai Rongmei and backing vocalist Carolina Norbu. There are more collaborations on the cards for Nabam, something the artist says he hasn’t done very much in the past. He’s also set to perform a launch gig on November 20th at Depot 48 in New Delhi, with more dates in the works. “I’ve also started working on more new demos. I have about three or four ready for my next EP/Album. The lockdown and my foot injury gave me plenty of time to write more new music,” Nabam adds.

Stream ‘Red and Yellow EP’ below and more platforms here.