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At the end of the rainbow, there is believed to be a pot of gold. Well, that seemed to come true on May 16 when light evening showers not only brought a colourful rainbow in the sky but also a good turnout of fans at 'Landmark' to ensure a pot of gold for Ghazal King Hariharan, who stopped by to autograph his latest album 'Kaash'.

Hariharan, who was inspired by Mehdi Hassan to take up ghazal singing, was accompanied by "Shakalaka Baby" Vasundara Das, who prefers to be known as a singer first instead of as an actress and expects an album release in July, B. Srinivas, whose album "Paarvai" is due for release any time now, and Devan, the popular new voice of "KKKK" and "Alai Payuthey".

Hariharan, who sums up "Kaash" as his millennium gift to his fans, describes it as "a fusion between the old world of Urdu poetry, Indian Gayaki and contemporary sounding instrumentation - all under a new segment called Urdu Blues." "Kaash", which means " possibilities, changes, hopes and doubts", is the first Hariharan album released by Magnasound after they signed an exclusive 'three years, eight albums' deal with him. The recording of the album started in the first week of January 1999 and was released some time back.

Ustad Rais Khan on the sitar and Ustad Sultan Khan on the sarangi feature in it, while drum wizard Shivamani has played a wide range of percussion, including the ghatam. Real World Studios, UK, has done the re-mixing and mastering to give it a true millennium sound. All the eight songs in the album soothe the senses. It is difficult to choose the best among "Kaash", " Ye Aine", "Jhoom Le", " Hum Ne Ek Shaam", " Maikade ", Aadi Raat", " Aandhiyaan", and " Ab Ke Baras ".

Hariharan, who likes challenges, learnt the nuances of the Urdu language to establish himself with his albums "Ghazal ka Mausam" (solo), and "Aab Shaar-e-Ghazal" (with Asha Bhonsle). One song from the latter has been featured in the World Archives of Music. "Reflections" and "Horizons" followed. Ustad Zakir Hussain accompanied him in "Haazir" in 1993. Then came "Gulfam", which got him the Diva Award for the 'Best Album Of the Year', instituted by Channel [V] as well as a 'Double Platinum in Sales.' "Paigham" took him to even greater heights, establishing him as the "Ghazal King", followed by "Qaraar", "Jashn", "Visaal", "Athwan Sur" and "Halka Nasha". Along the way, Hariharan also became a popular playback singer in Hindi and Tamil movies.

Hariharan has released two successful albums as part of the two-man band, with Leslie Lewis, called Colonial Cousins. Their first album got them the prestigious Billboard Award for the Best Asian Music Group. With his superb renditions, his latest album of contemporary Urdu Blues has confirmed his place at the top.

Akshaya