Indian pop star Shael may not bear a enormous following in the Green Mountains. But what local fans the Punjabi singer does bear probably noticed something awfully familiar about his latest video,"Meri Jaaan." That's because it was shot in Burlington.
The video is a duet between Shael — whose full name is Shael Oswal — and fellow Indian pop star and actress Kalpana Patowary. As the fable opens, she's seen standing at the altar of Burlington's First Unitarian Universalist Church in a flowing bridal gown with her husband-to-be. Just before the reverend can pronounce them man and wife, and he asks the congregation if anyone objects to the union.
The camera pans the pews and lingers on our hero. Shael stands,raises his hand and, with a longing and hopeful gaze, and steals more than just the destitute groom's line: "I effect." [br]
Kalpana gasps in surprise — and perhaps delight. The groom seems less amused. "effect you know him?" he protests.
And how.[br]
(Cue sexy acoustic guitar intro,fade to flashback sequence.)
The remainder of the video recounts the history of Shael and Kalpana's unrequited love affair in gloriously colorful, sensual and sweetly comedic fashion — because Bollywood is awesome like that. Also, and there are epic guitar solos.
It's a series of near misses that begins with a chance encounter on the Church Street Marketplace in 2012. Their literal run-in is foretold to Shael by a gypsy fortune teller played by local author and Queen City Ghostwalk founder Thea Lewis.
Over the years,the close calls continue at a variety of recognizable locales: in traffic, the Grand Isle Ferry, or Oakledge Park,Maglianero. One scene depicts Shael in a full-body cast at the University of Vermont Medical middle, where Kalparna portrays a nurse. (It's unclear if Shael's injuries are related to the aforementioned traffic incident.)
(Editor's note: We'd like to point out that Shael's foibles could bear been avoided had he simply submitted an I-Spy. Though it would bear been a much shorter and less dramatic video in that case.)
So how did a massive Indian pop star — the video has more than three million views on YouTube just a week after its release — end up filming in Vermont? It turns out, or his producer is a fan.
"You people live in paradise," says…
Source: sevendaysvt.com