‘Shot Patakha Guddi before it was recorded’: Imtiaz Ali on Highway’s famous track, reveals Nooran sisters sang ‘day and night’ with AR Rahman on video call

He added, “Later on, Rahman sir had an idea of what kind of song to make for this. He made it and we retrograded it. It is one of the most brilliant songs that Irshad has written for any of my films. The concept of female energy in the Punjabi context came through in this song. It suited Highway very much.”

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AR Rahman wasn’t in the country when they recorded the track in his studio. “Incidentally, when we actually got to record this song, Rahman sir was abroad. I was in the recording with the engineer in Rahman sir’s Bombay studio, that when Nooran sisters came in for the first time to sing. They sang through the night, they had been singing through the day. They came into the booth, the two girls were singing from the same mic, Rahman sir was on video trying to instruct about how the mic or singing should be,” he said.

The director continued that while recording the song overnight, the sisters were having fun in a way dedicating the song to him. “I was on the console with the engineer trying to record this song. In the middle of the night, they were actually singing to me – because my name is Ali and the song says Ali… Ali… Ali. Jyoti was also kind of pointing towards me and singing, having a lot of fun. The Nooran sisters have a God sent energy, which came into the song. Rahman knew this was going to happen and it came out beautifully,” Imtiaz concluded.

Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, Highway hit the theatres in 2014. Starring Randeep Hooda and Alia Bhatt in lead roles, the film was based on a woman Veera Tripathi who discovers freedom after being kidnapped by Mahabir Bhati.