Two of your three films in Hindi, Hulchul and Mere Baap Pehle Aap have been with Priyadarshan. Have you worked with him down South as well?
I scored music for Priyadarshan’s Kilichundan Mampazham in 2003. But I know him since I conducted the music for Chithram in 1988.
Besides these two Hindi films, I know of only Chakravarthi’s Durga for which you scored music. Haven’t any of your South Indian films been dubbed too, as with Ilayaraja, Kreem and Rahman?
Not that I know of. If they have done it, I would not know because I am not into redoing my music in a different language.
How long have you been working down South?
As an independent music director, I have worked for around 19 years. My first release was Poomanam in 1989.
Have these films been divided across all four South Indian languages?
Yes, but there have been more in Tamil than in any other language. Though my mother-tongue is Telugu, my family is settled in Chennai now for decades. My father was a very famous musician in films and passed away recently. My grandfather was the court vidhwaan of the kingdom of Vijayanagar.
Except for M.M.Kreem and now Rahman, most music directors from the South have had a distinct Southern flavour in their music for Hindi cinema. What is your stand on this?
I am well aware that every cinema has its own culture and music, and I consciously make sure that this is adhered to in my songs for even the different Southern languages. Language plays a very important role in framing a song and I do not subscribe to the view that all tunes are universal. For example, an English song is heard in English around the world but would sound odd if the tune was retained and another language substituted for it.
Speaking for myself therefore, I realise the extensive differences even in the folk music of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala, for example. Hindi films have a larger reach and must cater to varied cultures that include Rajasthani, Marathi, Punjabi and many others and also be contemporary.
You obviously give all this a lot of thought.
Yes, for me trends and what is working are very important. But there is something that is most important, and that is melody, which to me has a primary role. So when you stick to melody and only the harkatein differ, the soul in the song can transcend the language barrier. Again speaking for myself, I have listened to Hindi film music for ages, and I am an ardent fan of Madan Mohan and S.D.Burman.
Did you get to interact with music directors from Hindi cinema?
Yes, I did. I was 19 when I scored the background music for Chinni Krishnudu, a Telugu film composed by R.D.Burman. I was lucky to have his blessings. I had invited him to sit down and listen to my score and make sure that it was to his liking. He sat quietly and afterwards started clapping and hugged me. He was such a modest man!
When was this?
The film was released in 1988. Also during the ‘80s, Laxmikant-Pyarelal would do the song recordings and background music for some of their South-based Hindi films in Chennai, and I have played the santoor, which was very unusual for someone from down here. During these recordings I came to learn a lot about the musical grammar of Hindi cinema. Pyarelalji had a hand in my understanding of why instruments are used and in what way. I was also a musician with the late Salil Chaudhary in his Bengali as well as Malayalam films, for in the late ‘80s, Salilda would even record his Bengali songs in Chennai! In fact, Antara, his daughter, sang in Tamil for the first time under my music direction.
That’s interesting.
Well, I have introduced some 30 voices in the South, including singers from Mumbai and elsewhere. Sadhana Sargam, Shubha Mudgalji and many others sang down South for the first time for me. Rimi Tomi, Manika Vinayakan and Gopal Rao are some of the South singers who have made their debuts under me. I must add in all modesty that every debutant got a superhit in their first songs.
Could you tell us some other career highlights?
I have also learnt Western classical music and done 7 grades in piano. I also play the vibraphone and the xylophone. In the South, I have worked with big names like K.Balachander, K.Vishwanath, Bharathi Raja and Bapu, each of whom did Hindi cinema as well. I won the National Best Music award for Swarabhishekham in 2005. I am also the first South Indian composer to score music for a Hollywood film - I did the background score for Beyond The Soul directed by Rajiv Anchal.
But unlike Kreem and Rahman, you have never drawn attention here, because none of your Hindi films have really been musically rich.
I realise that, but at the same time I do not believe that only a musical or romantic film can have scope for great songs. Any music director actually needs a really big hit. I have done my best in Mere Baap Pehle Aap and I am confident that some songs will be appreciated, the way Rafta rafta from Hulchul was a hit. I am optimistic that I will succeed in Hindi cinema too.
How do you work in Hindi? Do you give metres to your writer?
In both Hulchul and Mere Baap Pehle Aap, I had Priyadarshan’s clear brief. He and I understand each other perfectly. Sameersaab, my lyricist, was very helpful and is great to work with. He likes me and my style, and we work both ways. In Mere Baap..., the title-song was composed after Sameersaab wrote the lyrics.
Are you keen on doing many more Hindi films?
Why not? But I need the support of the Mumbai media. After all, though I am a veteran in the South I am a newcomer here!