Master of melodies
hell when we are composing and it’s very good. Fighting is very healthy. The bigger picture is that we don’t fight because we have to split up; we fight because we have to make a better song.”
Mahadevan later learned both the Carnatic as well as Hindustani classical styles of music — a blend that we can perceive in his later compositions. He believes that there is still scope of experimenting with classical styles in film music. “In films,” Mahadevan says, “it is very difficult to explore classical music in its pure form because it gets a little heavy for people. Classical music, though, has been a kind of influence on our Indian film music from the very beginning. Especially for composers like Naushad Ali, and so on. And we as composers, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, have always felt our responsibility to acquaint the people of this country and elsewhere with Indian classical music through songs where we often put little doses of it. In songs like “Mitwa”, “Sapno Se Bhare Naina” etc. In these songs, you see glimpses of classical music, which I feel is very important. I think still more work can be done to familiarise our listeners to Indian classical music.”
Popular music in India is going through a phase of fruitful transformation, and it’s thanks to artistes like Mahadevan that things have come this far. “Change is the only constant thing,” he says. “You keep changing. Look at yourself, look at anyone — what you were 15 years back, you are not the same person. We are using different kinds of devices now, wearing different kinds of clothes. People around you are changing, the environment is changing, fashion is changing. So, the music industry is also chang- ing. But if you have a great melody, beat, lyrics — I think this is what is going to stay the same forever.”
To make a great song, the composer has to be openminded and receptive not just to his or her own traditions but to world culture. “In our Indian film industry,” Mahadevan tells us, “we have not only covered all forms of Indian music, but have also incorporated influences from all over the world — whether it’s Arabic or Spanish music, or a little bit of jazz or rock. I don’t know which musical style has not been explored here. But in every genre of music, we can explore and can go a little deeper and present a more aesthetic version of that form — for instance of jazz or folk or funk. It’s like an ocean. It’s endless.”
His new project, called My Country My Music, is built around the motif of Indian folk music. Here, Mahadevan presents glimpses of our rich musical heritage, through his collaborations with artists who belong to different parts of the country. “Indian folk music,” he says, “has always been the main source for film music. Right from the beginning, if you see there are so many songs which were influ- enced by Indian folk. Still, I feel we have a long way to go as far as exploring Indian folk music. If you go to every single state, their culture, their dialect has got its own folk forms and every occasion in this country has got a folk song associated with it. I think there is scope for more research on and more exposure to Indian folk music in films. We have to do that because this is our national treasure.”
The inspiration for this project came from Mahadevan’s own past work. He says, “I have composed a lot of popular music in regional languages too, like Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi. All these languages are very, very active. Whenever I used to go there, I used to wonder how I could bring all these languages, musical genres together. There is not even a single show in the country which encapsulates all the different forms of music — folk songs, Bollywood songs, all put in together. I decided to device such a show, and that is called My Country, My Music.”
With the aim of taking Indian folk music a notch higher and reaching out to global audiences, this project aims to communicate the real spirit of India in a mix of some eight languages. The troupe has already performed at various platforms and shows across India.
Mahadevan says, “I collaborated with some masters of folk music from different states, and presented them all together on one stage. The basic foundation of the show is very contemporary, modern. It will especially appeal to the youth. There are beautiful languages, beautiful singers from Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Punjab, Assam, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Kerala. So the show is designed in such a way. It’s highly entertaining. It is musically, aesthetically a high-level show. After watching it, people will come to realise there are various kinds of music in our country.”
‘‘I have composed a lot of popular music in regional languages too, like Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi. All these languages are very, very active. Whenever I used to go there, I used to wonder how I could bring all these languages, musical genres together.”