Musical melange

There aren’t many who would stay away from the Hindi film industry, especially after they’ve had a taste of it. But R Anandh, a popular music composer in the ad film industry, after his debut in Sangeeth Sivan’s Zor, unimpressed by the industry’s workings, chose to return to what he terms as his “core competency”.

But a year ago, it was the chance cancellation of a music composing session for filmmaker Pradeep Sarkar’s ad film that brought R Anandh on board for Lafangey Parindey as the music director. “Dada (Sarkar) and I have been working together for long. He had been telling me that he wants me to compose for a film, but we had not come around to discussing it. When our session got cancelled, he asked me to compose a scratch for his next film, which finally Aditya Chopra heard and liked.”

The music of Lafangey Parindey, released recently, stands out. Anandh brings together a melange of genres and instruments—including the Irish tin whistle and the cello in the song Rang Daalein, though the guitar, both acoustic and electric remains prominent through the album. If the title track is an upbeat rock-ish number, Man Lafanga, sung by Mohit Chauhan, has Eric Clapton-ish guitar riffs. Nain Parindey, with Shilpa Rao on vocals, asserts the composer’s hold on Indian classical music. Despite repetitive use of the words ‘lafangey’ and ‘parindey’ across the tracks, Anandh manages to give each song a distinct flavour.

The 42-year-old, originally from Chennai, admits that his knowledge of classical music takes root in his 12-year training in playing the veena. “But when I joined Roorkee College of Engineering, I took to the guitar and became a part of an on-campus band. By the time I graduated, I was sure I wanted to pursue a career in music,” he laughs. Back in those days, Illayaraja dominated the film music scene and Anandh didn’t want to work under anyone — ads were the only option.

Around the same time, Anandh, along with a colleague, formed a band, Aagosh. They successfully composed music for a few Tamil and Malayalam films, followed by Zor and an album, both of which failed to create a buzz. A few years later, the band members parted.
That is also the time when Anandh shifted base to Mumbai. “A client invited me to Mumbai for a project. I was supposed to be here for two days, but couple of more projects came my way. I extended my trip and on the fifth day, I called my wife to join me here,” recounts the composer, who is behind the Limca ad currently on air.

The music also steers clear of the clichés that films based on Mumbai’s underbelly fall for — it retains the local flavour despite the use of Western instruments. “It’s my take on the city,” he says. Anandh’s take has worked for the film as the music spells out the attitude of the protagonists, a bunch of ruffians.

Though Lafangey Parindey associates Anandh with the Yash Raj Films brand, the composer is not looking at a career in Bollywood. “I might consider, but as of now I’m happy to return to ads.”

Source: MumbaiNewsline/IndianExpress