That the composing duo of Salim-Sulaiman are talented is something everyone will agree with, the two have been behind the music for some really big films like Chak De India, Aaja Nachle and Fashion. Up next for them is the soundtrack for the Shah Rukh Khan starrer Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. Salim recently sat down with Sandhya Iyer and talked all things music. Here are some highlights from that interview.
Their most recent release has been the music for the animated film Roadside Romeo and Salim said they really did not approach it any differently than their other soundtracks, “The thing is that even though this is an animation film, it has been treated like a proper Hindi film. The only difference is that this has dogs as characters. We wanted to keep the ‘Indianness’ intact and at the same time keep it kid-friendly and modern. The whole idea was to have songs that are simple, urban…lot of repetitive hooks. We never imagined there would be so much detailing involved in the film.”
Besides the songs for films the duo also has composed many background scores and Salim says it is one of the aspects of the music industry they enjoy the most. “Background music will always be our first love. People don’t realise but it is such an integral part of a film. In the West especially, it plays an even more important role – at least here we have a musical tradition and incorporate songs. That’s not the case with films in other countries. Which is why background music becomes the sound of your film…it is the soul of a movie. It has the potential to elevate a film’s story to another level altogether.”
Speaking about the success of the music for Madhur Bhandarkar’ s Fashion Salim said, “Madhur (Bhandarkar) was very open about the kind of music he wanted. Besides ‘Jalwa’…, there’s also ‘Mar Jawan’ which is good – it has a lot of Arabic touches. After Fashion, there will be Rab Ne…which will be the icing on the cake.”
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, which stars Shah Rukh Khan and is directed by Aditya Chopra is one of the most eagerly awaited films of the year. The two were shocked when they were approached for the film, “When Adi (Aditya Chopra) said we’d be doing the music for his film, we were pretty shocked. We said, ‘Are you joking! You can get anyone to do music for the film. Shankar Ehsaan Loy, A R Rahman…anyone, then why us? He replied, ‘You have an untapped energy in you and I want that element in the film’.”
He went on to reveal more about the style of the music saying, “All I can say is that the songs are very different. They have a rustic quality to them. There is a lot of Indianness and simplicity in the songs. But I can tell you, we’re thrilled about the film’s title song. It’s our finest ever….like an iconic love song.”
Fans are sure to rush out to get their copy of the soundtrack and Salim revealed when it will be released. “We’re looking at releasing it on Diwali day. I’m sure Adi has planned for something big.”
Also in the pipeline for the two are Soham Shah’s Luck with Imran Khan, Shimit Amin’s film with Ranbir and Rensil D’Silva’s next starring Kareena Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan and Vivek Oberoi.
