Vishal Mishra: Music is the only magic left

Vishal Mishra

Caught within the confines of their home, Bollywood's top brass of musicians are responding distinctly to the lockdown. While several have been serenading fans through appearances on prime-time shows on news channel and live concerts from their living rooms, others are banking on the solitude to reinvent their tunes. But, for composer Vishal Mishra, it is business as usual. Two weeks after releasing Aayush Sharma-starrer Manjha, he presents Aaj bhi, a romantic single that is "a page from a book on my life". "Music is the last magic left in the world," says Mishra when we ask him about releasing the track at this inopportune moment."

Among the league of musicians successfully balancing a career in Bollywood with independent releases, Mishra believes that at no other time in Indian music history have artistes been afforded the privilege of enjoying the best of both worlds. "Before the independent song, Manjha, there was [Kabir Singh's] Kaise hua, with Shahid Kapoor. Both received immense acclaim, so the market is open and there are consumers for different types of content. Several independent artistes are doing better than [composers of] film music. Bollywood gives our music a direction, while indie [music] is an expression of art."

Aaj bhi, featuring Surbhi Jyoti and Ali Fazal, is his ode to a love that was never forgotten. "Some relationships are such that they can't be forgotten, regardless of how long they lasted. As time goes by, people move on, and acquire different [personalities]. But, [memories] of [your ex-lover] stay with you. We took seven months to decide how we wanted the video to look, and got the director of Mirzapur, Gurmmeet Singh to create it."

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