Investing several years into learning music is “rubbish”, says Singham Again composer Ravi Basrur, adding that accelerating his effort to become an independent artiste opened doors for him across film industries
Ravi Basrur
When a family discourse led to him being separated from his brother, Ravi Basrur set on to fulfil a dream that was his. “He was removed from an orchestra, and for him, I started one after we were separated due to family issues. [Back] then, I understood rhythm patterns. [Certain individuals] were paying my [team] double the money to leave me, and my keyboardist left. I had 12 days to learn the process [of playing the keyboard],” reveals the musician, who, inspired by that incident, now runs a 12-day course, training musicians to learn the craft.
“My recommendation is to not waste time learning music for five or eight years. It’s all rubbish. Think about it, if you sign up for guitar classes, you are taught for an hour each week. In a year, you would approximately spend 48 hours learning it. So, to learn material worth 48 hours, you end up wasting a year. Instead, if you invest your days and nights into learning an art, you can learn it faster. I have about 45 students learning music within 12 days. Thereafter, it’s on them to hone their craft,” says Basrur, reiterating the importance of practice in enabling an artiste to stand out from the crowd.
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Rohit Shetty’s Singham Again features an ensemble cast, including Ajay Devgn and Ranveer Singh, and releases on November 1
Basrur draws from his personal journey when highlighting how instrumental the art of practicing has been in defining his success. Before Prashanth Neel’s Ugramm (2014), which marked his debut as a composer, he had worked on 140 films as a producer. Interacting with and meeting the demands of film directors across industries gave him a first-hand account of the different ways in which he could establish his place as a solo artiste. “I am grateful to Salman [Khan] sir for placing his trust in me with Antim [2021], and subsequently, Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan [2023],” says Basrur, whose next is the November release, Singham Again.
Basrur was roped in to compose the title track for Rohit Shetty’s film. Shetty had told him to create a number befitting the grandeur that his films have come to be associated with. “They liked it, and then called me to create another number. Subsequently, I was told to work on the film’s score. We are working on creating musical tones for each character, including one for Arjun [Kapoor] sir’s Raavan avatar. We used music from the old [edition], including for the title track, and tweaked them using modern trends.” Ask him what makes this project special, and he says he finds himself fortunate to bag the opportunities to compose for the multiple stars who are associated with it, “including Deepika Padukone”.
Irrespective of the industry he is roped in to create music for, Basrur believes the success of any musician lies in his ability to craft a winning melody. “When you understand the character completely, it makes the job of creating the melody easier. That’s why, more than the editor, it is the musician who watches sections of a movie over and over again. We find unique sounds for each instance, and select the ones that suit the situation appropriately. It’s an interesting art, but you need to be passionate about it,” he signs off.
Singham Again, the third instalment of Shetty’s franchise that is fronted by Ajay Devgn. It is set to release on November 1 to coincide with Diwali, and also features Akshay Kumar and Ranveer Singh.
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