Apart from the decades-worth of musical knowledge that Shankar Mahadevan kept at their disposal, sons Siddharth and Shivam picked up vital technology skills that are the need of the hour
Shankar Mahadevan with sons Siddharth and Shivam
Nurturing any child artiste can be a journey fraught with frustration and uncertainty, compelling a parent to consider one of two options—allowing the child to forgo the training, or encouraging him to persist. Shankar Mahadevan, however, never found himself in this predicament. “At no point was music ever forced on them,” he says, asserting that their home atmosphere granted his sons Siddharth and Shivam the opportunity to discover their love for the art. “They even had the option of deciding whether or not they wanted to undergo [Indian classical] training, because, today, that’s not the only thing that matters. There are other forms of music to study. They were encouraged to find where their interests lie.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Interacting with the young musicians, it’s easy to see that Shankar puts his money where his mouth is. Although they’ve displayed fine command over their craft over the years, Siddharth and Shivam are as different as chalk and cheese. With over a decade of experience under his belt, singer-composer Siddharth, 30, spent his childhood watching his veteran father interact with colleagues, compose music, and host recording sessions. “I’d travel with dad for shows, and be part of his jam sessions with his colleagues. I loved the musical environment at home, and thought I’d do something in this space.” An octapad gifted by “Siva uncle [Drums Sivamani]” was among the early instruments that fuelled interest in their study, with subsequent exposures taking him to Berklee College of Music for year-long training. “I contemplated a four-year programme, but the fact is that I had an institution at home. Others craved the real-world studio experience that we had immediate access to, and I wanted to capitalise on it.”
Back in India, Siddharth began to spend hours sitting in the studio, watching Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy at work. “At times, they’d ask for my opinion on a composition. Few people have this kind of exposure, and I feel lucky to be among them,” he says. On more occasions than one, he asserts that understanding the art of dealing with producers, colleagues, and established singers is something that he learned from his father. “I understood the 360-degree approach that they had to creating a song. It’s not just composing the music; it’s also about the manner in which to conduct recording sessions. It could be intimidating to have Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam, or Arijit Singh record for you. Of course, they are all professional and [receptive to feedback], but if there is something that you’d want them to change, there has to be a manner of communicating it. I’ve seen my dad make any singer feel as comfortable as they would be while singing in their bathrooms.”
If Siddharth was drawn to composition, Shivam was consumed with replicating the nuances that singers would introduce into their renditions. “He can add an Indian classical touch to Sheela ki jawani also,” teases Shankar. At least to an untrained ear, Shivam’s vocal quality is instantly reminiscent of that of his father, even though the 22-year-old says he grew up with an appetite for songs by Lata Mangeshkar and Ghulam Ali Khan. “I always found so many intricacies in their renditions. There was so much to learn from their harkats. My training started with replicating these difficult songs. I would pick the song that I believed was most challenging, and would then learn every part of it. Finally, I’d make my father hear me sing. I learned from three gurus for four years, and then I learned from my father.”
Well aware of his flair for singing, Shivam expresses apprehensions about turning to music composition just yet. He is, however, quick to admit that the idea lingers on. Often dismissive of his own creations, he says he continues to remind himself of his father’s advice that “no composition is a bad composition”.
We ask Shankar to elucidate: “In your article, if you write one line, you should wait to see if it can develop into a paragraph, and a phrase. Give your idea time to breathe instead of dismissing it immediately. Never crush an idea. Similarly, if you improvise and create a melody, you should never assume that it is bad, and let it go. You never know when such an idea can lead to the making of one of the most beautiful songs. Give it space to breathe, and keep going back to it to give it a form. This is an argument that we have even within Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. Every legitimate part of a song begins with an improvisation.”
Siddharth, who, along with his cousin Soumil Shringarpure, has composed music for several Marathi films, says this learning enabled him to hold his ground in collaborative projects. “I have learned to be a better salesman of my work. While creating music for commercials, I think, now, I am better at handling situations in which I am expected to stand for what I’ve created. In the past, if someone criticised our work, I’d shoot it down immediately. Now, I may encourage [the producers] to listen to the piece a few more times before turning it down. Often, they come back telling me that they’re hooked to it.”
He admits that capitalising on social media has become essential. It is this social media boom that egged Shankar to advise his sons to “not depend on Bollywood”. “I’m not saying don’t do it, but don’t depend on it. There are many layers to [cross] in Bollywood. Today, first, a film has to work. Then, the song needs to work. Then, people need to recall that this song has been sung by Shivam Mahadevan. After that, another director needs to remember the song, and the singer, and then appoint him. And finally, that film and song also need to work. So, it is a [cumbersome] process. On the other hand, with the Internet, an artiste can directly reach his audience. This generation should build themselves as individual artistes. Create your own channel and interact with your fans. You no longer need to sit outside a producer’s office waiting for a chance.”
Neither of the two dismiss the importance of being a good marketer. “I’m terrible at it, but Shivam is pretty good,” says the older sibling, while the younger admits to employing tricks to “constantly offer something new” to followers. “Dad and I did a father-son [duet] segment which worked well because no one had done something like that before. If you continuously put out stuff—originals or covers—people will begin to love the content, and engage with it.”
As Shivam continues to find comfort before the camera, Siddharth has picked up one of the most vital skills of this century—a fine understanding of employing technology in music. It’s due to this knowledge that he says he can walk into a studio, create a fully-produced song, and walk out. “That’s something even I cannot do,” says Shankar, adding, “I can compose a song, but I also have to depend on sound engineers. I cannot do the entire production mix and walk out with a track that’s ready. People believe this is Shankar Mahadevan’s studio and he has set it up, but the truth is that every wire in this studio has been set up by him [Siddharth].” Siddharth concedes, “I was always interested in technology, and sound-engineering. During lunch breaks, I’d rack the heads of engineers, asking them about the plug-ins they were using, and why they were processing dad’s voice in a certain manner.”
With these diverse skills, Shankar believes his children could become a “one-stop shop” for the creation of music. They intend to release singles as a trio, he promises, further adding that he considers himself fortunate to be at a place where he can take to the stage with his kids’ compositions. “Normally, children take the stage and say, ‘I’m singing a song that my father had sung when he was alive.’ But I get the chance to sing songs such as Zinda and Chedkhaniyaan and say, these are songs that my kids have sung. This is the greatest blessing for a father.”
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
