BENGALURU: Musician Sharath Narayan has been enticing listeners with his ‘soulful, soothing’ music for over a decade now. While the Kochi native scaled many heights during this time, what remained elusive was his dream to put out a track in a regional language.
During the lockdown, however, Sharath was left to confront his long-cherished dream when the city remained out of reach. He moved his instruments to the living room and decided to give them a go. Now, nearly three years later, his song — a solo Malayalam track titled Anthinilavin — is finally out.
“I took classes in Carnatic music in my early days. Now, I’m training in Hindustani music. So I’ve long harboured a dream of creating a song in a regional language. Producing the track helped me understand how my singing and composition style changes with language,” says Sharath, a full-time musician who also runs a recording studio named Cosma. The youngster is also the lead vocalist of the English band ‘Black Letters’.
The song Anthinilavin charts the love story of a person who is smitten with someone. “It is metaphorical. The song is about a person’s love affair with moonlight,” Sharath elaborates. In the beginning, the listener is eased into the song with the guitar strums and Sharath’s soft humming. Soon enough, the track is bolstered with the introduction of drums and keyboard.
What perhaps takes the cake is the addition of a mridangam piece at the tail-end of the song. It adds an Indian element to the song. “The Indian element is more evident in the vocals,” Sharath explains. Besides the instruments, the track also uses Sharath’s voice samples to inject that extra pep. In fact, the entire melody is made using voice samples. “I have played with vocals like a child here. I recorded, chopped, reversed, and pitched it up,” Sharath says.
What perhaps gives the song its deserved oomph is the addition of Tamil lyrics. As the Malayalam lyrics fade out, Sharath’s Tamil rendition takes centre stage, keeping the track refreshing. “I have spent most of my time in Coimbatore. We speak Tamil in our house. So, while making the medley, the language came to me naturally,” Sharath says.
The music video that accompanies the song illustrates the person’s inability to reach their lover. Using visuals from the lockdown months in Bengaluru – of Sharath restricted by the confines of his house, the video augments the experience without ever seeming intrusive.
The four-minute track has managed to fetch positive responses from many. For some, it evokes nostalgia. The others have not gotten time to ponder any of that, as the song is still on a loop. “I’m delighted to learn that the song has touched a chord with many,” Sharath says.
Anthinilavin, released by Wonderwall Media Network, was produced and recorded by Sharath Narayan. While Vinayak Sasikumar penned the lyrics, Pranav Bhasin directed the music video.