KOCHI: It was 2020, the time of month-long lockdowns. Like people all over the world, 12-year-old Advaith A was also stuck at home. And like many, he also started a social media challenge of his own. Something completely different to the dalgona coffee challenge and the quarantine pillow challenge. Advaith and his father R S Arun Prakaash came up with a 100-week challenge. Each week Advaith composes music and uploads it on platforms such as Sound Cloud, Apple Music, Jio Saavn, Amazon Prime Music and more.
The duo started the challenge in April 2020 and they finished it in May 2022. Advaith is now on cloud nine after composing 100 tunes in 100 weeks. “I get fascinated by the sounds around me. Each of them follows a particular rhythm. When we were all confined to the four walls of our home during the lockdown, my father suggested creating tracks each week. This way I wouldn’t lose interest in music. I was just nine years old then. As each week went by, we came up with the idea of the 100-week challenge,” says Advaith.
Advaith showed interest in music when he was just five years old, his parents say. “I think my son developed an interest in music because of my affection towards the same. I’ve been creating music for some time now. I’ve made tracks for several short films as well. I knew he could take this up as he is fond of challenges. If he’s given a task, he can stay focused until he finishes it,” says Arun, who is a principal architect at WongDoody, a design unit at Infosys in Bengaluru.
The 100 tracks the youngster created are a confluence of many genres. Some are calming beats, whereas others come with fiery beats that can give one an adrenaline rush. From love, hope, and melancholy — Advaith’s creations have it all. According to his father, even before learning music, Advaith could identify notes on the piano. “When I used to try my hands on the piano, I was just enjoying the combination of notes and the flow of music. Little did I realise that I was creating tunes,” adds Advaith, who has also created a track exclusively for Covid warriors.
Advaith’s inclination towards instrumental music is evident in his tracks. The composition — mainly setting the bass, chords, strings and medley — reflects the youngster’s creativity. “While he works on a track, I don’t interfere. I don’t want his creations to lose authenticity. As he isn’t well versed with the technology, I do the mixing and mastering,” says Arun.
Though the 100-week challenge is over, Advaith still continues to make music. He has reached week 105 now. When asked what he intends to do with the set of tracks, he replies, “I want to keep creating music. That’s all. But I want composers such as Alan Walker and Brian Tyler, known for movies like Avengers and Rambo, to listen to my tunes once,” signs off the child musician.