For those of you who have grown up listening to songs like Krishna Ni Begane Baro (not to be confused with the Kannadiga classical song) and Sa Ni Da Pa, the mere mention of Colonial Cousins will lift your hearts. However, Hyderabadis felt more than just a flutter of their iota when the duo took to the stage recently, doling out their evergreen songs. In town as a part of a fund-raising event for the Rotaract Charitable trust initiative - Sparsh, a hospice for terminally ill patients, City Express caught up with the Colonial Cousins for a quick chit-chat.
Best known for their the Indian classical - contemporary funk fusion of music, Colonial Cousins comprises of the Ghazal master Hariharan whose voice lilts across the trickiest songs effortlessly; and Leslie Lewis, the western jazz brain behind the music. While they may seem like oil and water, together, the two created a music revolution in the country with their new genre that transcended the traditional and modern, the past and future. While not only waking the nation up to a sound that gave the best of two worlds, they were also one the most successful and popular acts that Indian music has seen.
When you see one walk in with his hair wildly open, wearing a silk off-white kurta and black salwar while the other with his hair pulled back only to let down a red strand of braided hair with a matching feather extension (not to mention that it matches the potli buttons on his black kurta-shirt), you can’t but help think that it’s the same funky collaboration in their music that gave the Cousins their essence. But coming from two very obviously different foundations in music, doesn’t that lead to many creative ‘debates’?
“Of course it does. We step on each other’s toes all the time. But in that same space, we’ve found our own rhythm, we’ve clicked and we love what we do,” says Leslie ‘Lezz’ Lewis. “It’s important that one’s foundation is extremely strong. Leslie can’t sing classical for nuts, but his roots are steeped deep in western music. We’re good at our own music and we’re good at bringing them together,” adds the classical singer who spent his childhood practicing upto 13 hours a day. Hailing from a Tamil-Brahmin family and a lineage that was rich in classical music (both parents were singers), Hariharan’s association with western music was unlike what his plan.
“Colonial Cousins was an accident,” explains Leslie. “I was making an advertisement and I’d asked Hari to sing. We were waiting for the script and got jamming, coming up with this mix of alaap and western guitar strumming.”
After the release of their debut eponymous album in 1996, the Cousins went on to make two more, 'The Way We Do It' (1998) and 'Aatma' (2001) before going into a lull.
Talking about that phase, Lezz explains, “During the 2000’s, there was a shift in focus and suddenly film music was the only thing doing well. Independent music and different genres died out. We did think of releasing an album many times, but the logistics simply didn’t work.” “We can sit an have a long debate about how and why, but the fact was nobody was publicising non-film music. The only thing two things people were paying for was Bollywood and cricket. Which is not a bad thing, but it choked down other things. There was no space for us on the air waves or on channels. It’s a circle, and I think we’re now starting to circle back,” elaborates Hariharan.
And indeed, circling back in style, the Cousins announce their forthcoming album. “We will be releasing an album soon but don’t know when. It’ll be called the Colonial Cousins Once More. We’re still working on it. There hasn’t been a specific plan. Things are just falling into place by themselves,” informs Leslie before signing off.