THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Singer-composer Nakul Abhyankar is no stranger to performing at live concerts, having been involved in many such events from his early days with AR Rahman’s now-defunct NAFS band.
Interestingly, Nakul has also performed live in not just one but two sporting events: First at the 2018 Men’s Hockey World Cup and now at the IPL 2024 opening ceremony, which was recently held in Chennai. From his experience, he says that performing at a big-ticket event like the IPL is an entirely different beast from performing live at a concert. “The energies are different, as are the synergies between the artists. People come to a concert venue to listen to your music. Conversely, for an event like the IPL, it is all about capturing the festival-like spirit with music high on energy. It is all about giving that grand start to the whole tournament,” says Nakul.
This contrast is evident in the way a song like 'Taal Se Taal Mila' is used originally and in the event environment. “The original song starts softly with Sukhwinder Singh’s humming and typical Indian percussion before the female chorus comes in gradually. However, the Western version of the same song is sped up and hence much faster. For the IPL event, we have also ended up adding more beats to it and doubled the baseline to make it faster. Ultimately, it ended up sounding quite powerful and very energetic,” Nakul explains.
Speaking of power, there is a strong connection between sports and music as the latter often acts as a catalyst for the kind of inspiration that the former often taps into. Speaking of how music bridges the gap between the world of sports and that of music, Nakul says, “The best example of this is when the DJ at the stadium gets into his act at the fall of a wicket or the instance of a batter hitting a boundary. People in India go gaga over cricket, and the DJ’s role is to capture that emotion. What better way to do it than with music? As performers, our job is to get them into that kind of festive mood. Sometimes, this is also achieved with songs that motivate people, as was the case with the IPL closing ceremony from a couple of years ago where we used songs like Vande Mataram,” Nakul adds.
It is not like such music is only played at cricketing venues in India. Even an international T20 event such as the Caribbean Cricket League has caught up with Indian music. Often, a popular Malayalam track from Jassie Gift is played at a CCL stadium out of nowhere, much to the delight of the spectators.
“This is the beauty of Indian music. Whether it be classic or contemporary, it will appeal to people from any background and any part of the world. That said, if such music (Jassie Gift) suddenly appears at a CCL stadium, it probably means that the DJ is an Indian,” says Nakul with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek.
However, Nakul is quick to point out that there have also been instances where the IPL has benefited from foreign compositions. “We also use Dwayne Bravo’s Champion song over here, right? And even the IPL’s trumpet tune has its origins in South Africa when the event was moved to the Rainbow Nation due to a clash in scheduling with the 2019 general elections. It has a Middle East vibe to it, yet it is very Indian and universally appealing as well. I think it will be part of the IPL till it exists.”
Nakul also does not shy away from expressing his opinion on more debatable topics such as the aversion of some to the use of loud music with light and smoke in between a World Cup match or how background music is employed to amplify an emotion in films.
“It is understandable when some players do not like it (the use of smoke and light with loud music). I am fine with someone liking it or not liking it. This practice is here to stay in India, though. I cannot imagine soft music being played at a cricket stadium in India,” says Nakul as he responds to queries on the affinity of the Barmy Army supporters of the England Cricket Team towards The Beatles-like music.
Regarding the use of background music in films, Nakul says, “Music has great power to enhance the emotions in a story. That said, I strongly believe that the best background score is when the audience does not notice it, even as it immerses them in the different emotional arcs in the plot,” says Nakul, citing the film Pink as an example. The artist has also worked on plot-intensive projects where the placement of music has earned the audience’s appreciation, such as the Ponniyin Selvan films and Love Mocktail 2.
Even as he is an active part of films and big-ticket events, Nakul also has plans to create independent music albums sometime later this year.