Malayalam cinema was never part of Muthu’s plans. What he could never escape was an inexplicable pull towards music - through singing, composing and writing lyrics.
Trusting that pull, he left the priesthood and travelled to Kochi. He took up whatever jobs came his way to survive, all while searching for a small opening through which he could make music.
That opening has since widened. His music has found its way into films including ED: Extra Decent, Aabhyanthara Kuttavaali, Thalavara, Maine Pyar Kiya, Haal, Paathirathri, Vaazha 2, Pallichattambi, and Pluto. With more releases ahead, including the Prithviraj-starrer Khalifa, and ‘Asalayavale’ finding a wide audience online, Muthu is becoming a name to watch.
For someone who never planned a life in cinema, there is a quiet irony in how far he has come: after years spent searching for a place for his music, one Malayalam release after another now bears his signature.
TNIE speaks to the singer, composer and lyricist about the uncertain road that brought him here.
How did music become part of your life?
Music has been with me since school. I began participating in youth festivals in Class 4, mainly in mappilappattu. Soon, I started writing small songs and singing them to my classmates. There was no ambition behind it; I did it because it made me happy.
Years later, I began singing my original songs on platforms like Clubhouse. A team that heard me approached me to write for them, and that was when I realised music could also become a source of income. Until then, I had mostly remained confined to ghazals and Sufi music. I decided to explore other forms. After moving from Kollam to Kochi, I also began street jamming, which gradually brought me contacts and opportunities in cinema.
What made you decide to step away from the priesthood and pursue music?
I come from an ordinary family, and my father was an imam. So, entering priesthood seemed like a natural choice. But I gradually realised that remaining in that role would not allow me to take my ideas to the larger society or pursue the wider world I believed in.
So, leaving was not very difficult for me because I was mentally prepared for it. The harder part was the reaction from society. My family and friends had always seen me dressed in white, wearing the cap of a priest, so it took them time to understand the change.
How did you find your first opportunity in cinema?
People joke that when a train arrives in Kochi, three compartments are filled with cinema aspirants. Some return immediately, some wait for months or years, and a few find success quickly. During my first month in Kochi, I met many such people.
Initially, I wrote songs for such aspiring filmmakers who carried scripts and hoped to direct films. Some projects got stuck.
The first film to reach theatres with my songs was ‘ED: Extra Decent’. I was singing at a café in Kaloor when director Aamir Pallikkal heard me. I told him I was performing an original song I wrote myself. The team initially called me to write one song, but I eventually wrote four.
I had worked on ‘Haal’ earlier through Clubhouse connections, though it was released later. So far, I have written more than 80 songs for films and independent projects. Eleven films featuring my work have been released in the past one and a half years, with around 35 more in the pipeline.
Was ‘Ilakozhiye’ from Thalavara your turning point?
I consider every film a turning point because each one led to the next. But after ‘Thalavara’ and the attention ‘Ilakozhiye’ received online, I began getting bigger projects. ‘Welcome to Mollywood’ from ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’ was noticed, so was ‘Sunnath Kalyanam’ from Vaazha 2. which was the biggest hit among the films I have worked on.
I was offered Vaazha 2 while working on ED: Extra Decent. Vipin Das asked whether I could create a song in the dialect spoken along the Thiruvananthapuram-Kollam border. I sang one, he liked it, and that brought me into the film.
I had also worked with Electronic Kili on ED. When he later took up Thalavara, he called me. I am now looking forward to Khalifa, in which I have written and sung songs with a few surprising elements. Titans and Prempatta are also among my upcoming projects.
What defines your approach to songwriting?
I enjoy creating new words by combining familiar ones. In ‘Asalayavale’, for example, I used ‘Manaharipoov’ to mean ‘manoharamaya poovu’ — a beautiful flower. Such words should not merely sound unusual; they must carry meaning and connect with the film.
Audience preferences have also changed. Earlier, people discovered music mainly through radio and live programmes. Today, they listen to songs from across the world on their phones. Often, they respond first to the sound, style and pleasure of hearing a song rather than the depth of its lyrics.
Malayalam cinema now gives great importance to sound. When a composer identifies a hook, the lyricist must place the strongest lines there. When I compose, I often write simultaneously. Singing, composing, and writing are all part of my effort to become a better musician.