Shankar Mahadevan’s son Siddharth has set the right note for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. His debut song Zinda has emerged as a chartbuster. The singer-composer chatted with Karan Bhardwaj
For 20-year-old Siddharth Mahadevan, music comes naturally. He started absorbing musical lessons at the age of five. He has been trained under various maestros. But he doesn’t wish to name anyone. His singer composer father, Shankar Mahadevan, a celebrated name in the Hindi music industry, remains his favourite. “I have been following him. Not only his music but also his personality, he is very humble and a gentle fellow,” says Mahadevan from Mumbai over phone as we start exploring his life and career. “I like all kinds of music. Be it pop, ghazals, folk, classical or bands. I am a follower of music, not individuals. Dad told me to explore each genre to have a proper understanding of music,” he emphasises.
The young musician is upbeat about his debut songs in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. Brought out by Sony Music, the album has two songs on his name, Zinda and rock version of the title track. “I had sung in a Greenpeace video couple of years ago directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. It was then when we first met and he heard my voice. Then, he asked me to sing in this film. I was surprised. Not everyone gets such a big break. It was fun and enriching experience to be working with talented people. lyrics have been written by Prasoon Joshi,” he informs. Apparently, Shankar-Ehsaan-loy has composed tracks for the film. So how was it working with mentor-fatherIJ “I felt secure. He has seen me and my music since beginning. If I don’t understand certain thing, he knows how to explain it. The recording of Zinda didn’t take much time. It was recorded in one and a half hour,” says Mahadevan.
He first composed music with his cousin Soumil Shringarpure for award-winning Marathi movie Swapna Tujhe Ni Majhe. “But my maiden attempt in music was a while ago. I had recorded a jingle for Alpenliebe when I was nine. Since then, I have been composing and singing for advertisements, jingles and TV shows. When I was three, I’d also recorded a mouth percussion segment for the Breathless track of my father,” he reminisces.
He had also prepared a musical presentation at Neeta lulla’s fashion show at lakme Fashion Week. Any piece of advice from his dadIJ “There is no place for mediocrity in the industry which is full of masters,” he states.
Mahadevan mentions his future projects. “I have sung a song with Rahul Ram for D-Day. I am also working with dad on a private album. It’s going to be folk dance project. It has time since we are scouting talent in interiors of our country which has lots of hidden talent,” he shares. Siddharth dreams to work with AR Rahman. “He is a genius. I also look forward to work with Amit Trivedi and Vishal Shekhar,” he signs off.