Lyricist Mankompu Gopalakrishnan is one of the few people who knows why Kattappa killed Baahubali. But he is certainly not telling.
As the much-awaited movie of the year Baahubali 2: The Conclusion reaches cinemas today in four languages, it is also a special occasion for all those who are associated with the Malayalam version of the movie, especially the singers and the lyricist.
The multi-crore flick directed by SS Rajamouli has music by MM Keeravani. Five songs in the Malayalam version have all been written by veteran Gopalakrishnan. The singers are Vijay Yesudas, Shwetha Mohan, Yazin Nizar and Madhu Balakrishnan.
Gopalakrishnan, a veteran in writing lyrics for dubbed movies, says that he is proud to be associated with the magnum opus. He had written the lyrics for Baahubali: the Beginning as well. He was in Hyderabad for over a month. During that period he saw the movie, and sat through the dubbing and recording.
Mankompu Gopalakrishnan
“In this movie, most of the songs are situational, pieces that are used for an emotional build-up to a scene. Many people feel that dubbing means word-by-word translation. But that is not the case. We have to have a strong vocabulary. Once I get the meaning of the original lyrics, I write the Malayalam lyrics. Sometimes I take the liberty to bring in terms and usage that go with our culture. It is a laborious process. But the subject and the scale on which it has been made make it a special project for me,” says Gopalakrishnan.
A special arrangement
It was equally special for each of the singers involved in the project as well. Shwetha and Vijay had also sung in Baahubali: the Beginning. She has sung three songs in the movie, a solo and two duets, including the title song Bali Bali with Vijay and Yazin.
Shweta Mohan
Shwetha says she was thrilled at the opportunity to work again with Keeravani in the sequel too. “He is a genius and I value each chance to sing for him. I have also sung his Tamil songs for other films. Baahubali , of course, was a different experience.”
Vijay Yesudas
She recalls how the entire recording and re-recording was done at Prasad Studio in Hyderabad and how finicky everyone was about security to ensure that the suspense could be retained till the film reached theatres. “Keeravani sir was staying there itself with his chef. Each of us working in the film was given a pass and we were allowed to go only where we were recording. Everything else was off bounds. I have never been part of such a massive exercise when each and every person at the studio worked as a team to keep up the mystique of the film,” she says. Shwetha is all thanks to producers of the Malayalam version for making her a part of the sequel.
Madhu Balakrishnan
“It is a historic movie and I consider myself extremely lucky to be associated with this venture. The song, Arkum Tholkathe , has been sung by Keeravani sir’s son Kaala Bhairava in the Telugu and Tamil versions. We have a different voice texture and I was not sure about pulling it off. Apparently someone in Keeravani sir’s team had suggested my name. We recorded the song in Hyderabad,” says Madhu Balakrishnan, adding that he rarely sings in dubbed movies.
“I have sung for Keeravani sir in Telugu, but this is my first Malayalam song for him,” he says.
Yazin Nizar
Meanwhile an excited Yazin has posted on his Facebook page: “Elated to be part of the movie and to have sung this power packed song!” Yazin has sung several hits in Tamil and Telugu.
