What's common among Shah Rukh Khan and Kareena in ‘Chamak Challo', Vidya Balan in ‘Ooh La La', Priyanka Chopra in ‘Desi Girl' and Katrina Kaif in ‘Sheila'? Dancing to Vishal and Shekhar's tune… literally. The music for these chartbusters has been composed by the duo. The two were in Chennai to perform at IIT Saarang, and it was the first time they were performing in the city. “Saarang is huge. A lot of artistes who have performed here have told us it's a great experience, and now we are here to experience it,” says Shekhar Ravjiani.
Going wild!
Next, they head to IIT Kharagpur and then to Dubai for another live performance, something that they immensely enjoy. So, what's the most difficult thing while doing a live show? “Getting off stage,” he laughs. “We never plan anything. We just go on stage, and go wild. It's the energy of the crowd that does it.”
While Vishal Dadlani is the frontman of the electronica rock band Pentagram, Shekhar is a trained classical singer. And, in spite of being contrasting personalities, have managed to compose catchy tunes together for over a decade. “That's because opposites attract,” says Shekhar, and after a pause adds: “We've been friends for 16 years, and we know what the other person is thinking or trying to come up with. Together we still have many more years to go.” In 1999, Vishal and Shekhar were working separately on the music of “Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi”, composing three songs each. “I bumped into Vishal as I was stepping out of the studio, and we discovered we were both working on the same film. We then heard each others' works and completely loved it. That's how we got together,” narrates the charming singer-composer.
The going has always been good for them, and has gotten better over the last few years. In 2011, they collaborated with international artistes such as Imogen Heap and Akon. Talks are on for a few more international collaborations, but Shekhar prefers to be tight-lipped about it as of now. “We are working currently on the music for ‘Shanghai' and our next release is Sujoy Ghosh's ‘Kahaani', followed by Karan Johar's ‘Student of the Year'.”
And with that, Shekhar joins Vishal on stage, and as the charged up audience sway and flash their cellphones, it's yet another memorable performance at IIT.
