Arvind Venugopal is on cloud nine. His song ‘Kannadi Chillil’ from the soon to be released movie Netholi Oru Cheriya Meen Alla is currently topping music charts. “V.K. Prakash (VKP) the director of Netholi… is my dad’s friend. I did my internship at his advertising firm, Trendz, in Bangalore. He has heard my voice through a couple of my demos and I have sung for him. He seems to have liked my voice as he gave me ‘Kannadi…’,” says Arvind, an alumnus of St. Thomas Central School and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.
The recording for ‘Kannadi Chillil’ was done at the music director of the movie Abhijith’s home studio. The atmosphere in the studio, says Arvind, was animated as VKP who was in the studio during the recording livened things up. “‘Kannadi…’, is a peppy number and VKP sir was dancing and swaying to the tune while we were recording it. It was hilarious.” Son of veteran playback singer G. Venugopal, ‘Kannadi….’ is Arvind’s second venture in Mollywood. “My debut into the industry was through Jayaraj’s The Train . I sang ‘Chirakingu’, a duet with music director Srinivas’ daughter Sharanya. Not many know that though,” he says.
He adds: “I had sent a couple of jamming records I had done with my friends to my dad. He in turn played them to Srinivas uncle and.soon, I was singing ‘Chirakingu’.”
One is surprised to hear when Arvind says he is not a trained singer. “My dad tried to teach me. Realising I wasn’t interested, he made me practise songs that were rich in sangathis like ‘Mathuram jeevamridabindu’ and ‘Etho varmukilin’ instead. He is a stickler for perfection and insists that I get the diction for the songs right. I felt a sense of déjà vu when I recorded ‘Chirakingu’, as my father was in the studio and would correct me if I faltered,” says Arvind.
While he may not have cherished dreams of becoming a singer, Arvind admits he enjoys singing and listening to music, especially songs by A.R. Rahman. “Singing is a hobby, one that I will pursue with interest. I took up singing when I was studying at Madras Christian College. I would sing for various college events. I don’t think I will turn singing into a career though,” says Arvind who is currently pursuing his MS Communication in Christ College, Bangalore.
So, what do his friends in college think about his musical journey? “They have been extremely encouraging. In fact, they have posted my songs on YouTube.”
