“Great dreams of great dreamers are always transcended,” said APJ Abdul Kalam. One of the country’s most inspiring scientist-philosophers, Kalam’s words of wisdom continue to inspire and ignite the minds of young Indians. And it is to keep this fire burning that the Upadhyay brothers from Mumbai released ‘Burn Like The Sun’ in late January, as a tribute to the former President of India.
“His vision is our music,” says Ashutosh, the brain behind the music. “We came up with the idea in July, soon after Dr. Kalam’s death. We began working on it by October last year. While creating the music, the prime focus was on his philosophy. If you look carefully, you will realise that the lyrics are based on his quotes. We researched a bit and found a way to incorporate his quotes into the lyrics — “Dreams transcend” or “Dream, Dream, Dream,” or even when he quoted Hitler saying “If you want to shine like a sun, first burn like the sun”.”
The brothers decided to stick to English lyrics, because they believe that Kalam’s message has a global connect. In the two months that the song has been released on YouTube, it has already garnered over a 100,000 hits. The song focuses on many of Dr Kalam’s teachings, but mainly on the need for education, regardless of an individual’s social or economic status. “It also reflects his life story in a way; which is why we had a school student selling newspapers in the video,” explains Ashutosh. The video also urges people to break free of their shackles and rise to realise their dreams.
For his brother Anurag, Kalam was an inspiration since his college days. “I was doing my engineering when he came to our college for a Republic Day function. He advised us to dream big; his speech was so inspiring and stayed with me. I went on to work as a consultant with an IT company, but I knew there was something missing in my life. Dance had been a passion, but I’d never actually pursued it. But Dr Kalam taught me to dream big, and that is when I decided to give up my career and pursue one in dance instead.” Incidentally, the video for the song was conceptualised by him and he also stars in it.
According to Anurag, it was Ashutosh who encouraged and backed his decision to pursue dance professionally. “Most of the music for my dance productions are composed by him,” says Anurag. Ashutosh continues to work as a freelance tech consultant and says he takes up “as much work as it allows me to pursue my passion.” He adds, “I like the balance between my tech projects and music. It’s also how we fund Purplehed Productions’ projects.”
While the duo agrees that anybody can release music online these days, quality remains their priority. “Our music always has a story to tell; there’s always a message. It is not just entertainment,” says Anurag.
Watch the video here
