Clinton Cerejo does it all— he’s a singer, composer and music producer. “The key to wearing many hats is to compartmentalise your skill-sets. If I am singing for another composer, my ‘composer and producer brain’ shuts down and I put in everything into the song as singer.”
His rap number ‘Aukaat’ with Amitabh Bachchan for the film Badla has him not only sing, but also perform with the actor. The edgy rap song sets the mood for the thriller, directed by Sujoy Ghosh. Cerejo has collaborated with Ghosh, as composer, on Kahaani , Kahaani 2 , Ahalya (short film) and Te3n (which Ghosh produced). But there is more to this versatile, award-winning musician than just film music. He is known as much for his independent music. His work for MTV Coke Studio(2 & 3) is noteworthy. Clinton has also composed music for scores of commercials. Not just all this, he is also the face of Sufi band ‘Ananthaal’.
Excerpts from an email interview
The experience of making Aukaat and working with Amitabh Bachchan.
Working with Mr Bachchan was amazing. He is incredible as a performer and singer. He is very musical, there is so much drama in his voice. For me, to feature in a video with him, is even more special. This is the third song in which I have worked with him — the first being ‘Aekla Chalo’, followed by ‘Kyun Re’ (from Te3n ). This song is completely different from the first two; it has energy, personality, and the aggression a rap song requires.
On creating the song...
The song (rap) was Sujoy’s idea. Its comparison to Gully Boy is inevitable, but the funny thing is, we composed it before Gully Boy was released. Sujoy wanted the guitar theme; that was part of the film, right from the beginning. He wanted to give Mr Bachchan a James Bond-like quality when the film opened — that’s when I thought that the guitar theme would work with the song. It made sense to try rap thing; orchestra meets slightly rocked out guitar is what the film required.
How was it working with Sujoy, you’ve collaborated with him on quite a few projects?
I’m definitely in a comfort zone when working with Sujoy. We first started working together for the background score for Kahaani, we then did Kahaani 2 , Te3n and Ahalya (short film). I’ve begun to figure out what makes him tick. He too knows my style and what to expect from me; I know what he is likes in terms of his music — there is definitely a synergy there. He ensures that his films move fast; so he likes its music to be pacy. And I try to see to it that the music drives the film forward.
On working with two other composers on Badla ...
Amal Malik and Anupam Roy are both great composers in their own right. I am happy to have worked with them. Their songs are nice and both are gifted composers. We didn’t collaborate in terms of creating the songs — Sujoy interacted with them; and we did meet on the sets of Aukaat when Amal Malik came with his brother. It was nice hanging with them, we had a great day!
His kind of music...
Of which kind of music he likes best, “It is not an easy question to answer especially in my case because I have always got my feet in many boats – advertising, corporate films, my own independent music on my Youtube channel and films. It is very hard to pick a favourite; the key to doing all these different genres and styles is to be a keen listener of different genres of music, keep abreast of the latest happenings. It doesn’t matter if you are doing film and non-film music — it is good music that matters in the end.
