The teaser of Tovino Thomas-starrer Luca had announced it as ‘A Sooraj S Kurup musical’. And the first track from the movie, ‘Ore kannal’ has done justice to the tagline. The cool, groovy number has already garnered over 14 lakh views on YouTube.
When we catch up with Sooraj, he is busy composing the background score for the movie, slated to release on June 28. Although exhausted due to lack of sleep, Sooraj says, “I have a deadline to keep and haven’t got enough time to celebrate the success of the song. I am ecstatic that it has been appreciated so much. Composers Rahul Raj and Jakes Bejoy, many directors and friends from the industry have praised the work. I didn’t expect such a reach for the song. In fact, when it was uploaded, I was nervous if people would like it,” says Sooraj. The upbeat track, picturised on Tovino, playing an artist, and Ahaana Krishna, is sung by debutant Nandhagopan, Neethu Naduvathettu, Anju Joseph and Sooraj himself.
New flavour
A “choosy composer”, Sooraj points out that he took up the project because he was sure that he would get the space and freedom to do something different. “All those associated with the project were game for experimentation and I knew that I could come up with something interesting. Arun Bose, the director of the film, had told me that he needed a lively track, keeping in with the theme of the film. The cinematography and art direction, both by debutants, have lifted the mood of the song. Then there is Manu Manjith, the lyricist, with whom I share a great relationship,” says the 29-year-old.
The rap segment in the number, he says, happened organically. “Unlike Tamil, Malayalam is not a language that can easily fit into the rap genre. This was an experiment and it clicked,” he adds.
There are three more songs in the movie, written by Sabareesh Varma, Harinarayanan and Vinayak Sasikumar. Sooraj says that each song is different from the other. Besides him, the singers are Aravind Venugopal, Zia Ul Haq and Deepa Palanad.
Sooraj had announced his presence in the industry with his work in Valleem Thetti Pulleem Thetti, in which he wrote the lyrics as well. Although the film didn’t do well, the songs found a place on music charts. He followed it up with a song in Kochavva Paulo Ayyappa Coelho , sung by Shankar Mahadevan, and tracks in Alamara . Then came the brilliant work, ‘Seetha Kalyanam’, in Bejoy Nambiar’s bilingual anthology, Solo . He also worked in a Tamil film, Vandi .
Sooraj asserts that the long gap and select films in his career are deliberate choices. “After Solo , no other project excited me enough to get onboard. I didn’t want to repeat what I did in Valleem... or other films. For me, composing is not just a means to make money,” he says.
However, in the case of Luca , Sooraj is also excited about the background score. “This is my favourite work,” says the composer who earlier did the background score for Valleem Thetti Pulleem Thetti , Ann Maria Kalippilaanu , Alamara , and one story in Solo .
