Firstpost
  • Home
  • Video Shows
    Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
  • World
    US News
  • Explainers
  • News
    India Opinion Cricket Tech Entertainment Sports Health Photostories
  • Asia Cup 2025
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
Trending:
  • PM Modi in Manipur
  • Charlie Kirk killer
  • Sushila Karki
  • IND vs PAK
  • India-US ties
  • New human organ
  • Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Movie Review
fp-logo
Will Bollywood open its arms to the Golden Globe winner M. M. Keeravani?
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
  • Home
  • Entertainment
  • Will Bollywood open its arms to the Golden Globe winner M. M. Keeravani?

Will Bollywood open its arms to the Golden Globe winner M. M. Keeravani?

Subhash K Jha • January 28, 2023, 09:39:14 IST
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Now that the North-South divide has effectually dissolved, why not dig into the talent out there in the musical South like Devi Sri Prasad, Harris Jayaraj and of course M M Keeravani, who had a winning streak in Bollywood in the 1990s.

Advertisement
Subscribe Join Us
Add as a preferred source on Google
Prefer
Firstpost
On
Google
Will Bollywood open its arms to the Golden Globe winner M. M. Keeravani?

There is a distinct musical aridity in Hindi cinema. The other day, a very close filmmaker friend of mine hummed a song from his forthcoming multistarrer over the phone, asking my opinion on the tune. “Are you making this tune up just to test me?” I asked. He assured me it was a song from his film. I told him it sucked. The super-successful filmmaker was helpless. “Where are the actual composers today? I am not fortunate enough to be a composer myself like Sanjay Leela Bhansali . I have to depend on whatever is available. And there aren’t too many choices for us in Bollywood, unlike the South where there are so many choices,” said the filmmaker. Now that the North-South divide has effectually dissolved, why not dig into the talent out there in the musical South like Devi Sri Prasad, Harris Jayaraj and of course M M Keeravani who had winning streak in Bollywood in the 1990s. But it didn’t last long and it only worked with Mahesh Bhatt , and that to on a limited scale. Keeravani did score music for a Shah Rukh Khan starrer Paheli. Ironically, it was SRK’s most experimental film to date. The film flopped and so did Keeravani’s gorgeous music score, one of the finest during that era. For a soundtrack to do well, it has to come in a film starring an A-lister in a massy project. Newcomers singing a seasoned composer’s tracks, never work. In the 1960s, the great Hindi composer Roshan did one of his best soundtracks for a film called Nayi Umar Ki Nayi Fasal which didn’t work because the film starred newcomers. Keeravani is no stranger to success. And yet in spite of his massive popularity in Telugu cinema, he has rarely stepped into Bollywood in recent times. A major issue is the language problem. Keeravani cannot speak Hindi. So what? Neither can Rahman. And Rahul Dev Burman’s Hindi was not quite what nationalists would look for to qualify him as a true Indian. Music is liberated from linguistic barriers. Keeravani’s Naatu Naatu from RRR has the universe jiving, and who cares whether the song is in Telugu, Hindi or Swahili? It’s time we stopped drawing these artificial barriers and focused on creating content that is catchy and original. Second-hand and third-hand reproductions of the classic melodies or even the trashy tunes of the 1980s and 90s, won’t do. The other far larger problem faced by Keeramani in Bollywood is interference. Nowadays producers who know zilch about music step into the range of a composer’s creativity suggesting changes if not entire restructuring of songs. If such suggestions were to come from Raj Kapoor, Raj Khosla, Manoj Kumar or Sanjay Bhansali Keeravani and his ilk would gladly comply. But why would he listen to the philistines in the recording room masquerading as musicologists? Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based journalist. He has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and Instagram

Tags
Shah Rukh Khan BuzzPatrol Buzz Patrol Mahesh Bhatt Golden Globe RRR naatu naatu M M Keeravani
End of Article
Written by Subhash K Jha
Email

Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based journalist. He's been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. see more

Latest News
Find us on YouTube
Subscribe
End of Article

Top Stories

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Top Shows

Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
Latest News About Firstpost
Most Searched Categories
  • Web Stories
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • IPL 2025
NETWORK18 SITES
  • News18
  • Money Control
  • CNBC TV18
  • Forbes India
  • Advertise with us
  • Sitemap
Firstpost Logo

is on YouTube

Subscribe Now

Copyright @ 2024. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved

About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Cookie Policy Terms Of Use
Home Video Shorts Live TV