Vivek Hariharan on composing songs for Fateh musical inspirations and more

From live gigs to a chapel in Belgium, from Sufi melodies to opera and from a casual jam to Sonu Sood’s approval – this composer’s journey on Fateh has been nothing short of cinematic. Crafting a ‘death lullaby’ that blends Indian classical and Western opera, he took creative risks that paid off in grand and unexpected ways. During an exclusive interview with Filmfare, ace musician Vivek Hariharan broke down his process, the collaborations he would love to do and the thrill of pushing musical boundaries. Excerpts:

How did Fateh happen?

I started making music for the film some time early last year. I was starting out making my own music in general. I was working extensively in feature films, web series and other stuff. A lot of my colleagues and friends who heard the music I was making said that it is very cinematic and should be in a film. Sonu (Sood)  paaji heard one of the songs I made. It was Roohdaari. He liked the idea behind the song. He asked for one more. He showed me an action sequence from the film. That is how I made Nindiya. The brief was to make a three-minute opera song.

Have you made an opera-heavy track before?

It was too many things happening unexpectedly. I am a singer. I had started my songwriting journey. I suddenly got into a film and then I was getting a brief to make a song like opera. I told them the three-minute opera might be a little difficult. Can we do a song which might resonate well in the context of the action sequence? And that’s where the idea got of doing a death lullaby. Sonu Sood agreed to do something edgy. That’s how this song was born.

How did the element of opera come in a death lullaby?

Having an opera arrangement around a death lullaby made it grander. The action sequences looked larger than life. It’s a unique composition.

You have mixed Indian classical and western classical elements seamlessly.

I love exploring different genres, styles, textures and emotions as a singer. I have always had this thing in me. I didn’t know when the right context would come. Maybe I could have the opportunity to make a song for death. But a song for death would have been different. Here the context of the lullaby comes because the villain is visually taking rest. He is relaxing. That’s when the protagonist is entering and killing his gunman. That’s how the scene progresses. It was risky. But this was the first time I had gotten a beat. I had nothing to lose. I had no baggage as a composer. So that was probably in my favour.  I took inspiration from Italy’s Meena Nana. It’s a lullaby sung by a mother to her child. The song was composed, written and roughly structured in two days. After we got the song and the emotions right, we were searching for the right singer. Hamsika Iyer has done diverse songs. She has done Chanda Re from Eklavya, which is a sweet lullaby. I also observed that she could bring an edge to the song.

Tell us more about the genesis of the song.

We recorded the opera in Belgium. We did a choir to justify the cinematic grandness of the song. For that, we hired a chapel. We recorded the choir singers in the chapel. We set up mics across the room, so that we can get different sounds of the same vocals. But it just made it sound grander. I also collaborated with an opera arranger who works closely with Hans Zimmer. He sings as well. For me, a lot of collaborations happened during this song’s journey. It just kept on happening. I’m pretty happy with the audio. But it was a rollercoaster ride. I didn’t know how it would come out.

What kind of discussions did you have with Sonu Sood?

Sonu paaji always had the trust in me that I could pull it off. I made a song in two-three days of our meeting and he liked that. We had rough vocals but he wanted me to push the limits. He wanted me to do something bigger and grander. We as creators can have the wackiest ideas. But for someone like him to give a go-ahead was a big thing for me.

Did you also happen to speak to Hans Zimmer?

No, I have not spoken to Hans Zimmer. But I spoke to the person who worked closely with him while doing vocal arrangements. I didn’t even known Hans Zimmer was a part of the film. I was nervous about my own songs. I always had doubts.

What do you usually keep in mind while composing a romantic track like Roohdaari?

Romance is something that has been happening since generations. I wanted to bring out the same emotions but have a different take on it. It’s very challenging to keep being innovative. Sometimes sounds do it, sometimes melody does it and sometimes the melodic phrases. This melody has a lot of sufi and Indian phrases. It has a Qawwali style. We even got a sitar arrangement. A sitar can make a music piece turn out great.

If you could collaborate with Indian and international artistes of your choice, who would you pick?

I love AR Rahman sir. International artistes include Eminem, Bruno Mars and Chris Martin. The beauty of creating music is you can collaborate with everyone.