×
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Ecstatic about Jal's world premiere

International Exposure
Last Updated 03 October 2013, 15:47 IST

A thundering track ‘Natraja the Lord of Dance’, for the book The Oath of the Vayuputras, plays as a caller tune before percussionist-turned-music composer Bickram Ghosh’s voice breaks the trance of drums that one is captivated by.

On the other side of the phone, Bickram sounds ecstatic. The music composer who has worked in over 15 Bengali films apart from his musical association with Pandit Ravi Shankar is on cloud nine. Jal, the film where he has teamed with Sonu Nigam as a co-music director, has struck the right chords at Busan International Film Festival. A film based on scarcity of water in the Rann of Kutch by actor-turned-director Girish Malik, Jal, has been selected for a world premiere in the ‘New Current’, a competitive segment which has 11 other films besides.

Three years back, Bickram got a call from Girish’s office when the director was completely bowled over after listening to Kingdom of Rhythm’s track Primal. “The track has almost wild tones to it. I did this album with the English percussionist Pete Lockett. When Jal’s team did its research for the film, they found that the soundscape matched the tonality of the music I had worked upon,” says the music director.

“They wanted to do a courageous sort of shoot in the middle of the heat in the Rann of Kutch. It triggered off the idea for a similar music to match the terrain and character for the film,” says Ghosh adding that the film has three main tracks to it, “There’s an English track written by me and I have composed a magnum opus of background score with almost 50 to 60 drums playing in the background.”

Jal’s music is enmeshed with the theme of the film, and its title track ‘Jal de, jal de’ has been sung by Shubha Mudgal. “How the silence in the movie, is taken over by its landscape and the music in the film is worth noting when you watch this amazing effort directed by Girish. Only 10 to 12 films get the coveted status of being selected for a premiere in Busan, which began yesterday and will finish on 12 October. Ahead of its release in India, premiering there will be a great boost for the movie,” says the characteristically cheerful musician. 

While Bickram is keeping his fingers crossed for the international exposure to his music in Jal, he is also awaiting the release of Sooper se Ooper in October where he has again collaborated with Sonu Nigam.

ADVERTISEMENT
(Published 03 October 2013, 15:47 IST)

Follow us on

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT