'I have a poor man's orchestra in my mouth'

Bollywood view

Music composer, singer and lyricist, Vayu, shot to fame in Bollywood with two hit tracks — ‘Beat Pe Booty’ (‘Flying Jatt’) and ‘Banno Tera Swagger’ (‘Tanu Weds Manu Returns’). The musician is presently working on a number of projects with composer Amaal Mallik and duo Sachin-Jigar.

Vayu has a unique ability to make and compose songs by using only his mouth. In a chat with Anushree Agarwal, he talks about his talent and the challenges he has faced in Bollywood.      
       

What do you think made ‘Banno Tera Swagger’ extremely popular?

The song certainly has a great vibe and I thoroughly enjoyed working for it. There are three things that I feel made it really popular — Anand (L Rai) sir’s vision, Kangana’s attitude and finally, my co-composer Tanishk and my quirk.


So you compose music using only your mouth...

I have a poor man’s orchestra in my mouth (laughs). You may call it half beatboxing if you like.  I make a structure of the song using a basic rhythm and tune from my mouth. It may sound funny, but, for me, that gets the job done.


Any challenges that you’ve faced in Bollywood?

There’s no dearth of talent here and also, there are many people who will try to pull you down in the industry. Finding a way through them and making a name for oneself is a constant challenge according to me.


An actor you’d love to sing for...

If I get to sing for someone, it will be actor Ranbir Kapoor. I like almost all the songs he’s featured in. And I also love the way he does justice to the song and everyone behind it.


A song you’d enjoy singing on a rainy day...

‘Singin’ in the Rain’.


If it was your last day on the planet, what would you do?

Chill out to the fullest. In fact, I do that even now!


What do you do in your leisure time?

Well, I am not sure what leisure time means. When I’m working, I’m making songs. When I’m not working, I do the same.


What’s there in the pipeline?

There are a few interesting projects coming out very soon. I can’t give out the details yet but there are a few songs with Tanishk as well as some songs that I have written for Sachin-Jigar and Amaal Mallik.