'I have the best job in the world'

It’s his careful attention to detail that made Julius Packiam a composer, film scorer, producer and an audio-visual presenter in Bollywood for over 25 years.

Blockbusters like ‘Ek Tha Tiger’, ‘Dhoom 3’, ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ and the most recent ‘Tubelight’ has brought Julius an enormous body of work to his credit in the industry.

Apart from working as a music director, Julius has been involved in other commercial projects.

He is now working on the score of ‘Tiger Zinda Hai’ which is expected to hit the screens later this year. Julius talks about his journey so far in the industry in a tete-a-tete with Anila Kurian.

How’s your work on ‘Tiger Zinda Hai’ going on?

The ideation process is still going on. I’ve been given the director’s vision and how the story will play out in terms of sound. It’s my job to put everything together to bring the movie together.

Is it a hectic process?

Well, it depends on the film. The big films usually give you ample amount of time to work on the score. The pre-production time is alright, but mixing it together at the end is quite hectic.

A lot of hours are put in during that time.

Are you working on any other projects in the meanwhile?

Since I do commercials as well, I take that up in between Bollywood projects. They don’t take too long. So it’s quite relaxing. Apart from that, I prefer to do only one big project at a time.

What do you love about being a film score composer?

Everything! I have the best job in the world. I’ve always wanted to do this and it‘s great that I get paid for it (laughs). I can now possess everything I wanted as a kid; it’s a great life.

Is there anything about the industry that you don’t like?

Indian cinema has changed a lot over the years but many still don’t know the difference between a film scorer and music director.

It made sense to say ‘music by’ in the credits because one person used to do it all, but that’s changed now. So if Hollywood films give due credit, we can too.

Any advice to aspiring film score composers?

It’s important to be tech savvy and always keep yourself updated with what’s going on in the industry. I always tell my trainees to pick a scene from a film, mute the volume and add their own twist to it. Present that to whomever you want and hope it brings you luck.

So who is your inspiration?

My team; they are much younger than me and they normally watch or know things I don’t. That inspires me. Apart from that, I am inspired by everything positive around me.