Alexx O'Nell takes to music during lockdown

The actor’s new song ‘Still on my mind’ was released two weeks ago and is set in India

It’s rare for an actor from another country to make a mark in Indian film industry.

America-born Alexx O’Nell stands out because he has made his presence felt in multiple industries in the country, from ‘Cheeni Kum’ in Hindi to ‘Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy’ in Telugu to ‘Madrasapattinam’ in Tamil to ‘Urumi’ in Malayalam.

Alexx was born in the state of Connecticut in the US, and he holds citizenship there and in the Netherlands, his mother’s home country. The actor says that he has worked in India for so long, it’s like he belongs to three countries now.

The lockdown saw him shut-in in his house in Mumbai. “I am actually happy how there have been no massive shortages, especially where I am. Sure, there is less variety, but I have not faced a situation where I thought things are terrible.”

He is disheartened by what is happening back in the US, and his anger with President Donald Trump is barely concealed. India seems to give him more hope.

“India did the right thing by locking down when the cases were only in the hundreds. If anyone will be able to come back to normalcy, I think it is India. It is not perfect, because there are people who can’t get to their native places and many daily wage earners are in trouble. But no one has been as aggressive as India,” Alexx says.

When talking about Trump, he had to censor himself a couple of times.

“Donald Trump is talking about using disinfectants on the body; that guy is insane. He is a dangerous man. If anything good comes out of this pandemic, it should be the end of Donald Trump,” Alexx says.

For most people, the lockdown has been a time they experience a break in their careers, or at least a lag; Alexx took this time to explore the possibilities of a whole different career, in music.

While he has always been a musician, he had not been able to explore the field as much as he would have liked to.

He released one song recently, and if all goes as per plan, he will be releasing another in a couple of weeks. Of course, much of the work on these songs had already been done before the lockdown, but the post-production takes place across countries, which should bring down the hurdles that may crop up.

‘Still on my mind’ was released two weeks ago and is set in India.

A non-linear story of love, loss, brooding and eroticism, the album brings together big names like Arijit Singh, who gave background vocals, and Shama Sikander, who played Alexx’s tragic fictional lover.

The narrative is complex and Alexx admits that most people are not likely to figure it out the first time they watch it.

“The question the song asks is ‘how do you live without the person you can’t live without?’. It’s erotic because it is emotionally charged. We have used a lot of symbolism, some from Indian culture. There are some people who watched the album about 30 times and called me to discuss what it really means,” he says.

During the lockdown period, Alexx’s work can be caught on OTT platforms, which includes the sports drama ‘Inside Edge’ on Amazon Prime.