From rallies to refrains: Somdev Devvarman’s journey into songwriting

For most Indians, Somdev Devvarman will always be remembered as the tennis player who scripted Davis Cup heroics and bagged gold medals at the Commonwealth and Asian Games. But not much is written about his musical pursuits. With the release of his debut album ‘One Three Two’ in 2023, the Padma Shri and Arjuna awardee stepped into a world he had secretly inhabited for decades — one of chords, lyrics, and songwriting. Now he returns with his second album, ‘Infinite’.

Devvarman was always obsessed with the guitar. He says, “My first summer paycheck in America was spent on a guitar, and my first paycheck as a pro was spent on a Black Takamine, which I used for most of this album. I always travelled with a guitar on the ATP tour.”

Asked about his songwriting process, he says, “If you find a tune or if a tune finds you, if lyrics and concepts fly in, or if ideas spark imagination, then it must be worth exploring, right? I keep notes on my phone and in a notebook.”

The latest album features 10 songs. “‘What’ll they say’ was born in the disconnected quiet of the pandemic. ‘Feeling that September’ started as a fragment of melody that haunted me for a year. ‘Not an alcoholic’ came after a party with friends. ‘Infinite’ is a mirror of that honest, vulnerable feeling that somehow drove me to explore deeper,” he says.

While ‘One Three Two’ marked Devvarman’s early foray into music, ‘Infinite’ is a fully realised album shaped through his collaboration with Aravind Murali, a National Award-winning music director, producer, and bassist. He recalls, “I first saw him at a gig. I asked if he’d listen to my music and he didn’t turn me down. I took my wife Shivali for moral support and played the songs for him, and that became the foundation of 90% of the album.”

Murali’s arrangements brought fresh textures: a whistle on ‘Easy love’, an accordion on ‘Not an alcoholic’, and a tabla on ‘Worry’, inspired by a casual comment from Shivali. Pressed to pick favourites, he hesitates but offers a few: “I really like ‘Bullet through my heart’. It’s about my dog Bullet, who lost her vision. I was doodling Joni Mitchell songs when the idea came. But the clear favourite is ‘Monkey and the elephant’, because it’s about our son and his favourite toy. The innocence of it feels just right.”

The influences of artistes he admires echo across ‘Infinite’. “Dave Matthews, I love his guitar work and songwriting. Conor Oberst is an incredible modern-day lyricist. Noel Gallagher is an all-time favourite. Cat Stevens and Bob Dylan are timeless. Joni Mitchell can’t break anything Norah Jones can’t fix. And John Mayer keeps evolving,” he shares.