Exclusive: ‘Lama Lama’ song is our own version of ‘Mappila Ramayanam’, says Vishnu Sivasankar

In an exclusive chat with South First, Vishnu Sivasankar talks about his musical journey and his experimentation with Mappila Ramayanam songs in Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam.

Passionate about music

Vishnu Sivasankar debuted as music director with ‘Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam’. (Supplied)

Vishnu is an avid lover of music. He started to learn Carnatic music (vocals) at the age of four. He also learned Violin which he later discontinued though.

Out of his passion for music, he then got trained in Carnatic Music and Western Classical (Piano) from his guru Paul Vijayan in Thrissur. Later, he received grades for Western Classical Piano from Trinity College, London.

About his musical training, Vishnu Sivasankar says, “I wanted to study rooted music and hence I learnt vocals in Carnatic Indian Classical and Piano in Western Classical.”

He further adds, “I sang devotional songs since my childhood after completing Gandharva Sangeetham, a popular reality show. I also participated in music programmes while studying at college.”

Vishnu is also a huge fan of musicians like John Williams, Ilaiyaraaja, Madan Mohan, AR Rahman, and Vidya Sagar.

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Entry in films

Vishnu Sivasankar is also a singer. (Supplied)

While pursuing his musical career, Vishnu Sivasankar also did background music for dramas and short films.

“I was known as a singer, but I was interested in composing music,” the young music composer said.

Later, he started composing the background score for documentaries and advertisements.

Vishnu’s association with Rasheed Parambil for his critically acclaimed short film Illithala (2013) helped the former to score music for a feature film.

Rasheed debuted as a director with Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam.

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Introduction of Mappila Ramayanam

A major highlight of Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam is the introduction of Mappila Ramayanam in a mainstream movie.

Vishnu Sivasankar hails from Cheruthuruthy. (Supplied)

According to Vishnu Sivasankar, the song “Lama Lama” in the film is their version of Mappila Ramayanam. Sooraj Santosh sang the track.

It was lyrically used in Vadakara in Kozhikode district several decades ago.

Mappila Ramayanam has a Muslim vocabulary. “A song inspired by Mappila Ramayana has been used in the climax. Rasheed suggested that we should use a new song with new lyrics,” Vishnu recalls.

According to the music director, in Mappila Ramayanam, Raman (Lord Rama) is known as Laman, Ravanan as Lavanan, and Sita (Lord Sita) as Muthu Beevi Sita. The lyrics of the song were written by Ganesh Malayath.

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Hybrid songs

Vishnu Sivasankar is here to stay. (Supplied)

While composing the music, Vishnu’s basic idea was not to score music that had aspects of traditional songs, though it’s a countryside story.

“My idea was to bring a funky mood. There is a particular genre known as funk and I wanted to make it retro funky. Though the story is based in a village in Palakkad, the music has contemporary aspects,” he explains.

“Lama Lama” song carries a mood of hard rock and fusion, while the “Munnil Randu” is an acoustic breezy track. Ganesh Malayath and Jijoy George are the lyricists.

“Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam is a feel-good film. The “Lama Lama” song was used as a promotional song before its release. It also has retro funky songs. There are five songs in the movie and it’s a hybrid album.”

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About composing music

About the composition of the songs, Vishnu Sivasankar said he scored romantic songs and tunes first and the lyrics were written later.

‘Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam’ has five songs. (Supplied)

In the case of Mappila Ramayana and the poem in Bhagavan Dasante Ramarajyam, lyrics were written first and music was composed later.

While admitting that both processes were challenging for him, the music director explains why: “When we have lyrics first, the context and metre of lyrics can be understood. That’s a challenge in itself. If the lyrics are good, there is no need to change that.”

He hastens to add, “In the other case, we can make multiple tunes from a musician’s context. For me, composing both the background score and the soundtrack is challenging. I believe that songs should work in the context.”

The 28-year-old says he is next composing the background score for a movie which is yet to be announced. He is also scoring music for a dance production.

Further, Visnhu is planning to move to Chennai to learn more about music. “In Chennai, there are more opportunities for independent musicians. I want to explore music,” he signed off.

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