A melodious journey beckons

At his studio, music composer Aby Tom Cyriac is busy giving final touches to his upcoming project Sakalakalashala, directed by Vinod Guruvayur. Two songs — one melody and one fast track—from the movie have already been released, and are garnering positive feedback. Aby says, “There are three fast numbers and one melodious track. I started working on the project a year ago along with scripting." 

One song, Pandarakalan Mathai, which is a recreation of the yesteryear hit Panchara Paalu Mittayi, is sung by actor Dharmajan. “Dharmajan chettan first recorded for our movie. 

However, his production venture Nithyaharitha Nayakan in which he sang a song got released first,” says Aby, who earlier made actor Jayasurya sing the peppy number, Joy Song, for the movie Paavaada. “That song required a funny kind of rendition. I felt Jayettan would be able to bring that energy well,” he says. 

When it comes to Dharmajan, Aby selected him because, in the movie, Dharmajan’s character sings it. “I felt it would create a good impact if he sings it because he would be able to connect to the emotions of that song. Also, it is not a complicated song.” As expected, it was not difficult for Dharmajan. “He said he would give it a shot. If it turns out good, we will use it. When he started singing, I was sure that he would pull it off. I just had to correct pitch and tune,” says Aby. 

Ask him if he wants any other actor to sing for him, he pauses for a while and says, Prithviraj. “His voice has a particular style. If a song like Puthiya Mukham... comes, I will approach him to do it,” he says. 

Meanwhile, the romantic track Mandarapoo from Sakalakalashala is crooned by Karthik and Shweta Mohan. “I could hear the song in their voice while working on it. So, I wanted them to sing it. They were busy, but they found time for it. I am so happy about it,” says Aby, an admirer of melody, though most of his compositions are fast numbers. “I give what the script demands. I always discuss the music with the director and seek his opinions. Sometimes, a song would contain an event, and then I arrange it accordingly. Also, I always ask the scenes before and after the song sequence, so that I can create and place the song without disturbing the flow of the movie,” says Aby. “As a music lover, I have my own interests. I make sure that they do not creep into my creation unnecessarily,” says Aby, who was a programmer first and then became a composer. 

The 12-year journey let him learn different aspects of music composing. “As a programmer, I worked with many musicians who work on different genres. That has made my transformation easy. Above all, as a musician, what makes me happier is that I find my living doing what I love the most,” he signs off.