Remember the song "Kya Karoon" from 'Wake Up Sid'? And "Sawaar Loon" from 'Lootera'? Now imagine watching both the singers back-to-back live in Bengaluru! It could be nothing short of a musical extravaganza. Singer and actor Monali Thakur and composer/singer Clinton Cerejo, are coming to town from Mumbai to perform their best songs. Both of them have included songs that have never been performed before in their set lists.
“Bengaluru has always had a crowd that responds interestedly, be it rock, folk or Bollywood,” says Clinton, a Mumbaikar who has worked extensively with AR Rahman and other big names. “I’ve got a huge bank of songs that I have composed but never been able to perform. I will be performing those. I also plan to do a few Bollywood songs and some Coke Studio material,” says the musician, who has composed the background score for upcoming film, Dedh Ishqiya. He believes he has an unassuming rock side to him and is influenced by the likes of Stevie Wonder and Peter Gabriel (Genesis). He is currently part of a fusion band Ananthaal, with Divya Kumar, Sonu Kakkar and Bianca Gomes. “They bring in Carnatic, Punjabi folk and Western vocals, so there is a good mix of all genres,” he says, about Ananthaal’s music.
Also performing Western music at the show is Monali Thakur, the pretty woman from Kolkata. “I’ll be performing Bruno Mars’s new songs because I love them. I’m also going to sing a Bengali folk song, and of course, some popular Bollywood numbers,” she says, adding that she’s performing a song from Lakshmi for the first time, an upcoming Nagesh Kukunoor film, where she plays the lead role. Coming from a family of singers, her journey to stardom wasn’t as hard as she expected, and neither was her acting career. “I didn’t have to go through the struggle that actors generally do, because I got the role rather easily,” she says. She is also acting in another film by Abbas Tyrewala, titled Mango, a romantic comedy.
Both singers love to experiment with their music and keep their set lists versatile. Clinton, who, despite being influenced by rock music, forayed into Bollywood, says, “I learnt very quickly that if you want to survive as a musician in India, you must blend into the culture. There’s no point trying to shun it. I have embraced Bollywood and I try and weave my sound into all songs.” He believes that it’s best to always bring something new to the table. Apart from being busy with their recordings and acting stints, they love jamming with other musicians. Monali also loves to shake a leg or two! “I love to dance. I have never performed, but I do it because it makes me happy. But if I have to do a song and dance sequence in a movie, I definitely won’t mind,” she laughs.
