Golden Globe doesn’t change MM Keeravaani’s profile
Golden Globe doesn’t change MM Keeravaani’s profile
It is so strange and ironical that the West needs to endorse our talent before we take the talent seriously. M M Keeravaani’s creative resources have not changed after Naatu Naatu. And he doesn’t think he has scaled Everest after getting the Golden Globe for it.
Even before RRR, Keeravani has been constantly doing masterly scores. Listen to the enchanting tribal sounds of his music and songs in Krish Jagarlamudi’s Konda Polam in 2021. It is as innovative and spellbinding as the sounds Keeravaani created in RRR, if not more.
The truth is, we worship only the rising song.
So many Hindi soundtracks that were a work of sheer genius were left to rot in the rain. Madan Mohan, one of the composers Keeravaani admires, was a constant casualty of this neglected sing-drome. When Chetan Anand’s Sahib Bahadur or Naresh Saigal’s Jab Yaad Kissiki Aati Hai bombed, so did Madan Mohan’s timeless gems like Mushqil hai Jeena and the title song Jab Yaad Kisi Ki Aati Hai both rendered to Himalayan heights by Lataji.
And the GOLDEN GLOBE AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL SONG Goes to #NaatuNaatu #GoldenGlobes #GoldenGlobes2023 #RRRMovie
— RRR Movie (@RRRMovie) January 11, 2023
It was only in retrospect that Madan Mohan’s muted melodious masterpieces got their due. At the time of release H S Rawail’s Laila Majnu which was Madan Mohan’s farewell music score before he passed away, was a musical sensation. Madan Mohan’s Husn Hazir Hai in Laila Majnu was the biggest hit number of his career. But was it his best ever? Not by a long shot.
Naatu Naatu too is not M M Keeravaani’s best. But it is his biggest chartbuster. And now after the Golden Globe, more fans of Keeraavani will suddenly crawl out of the woodwork. Hopefully, they will go back in time to listen to Keeravaani at his best in Annamayya (1997) Allari Priyudu (1993), Subha Sankalpam (1995) and Magadheera (2009) all in Telugu.
And to know the summits that Keeravaani is capable of scaling, the songs and music in Amol Palekar’s Paheli in Hindi is a sufficient pointer.
For too long now, Hindi/North Indian listeners have been led to believe that Ilayaraja and A R Rahman are the ultimate composers from the South. This is not only a falsification of facts but also dangerously subversive. It’s like being led to believe that only Naushad and R D Burman did any worthy compositional work in Hindi cinema.
Keeravaani has rightly come into global attention and recognition with Naatu Naatu. But I repeat, RRR is not his best.
Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based journalist. He has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out.
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