From shower to studio

KOCHI: For every legendary playback movie singer this country boasts of - and one can count quite a few, there are probably more than a dozen amateur singers who attempt to mimic their tunes at an inspired moment in the shower. Started six years ago, a former techie turned composer Sunil Koshy's record label and initiative called From Mug to Mike ventured to provide a platform to all those people who make the bathroom their stage. And on World Music Day,  June 21, the label is all set to release a music video sung entirely by film track enthusiasts on YouTube.

"The song is called 'World Music The Anthem'. It's a new song composed by me, the lyrics are in Hindi and were written by a Mumbai based lyricist, Sahil Sultanpuri. Around eight amateur singers have lent their voices. Seven of them are based in Bangalore while one's from Hyderabad. All of them belong to different professions. A couple of them are techies, one is a scientist at the Indian Institute of Science, another person is a marketing head at an MNC. There is a COO and a dentist as well. Everyone flew down for the shooting," says Sunil, who is looking forward to the response the video will garner. The song itself has been composed as a fusion of Indian classical and western elements with top musicians from the Malayalam film industry recording the background score with live instruments.

The video which was shot in and around Kochi over three days in the first week of June is an ode to the charm of the city. "We caught the first spell of the monsoon and some of the shots have come out really well," Sunil says. The eight artists featured in the video had previously participated in workshops conducted by him. "We have conducted multiple music training and singing workshops over the years in cities like Mumbai, Chennai, and Bengaluru. Three years ago we released the Bathroom Singers Anthem, last year we came out with Women's Day Anthem. The participants came forward with a willingness to sing. That's when we thought of a video. They underwent a couple of months of training to make them studio ready," adds Sunil.