PremiumExclusive! Composer Nilotpal Bora: Jaadugar occupies a special place in my heart, gave my everything for it
The musician opens up about his Jaadugar number ‘Shaabaash’ being selected as the official anthem for Indian athletes at the recently concluded Commonwealth Games
Last Updated: 03.02 PM, Aug 23, 2022
Being a composer in the digital medium comes with a unique set of challenges. While the writing, the lead cast of shows more often draw eyeballs, it requires greater effort for a musician to make his presence felt. Well, let’s say Nilotpal Bora has managed to strike that balance well and found resonance among the fraternity and viewers alike, carving his niche as the ‘digital-medium specialist’ in recent years.
Popular for his song Dhaaga, Nilotpal has been a part of several acclaimed shows like TVF-Aspirants, Tripling S2, Yeh Meri Family, Saas Bahu Achaar Pvt Ltd. He has been in the news for the right reasons recently for Jitendra Kumar’s Netflix original Jaadugar. The cherry on the cake – Shaabaash, a number from Jaadugar, was also the official anthem for Indian athletes at the recently concluded Commonwealth Games. He shares his excitement in an exclusive chat with OTTplay.com
The ‘magic’ of Jaadugar:
Being my first Hindi feature film, Jaadugar occupies a significant place in my heart. It is easily the most special project in my career. I have given my heart and soul to the album over the last two years and my joy knew no bounds when people appreciated my efforts: There are five songs on the whole in Jaadugar. I composed over 40 songs before we finalized the five numbers that would make it to the film. The experience was fulfilling, to say the least.
On Shaabaash from Jaadugar being selected as Indian athletes’ official anthem at the Commonwealth Games:
It’s a great feeling that they have found the song powerful enough to be the anthem for our Indian athletes who’re representing the country on the international stage. I feel overwhelmed that I have done my bit for the nation, albeit in a small way. This was a huge surprise! My uncle, based in Panipat, was the first person to congratulate me, and inform me about the honour as and when he watched it on television. I don’t have words to express my happiness – it’s probably the biggest achievement in my career.
About the challenges of coming up with narrative-based music for feel-good shows, reinventing himself from time to time:
We create narrative-based music but sometimes the music and the songs come out of our personal feelings and moments. Both of the work processes are different. Sometimes we can create even better narrative-based songs because they go well with the story. Provided the script and the story are good, the excitement helps us create good pieces. Honestly, it has never been a hurdle for me to create songs based on the situations because they were so well-written and triggered my imagination.
The concerns about music not getting ample recognition in the OTT/digital space and what needs to be done to change the norm:
The music reach in the digital space is very organic and it should always be that way, be it in OTT or films. But in the current-day scenario, everything boils down to good promotions because there’s such a rush in the market. Nearly thousands of songs get released almost every day. So, to convince the audience to listen to our music, the right promotion is very important, which is, however, lacking in the OTT space. And to my knowledge, OTT music has a sense of freshness. It is much better and underrated than films and it’s precisely why it deserves a good reach. When the music gets promoted well, the word about the series will reach the public even faster.