Chak De has become an anthem. It’s a great feeling to be a part of a film that has become so big,” says
Sulaiman Merchant of music composer duo Salim-Sulaiman who has composed music of films like >Chak De India,
Iqbal, Dor and Kaal. They also happen to be the first choice for designing the background score of some of the
biggest films in tinsel town. Obviously they are excited about making Madhuri Dixit dance to their tunes in Yash Raj’s next
Aaja Nachle. But there’s something unique they’ve attempted in Aaja Nachle that has never been done in
Bollywood before.
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“In Aaja Nachle, we have composed a 25 minute play written in nautanki style, something that small town people
can associate with. It has been produced in a new world, western theatrical style, the kind of stuff you get to see in
Broadway or theatres in West. The sadness, the pain, the fights, everything has been told in a musical format. There were
9-10 singers and 7-8 actors who’ve dubbed their own voices,” Sulaiman said excitedly. This 25 minute play has been
written by veteran theatre personality and actor Piyush Mishra.
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Elaborating on the music score of Aaja Nachle , Sulaiman says that it’s not the typical Madhuri numbers."It is one
step beyond what Madhuri has done. It has a classical base with contemporary style. There are a variety of songs. There’s
an English song, a slow song. There are a wide array of singers like Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Sunidhi. The music
releases on 18th October.”
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Salim-Sulaiman have also been associated with Merchants of Bollywood, a musical choreographed by Vaibhavi
Merchant that is all set to start its third season in various European countries. Incidentally, Vaibhavi has accused Morani
Brothers of ‘stealing’ their idea for the much hyped Miss Bollywood starring Shilpa Shetty. “It’s a massive production. If we
would have tried to play the music live then we would have required a 100 piece orchestra,” Sulaiman says.
The talented duo feels strongly about the penchant for plagiarism that is common in the music industry in India. “Our
population is one billion, can’t we come up with something original. That’s so sad.” Sulaiman feels the duo would like to do
quality films rather than taking up too many projects. Their next few films include Roadside Romeo (Jugal Hansraj’s
film, a joint production with Disney) and Cootchie Coothcie Hota Hai (Karan Johar’s animation film).