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Photo: K. Gopinathan
Hariharan and Leslie Louis: Theirs was the first ever Indipop album
FOR BOTH the pony-tailed Hariharan and Leslie Louis of that streaked hair (whatever's left of it), their musical careers took an unexpected course after their pioneering Indipop album (first ever in the country), Colonial Cousins. Hariharan, a serious practitioner of classical music, was also an earnest student of the ghazal. He polished his diction, sought inspiration from the ghazal maestros, gave his rendering that authentic touch, and even gave his best to the film world, in Roja (1993). "Kadal Rojave" and "Thamizha Thamizha" put him on the forefront of the nation's playback singly scene. Nevertheless (rather ironical), he had to wait for Colonial Cousins (1996) to happen to give him that unprecedented success.
For Lezz, who was contented making jingles and composing background scores for albums, this chance of a collaboration changed the course of his career too. The man who made the first sensible remix album in Rahul and I, who gave that great score for "Pari Hoon Mein", was hardly known. Colonial Cousins made him a pan-Indian phenomenon.
On their visit to Bangalore, the two down-to-earth musicians spoke to DEEPA GANESH about this turning point in their careers and what it means to them in retrospect.
Lezz: I was more the behind-the-scenes kind of a person. I was creating stars, putting other people in the limelight. All my advertising work was backstage, but with Colonial Cousins, I got to the foreground. people started recognising my face. So, that became a big thing. Our popularity grew. I choose to believe that we've actually set up into people's hearts rather that just being on album covers. I think we've gone that extra step. Because generally, if someone doesn't make a second album, they're forgotten. We've not released an album in two years, and they've not forgotten us. We're still the Colonial Cousins. People don't associate you with the current album. We've become iconic! We're the only ones who've made it to MTV Unplugged. So, we've taken it to that global level.
Personally speaking, it's given me a passport worldwide. Because if you tell someone you are from India and you've done 20 albums, they'd be at sea. They wouldn't know.
Hari: Because it's not their platform...
Lezz: They think you've done some Indian album, and you're popular. OK, great. But when you say you've done MTV Unplugged, they know what level you're working at. That gave us a good break...
Hari: I would say that my fans from Colonial Cousins go back and listen to my ghazals and film numbers also. So in that sense it has widened my fan base.
Lezz: Exactly.
Hari: I think its one of the best things that has happened to me and Lezz. And we can proudly say that we have pioneered a genre of music.
Lezz: To this day, I buy as many CDs as possible. To keep track of what's happening in the field and who's doing what. Let me be very open about that. If there's somebody, I'd like to see what they're doing. But I think the best is the two of us and nobody else.
Hari: I still feel people are stuck on our first album. Though artistically we've moved much ahead with the second album.
Lezz: In the second album, the movement is so high that people are not willing to move that much.
Hari: They are fond of our first album, which is great in a way. And if they are eager to listen to something, it's volume two of our first album and nothing else. Now that's a bit disappointing...
Lezz: We understand that. But we as artistes want to move further, and if people are willing to go with us it's great. If not, we have to move on and do things we like. Because after all, we set out to do it for we liked what we were doing. Not to become famous. We can't sacrifice our interests, can we?
Hari: Precisely. It's the first fusion album and also the only one that's so intricate. And it has come in a song format, something that you can hum. These days most fusion albums are instrumental and with a classical base.
Lezz: Colonial Cousins is fusion. It has got both genres and also has a song. When I went to New York to Tower Records, I saw Colonial Cousins listed under world music. The problem is people think you're a pop band because you're actually singing songs. But at the same time you're doing fusion. Where do they put us then? They're confused.
There is no proper brand to put us under. So when we first released our album in 1996, we thought we should categorise our sound and we called it Indipop. I still have the poster we made which says: "the first ever Indipop album". But after that every Hindi pop album began to call itself Indipop.
Hari: (laughs) So now, even bubblegum pop becomes Indipop. Fusion has simply come to be a groove and people are singing alaps and sargams over some Western sounds. I wouldn't want to call it fusion.
Lezz: From what you're saying, I think you mean people want to only see that flash of artistry. A tihai here and a jhala there...
Hari: It has become classical-oriented.
Lezz: Classical not in terms of its soul, but only in terms of its rhythm.
Hari: Fusion needn't have classical overtones you see...
Lezz: Fusion hasn't got the country any further from Ravi Shankar and Yehudi Menuhin's collaborations. So when classical ended, jazz took over. But what we've got is complete seamless sound, fusion in the real sense.
Hari: There's a distinct stamp.
Lezz: And that's puts us apart from others. If you've noticed our ticketed shows draw 5,000 people and no bands draw that big a ticketed audience.
Hari: Even when I have my own individual performances I can't get away without singing "Krishna".
Lezz: Same here. I do my own remix of "Sa, ni, dha, pa". I have to do it. I can't run away from being Colonial Cousins.
Hari: Me too. How can I refuse that identity?
Lezz: Hari, can you believe that I sang "Krishna" five times in a particular show?
Hari: And we actually have fans across generations. Remember how that family came up to us while we sat at the Karavali restaurant. Children, parents, and grandparents, to tell us they are all our fans...
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