“Music romba nalla irukku (music is really good),” said AR Rahman to Ajaneesh Loknath in their recent virtual interaction. For the music composer who grew up listening to the legendary composer’s chartbusters, the words of praise for his work in Kantara: Chapter 1 meant a lot.
“My dad watched Indian (1996) at Urvashi Cinema in Bengaluru, and he was so amazed by the film’s music that he went to SP Road, bought three cassettes, and recorded the entire movie,” says Ajaneesh. “You may call it piracy, but in those days, we wouldn’t get the OST (Original Soundtrack) of movies. In fact, Rahman sir called the method educational,” he adds.
A true-blue fanboy, Ajaneesh is still awe-struck at the technical mastery of ‘Akadanu Naanga’ and ‘Telephone Manipol’ from the S Shankar directorial. “That said, ‘Pachai Kiligal’ stands out for its strong emotional quotient. I would dance with my dad for the song like how Chandru and Senapathy would in the movie.”
Ajaneesh Loknath in his studio in Bengaluru.
| Photo Credit:
RAVICHANDRAN N
Ajaneesh is basking in the biggest success of his career, as Kantara: Chapter 1 has emerged as India’s highest-grossing film of 2025 so far. A decade into his career, the success comes as a fitting milestone for the composer, and it has arrived with his regular collaborator, actor-director Rishab Shetty.
In 2014, Kannada cinema was seeing a paradigm shift. Pawan Kumar’s Luciahad signalled the beginning of a movement. Fuelled with passion to deliver something new, friends Rishab and Rakshit Shetty collaborated on twin projects, Ulidavaru Kandante (2014) and Kirk Party (2016). Both movies had music by Ajaneesh, and continue to enjoy a cult status among Kannada movie buffs.
“Rishab and Rakshit value music a lot. For them, it’s as important as the plot,” says Ajaneesh. The outstanding soundtracks of Ulidavaru Kandante and Kirik Party are reflect the passion for quality music shared by the young team.
Ajaneesh opens up on the hit ‘Brahmakalasha’ from Kantara: Chapter 1 to reiterate Rishab’s deep connection with music. “The first 40-50 seconds of the song are enhanced by the use of Alaap (the introductory and improvisational melodic section that sets the tone of a song or a performance).
“In the era of musical hooks, it’s very rare for an actor or a director to allow a composer to use Alaap in a song. Rishab was very clear from the beginning. He wanted the music to have international standards,” says Ajaneesh.
A still from the ‘Brahmakalasha’ song in ‘Kantara: Chapter 1’.
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SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Brahmakalasha is an arresting devotional song. It has the masterful use of different ragas combined with a soundscape that is authentic to ancient history depicted in the movie. Singer Abby’s soulful voice lends further strength to the song, which is also a visual marvel. “Abby’s voice is a lot similar to mine. Our voice isn’t too masculine. It has a soothing quality that’s needed for a song like ‘Brahmakalasha’,” explains Ajaneesh.
‘Madana Mana Mohini,’ a melodious love track involving Rishab and Rukmini Vasanth, begins in a captivating fashion. “I used thanam (an improvisational technique to elaborate a raga) to start the song. The ‘Brahmakalasha’ song begins with an instrument. So, this had to be different. The song had to have an element of shrungara (element of love). When I placed a thanam at the beginning of the song, it had a charming effect, and Rishab loved the idea.”
The romantic number is sung by Vijay Prakash and Ananya Bhat, the duo that sang the popular ‘Singara Siriye’ from Kantara (2022). “I was worried that people would compare ‘Madana Mana Mohini’ with ‘Singara Siriye.’ Vijay ji instilled confidence in me. He said that my song has the ability to grow gradually on the listener.” Vijay was proven right, as the song has slowly gained popularity after initially being under the radar.
Rishab Shetty and Rukmini Vasanth in the song ‘Madana Mana Mohini’ from ‘Kantara: Chapter 1’.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Ajaneesh calls Kantara: Chapter 1 his most challenging project yet, with the week before the release testing his potential to the maximum. “I struggled to score for the climax portion of the movie. It was as if I had reached a dead end. I don’t know how, but eventually, just before it was too late, I managed to create the background score in just 30 minutes. We also had to take the output of 25 songs as the film was dubbed in five languages. Till the last moment, I was awaiting many approvals. I believe a divine force helped me sail through these challenges. It’s hard to explain,” he says.
The composer had a packed 2024, with big-scale Kannada films such as UI, Max, Bagheera, and the Tamil thriller Maharaja, starring Vijay Sethupathi. He says, “The ability to adapt to different projects at the same time comes from my time spent in the television industry. For a serial, you need to create many jingles and several background scores for different moods of the story. However, as you grow and get established, it’s better to prioritise your projects and take time.”
ALSO READ: Singing for ‘Indian 2’: How singer Abby V got his big breakthrough
Ajaneesh’s upcoming movies are Mark, starring Sudeep, and Devil, headlined by Darshan. The two songs, ‘Psycho Saithan’ and ‘Idre Nemdiyaag Irbek’, received mixed reactions from fans.
He concludes, “Star-driven movies are a different ball game. Fans have enough songs to compare the latest one with. The demand to add musical hooks to songs is killing creativity. That said, both the songs will hit you differently when you see them on the big screen with the context of the plot.”
Published – October 28, 2025 03:57 pm IST
