The Dev-starrer Bagha Jatin’s music was composed to tell the untold tales of freedom fighter Bagha Jatin. The film with 92 characters that released on October 19 boasts of a powerful background score and songs by composer Nilayan Chatterjee. A t2 chat with Nilayan.
What intrigued you the most about composing for Bagha Jatin?
The period, the era and the challenge to represent the story and spirit of Bagha Jatin with an audio. First, the film is a different ball game altogether. The kind of film we’re doing is a challenge, the kind of approach the filmmaker is taking is a challenge, and my own preparations for Bagha Jatin, that’s again a different side. Bringing everything together, and that challenge of representing Bagha Jatin’s story and spirit has really been intriguing for me.
What were the challenges?
The biggest challenge was to create a perfect balance between patriotism and making it larger than life. I really loved the fact that Arunda (Roy; director) and Dev agreed on the part that these untold stories must be made to entertain so that they reach the maximum number of people and reach the masses. When that comes into play, the music also needs to be considered. It needs to strike a balance. If I go completely all-out and bring about a documented style of film music, then that will not be entertaining enough for the people to watch it, as per the visuals and the way they’ve been shot. Again, if I go too loud, that might take away the real emotions of the film! I guess bringing in a balance between the two was the real challenge.
I’ve done the background scoring of the film almost three times because my first approach was starkly different from the final one. It was more organic and orchestral, and then we reached a middle ground, where we decided to make it more entertaining. The grandeur of the scenes, plus the use of modern technology to shoot them needed to come out in the score. So, I reworked it and finally on my third attempt, we got to the point that finally satisfied me.
What kind of impact do you think the compositions had on the audience?
Dev, Rukmini Maitra and Sourav Ganguly at the premiere of Bagha Jatin at INOX, South City Mall
When a film ends, people usually get up from their seats and start leaving, but I could see that people were staying put, looking at the screen, some of them weeping, some wiping their tears off slowly, and some of them had an expression of pride, and that’s something which I thought was some kind of a blessing. What I heard from other people was that Bagha Jatin is a film which people came back to the theatres to watch. I saw a child come running and say: “Ebar jante parlam Bagha Jatin ki korechhilo…”. Such reactions I feel are a blessing. Bagha Jatin will stay etched in our hearts for sure... what our entire team and the effort Dev has given is absolutely amazing.
Has any patriotic song or music been an inspiration for your compositions?
I’ve heard so many patriotic numbers since childhood and I think each one has inspired me. Honestly, two main inspirations were Kazi Nazrul Islam and his Naba Bharater Haldighat. I created a piece from Kazi Sabyasachi’s version of this poetry (on YouTube) and made a track out of his voice. We created a score palette with the voice, the feel of poetry and the spirit of Bagha Jatin. Every time I sat down with my team before the work, we used to listen to it over and over again. After listening, we’d get very emotional and get very passionate about the project. The moment we had the feel, then we started to work on it. And of course, this poem: Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab humare dil mein hai, which has been one of my favourite pieces of art, speaks volumes about those times. These have been my major inspirations for composing the score for Bagha Jatin. Even how beautifully A.R. Rahman depicts patriotism through his music, has also inspired me.
Please elaborate on the songs from the film.
We thought of keeping four songs, but with 92 characters in the film, we started creating individual scores, which I felt would propel the storytelling method. Khudiram had his own score, Rashbehari Bose had his own score, Bagha Jatin of course has multiple songs. The song Amra morbo jogot jagbe was titled after Bagha Jatin’s famous saying. Then came the theme song, the song I created for kids, which Devda said must be shot... we deliberately kept the kids’ voices so that children could connect with it. A song which can be passed on to the next generations.
Ashbo phire aaj ashi is a tribute to the freedom fighters and is based on the time when the freedom fighters set out for Buri Balam for the last time. It’s a tribute to the song Ekbar biday de ma ghure ashi, you can say! It was an inspiration. The response has been amazing. The title song Jago re Bagha captures the spirit of the film and character. I tried to incorporate the high spirits with strings and electro. It’s like a celebration song.
The storytelling of the operations carried out by the freedom fighters required a song of awakening and Desh amar was it. The jukebox has eight numbers including an English number called Prince of Mine originally composed by me. The philosophy was to represent the heart and the mind of the British people who stayed in India against their choice. Some of them were here for their family members who were working for the British government. They didn’t ask for it. Prince of Mine came into play to represent their emotions.
What’s the brief that you got from Dev?
Dev gives me a brief at the beginning and tells me what he wants. But I give my input and he really is supportive of whatever I tell him. He’s always there to fuel our madness and passion and that’s the beauty of working with him. If he sees the intention is good and it will deliver a better film, he’s completely up for it! He’s brilliant and a visionary as a producer. Arunda, Dev and the team are revolutionaries themselves.
What was your takeaway from the whole experience?
My music is very personal and honestly, I never approached anyone that I wanted to do music for films. During a normal promotion, I wrote songs and Dev told Rahool (the director of Kishmish), “Try this guy out! I like his songs”, and then it happened. God has been kind and helped me reach out with my music to so many people. I am a person who loves to sit at home with his guitar and I will keep doing that as well. I’ll keep doing music, whether for myself or for the people. Bagha Jatin is the beginning of a new era. The grandeur will grow from here and I’m really optimistic.
