Akshay Raheja and IP Singh, popularly known as Akshay & IP in the music fraternity, are making their Bollywood debut as composers in the upcoming film Crew that’s headlined by Kareena Kapoor, Tabu and Kriti Sanon. For the Rajesh A Krishnan-directed film the duo have reimagined two popular numbers of the 1990s and have even contributed with an original number. On the individual front, Akshay has produced music for the multi-award winning song Ranjha from Shershah apart from films like Gully Boy, Kesari, Phillauri, Hichki and Runway 34 while IP Singh has worked as a lyricist/singer on various Bollywood releases like Jehda nasha, Chandigarh kare aashiqui, Disco balma and Nadiyon paar. He has also closely worked in collaboration with Grammy Award winner Ricky Kej as well as with the legendary Lucky Ali. A t2 chat...
This is a special debut for both of you, given the amazing star cast who are grooving to your beats. How excited are you two?
Akshay: We are super excited, to say the least. We couldn’t have expected a big debut like this. The star cast is definitely a high point but the music and the kind of freedom we got to experiment and present our music is appreciable.
IP: When we got the brief I was personally very excited. When we were growing up in the 1990s we would listen to songs of the 1970s through remixes and that’s how we discovered old and new music. There are always two camps amongst the audience. Some people will like it some people won’t. But that’s the way you make music relevant for the current generation. Right now the music scene is booming and people are listening to different kinds of music.
You two have reimagined two very popular songs of the 1990s. Tell us about your approach.
Akshay: Yes. Choli ke peeche kya hai Reimagined sung by Diljit Dosanjh, Ila Arun, Alka Yagnik, IP Singh dropped recently while Sona kitna sona Reimagined sung by IP and Nupoor Khedkar will drop soon. Choli is a fun track. Initially, we felt some kind of a risk because people are used to listening to remixes and we had to make sure not to tamper with the song much. So we tried our best to keep it pure.
IP: No one could imagine that Punjabi notes can be used in a song like Choli. Apart from that we have given it a moombahton and reggaeton vibe and that is something we had to really think. If one listens to it closely, then they would realise that this is a very different kind of remix and hence we are calling it reimagined and not just another remix. Music has become so democratised now that it’s easier to experiment. Also, these three divas dancing on those tracks make it more special.
You also have an original track in Crew.
Akshay: Ya, we have Dar ba dar which is sung by B Praak and Asees Kaur. It brings a different vibe to the music palette of the film. This feel-good song is close to our hearts.
Tell us more about your partnership and what makes it special.
IP: We have known each other since 2008 and have made some good music back then but life took us different ways before we met again to restart the partnership. We are somehow able to bring things out of simple stuff. For instance, you might be hearing a mundane chord but we make it interesting with our skill set.
What’s next as Akshay & IP post Crew?
Akshay: We have a few film projects in hand and the tracks are being shot for choreography at the moment. We are also doing something for Amazon. Also, apart from creating music commercially, we also collaborate with fashion designers and do fashion music. In fact, to add to the Crew bit, our last independent thing, a fashion project, was creating the track for Masaba’s bridal line that featured Kareena. We are enjoying this space as well and in another two months down the line when we have couture weeks you can listen to our music on the ramp.
How interesting and challenging it is to create music for the ramp?
Akshay: We have a lot of fun as we end up meeting the designers, going through their collection; it’s an extensive process. A lot has to do with storytelling as the designers have stories to tell through their collection. The audience is different here and it’s interesting to see them trying to find the music on their mobile. We were among the first to take it to the distribution level and we are proud of it.
IP: Personally it’s very liberating. This is a 15-20-minute piece as opposed to a film or album song which is around three to four minutes. It’s about creating a space that suits the personality of the designer and the collection.