Arun R., who is frequently billed as Achu Rajamani, is currently making waves by composing the official Dhoni anthem, Vaa Thala, this IPL season. The talented composer gets candid with The Pioneer about the anthem, his love for Dhoni and more.
SHIKHA DUGGAL
Dhoni has returned! The official Dhoni anthem for the 2024 Indian Premier League is Vaa Thala, brought to you by Star Sports and II Music. A rollicking song honouring captain cool Mahendra Singh Dhoni in honour of India’s largest sporting event. This song, which is featured on the #IPLonStar soundtrack is going crazy throughout IPL stadiums—and who’s the composer behind it, you ask? Arun R. who is frequently billed as Achu Rajamani, is the vocalist and composer of soundtracks and film scores! In an exclusive interview with us, the person who debuted as a music director in the 2008 Telugu film Nenu Meeku Telusa shares, “A celebration was the first thought that entered my head when the original idea was presented to me. For me, the most important thing was to highlight our shared joy and affection for Dhoni. I found the layers to be loop-worthy and rhythmically dense. My original thought was that the music needed to have strong components that would inspire the crowd to unite and groove in honour of ‘Thala’.”
Achu’s grandfather is B. A. Chidambaranath, a music director who is regarded as one of the forerunners of the Malayalam music scene. In addition to being a music director, his father, Rajamani, was regarded as the master of background scores. He goes on to explain, “I was thrilled when the concept was presented, and I was really inspired as a fan throughout the writing, programming, and live-making processes. In summary, the name MS Dhoni alone is a recognition; thus, I was delighted to even claim that I contributed a song for him.”
Being from a musical family, becoming a pilot was Achu’s obvious career choice. He became a professional musician after deciding to pursue music over aircraft! Before turning into a self-employed music composer, he also worked as a few years’ assistant to renowned music director M. M. Keeravani. Amazing information! This leads us to our next question, to which he enthusiastically responded, saying, “I have used elements of Dhoni’s personality to create this song because he has served as an inspiration for the entire country for a variety of reasons. The meaning of his name, ‘Thala’, is “chief” or “head.” There is a feeling of joy as soon as we see Dhoni go into any stadium, whether it is in India or overseas. Despite his vibration, the man appears cool, collected, and serene. I thus sought to convey the spirit of his serenity, yet he nevertheless possesses both mass and fire.” We have a reason why we call him ‘Thala’, and Achu wanted to depict both his commanding presence on the field and his powerful batting style. He believes he wrote a song about the man because he was inspired by him!
“There were not even any difficulties for me. Making this was a quick and easy procedure. Star Sports and II Music were true pros who took my idea and made the music sound exactly like I had imagined. Working with them was a pleasant and easy experience. The digital era is evolving quickly. The only reason songs like Vaa Thala are consistently becoming popular and rising every day is because of the era we live in,” he mentioned. There is no language in music per se. It’s true that the word ‘Thala’ is popular even in the north. In conclusion, one of the primary things that constantly brings us together is music. He is a devoted fan who had the good fortune to compose music. If they share his excitement and humility for the music, then he is pleased for them.
Now that Vaa Thala has been completed, he is concentrating on his film scores right now, and he is excited to work on more of these projects in the future. He envisions, “We are chanting these tunes inside the stadium. It feels right to us. While we’re doing that, we give the guys so much energy. That culture isn’t going to change, and I’d be more than happy to do my part to help make it musical.”
