‘I don’t let any form of discipline enter into my life’

Tollywood’s two of the most anticipated films Waltair Veerayya, and Veera Simha Reddy are all set to hit the theatres, this Sankranthi. Veteran lyricist Ramajogayya Sastry, who has penned approximately 1200 songs in his illustrious career, has also penned songs for both the films. The veteran lyricist before the release of the film, interacted with the Hyderabadi media, and spoke about his everyday writing routine, elucidated on the topic of ‘writer’s block’ and offered some valuable advice to young and aspiring artists.

Amartya Smaran

Veteran lyricist Ramajogayya Sastry, who has penned approximately 1200 songs in his illustrious career, spanning nearly two decades is ready to woo the audience yet again. Having contributed to two straight Telugu films Veera Simha Reddy and Waltair Veerayya, which will be hitting the theatres this Sankranthi. Ramajogayya looks super confident and content with his work. The lyricist has also penned the songs for the Telugu version of Ilayathalapathy Vijay’s Pongal release Varisu.

In his recent interaction with the media, the Suguna Sundari lyricist spoke about his everyday writing routine, elucidated on the topic of ‘writer’s block’ and offered some valuable advice to young and aspiring artists.

Time and again we’ve seen writers of all kinds talking at length about struggling with a ‘writer’s block’. Lack of inspiration is supposedly the main cause for a writer to face a block. Not being able to leaf through the papers with the quick pacing of the pen could be devastating for writers. Striking off the general narrative, the lyricist explained, “Thankfully, I’ve never struggled with the so-called writer’s block. I reckon my experience as a lyricist makes up for the little hiccups in the process. To date, I never got so stuck where I’d consider that to be some sort of a block. Filling up the gaps is easy but to really produce a verse filled with greatness, that needs good motivation. When you collaborate with artists to create a song, there’s a constant tug of war between the writer’s version and the director’s version. Therefore, it just takes time to analyse and rewrite as per their idea. Apart from this, I don’t think I ever faced a writer’s block.”

A creative person needs to have all the mental freedom in the world. If an artist is burdened with the minutiae of life, the going gets difficult. Several artists from different fields have come forward over the years and shared their daily routine. For instance, the great Spanish painter Pablo Picasso had a set work routine where he’d start working around 2 p.m. and stop for dinner and run back to his studio to work from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

“I absolutely don’t have a set routine!” said Sastry. “I don’t let any form of discipline enter into my life. I just write, eat, sleep, and concentrate on my work. My children are busy with their own lives and fortunately, my wife is not demanding either and no one ever disturbs me. I simply don’t stress myself out. Whenever an idea comes to me, I write it down. There’s no point in stressing ourselves out.”

When The Pioneer asked the Mass Mogudu lyricist whether he’s got some advice in store for young and aspiring songwriters, he replied, “There’s no set path as such to become a lyricist. If one has the interest and passion towards the profession, it is worth their time. Most of our desires and passions are peripheral. Sitting in an aeroplane and thinking you want to become a pilot is different from actually striving to become one. Once you jump into the profession, come what may, you must work really hard. People should learn how to face rejection. Learning to deliver what the director wants accurately is really important and adapting to the latest trends and understanding the rules of the writing world will help youngsters.”

Extending his valuable advice to the young guns, the wizard of words concluded,“Writing poems is one thing and writing lyrics for songs as per the tune needs a different skill set. Sometimes, one might have to write without listening to the tune. One should work on expressing complex thoughts in a simplistic manner so that everyone understands the song. I urge people to read literature to attain command over the language. Listen to old songs and analyse the structure of it all. Once you get into this profession, you’ve got to study the hidden meaning behind each song. Young writers should make it a practice to analyse the contemporary market and understand why certain songs work and the rest don’t.”