Salim Merchant says ‘music is made for Instagram Reels today’, reveals why he felt like quitting Chak De! India

Salim-Sulaiman have been composing music for Bollywood for over two decades now. (Photo: Instagram/Salim Merchant)

“Fortunately, the industry pushed us to different levels. Now we own our own label called Merchant Records, which not just releases new cinema music but from different artistes from across the country and different genres,” he said. But despite embracing new age trends and techniques, Salim shared that gone are the days when serious effort was put into storytelling. “A decade ago, people made stories into films. These days there’s a lot of focus on setup. It’s like ‘let’s do a film with Deepika Padukone’. Idea should originate from a story. I don’t find films very exciting nowadays. I shouldn’t be saying it, but it’s the truth.”

“That’s why music of the movies we worked on did very well. Dor wasn’t a big film, but the music did so well. ‘Yeh Honsla’ was recognised. Same with Iqbal, where ‘Aashayein’ stood out. There are a lot of movies where few songs are remembered. There was no social media at that time. It was a very organic phase of life. But I don’t want to complain because there’s a constant change everyone’s going through,” he added.

 

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So how does he look back at the duo’s memorable compositions in films such as Chak De! India, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Fashion, Kurbaan, Aaja Nachle and Band Baaja Baaraat? He said that music today requires social media validation. “Today, music is made for Instagram Reels. If it’s popular on Reels, then there’s excitement. Even creators are making music that’s pleasing to ears for a short span of time. That’s sad,” Salim said.

While he picked Chak De! India director Shimit Amin as his favourite collaborator, he recalled how composing music for the film was a very difficult process. Salim revealed that despite being a sports film, it had a lot subtext–a Muslim man playing the coach, team-spirit, patriotism, women empowerment, etcetera. So, cracking the right tune for its title track wasn’t easy.

“We thought we’ll make a very patriotic and emotional song which the producer rejected. Then we made a song with a lot of josh. But it had no emotion, so I only rejected it. We kept failing, to the extent there was a roadblock and we thought of quitting the film than do a bad job. But my brother kept pushing me. One day lyricist Jaideep Sahni came up with the lines ‘Kuch Kariye’. I restarted composing it on a blank slate and we had a beautiful song by the end of the day. Then Sukhwinder Singh put his voice and soul in it,” he said.

Sukhwinder Singh might have added life to “Chak De! India” but that’s because his voice was apt for the song. What if a music director realises in the recording room that the singer roped in isn’t the right choice? Salim took this question in his stride and said, “All the songs I’ve sang for Salim-Sulaiman have been the wrong choice (laughs). I’ve always been a composer. I never imagined that I’ll be able to go on the other side of the mic. But at times the producer and director, while making the song, get married to the existing voice which is mine. As a result of that, I’ve sung a few songs.”

Salim Merchant has lent his voice to “Mar Jaavan”, “Ainvayi Ainvayi”, “Shukran Allah”, “Maula Mere Lele Meri Jaan” and “Khudaya Ve”. Salim-Sulaiman have also composed hit background scores for movies such as Dhoom, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, Krrish, Bachna Ae Haseeno, Dostana, Salaam Namaste, Love Aaj Kal, Anjaana Anjaani, Cocktail, Fanaa, Hum Tum, Aitraaz, Partner, Bang Bang, Race, No Entry and Singh Is Kinng.

Salim believes that if one makes good songs, it’ll have a timeless quality irrespective of the film doing well or not. “Like Aaja Nachle wasn’t a blockbuster but ‘O Re Piya’ did very well, so were all its songs. So it’s not that if the film works, then only the music works. It’s important for the film to get support from its music. It should weave with the story beautifully,” he said.

Salim and Sulaiman Merchant restarted the musical movement ‘Bhumi’ in 2020. It brought together over two dozen singers and folk artistes from across India. Speaking about the siblings having stayed together for all these years, in the times when collaborators like them often part ways, Salim laughed and concluded, “We do fight like every other duo, but music always wins. There’s no pyaar if there’s no takraar.”