Mangaluru: The songs of ‘Mahira’ has been released recently to good response. The songs have been composed by musician duo-Rakesh and Nilima Rao. This is their first film as music directors for film, though the duo, in the past has composed songs independently. They have their own music channel called RaknNiliTV on Youtube. Speaking to newskarnataka.com, Nilima Rao takes the journey through memory lane.
Tell us about your early life?
I am from Mangaluru. I finished my engineering from Nitte and as an IT professional, I moved to London for work purpose. I have been learning music since a kid. I have been trained in Hindustani music. My father is also a musician. He always encouraged me to take up the music and he was the one who pushed me into the world of music.
How did your music collaboration with Rakesh start?
I had moved to London. I came in contact with Rakesh through Facebook. He had put an ad on Facebook that he needed someone to collaborate. He had some tunes and ideas in his mind. One of our mutual friends helped us to connect. We started to work together. As he is based in India, and I am in England, we used to work through Skype. We have our own music channel RaknNiliTV on Youtube.
How did you get to work on Mahira?
I have worked with Mahira’s director Mahesh Gowda in London. Vivek, who produced the film is also from London. In London, I sing songs and perform at cultural events, which kind of gave me access to many Kannadigas. They were looking for the music director for their film and approached us. The offer was too tempting to say no. Composing music for this film has been a satisfying experience. We were given full freedom to work on the music.
How has the response been to the songs of Mahira?
The response has been very good until now. We have got good reviews. The songs will take some time to catch up with the audience. We are getting good feedback from the audience as well as the industry. The views on YouTube are also seeing an increase, which is a good sign. I have also sung a song in the film.
Whom do you consider as your role model?
I have been a huge Sonu Nigam fan. I love his voice and his dedication towards music is really inspirational. Another singer whom I consider as my role model is Arijit Singh. In the last few years, he has taken the music industry by storm. When it comes to music directors, AR Rahman is my favourite. Another music director whom I am a huge fan of is duo- Vishal-Shekar.
What is your future project?
As of now, we have not signed any films. We are in talks about some films. However, it would be too early to talk about them. Once it is official, we would like to speak about it. Rakesh and I want to be part of the music field and want to contribute as much as possible.
