The IPL is back and Sony MAX & SIX have roped in renowned musical duo – Salim-Sulaiman to compose the anthem for this magnanimous tournament. The Anthem with words like “dooriyan chod kar…dil se dil jod kar”, stirs up warm emotions that encourages viewers to come together and transcend all barriers to rejoice this season of Pepsi IPL. With a peppy and feet tapping rhythm, the music will surely get the nation to groove in the spirit of festivity.

‘India ka tyohaar’ invites people to break their differences and join in the revelry which is aptly communicated through a heart shaped mnemonic that exudes the ‘spirit of togetherness’ this season of Pepsi IPL 2015. As the name suggests, the campaign aims to connect hearts, connect lives, creating a national euphoria and strengthening emotional affinity towards the sport. The films brings alive the excitement that Pepsi IPL brings year on year and promises another year of fervour and celebration.

We met up with the amazing duo Salim – Sulaiman to know the making of this anthem. Excerpts:

You have composed the theme song for the IPL 8, what creative ideas did you use to compose it?

When you talk about ‘India Ka Tyohaar’ it automatically becomes a much larger picture. You’re not talking about just IPL, or cricket, you’re talking about a festival. That itself is a very big trigger to make a song. An idea that takes over, for example when we made ‘Chak de India’. It was a song which we created for a film, but it’s no more a song made by Salim Sulaiman. It’s a song for India and for Indian sport. The whole idea was to create a song which would become the song of the nation and I guess the way people have responded to that song, I can see that happening completely to ‘India katyohaar’ as well.

How is it different from the ones created in the years gone by?

It is a unique but challenging experience to create music for IPL – one of the most watched events in the country. We have earlier also joined hands with MAX to create an anthem for IPL in 2012 but the challenge this year was to justify IPL and weaving the magic with the anthem.

One thing really good about this year was that it was called ‘India Ka Tyohaar’ and when we listened to the word “India”, it evoked a kind of feeling that cannot be described in words. ‘India katyohaar’ inspired us to start composing music for a festival, and we approached it like an annual festival like a holi or Diwali, id etc. we’re making a track for Holi.

What is the selling point about this song?

The whole idea came from Sony MAX and DDB Mudra and we are glad that they thought and conceptualized the campaign this way. India is cricket frenzy country and in a place like India where people follow cricket as a religion, IPL is the biggest festival. This like any other festival comes year on year and motivates people to break their differences and bring them together to celebrate it to be the festival. IPL, like a festival comes year-on-year and brings people together to celebrate it.

Keeping this thought, our agenda behind the song was to spread the festivity in the whole of India. In fact not only India, this anthem is dedicated to all cricket lovers sitting in every corner of the word whether in South Africa, Australia, Bangladesh, any part of the world should be able to connect with this festival and celebrate it.

Tell us about the songwriting process for this IPL 8 song.

Keeping in mind the theme of the campaign, we thought let’s make a song that is festive and would instantly appeal to the common man as well as the cool man. We wanted to create music that you find in Ganesh Chaturti, in Holi, Diwali etc. India is known to have a folk rhythm so we wanted to create something that is simple and sweet tune that common people like rickshawwalas, bankers, or even people like yourself, like immediately and start humming to it.

You have done a lot of collaborations with foreign artists in the last few years. Any new projects coming up?

We’re working on a Hollywood film called ‘Un-Indian.’ It stars Brett Lee, the cricketer, and Tanishta Chatterjee. We’re also doing a huge musical, which is opening at the Palladium Theatre at London Western. We’re replacing C.A.T.S. The musical is called ‘Beyond Bollywood.’ It’s a Western musical in London on the 8^th of May. So we’re working on that, and we’re also working on ‘Gangajal 2,’ and we’re working on a movie called ‘Wedding Pulao.

Going back in time, how did you get into music composing?

We have been doing music since childhood, first we used to learn, then we began to collaborate and start directing. We feel we are very lucky, it seems like we have been on a holiday for several years. We did not work even one day, because this is our passion. When we’ve made such huge hits, Chak de India, Yeh Hosla Kaise Jhuke, O Re Piya, Aaja Nachle, Kurba Hua, Shukran Allah, which people still like, so this IshqWala Love is a very ordinary thing.

Where do you get the inspiration for composing such fab music scores? What do you think a music composer should do to be reckoned as a composer?

We would like to say that please learn music, don’t just get on to the laptop and start spinning, and try to be a DJ. Learn an instrument, or learn singing, and learn the fundamentals of classical music, whether it’s Western or Indian.

Interviewed by Verus Ferreira