Aditya Rao reveals how ramen roped him in to Madhavan’s 'Rocketry'

Aditya is the lead vocalist and vocal arranger for nine original songs in R Madhavan’s biopic 'Rocketry: The Nambi Effect'

Bengaluru-born Indian-American singer-songwriter Aditya Rao, who has been beguiling music aficionados with his rich and versatile vocal artistry, is sweeping them off their feet yet again with Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, and his latest single SND.

Aditya is the lead vocalist and vocal arranger for nine original songs (in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam) in R Madhavan’s biopic Rocketry: The Nambi Effect on Nambi Narayanan, the former scientist and aerospace engineer of ISRO who was falsely charged with espionage in 1994.

Euphoric and powerful, Aditya's vocals encapsulate the pain of a wronged man (Nambi Narayanan) and his family that tug at heartstrings. All the background vocals in the film are by Aditya.

Also Read — Madhavan's 'Rocketry: The Nambi Effect' gets Rajinikanth's thumbs up

For Aditya, who has performed for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has sung for Indian and Hollywood film soundtracks -- Pelé: Birth of a Legend, and Achcham Yenbadhu Madamaiyada and I for A R Rahman, this is a whole new emotional experience.

Apart from being a leading voice on film and television soundtracks - Beauty in the Broken and Mira: Royal Detective, he has sung as a chorus member for Billie Eilish, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Camila Cabello, and Carlos Santana.

Rao, who was in Bengaluru recently, sat down with DH and reminisced how a vegan restaurant choice led to his contribution to the music of Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, about working remotely with Nambi Narayanan and R Madhavan, and how his latest single SND is something everyone can relate to.

First things first, how did Rocketry: The Nambi Effect reach you?

Rocketry: The Nambi Effect was as random as it could possibly get. Madhavan (actor) was in town (Los Angeles) four years ago and he had posted a story on Instagram that said: "Hey I am looking for vegetarian restaurant recommendations. Does anyone have one?" My wife responded back to him and said, "You should try this vegan ramen place". To our surprise, he responded asking if I was her fiance. She said 'yes'. He gets back to her and says, "I've been trying to catch hold of this guy for a couple of years now. Can I take you both to that restaurant for dinner tonight?" So we meet at the restaurant, have a great dinner and he takes us back to his home and explains to us the project he was working on -- Rocketry: The Nambi Effect. He gave me the 5Ws to work on and said, "I really like your tone and you have this really strong bass to tenor vocal range. I think that's what I need for this film. I am not sure how to utilise you yet but I do know that we want you to be a part of the musical aspect of this film."

How long did it take for the music to take shape?

A year goes by, Madhavan and I had a lot of dialogue. At the time, we didn't know how best to utilise me until a point where he developed two songs in English with musicians from Nashville, Tennessee for the English version of Rocketry: The Nambi Effect. Then he calls me up and says, "I have these two songs for you which I am thinking of placing in certain areas. So far, we have only instrumental versions for the rest of the Indian languages. What if we take the instrumental of these two English songs, adapt them - Tamil first?"

I asked him who was writing the lyrics and we got on a zoom call and Nambi Narayanan himself showed up. I was completely shocked... thankful... because when you meet a living legend, you don't know what to do. So then that's when I realised that Nambi Narayanan himself is going to write the lyrics for the first and the second song.

How was collaborating with Nambi Narayanan and the director Madhavan himself?

We spent two years going back and forth on voice calls and video calls to figure out how best to fit the meters of the track, make sure that the meaning, pain and angst etc are showcased properly to make sure that we are sharing Nambi sir's story with all the grit and all the glory as well. That took about two years to finalise.

How challenging was it to sing Perivali (Tamil)?

That was probably one of the toughest songs that I have ever recorded. You realise that this isn't just another song, this is someone's life that I have somehow had the distinct honour of showcasing in the form of a song. The two years was not only to finalise the lyrics but to make sure that I dig deep, and figure out how to showcase his pain, angst and patriotism for the country which is wrapped very beautifully in the form of a love song which is the second song En Kanmani. It took a while for me to understand and explore myself. I had to unearth some painful moments, some life experiences, where I tried to somehow remotely relate to what he has been through. I finally got to a version where the three of us listened to it and agreed that the emotions are showing with the lyrics.

How was your experience of working through Covid-19?

We worked through Covid-19 completely remotely. "Every version of it was recorded in my home studios in LA and Austin. Once we finalised that, the first wave of Covid-19 shutdowns had ended and India had opened up and we were thinking of launching it on April 14. That's when the second wave hit. And then Madhavan comes to me and says ''I don't have lyricists for all the Hindi songs. I have written one. You can source the lyricists and get every version made.'' I decided to take it up as a challenge.

You found the lyricists in other languages too?

In a matter of 72 hours, I found three brilliant Telugu, Kannada and a second Hindi lyricist who all came together and wrote beautifully their own versions of Peruvali and En Kanmani. It got approved. I sat in my home studio for six to seven days straight to get all the versions done.

How did Nambi Narayanan react to you vocalising his saga?

He called me and said, "You have the emotions correct and I can sense that you channeled something within you to really pay homage to both of the songs." He was very appreciative and hearing that was humbling. I felt so invested in the man and the story that it became really a passion project and I became as involved in the film as everyone else who had acted and directed.

How has the feedback been from the listeners and the audience?

I think the best feedback I have received so far is that the music, when people are watching the film, blends in with emotions so well that they don't realise that it's a musical interlude. It just weaves into the storyline where it is embellishing the story.

Tell us about your latest single SND...

It is called SND, short for Sani Da Pa or 'sound' in general. It was another long-term project started four to five years ago. I had met this incredible UK-based producer in Mumbai and wanted to do a collaborative session. SND was one of the main tracks that came about. We worked on it back and forth for a while but we felt something was missing so we stepped away from it. I came back to SND in 2020, relooked at the lyrics, relooked at the structure of the vocals, brought in another producer to freshen things up a bit and changed the initial vibe which was drum and bass. The main genres of the song are electronic, synth and fusion. Everyone can relate to it in different ways. Don't know if it was serendipitous or not, but it was launched the same day as Rocketry: The Nambi Effect. That has kept my social calendar really busy.

What are the future releases going to look like?

I have a lot in my mind that I need to get out. In the past year, I released a nine-song album in the form of EPs and singles. Those were experiences of me growing up until what I am today. Future releases will sound more like the three genres of electronic, synth and fusion. There will be more songs like SND. I have made a goal to release a single every month for the rest of the year. There is a lot of new stuff coming.

Which is more creatively satisfying, singing for films or being an independent artiste?

I feel lucky that I am able to act as a true independent artiste and true to who I am as a person. My wife and I co-songwrite all the lyrics. And we work on the production and getting our story out there. There is that element. Film-wise, I am always open to taking on new opportunities. Language is no barrier. There are quite a few irons in the fire in that sense right now.

Tell us about your footprints in Hollywood.

I have most recently worked with Disney and Disney World. So my voice can be heard at Epcot (Walt Disney World Resort) every night for their closing fireworks ceremony. It's a musical melody called Harmonious. And I was brought on to sing the The Jungle Book song I want to be like you. We also did a live show for the Disney Plus app. There is a lot of work coming on.

Inherently, what is the kind of music that comes from you?

All the content that I create is inherently like world music without even trying. For some people, it may be hard to place me in any genre. To me that's good because I know I am part of something new and forward thinking and maybe people aren't ready for it. Whenever people are ready to chew on it and listen to it and experience it, I am here.