Naatu Naatu winning the Oscar was a revelation: Guitar Prasanna

Musician and composer Guitar Prasanna, who is credited with taking Carnatic music to the west with a guitar, is in the city after a while for a unique solo performance, today. In a chat with us, he talks about creating a mini guitar universe with his concerts, teaching young talents like Maya Neelakantan, Ilaiyaraaja’s upcoming symphony and how AR Rahman has opened up Indian film music for the American audiences. Excerpts:
‘ARR OPENED THE DOORS FOR INDIAN FILM MUSIC IN THE WEST’
I wouldn’t say Indian film music has become mainstream in the US, but a Telugu song winning an Oscar in the Best Song category was quite a revelation. The other contenders along with Naatu Naatu were names like Lady Gaga, which is as mainstream as it can be. Of course, Jai Ho did it before. So, Indian films and music have been making inroads in the west. But it is still not mainstream American music. Another way to look at it is to be glad that Indian film music has come this far in mainstream, western sensibilities. AR Rahman is definitely the one who opened the doors. We’ll see more things like this happening in the future.
‘Ilaiyaraaja has been doing symphonic works in his songs & background scores’
“I’m looking forward to Ilaiyaraaja’s symphony. In fact, the last time I met him, he showed me a few pages of the score he was writing. I’m sure it’s going to sound great. It may be new as a full-fledged symphonic work, but he has been doing symphonic works all the time. It’s in his songs and background scores,” says Guitar Prasanna about the maestro.
ON TAKING THE CARNATIC GUITAR TO THE WORLD…
I’m very lucky that I’m able to have a following around the world. I’m fortunate that my original music and albums have reached so many people from around the world. And that is very rewarding, especially for a guitar player. Because there are millions of guitar players in the world. So, to find your own voice as a guitar player is a blessing. People like Pandit Ravi Shankar, Zakir Hussain, L Subramaniam, and L Shankar have taken Indian art forms globally much before me and paved the way for people like me to explore further.
ON HIS ABSENCE DURING THE MARGAZHI SEASON…
I’ve been playing in the season ever since I started playing, for more than 25 years. But now, because I don’t live here, and because there’s a lot going on, finding the concentrated period of time where I can do 7-10 concerts within a one or two-week window has been a little tricky. But I’m trying to work on it and see if I can make that happen next year.
‘TODAY, FOR PEOPLE TO MAKE TIME TO ATTEND A CONCERT, IT IS AMAZING’
My concert, Electric Prasanna Land, is going to be very diverse, and will have everything from Carnatic to rock to metal to film music to many of my originals. In the last few years, I’ve been exploring a lot of solo guitar performances. It’s a very expressive instrument, and I’ve found out that the best way for me to express myself fully is when I play alone. These days, with the whole explosion of streaming platforms, everybody’s playlist includes lots of different things. So, I wanted to create a mini guitar universe. The idea is to evoke a full concert atmosphere with just one instrument. In today’s world, for people to make time to come and sit in a concert — when they have so many other things that they can do — is an amazing thing.
‘AT THE CORE OF IT, MUSIC IS A SKILL THAT CAN BE LEARNT’
With music, we don’t know which part of it is natural, which part is what you have learnt. All of that comes eventually through a series of life experiences. So, at the core of it, music is a skill that can be learnt. Many of my students had very little experience in playing music, and they’ve gone on to become amazing musicians. We cannot take examples like Ilaiyaraaja sir and assume that everybody has to be a genius like that. Just passion, dedication, hard work, and a genuine sense of having a hunger to learn would get one very far. When you begin, you don’t know whether you have talent or if you’re going to make it. All you know is you want to play. And that’s how a lot of people pick music. It’s a huge release.
‘I DON’T FOLLOW TAMIL FILM MUSIC, BUT HAVE HEARD THE SONGS THAT GOT VIRAL’
I don’t follow Tamil film music as much as I used to do. There’s so much happening that I’m not aware of. But I’m happy that there’s so much innovation happening. It’s not like earlier when you had one or two composers. There’s so much young talent. I’ve heard the songs that have become viral. Like Aasa Kooda, which had my niece Preity Mukhundhan, or the song from Kantara (Varaha Roopam). I tend to listen to such songs but am not following in detail. There’s always something people will point me to, and I check it out.
On spotting talents like America’s Got Talent fame Maya Neelakantan…
I think I have become good at identifying the spark in my students. When I see something in a student, that tells me which direction to go in. When I teach my students, it’s not linear. One day, they’d be learning a song like Raghuvamsa Sudha on the guitar, and the next day, they’d be working on reggae on the piano. I also encourage them to play multiple instruments. Everyone has gifts. A teacher’s role is to identify that and nurture that. The best way to do that is to get it out of the students without even them realising it. I never tell my students how many hours they must practice. Point them in a direction that’s a fascinating adventure for them and they will do the hard work without you telling them.
‘Ilaiyaraaja has no parallel in the world’
Ilaiyaraaja is a unique phenomenon who cannot be explained and has no parallel in the world. Where he came from and what he did is still unbelievable. His music has had a very lasting impact on all of us. As far as propagating his music in the west, I did a series of shows in the US and the UK to mark his 80th birthday celebration. While it remains to be seen how people from the West embrace his music, he’s doing fine even without that. In the sense that he’s already made such a huge impact that his music will last for a very, very long time. He has such a prolifically recorded output. If you stack up the YouTube views of the songs he’s composed, he would probably be the most heard musician of all time.