It took film director T.S. Nagabharana three years of research of ancient texts, and one year of filming, to complete Allama Prabhu, a yet to be released historical film.
He took help from some of the State’s renowned professors in Kannada literature to ensure that he got the factual detailing of the vachanas right.
That such a classic needed the right music to take the message across was on top of Nagabharana’s mind, when he asked Bapu Padmanabha nearly three years ago to score the music for the film.
“Mr. Padmanabha’s soft and restrained style of flute playing stems from the fact that he was trained by renowned flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia. He has dozens of meditative albums to his credit. If the essence of the vachana lyric has to be understood as a subdued flow weaved in through a classical approach, his style fits the period film’s essence,” says Mr. Nagabharana. Last week saw the audio release of the film.
His fascination with the vachanas is what pulled Mr. Padmanabha towards Mr. Nagabharana’s offer.
“Just as we open up windows and doors to allow the rays of sunlight in, the already embedded lyrical musicality had to be tapped and let loose in the vachanas,” says Mr. Padmanabha who felt he could musically connect to the philosophical lines of the film.
Carnatic, Hindustani and Lounge music have been the tools of expressions for Mr. Padmanabha for Allama Prabhu’s vachanas.
The film also brings in couplets of Basavanna, Akkamahadevi and Siddharameshwara.
“A picturesque portrayal of Allama and Maaye’s romantic escapade for a track also brings in Dr. Doddarange Gowda’s lyrics for a typical janapada flow,” says Mr. Padmanabha. “I have used soft flute lounge, which is my signature style. The track has Mr. Nagabharana’s son, Pannaga Bharana’s song picturisation that elevates the poetic mood,” says Mr. Padmanabha who has selected rages as Basant-Malhar, Bhairavi and Charukesi for the tracks according to the mood.
Totally, there are 21 tracks that bring in 18 vachanas and three songs.
One of the oldest percussion instruments, older than the mridanga, the maddale, used by the Nattuvara community has been fully utilised for portraying Allama. Apart from Mr. Padmanabha himself lending his voice and flute, tracks are sung by Shankar Mahadevan, Sangeetha Katti, Manjula Gururaj, Ganesh Desai, Hemant, Rajesh Krishnan and Tejaswini M.K.
The film is set to release in mid- 2016.
