After doing the rounds of the festival circuit and winning awards galore, including the National Award for Best Child Artiste 2011 (Harsh Mayar), I Am Kalam is gearing up for a worldwide theatrical release next month.
The film directed by Nila Madhab Panda is the journey of a young boy, Chhotu, who works in a 'dhaba' on the highway in Rajasthan and dreams of becoming somebody, like our former President, APJ Abdul Kalam. "It's an entertaining movie and not a dry documentary, which is perhaps why I've been approached to compose two songs with two versions each, for the film that earlier only boasted of a background score," says composer Abhishek Ray, who is ready with both.
He has already recorded 'Chini bhini, chini bhini...', a duet with Shreya Ghoshal, that is a celebration of life. And he is ready with another song that he will be singing with KK Menon called 'Chand tare jeb mein hai...'
"It reflects the liberation of a child's mind and has a kiddie version too, for which I'd like to record with Harsh. Even if I don't use his voice, we'll definitely use a lot of him. He's a talented child. He has brought Chhotu to life with the message saying education and sky-high aspirations can open many doors and turn even a 'dhaba' boy into a 'shehzada' (prince)," points out Abhishek, who has used different instruments in the arrangement, including the African 'marimba' and the 'kartal' and 'jhumru' of Rajasthan. "The music should release sometime this month."
The film was first screened at the 63rd Cannes Film Festival and there's talk about getting Kalam for the Indian premiere. "It's too early to comment on that, but I do know that there are plans to come out with promotional 'I Am Kalam' tees. The former President isn't an actor, but an inspirational figure who symbolises hope and the realisation of impossible dreams."
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