I am re-inventing myself: Pyarelal

MUMBAI: The piano sums up his life-story. As Pyarelal Ramprasad Sharma (of the Laxmikant-Pyarelal duo) softly caresses the keys, a mellifluous melody — his latest composition for a video album — wafts through the well-appointed music room of his Bandra residence.
Fine-tuning his thoughts, Pyarelal declares, “I am re-inventing myself, I am re-charging my batteries.�
The well-known music director will receive the Maharashtra government’s prestigious Lata Mang-eshkar award for life-time contribution to music at a special function next Saturday.
Arguably the world’s most prolific and popular team — what with 550 films in 34 years — the L-P (Long-Playing, as they are known in Bollywood) alliance boasts of a harvest of sensational super-hits such as Parasmani, Dosti, Milan, Khilona, Bobby, Do Raaste, Dushman, Ek Duuje Ke Liye, Piya Ka Ghar, Shor, Kranti, Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Karz and Tezaab, to name a few.
Taking a cue from their formidable predecessors, the fabled Shankar-Jaikishan, L-P de-mystified film music, addressing the lowest common denominator of box-office while not losing track of melody, that quintessential Indianness of the celluloid dreams.
“It was a great experience to get to collaborate with stalwarts such as Raj Kapoor, Raj Khosla, Tarachand Barjatya, L.V.Prasad, lyricists such as Majrooh Sultanpuri, Pandit Bharat Vyas, Anand Bakshi, Kalyanji-Anandji and, of course, the biggest of them all — Lataji,�says Pyarelal.
The untimely death of Laxmikant in 1998 and the advent of techno-music, ragas and reggae may have blurred L-P’s mystique. But Pyarelal seems set for a second coming. He has signed eight new films, according to trade circles.
Moreover, an experiment in fusion music with L. Subramaniam is humming round the corner. “This fusion business is very interesting. But you must know the right ingredients of the mix,’’ he says.
Pyarelel’s passion for western classical music is legendary. His face lits up as he recalls his adolescent dream – to settle in Europe and earn laurels as chamber musician. “And marry a gori ladki,’’ he laughs.
As luck would have it, Bulo C Rani, a well-known music director of the 1950s, took precedence over Bach and Beethoven. He was barely nine when he joined Ranjit Film Company as a musician under Bulosaab. Otherwise, he would be at the Bombay Chamber Orchestra and the Paranjoti Academy, perfecting his skills.