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Without warning, the weather turns bitter, and gusts of wind burst through the July morning. Rains in Kerala like to be unpredictable that way. What makes them pleasurable, along with hot cups of coffee, is someone’s radio letting out a song that the winds, unruly as they are, like to carry with them. Dulquer Salmaan famously attached rain and tea to Johnson Master’s music as the perfect combo. Years down the lane, the songs of Sushin Shyam, flitting through the monsoon air, manage to weave the same kind of magic—or so pledge his many, many fans.
Through a decade of composing songs for films, Sushin has risen to become a precious name in Malayalam cinema, in a way that makes him happy -- slowly and without overnight successes. He likes that he has worked his way to become who he is.
Composed and grounded, he says in an interview with TNM that he knows there is a lot more to growing as a human. It is only now, during one of the rare breaks he gets from film music, that he has the time to muse over such things. But he is not resting from making music entirely. After a long time, Sushin has just forayed into independent music, putting together an enchanting little single called Ray.
It is a music video, with alluring visuals conceptualised by artist Vimal Chandran and cinematographed by Ajay Menon. A little boy with azure blue hair tiptoes through the fields of a Palakkad village. Unable to fit in with others, he finds unexpected company among a fog of fireflies. “The album was meant to be a different song, one of the first I had written in my early days as a composer, called Light in your eyes. But when Vimal Chandran came up with this concept, we liked it and shot the music video. Once the video was made, I felt the song had to be in Malayalam, and Ray was born,” Sushin says.
He wants to explore the indie space, which gives more room for artistic expression than a film script does, he says. Not that Sushin is entirely new to independent music. He is a member of one of the most renowned metal bands in India, The Down Troddence (TDT). Their recent release in collaboration with Carnatic musician TM Krishna surprised and wowed audiences of these two extreme genres. As we speak, Sushin says his favourite track (‘Monsoon in Kannur’) on TDT's upcoming second album is soon to be released.
But he has always loved to work in cinema and has consciously made his way into the big world of film music. At first Sushin worked as an assistant to composer Deepak Dev. Later, on his own, he began composing background scores and finally movie songs.
His first background music score was for Sapthamashree Thaskaraha (2014), and his first film song was ‘Kisa Paathiyil’ for Kismath (2016). He knows that there is a certain comfort zone he falls into when he composes, which makes his music identifiable.
“‘Nebulakal’ or ‘Thaimanam’ from Manjummel Boys (2024) or ‘Ezhuthakadha’ from Kumbalangi Nights (2019) are in my zone, but I like to stretch myself when the film demands it and try what is not my style. Such as the tracks for Avesham (2024). I want to be flexible when there is a need,” Sushin says.
He recalls going to weddings and watching people dance to peppy Tamil songs but slowing down when his compositions were played. “A dip in the energy”, he calls it. But after the Avesham tracks were out, that changed, and people began swinging to ‘Armadam’ or ‘Illuminati’.
While he also sings for some of his compositions, after renowned musician and guitarist of the rock band Avial, Rex Vijayan, offered him a chance, Sushin jokes that he only takes the easy tracks for himself. But what he is most uncomfortable with is acting. Though he makes the occasional cameo, he has not quite warmed up to the idea of a camera before him. But like all performers, he misses being on a stage and is planning to do a ‘Sushin Shyam Live’ show around the end of the year.
He admits to having been influenced to a degree by his mentors, including Deepak Dev and Rex Vijayan. His favourite bands, such as Radiohead and Zero 7, have also influenced him, he says. But he has consciously tried to shake those away and mould a style of his own. Clearly, it has worked. People have begun to identify a Sushin Shyam track as soon as they hear the tune. There is something equally mellow and uplifting about his rhythm, the twists and turns of his melody.
It has surprised him sometimes how a composition he hardly expected would work has shot to popularity, such as ‘Kuthanthram’ from Manjummel Boys. Or a track that he loved composing, like ‘Theerame’ from Malik (2021), hit the right note with the people he made it for. “I like my ‘Cheraathukal’ fans [a haunting melody from Kumbalangi Nights]. But the song I am most recognised for is ‘Appi paatu’ [a song created for fun by TDT members],” he says, laughing.
He looks back at the path he has travelled – from the Class 12 boy who confidently gave what he thought was a great album to his mentor to becoming the rooted musician he is today, who perfectly understands where he stands. With ‘Ray’, he wants to mark a new beginning in his music career.