Singer-composer Kalyani Nair launches first EP with four tracks

CHENNAI: Kalyani Nair, a renowned playback singer and composer from Chennai, has had a successful career spanning over two decades in the south Indian film industry, primarily working in Tamil and Malayalam films. She began her journey as a playback singer, collaborating with notable music directors such as Vidyasagar, Santhosh Narayanan, AR Rahman, D Imman, Deva, Sean Roldan, Pradeep Kumar, Dhibu Ninan Thomas, Ramesh Vinayakam, and many others.

Throughout her career, she also received training in Western classical music, under the guidance of Augustine Paul. This training sparked her interest in Western music theory and composition, leading her to arrange music for small vocal ensembles.

Over the last ten years, she has been extensively involved in arranging songs and contributing to the background scores of films. With her passion for composing, it was only a matter of time before she delved into the world of music composition.

In the past two years, Kalyani, together with her friend Karthik Manickavasakam, founded a 40-piece mixed vocal group called The Indian Choral Ensemble. This ensemble aims to showcase the grandeur of a large vocal group sound and presents a repertoire consisting of original compositions and popular song covers.

Kalyani explains, “Our compositions feature sophisticated melodies and harmonies in a choral style arrangement that embodies the essence of Indian music.” With this ensemble, she aspires to create a unique choral repertoire that combines choral and regional musical elements, with the ultimate goal of popularising choral music on a global scale.

What adds more excitement to Kalyani’s career is her upcoming debut as a composer with the release of her first EP. “The EP consists of four tracks and features 25 singers from The Indian Choral Ensemble. The first single from the EP, titled Nam Tham, is scheduled for release on July 31, on all streaming platforms and my YouTube channel.

The song is deeply rooted in Indian music, while offering a harmonically rich choral arrangement. The lyrics, written by Pradeep Kumar, focus on mother nature’s conversation with a budding flower, symbolising a new mother’s anticipation of her newborn,” she shares. The other songs in her EP include Omanaththingal, Iru Manam, and the Hindi version of Nam Tham.

In addition to her EP, Kalyani has recently composed two English originals for a film-theatre act called Immerse. The album features the songs Love Yourself and I Have No Time.