SRIRAM RAVISHANKAR
KU-BA-KU,
LIVING POEMS
In conversation with poet-writer-lyricist Shellee, a creative kaleidoscope.
Shellee( Shailender Singh Sodhi) is one of the most honest and endearing poets of our time. Hailing from a literary family, growing up in the free-spirited fields of Ambala, literary interests organically came to Shellee from an early age. After frequenting Mumbai as a ghost writer for many projects, Shellee finally made his mark as a lyricist with Amit Trivedi’ s Dev D. Fundamentally a poet, Shellee’ s famed lyrical career is only a tenth of what lies in the depths of his creative trenches.
Besides his best-known works like Udta Punjab, Shahid, Luv Shuv De Chicken Khurana, Phillauri, and the most recent Manmarziyaan, Shellee has lent his words for numerous other movies like Quick Gun Murugan, Trishna, and Jugni amongst others. His zesty piquant lyrics stands out amidst clichés without losing out on its earthy rustic character.
Shellee’ s unassuming prismatic personality puts anybody crossing him instantly at ease, envious of his writing skills, and vigilant mind. It is hard to escape his infectious passion for words and languages unravel within the first few minutes of interaction. He briefly opens up in this short engaging conversation.
Hindsight
My experiences in theatre were most crucial in my journey. It encouraged me
to read literature, observe, and explore life. Various funny, gloomy, eccentric, and normal characters that I saw in the plays of Vijay Tendulkar, Girish Karnad, Shakespeare, or Moliere influenced my life vastly. I drew so much from their works, that they have now become an inseparable part of my personality.
Unlike the 50’ s and 60’ s, today’ s Punjabi music is majorly influenced by brands, making it too pretentious and fake. This doesn’ t mean we have inadequate subjects to write about or talented people. Creators in general don’ t have patience to explore newer subjects anymore. There is so much original content out there that can be brought to light, but only with patience and faith. Today, my biggest concern is that people are going further and further away from poetry in every language. We need more poetry, more engaging conversations, and creative dialogues! Goal oriented actions are only taking away the fun of exploration! Currently, the culture of writing lyrics to a tune, hook lines, calculated efforts, are all too limiting. Very rarely do I come across composers who let me write first!
The Creative Process
To me, writing is an integral part of my personality. I live with a tune and keep thinking new words, phrases, wordplay, and new ways to approach
subjects. I always insist on a script narration, character description, etc. So, I’ m fully aware of the situation I’ m writing for. With each song, one becomes more confident of himself.
Creativity, a habit?
My creativity doesn’ t boil to being a mere habit. It’ s more of a pursuit. Habit is repetitive, nothing new would come out of me. I’ m a seeker, wanderer, learner, an eternal student. Being in this mindset makes me grateful of my surroundings, existence, elders, mentors, my father who was a scholar and poet himself, Shri. Himmat Singh Sodhi who taught me so much with such subtlety.
Finally, being a lyricist in business vs being a poet
The lyricist in me is a by-product of the poet in me. The day that poet is dead, is the day I can’ t be a lyricist anymore. I feel without the experiences of poetry whether it is in sounds, landscapes, human characters, or even conversations, being a lyricist wouldn’ t be possible. Life in itself is so poetic, stimulating, and interesting! Something even as mundane as boredom has so much say in silence! Without being observant of such intricacies and recognizing the poetry in them, being a lyricist is impossible.
The Score Magazine
24 highonscore. com