Bengaluru: Kannada rapper-turned-actor Chandan Shetty, who plays the lead role in his debut film “Vidyarthi Vidyarthiyanayare”, releasing on July 19, says when life gives him lemons, he usually makes lemonade.
“Take my song ‘3 Pegs’. I released it in 2016. Even today, there is no club or pub in Bengaluru where this song is not played. It has over 157 million views on YouTube alone. This song is my answer to a DJ from a club in Mysuru who not only looked down on me when I asked him to play a Kannada song but also called bouncers to throw me out of the club,” Shetty told PTI.
Shetty said his long journey to success included one flop album and several years as a lyricist, singer and assistant music director, after which he finally emerged as a respected name.
He said, “At every step I questioned the accepted reality around me. For example, when I started out as a playback singer/composer, I was hurt by the fact that the credit for any song was always given to the hero, the people behind it were rarely recognised. My peers in the industry accepted it, but I was not ready to accept it as it is.”
Shetty said this was the reason he chose to take the less taken route — singing in Kannada as an independent musician.
“The other reason was that ever since I was in college, I was always amazed that Punjabi, Hindi and even Tamil musicians could sing in their mother tongue, but not us.” Though the album he produced in 2009 flopped, it didn’t deter Shetty from going down this path again.
“This time I decided to make a video of the song so that people know who is singing it. Many of my friends and well-wishers in the industry advised me not to do so as they said it would affect my film prospects. But I had already made up my mind,” Shetty said.
As it turned out, the Kannada rap ‘Halagode’ released in 2015 marked a change of direction for Shetty, earning him the tag of ‘Kannada rapper’ which stuck to him like a second skin.
“Did I feel I was vindicated? Yes, absolutely. The media told me that a new star was born. I was very happy because I grew up watching Punjabi and Hindi hits on SS Music and VH1. It was the biggest joy for me. Also, it proved me right. There is a lot more to Kannada than just film songs,” he said.
Thereafter, with each of her new releases, Shetty has made herself more comfortable as a star, scaling new heights. Her 2020 hit, ‘Party Freak’ became so popular that she released its Telugu version as well.
But when they tried to go further, for example, reinterpreting ‘Kolumunde Jangamdev’ – a folk song popular in the Chamaraja Nagar area of Mysore district – Shetty said they again faced resistance.
He said, “It created so much uproar while I wanted the new generation to enjoy the old Kannada song. The original music label backed out, it couldn’t withstand the pressure and removed the music video.”
Though he has stepped down, Shetty said this is not the end of it.
Shetty said, “I still feel that the new generation should be exposed to the old gems. You see, the only available recordings of these old songs are often of low quality, so people won’t listen to them and the songs that have enthralled generations will slowly fade from memory. The fact that the deleted song has been re-reproduced by people on YouTube and has garnered millions of views shows that this is not the end of such interpretations.”
But for now, rapper Shetty plans to focus on the money that has come his way – becoming an actor.
Shetty said, “‘Vidyarthi Vidyarthirayare’ director Arun Amukta approached me unexpectedly to act in the film. I think it happened because the character is of a musician. But I want to make use of this unexpected opportunity and establish my name as an actor. I think it is a beautiful profession where you can inspire people and leave a legacy forever.”
But he believes that the Kannada film industry must transform itself if it wants to tackle the intense competition in the entertainment sector.
“Kannada makers should come up with original ideas and not remake films from other languages. There are 7 crore Kannadigas here and we all want entertainment. So, if the content is good, people will watch it,” Shetty said.
Talking about her debut film, she said that it has a good script. “It is about the problems faced by Gen Z, it has a beautiful message, which is presented in an entertaining way. I don’t think people will not like it,” Shetty said.
But if that happens and the film doesn’t find a buyer, Shetty said he is still confident and determined to come out on top.
“I have walked this path; I have faced failure before. So, I know this is the ladder to success. I know hard work always finds acceptance. I will learn to be a good actor, I will choose good roles and just like I found success as an independent musician, I will find success as an actor too,” Shetty said.
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