John Altman may be better known to us for his incredible tracks in Titanic. But this Emmy Award-winning British soundtrack composer is remarkably one who has set music for more than 4,000 commercials, films, and television shows. This ace composer makes his Indian debut through K.P. Kumaran’s Mohanlal starrer Aakashagopuram, an adaptation of Henrik Johan Ibsen's classic "Master Builder".
What would have inspired this musician to score music for an unfamiliar audience? He says that the first thing that made him accept the offer was the potency of the original script written by Henrik Ibsen.
"Aakashagopuram needed music that is hard-core melody, but with a dramatic impact. They wanted me to make music that is basically western, but soulful. I thoroughly enjoyed doing the film, they demanded good melody and I love making melody. And I genuinely hope my music will be accepted by the Indian audience," he said.
Coming from a family of famous musicians in London, John Altman always had an admiration towards Indian movies. "I have been watching Indian films since I was a kid; there is a huge audience for Bollywood there in London. I remember watching Bandit Queen and watching Lagaan felt like cricket. I always wanted to work with Bollywood films and I am a big fan of A.R. Rahman," he added.
Aakashagopuram, the first South Indian language film to be shot entirely in various locations in the UK with an international crew consisting of talents from Hollywood, UK, Bollywood, Kollywood and Mollywood, releases globally today on August 22. It stars Bharath Gopi, Sreenivasan, Swetha Menon, Manoj K. Jayan, Geethu Mohandas and Nithya in important roles. The movie is billed as the costliest ever in Malayalam.
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