Blessed to be Pyarelalji's student, says composer Mithoon

Bollywood music composer Mithoon credits his uncle, veteran composer Pyarelal Sharma, for honing his skills

Mithoon and Pyarelal Sharma

His adaptations of Pakistani songs for Bollywood films - 'Woh Lamhe' for 'Zeher' and 'Aadat' for 'Kalyug' (both in 2005), became chartbusters. But, Mithoon shot to fame as a composer only after 'Tum Hi Ho' ('Aashiqui 2'; 2013) went on to be declared the new love anthem by Bollywood music lovers.

Asked if he considers the 'Aashiqui 2' soundtrack as the turning point in his career, Mithoon says he doesn't believe in the concept of "career-boosting projects". "Before I did Tum Hi Ho, few ballads were part of Hindi films; dance songs were more in vogue. Many people told me that my style wouldn't work. However, the success of Tum Hi Ho was a reminder that I should follow my ideology of sticking to my strength," says Mithoon, who is currently working on the soundtrack for Shab (Onir's next) and Mohit Suri's Half Girlfriend. He tells us he's glad that he started his career with covers of Pakistani tracks.

"It was a good point for me to start out, because apart from being a composer, I am a music arranger/ producer too. More than acclaim, rearranging the tracks added to my experience. That's why after doing a couple of songs, I decided to go the independent way," he says.

Not many know that he is veteran composer Pyarelal Sharma's (one half of Laxmikant-Pyarelal) nephew. Prod him on how his uncle has contributed to his career, and he says, "Not to my career, but he has contributed a lot to my musicianship. He is my teacher. I feel blessed that as a teenager, I got the opportunity to learn from him for two years. I used to visit his house and play the piano every morning."

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