'Being with kids rejuvenates me'

Music director-actor-singer-lyricist-filmmaker Gangai Amaran is active even at 68, guiding contestants on the ‘Sun Singer’ reality show, which provides children with an apt platform to showcase their singing talent. “It’s refreshing to be among kids. Every week, there’s so much planning involved to make the show better. From the selection of songs, rehearsals, to costumes etc. I should say I have been having fun on sets and there’s a bit of learning as well. Being with kids rejuvenates me. I am quite fortunate to witness such great talent,” says Amaran. 

How does it feel to train kids? "Music is a God-given gift and every child who comes to the show has some talent. It’s easy to pick a child, who is already an extraordinary singer. The whole process has been quite challenging because we need to be careful while handling kids," smiles Amaran. 

The only tough thing, he feels, is to make children sit in a place and bring them to a good mood. "Even while eliminating kids, we make sure they are at ease," he notes. 

After a pause, he quickly adds, "Kids take things easily. Only parents should act a bit mature when it comes to handling elimination. It doesn’t matter whether kids lose or win. Parents should neither force children to win nor scold when they fail to perform on any reality show," he tells us. 

Interestingly, Amaran cites he has been observing a massive difference the way kids mature in the whole process. “From the stage of auditions, till the main rounds, they evolve. Many kids perform like stars. Be it the way they dress or the kind of attitude they show, the progress is remarkable. The child gets more confident with each episode, developing a fantastic stage aptitude. In fact, I could see them develop a sense of comfort with the fellow musicians and stage artistes.” 

Quiz him on whether he has any plan to invite his elder brother-maestro Ilaiyaraaja for the show? On a lighter note he says, “I am scared of approaching him. It’s nice if we have him on grand musical nights, but definitely not on the 'Sun Singer' sets!"

The reality show, anchored by Muthu and Nakshatra, gets telecast every Sunday at 11 am.

(The piece was originally written for Deccan Chronicle)