12 January,2019 09:13 AM IST | Mumbai | Karishma Kuenzang
Anurag Naidu was introduced to jazz via a Chick Corea track
He picked up the keys at the age of five, drÂeamt of becoming a classical concert piÂanist and finally got seduced by the imÂprovisations in jazz. Since 2016, AnÂurag Naidu has played with many weÂll-known musicians including Italian drÂÂummer Matteo Fraboni and AmeriÂÂcÂan jazz vocalist Loretta HollowÂay, who have performed in Mumbai. And now, his recently released debut album is making all the riÂgÂht noises. But, honing his skÂiÂlls haÂsn't come easy, even thÂough one might like to beÂlieve that being playback siÂnger Shilpa Rao's brother would have helped.
Born in a family where his faÂtÂher had earned a degree in HinduÂsÂtani classical muÂsic but picked enÂgÂineering as his career, Naidu only stÂÂaÂrted learning the piano when HariÂharan, whom Shilpa was training unÂder, suÂggested it. But Jamshedpur diÂdn't haÂve any teachers, so Naidu and his faÂther would go on a five-hour train joÂurney to Kolkata every Sunday for a two-hour class.
At 18, he cracked engineering entrÂaÂnce exams, but hid it from his paÂrents, wanting to pursue music. But when he moved to Mumbai and waÂtÂched a live concert for the first time at the NCPA, his dream of becoming a classical concert pianist shattered. "I realised I had lost too much time," Naidu shares. But that was before he was introdÂuÂced to jazz via a Chick Corea track. He couldn't afford to go to the US, so picked a school in Paris to study jazz for two years. Health issues brought him back to Mumbai. "A lot of it was just mental - living in Paris was financially difficult.
It was an inward journey to finally recover and start gigging in 2016. People think 'Oh, you're doing what you love for a living, how nice'. But that's not true. You've got to lug around your instrument in autos, and chase guys to pay you after gigs. And it's difficult to get people to believe in what you're doing. Money can get you an audience, but can't make people believe," he says.
His album, J'ai Fame, which translaÂtÂes to "I have hunger", was recorded in Paris, and features songs liÂke La Lune, which talks aboÂut how the moon phases but actually is the same, "while hinting at phases between the right hand and left hand in the piece," explains NaÂiÂdu. There's also Hofor - a Game of Thrones-inspired track that arises frÂom 'holding the fourth' - the fourth is an interval on any instrument. He is working on a track with Rao, which the siblings hope to release next month.
Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates
