Born Dilin Nair in Kerala, Raftaar has been creating waves in Indian music circles since 2013. From testing his mettle on Orkut to working as a salesman, he has now worked with A.R. Rahman, Raxstar and many more. In a conversation with Peerzada Muzamil, he gives his insight into his journey, his hyperactive childhood and alternate ego as a dancer.
Q. How did your journey begin? Can you talk about the metamorphosis from Dilin to Raftaar?
A. It all begins with my childhood. My mother took me to a psychologist once who tells her that this kid is hyperactive, if he is allowed to go freely about his inclinations and preferences; he would do great in life. One of my teachers also told my mother, “Your kid is always disturbing other students in the class, he seems bored”. It was because I would always be ahead of the lesson, I would read and learn beyond what my teacher taught me, so I would not be able to pay attention to it because I had already studied at home. My mom took these incidents to her heart and set the field free for her. I did everything under the sun—sports, dance, theatre, music and what not. But there is one thing whatever I did was in one way or the other a creative form of art. I would love to be creative, you know, improvisational, or doing new things. I would often sing random rhymed lyrics and my mother would ask me, “Which song are you singing?”
“Well mom, I just made it up…” I would say. One of my friends gifted me a Linkin Park CD. It changed everything. Michael Jackson, my father would always listen to him. So, I listened to new things. Their songwriting inspired me. MJ inspired me to dance. This is how altogether Hip-Hop crept into my soul.
Q. Is there any intrapersonal change that Hip-Hop put you through?
A. Most of the people have this preconceived notion that Hip-Hop is all about rap music. Hip-hop is a culture in itself—a multiverse cosmos. It includes Graffiti, Scratching, Breakdancing, and of course Rap. Being a keen observant of my interests, I always loved to paint, dance, write and sing. I believe this side of creativity or propensity is ingrained in a person, and immersing myself in all these activities made me dive into the culture—it is a culture. Things keep evolving, and I am learning things ever passing day. I keep changing, because if you are stuck, you are dead.
Q. I remember that in 90’s Baba Sehgal came into Indipop scene, then Patel Scope, and in 2006 Bohemia debuted. Just a handful of artists, you see! I don’t think the time you were growing up; a lot of Hip-Hop artists were around. So, how did the epiphany of making your career in Hip-Hop dawn upon you?
A. Well, I would say Bohemia changed it all. Earlier I would write in English and dub the lyrics over beats using virtual DJ’s. I would share my things with Orkut community, you know, social media played a role too. We get feedback! Anyway, yes, Patel Scope was there too. And Baba Sehgal. Most of it was just rhymed lyricism. Nobody was doing it seriously. We would usually look out to west for serious hip-hop music, artists like EMINEM for instance. But, one day, I go to my college, and hear one of my friends listening to Bohemia, I was stunned! My friend transferred the mp3 file via Bluetooth and I listened to the track on repeat. This guy was singing rap in his native language, and doing it beautifully. Rhythm, meter, lyrics, language—everything so flawless. I believe Bohemia changed it for everybody! When he claims to be a pioneer, he is basically very right about it. He definitely is!
Q. In your new album “Mr. Nair”, lots of artists have been featured. How did you decide on those collaborations?
A. One of the first songs I did with Manj Music, because he has a very important part of my life, he is like my mentor. And most of the other artists are also close to me, we are like a community, we work like friends. Whenever I come up with something new, I go to those people. I could have gone to the big names in the industry, like Badshah Bhai, for this album, but I did not. I wanted some freshness in my album. There are some parts which I didn’t write, but the fellow artists did. It is like allowing your them to grow along with your own self. I have been there once; I know the importance of opportunity. Plus, with those guys, there was a significant independence and freedom with the creative process. Everybody put their novel and fresh creative inputs. I was Dilin, then Max, and now I am Raftaar. This whole metamorphosis has one important characteristic, I have always loved to teach. To make new and capable people reach the market, and what is better option than giving them a space in my tracks?
Q. You are born in Thiruvananthapuram, and after seeing your album cover art, I could see that you have not forgotten your roots. Is it important to be rooted?
A. I would hide my family name deliberately to avoid being labeled as a malayali, because I thought it was a sin to be a malayali,I was young, I did not understand. So, I wanted to pay a tribute to my people. After I was born, we moved to Delhi, I could not get enough time to learn my mother tongue. If I can’t write a song in my mother tongue, how can I pay respect to my people? I decided this title, to tell the world, that this is a malayali guy. It is important to know who you are, where you come from, it gives you a sense of community and fills your social instincts with empathetic understanding towards your fellow beings. You will see my album cover, I am wearing the chappals and gold, not because of some fashionista itch, it is because I am a Malayali. There lies my root.
Q. Why this album?
A. All my favorite artists had dropped albums. Why won’t I? Again, what is important that human beings have a persistent itch to leave something behind before they die, for example their name, a legacy, or a story. For me it is this album. Mr. Nair. What is a better tool to express yourself? I believe, it is for me the best way to express myself. Moreover, some songs come straight from your heart, it is difficult to make a video, to pretend and act therein. For example, Superman, or Proud, I can never think about how to write a video script for them, it is impossible. Dropping an album comes handy than singles.
Q. Dilin, there are few tracks in your Album, like ‘Me and My Pen’ or ‘Main Wahi hoon’ or ‘Dilli Wali Baatcheet’ which are quintessentially Underground songs—non-commercial vibe and mainstream Hip-Hop—but there are also many tracks which drift towards the popular culture. Is it important nowadays in the business to produce content which is an amalgam of Indie and Pop?
A. I feel that pop music is the way you can reach to the maximum number of masses. It is a gateway, to talk to them. You have to understand the mass psychology. Not everybody likes to listen to serious Underground Rap. If you want to put out a message that has a wider reach, it sometimes needs to be audience-friendly. Someone messaged me few days ago, “Brother, I used to love your All Black, but Proud is now my new favorite”. All Black is one of my Pop Hits, kind of a party-casino song, and Proud talks about dreams—how persistently a person should follow his dreams, it is inspirational in nature. So, if somebody switches from All Black to Proud, it is a win-win situation for me. My music changed somebody’s mind, right? So, any song is essentially entrenched in intention, rather than a genre.
Q. Writing a Rap song is different from writing other forms of musicals. It needs a special attention to Meter and Rhythm, does your alter-ego as a dancer help you at songwriting?
A. Absolutely, being a dancer has been helpful, especially in understanding—you can understand the beat, the pauses, the meter, and the tempo better as a dancer, because it is in your muscle memory, your ears are in sync with your body. Understanding these essential components makes you a better songwriter. I am not saying if you don’t dance you cannot write songs. But, it always comes handy. Plus, writing hip-hop lyrics requires a lot of homework. A lot of homework, dedication, and conscience.
Q. Is this a right time to put your album out? During the lockdown? How would you tour around? How would you promote it without shows and concerts? Doesn’t the lockdown impede your marketing strategy?
A. To be honest, the lockdown has hindered my post-album endeavors a bit. I can’t embark upon an album tour. But there are always two faces of a coin: right now people are not in a hurry, they don’t have an office, they are not rushing in a subway station, and there is no rat race. There is a calm, at least in the routine. People will listen to my tracks from this album with an extra pinch of attention—they won’t only listen, they will observe what is going behind those beats. They will actively participate with me. What is a better gift for an artist than the attention of his beloved audience?