“If people all over have cried watching the Kashmir Files, it’s because of his heart-wrenching music”,says Director Vivek Agnihotri of The Kashmir Files on his experience of working with music director Rohit Sharma

The cinema halls were purging emotions as tears were shed, some intense outbursts were witnessed, and it was also the rare occasion when the chatter of people leaving the cinema hall was, in utter contrast, replaced by a deafening silence as people walked out carrying a deep grief within them, echoed by sounds of the cello, woodwinds and strings in the background, that so aptly captured the pain & essence of the film all throughout. The music created by these sounds not just set the emotional stage of the entire film, but they still continue to ring in the hearts of the audience and come to the surface each time the film is thought of.

That’s what good film music does to you – so intertwined it is with the emotional aspect of the film, that we tend not to isolate it and are therefore unable to fully render it the appreciation it deserves. Film scores indeed form the soul of films, and music director Rohit Sharma has always aced this essence, right from The Kashmir Files, The Tashkent Files to Buddha in a Traffic Jam. Incidentally, these films have all been directed by Vivek Agnihotri, widely known for his honest scripts and brave storytelling. What connects this duo?

“After spending some time making commercial films, I started on this new journey of independent film-making and since then, I have always collaborated with this brilliant composer Rohit Sharma – be it Buddha in a Traffic Jam, or The Tashkent Files or The Kashmir Files. He has somehow become an integral part of my style of film-making”, narrates Vivek Agnihotri.

Adding further he said, “The best part about Rohit’s music is while you usually leave most of the music in the cinema hall, you take Rohit’s music back with you and it keeps coming back to you”
He describes the experience of working with him beautifully,
“Though my films don’t have much scope for music, just through his background music or a simple yet impactful song, he has always rendered a new dimension to the storyline, the narrative.. and he has brought in more power to my storytelling.”

Interestingly, the theme music of The Kashmir Files was recorded with musicians of Budapest Art Orchestra at East Connection Music Recording Studio, Budapest.

Director Vivek Agnihotri adds that it is this music that moved people to express their grief, “If people all over have cried watching the Kashmir Files, it’s because of his heart-wrenching music. The best part about Rohit’s music is while you usually leave most of the music in the cinema hall, you take Rohit’s music back with you and it keeps coming back to you..”

Music director Rohit Sharma has always been associated with unconventional films & productions right from the start of his career when he composed the much-acclaimed Naham Janami which was featured in Ship of Thesus. Further, he also scored the music for Anaarkali of Aarah in 2016, thus gaining prominent visibility in the folk genre. This also won him the Best Music Director award at the 8th Jagran Film Festival.

The music director’s remarkable versatility is evident through his work as it spans across genres & styles. He was nominated at the Filmfare OTT Awards for the Best Original Soundtrack (Songs) for the popular web series Aspirants by TVF (The Viral Fever). The music for this series further went on to win the Best Music (Originals) in a Web Series at the IWM Buzz Awards.

At present, music director Rohit Sharma is working on Maharani 2, a web series created by Director-Producer Subhash Kapoor, starring Huma Qureshi. Stay ‘tuned’ also for his upcoming film projects which include Othello In Mccluskieganj, Lotus Blooms, The Ice Cake and Dhatura.