Singer-composer Sid Sriram in the “Sivanar” music video. Photo: YouTube
In April 2024 at the Coachella festival in California, singer-composer Sid Sriram famously performed a Thiruppugazh—a 14th-century Tamil devotional song—to thousands in attendance, making a historic statement for Tamil culture on one of music’s biggest stages.
Now, Sriram has released “Sivanar,” the very same Thiruppugazh composed by the saint-poet Arunagirinathar, with the tune credited to Delhi’s Sri A.S. Raghavan. With a music video shot at Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in the middle of the Thaipusam festival, as devotees throng the Maha Mariamman Temple Devasthanam, Sriram highlights yet another side to his artistry—beyond South Indian film music, shapeshifting R&B/pop, and Carnatic vocals.
“Sivanar”—which Sriram also performed as part of the video series Colors—marks the first release under The Hybridist brand with Warner Music India. A dedication to Lord Murugan, Sriram takes a bare-bones vocal approach with scattered, cinematic production at different points in the track.
Sriram says in a statement that his collaboration with Warner Music India “marks an important new chapter in my musical journey.” He adds, “From the very beginning, my relationship with music has been about understanding and drawing from my roots, and using this as a way to boundlessly imagine new musical futures. It’s deeply meaningful that our first release under this partnership is ‘Sivanar.’ My mother and guru, Latha Sriram, taught me this song when I was 10.” Later, he recalled in an Instagram post how having his mother be a part of the video, along with visiting Batu Caves with his family for the shoot, was special. “Watching that footage, it reminded me, in the warmest way, of her sitting next to me when I’d perform as a kid,” Sriram says.
Now 34 and one of the world’s most well-known voices in modern Indian music across film and otherwise, Sriram terms it “auspicious” to begin the “next phase of my artistry” with “Sivanar.” He adds, “Beyond my own music, this partnership with Warner Music India will allow us to create and nurture a space for new and innovative sounds. Together, we aim to discover and cultivate exceptional talent, bringing fresh and unique musical voices to the world.”
Directed by filmmaker and photographer Parasher Baruah, the “Sivanar” music video induces that sense of powerful devotion that he’s going for. Featuring rituals and prayers shot in an almost documentary-style approach, the visuals take you right in the thick of the action. Sriram added on Instagram that when he spoke to Baruah, the filmmaker “was immediately excited and envisioned us taking a cinéma vérité approach to this visual.” Sriram adds, “We were resolute in our decision for this music and visual to express something raw and beautiful, no extra gimmicks.”
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