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| Sunday, 31 October 2004 |
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Prageeth & Gajan going for gold in Shanghai by Umangi de Mel
Their asset is their music, their stronghold is Ranga Jagoda, the duo's music producer cum manager. 'Prageeth & Gajan', as they've decided to call themselves will represent Sri Lanka in Shanghai, China in November, 2004 at the Seventh Asia singing competition, which is an annual event organised by Shanghai Asia Music Festival. "Over 150 countries have entered the contest and only 30 countries got lucky to be selected for the finals, which will be held in November 8, 2004," the guys say. Of course its a 'Big deal for us' Gajan says. Explaining Gajan's comment further and leaving no space for criticism singing partner Prageeth joins in the conversation, and adds. "It really is a big thing considering the fact that some of our songs hardly got air play in Sri Lanka. Anyway now that we're in it, we need all the luck we can get from the Sri Lankans." Talking about the early stages of their journey, Gajan says, they met in 2000. "I knew Prageeth and at that time Ranga wasn't known to us. The two of us had an idea of getting two guys called Shiraz and Shane Pillai. Shane was our producer but he got a better break abroad and left."
With Prageeth's passion for music, Gajan's experience with B&S as well as Urban Sounds and Ranga's dedication, the three of them have been working towards a goal which could bring them fame and hopefully fortune. "In 2000 I recorded my first single called 'Song of my Heart' with Ranga and the song was written by Shaheeka Shaheed," says Prageeth adding that he left for studies for eight months after having finished the song. "Having considered the concept of going serious as a band, the three of us got down to it and worked on our first song called 'Nameshayakin' (In a Second) written by Shaheeka and Gajan. Ranga handled the music part of it." Having nothing to hide, the guys say that it was difficult to get airplay for their single after it was out. "We weren't popular at that time. Nevertheless we gave it to all the Sinhala radio stations. As a result Sirasa Radio played it after about two months."
So is 'You've been warned,' which was well accepted, and was played on stations like Sun FM, TNL, and TNL Light/Lite. Talk about mile posts along the way, they say "While working the second song, we met Rukshan of 'Charles Mark' who identified the two songs and told us about the competition in China. Getting back to their creations, their third song, 'Ennal Mudium' (Yes I can) a Tamil song written by Gajan, had been inspired by an imaginary guy who was considered a loser without a name, or appreciation for what he did. In the song Prageeth and Gajan have tried creating a heroic character who rises above the odds to prove his worth. "He's a fighter who never gave up and ultimately he becomes the victor who's admired and respected by the rest. It's a cross culture song which has both Tamil and English lyrics. It's a hip hot track," says Gajan. The particular track has been a hit on all Tamil radio stations including Shakthi FM, Sooryan and Thendral. The song, they say features B.H. Abdul Hameed a world renowned actor cum broadcaster. "We've completed four songs and are now looking for funds for a launch." Apparently Prageeth is the full time musician out of the three. Ranga works at the A.V. Department at Bates Asia Strategic Alliance headed by Nimal Gunawardena, who is a musician himself. Gajan who is a brand manager, works at Stassen Food. The majority being part time musicians, the guys have come a long way mastering many genres like hip hop, soft rock, R&B and Urban. "We don't want to stop there....Our plan is to launch a bilingual album," Gajan says. Prageeth who's a full time musician, also works with A.D. yet another outfit. "We performed at the World Trade Centre a couple of weeks back with 'A.D' they says. They talk about their experience in the field as they matured as musicians. "I was trained at the Augie's studio at the age of 17 by Auggie Ranaweera. She gave me enough confidence to survive a lifetime in the field. And since 1998 I've been a full time composer cum recording engineer till recently. I do radio and Television jingles and commercials," says Ranga. He feels that the right people in the field, don't get enough exposure in Sri Lanka. Having ample talented youth, he feels that it's a waste and that the business community should back the potential of local music industry. "In other countries, the artistes have their own manager and don't have to bother about the location or tickets but here it's the artiste who has to bust hist head about the administrative part which inhibits the creative process. He hardly has any time to concentrate on his music," says Ranga adding that most of the local artiste tend to replicate foreign music. Not approving of the trend, he says that sounding unique is about the best thing, "You've got to work around what you feel," he says. Gajan feels that the locals have more to learn. "In Sri Lanka music doesn't get the kind of recognition cricket gets. It's a show business, but lots of artistes don't get the right sort of back up." Hoping to release an album, the guys hope that there'll be a future for their music in Sri Lanka. "We are very grateful to people like Arundathi Ranganathan who is the representative for the competition in China, Rukshan Lokuge, Yohan Rajapakse, Thai Airways who sponsored us, and the Barefoot Gallery. Also I must thank my father Frank Silva without whom I wouldn't be singing today," says Prageeth, wrapping things up. |
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| Politics | Produced by Lake House |
Y2K was the beginning of a whole new era for many. So it was for
Prageeth Jerom and Gajan Mahesan, the latest entry to the music arena,
both local and international.
During this period Gajan had been busy with Bathiya and Santhush and as
for Prageeth, he was playing with a band called, 'Damage'. The two of them
met Ranga at his studio while working on a jingle. This encounter had been
the beginning of their successful journey.
The three then teamed up with Yohan Rajapakse, a producer at the hit
factory for the release of their second song 'You've been warned' which
was produced by Yohan and written by Irushi Wickramage. Gajan was its rap
artiste, 'Nimeshayakin' is a love song.
