By Sreedevi Manohar
Gowry Lekshmi’s latest musical outing Maane is a quintessential fairy tale about the bond between two woodland creatures and the barriers they conquer through love. However Maane dares to break free from the heteronormative narrative we usually associate with a classic fairy tale. The elements of fantasy framing the choreographic sequence between the bird and the deer, portrayed by two male dancers makes for a novel perspective onscreen and a new creative milestone for the independent music scene in the South.
“Love is universal, it cannot be contained within the constraints of gender, religion, nationality, caste, race or any other convention imposed by society. Each of the elements shown in the song is symbolic of this, from the interaction between the dancers, to the synchronized duality of my costume and even the chair I sit on. The cage represents the regressive out look and animosity certain sections of society subject same sex couples to.” Gowry says about the inspiration behind the song.
However this is not the singer’s first tryst with the unconventional. She started her musical career at the young age of 13 by composing the song Sakhiye in the Mohanlal starrer Casanova, making her the youngest female music director in India at the time. She has since endeared herself to the South Indian audience through her playback hits like Aalolam from Love Action Drama, Aro Nenjil from Godha in Malayalam, Anbane from Asurakulam in Tamil, RanaPriya from Rachayita in Telugu to name a few and her independent releases like Thoni, Thirinjum Marinjum, Aaraaro etc.
Gowry’s music is a heady mix of peppy dance numbers, soulful melodies, popular covers and conversational pieces like Thirinjum Marinjum. “My creative process is spontaneous and fluid. I do not categorize my music into genres or try to balance out the soundscape, while Maane has a country pop inspired sound to it, Thirinjum Marinjum is more raw and hard hitting”, remarks Gowry.
Maane first debuted on Gowry’s YouTube channel three years ago along with a simple illustrated video. “Maane is a very versatile song and could have multiple interpretations pertaining to the universality of love, be it one between two lovers or even a man and his pet. The lyrics also speak extensively about the beauty of nature and displays a reverence for it. I was consistently working on a video for Maane over the years but the process was delayed indefinitely due to some inconveniences . When our director Nasif Appu conceptualized a queer narrative for the theme of the video we were instantly intrigued. I think the final outcome was actually worth the wait in the end”.
When asked about the companionships she cherishes in life, she was quick to credit her husband Ganesh Venkataramani. “Throughout my life I’ve been fortunate enough to have a lot of people stand by me, but Ganesh is definitely my anchor”.
Gowry has also carved out a niche for herself with her stage performances. “I miss being on stage, performing with my crew and interacting with a live audience. This year has certainly brought about a lot of unprecedented changes and all of us are trying to cope. I’m currently focusing on releasing more singles and juggling that with my playback singing assignments for movies, web series and private initiatives. The project I’m currently working on is about the joy of Monsoons. I’ve asked my followers on social media for videos of themselves playing and dancing in the rain and I intend to include this in the video. It is scheduled to release by November. I am excited to see how it’ll be received by the audience”.