AI cannot judge or feel the pulse of the audience: Mahesh Raghvan & Nandini Shankar

AI cannot judge or feel the pulse of the audience, and seeing original music garnering millions of views on YouTube is very encouraging, said the musician couple Mahesh Raghvan and Nandini Shankar at ABP Network's The Southern Rising Summit. The couple, who rose to fame with their musical video, "The Kapi Dance," shared their musical journey and how they found love while collaborating on the song during a session titled ‘Making Music: Crafting A New Style’ at the Summit.

“I started with music when I was 3. Later, I discovered an app on my iPad that allowed me to play Indian notes. Kapi is a raga in Carnatic music, which is equivalent to raga Mishra Pilu in Hindustani music which became the inspiration for The Kapi Dance,” said Mahesh.

Talking about whether AI technology will spoil creativity, he said, “AI cannot judge or feel the pulse of the audience. In every profession, you have certain tools to help you, but in the end, what matters is how much you learn, how much knowledge you have. What truly matters is how much the audience loves your music, and that completely depends on the musician.”

Adding to this, Nandini elaborated,” We shot the video in Chennai, and it is an original song. Seeing such support, appreciation, and getting over a million views is definitely encouraging for us.”

Apart from finding success in their musical careers, Mahesh and Nandini also found love while collaborating on their common passion – music. Speaking about their first meeting, Shankar said, ” I first followed her on Instagram. After talking, we decided to meet a few months later to collaborate on the song. Later, we became friends and eventually decided to get married.”

Meanwhile, Nandini, who is also a Chartered Accountant and comes from a family of musicians, has also worked as an investment advisor for a bank. Sharing about how she decided to make music her career, she said, “The importance of education was never undermined in my family. I topped my school and chose to become a Chartered Accountant. I worked as an investment advisor for a bank, but since I was working five days a week with the bank and performing during the weekend, it was then I decided to pursue music.”

The musical couple performed a classical rendition of their popular music video, "The Kapi Dance," and enthralled the audience with their musical talent at the Summit.

The 'Southern Rising' Summit was conceptualized and instituted by ABP Network as a tribute to the exceptional growth, cultural opulence, and societal harmony exemplified by the southern states of India. It aimed to celebrate the spirit and richness of the southern states, united on a singular mission of driving a transformative journey for India. The summit witnessed profound deliberations and the sharing of insights by the movers and shakers of South Indian states and Union Territories.