Dr Ilaiyaraaja’s 1st ever composition for a corporate in 40 yr is for HCCB

In a world first, maestro Dr Ilaiyaraaja has composed the anthem for Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB), his first ever composition for a corporate in 40 years. The anthem that the maestro has composed for HCCB bears his signature. The tune is simple, registers with the listener instantly, and grows on the individual with every successive rendition. The melody catches attention and the richness of the composition provides longevity. The tune was composed by Dr Ilaiyaraaja at Prasad Studios in Chennai. 

“It has taken Dr Ilaiyaraaja 40 years to find time and compose music for a corporate and we are just blessed that he did it for us,” said Kamlesh Sharma, Chief Communication Officer at Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB). 

That the creator of more than 7,000 songs in 1,000 films has never composed anything for a corporate entity may come as a surprise, especially when several other composers like AR Rahman, Ram Sampath, etc., started composing anthems and jingles for corporate very early in their careers. 

“HCCB is a pan Indian company, one of the largest FMCG companies in India, whose operations span from Kutch to Kohima and Kashmir to Kanyakumari. We needed a composition that would denote the vastness of our operation but also the simplicity of our business and the purity in our values,” elaborated Kamlesh Sharma. “I knew that only Raaja Sir would sum the scale and soul of HCCB with utmost simplicity and purity. He is magic, he is music,” he added. 

Beginning with a soft and mellifluous tune on the flute, the anthem gradually extends into a powerful visual of India. In many ways, the music represents the new India, which is traditional and yet contemporary; always on the move, inspiring others and the world in the process. 

Prathap Suthan, Chief Creative Officer at BangInTheMiddle, who conceived the brief for the maestro, said, “To me, HCCB is a river that flows through India with enough and more tributaries – these tributaries being the various products that HCCB manufactures. And much as India has been interacting and continues to interact and prosper along the shores of rivers, is how local communities and the larger nation interacts with and inspires HCCB. When you listen to the track that Ilaiyaraaja has composed, there is a certain flow to the tune. It feels like a river that meanders and cascades through with various layers. The entire tune is very smooth, there are no hard edges. It’s undoubtedly a masterpiece.”