Sean Roldan, who debuted as a music composer with Balaji Mohan’s Vaayai Moodi Pesavum (2014), is now being compared to Ilaiyaraaja.
Roldan, however, quickly insists that he ‘isn’t competing with anyone’.
“Raaja sir has created a place where people like us can make use of opportunities. I feel shy, but I’m honoured when people compare my album to that of Raaja sir’s. Ilaiyaraaja is the face of Tamil music. I have heard that Raaja sir used to go and meet people in villages to understand the essence of music. I cannot have an extraordinary life like what he had, but his music has given us clues to pick up from,” he told The Times of India in a recent interview.
Sean Roldan, whose real name is Raghavendra, is currently working on Dhanush’s directorial debut, Power Paandi, as well as Soundarya Rajinikanth’s upcoming film, VIP 2. His project last year – Joker – went on to win accolades for the content and music. Roldan is humble about the praises, and instead, credits director Raju Murugan for the ‘big projects’ that come his way.
“Joker was one project which had the filmy sensibilities that I could relate with. I consider films like Iruvar, Hey Ram, Pudhupettai, etc, as projects that had set a benchmark in Kollywood. I always wanted to do one such project — something which has a serious nature. Joker was a project with so much of honesty in it. The reason I am doing Power Paandi now is actually because of Joker. I’d thank Raju Murugan for the rest of my life,” he said.
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Roldan comes from a rich lineage of artistes. His father is the renowned Mridangam player Srimushnam V Raja Rao. Tamil writer Sandilyan is his maternal grandfather. His other works include songs for his friend and longtime associate, Santhosh Narayanan, for films like Cuckoo and Jigarthanda. After Vaayai Moodi Pesavum, Roldan also composed for Mundasupatti, Sathuranga Vettai etc.
Thus far, with Power Pandi scheduled to release soon, Roldan is currently focusing on his other projects like Neruppu Da, Katha Nayagan, and Aishwarya Dhanush’s biopic on Paralympic winner, Mariyappan Thangavelu.