Hesham is a self-confessed AR Rahman fan and shares that an artist needs inspiration to drive them. But how does one balance inspiration and originality? “It’s a think line. It depends on what the filmmaker wants from you. When I was working on Hridayam, I remember sending a zillion links to Vineeth sir for reference, asking him whether we could create something like this and that. That itself says that I’m being inspired by a lot of tracks around me and I’m waiting for an opportunity. And when I’m given one, I put them into the work. It happens with every film. It happened with Hi Nanna too. It’s the director who channels my work. He or she has to direct me on a path, for that film. After we go on that path, we decide what works best for the film and carve out something unique with all these inspirations. That’s my job.”
But it’s a transparent process, Hesham assures. “If you ask people around me, they’ll tell you that we all sit together and compose. Everybody’s involved in it. It’s a team work, ultimately.”
