Vidhu and Deepthi - month long show in the US / Canada

Finally, after several shows in various other parts of the world, the couple have landed in the US for a month long show along with Meera Jasmine, Bala, Suraj and others.

Show is brought by Freedia Entertainment. After sold out shows in Texas, the team is moving towards New York / New Jersey this weekend.

Venue and date details here:

http://www.freediaentertainment.com/

For those in the SF Bay Area, shows details can be got from the hosts The Kerala Club of California here: http://www.mjshow.us/

A few fun comments from Suraj and an invite by Meera Jasmine:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFUPaLRRxwg&feature=player_embedded#at=37

And, if you are wondering - yes I am back after a long hiatus. Hopefully, my writing skills are intact, and people will come back for these specials ...

News is out - Vidhu Prathap is getting married !

It's official now - Vidhu Prathap is getting married !

Date : 20 Aug, 2008

Venue: Trivandrum Club

Reception: Lulu Center, Thrissur

Bride-to-be: Deepthi Prasad

The marriage was formally confirmed about a year ago. Vidhu has known Deepthi for some time now, they first met in the Pakal Kinavil song-album where he was the main singer and Deepthi provided the dance sequences.

Deepthi Prasad's background: She is a classical semi-professional dancer, with an interest in the IT field as well (her internship was at Toonz). She has also anchored several TV shows. She has been kala-tilakam at the university festivals and done shows with actor-dancer Vineeth. She lived in Germany for a few years, her father being in the consulate there.

This must be the first picture of the couple together, so had to keep it small to prevent it from being used in other media sites.

Vidhu Prathap - 2008

Posting after almost a year of silence.

Hard to list everything that he did, so I will do a "Top 10" in random order:
1. Sang in Kangaroo, Sound of Boot etc
2. Some great albums, liked the Kudayaay song best, music by Manu
3. Appeared in Idea Star singer, as the only Male Celebrity singer to sing with all the female contestents
4. Judge in new reality show Little Masters, along with Rimi Tommy
5. Performed in several big award shows, including Ujala-Asianet awards
6. Sang in another Tamil film, not released yet - Kannada film Vasanthakala released
7. Star Chase with Vidhu Prathap, an episode showing his typical day
8. Did several Gulf shows, for Onam, New Year's eve etc
9. Sang in several movies yet to be released, will list those in the next post

And now for the #1 event:
10. Vidhu Prathap is getting married !!!

Cannot provide details at this time. Clue? She is not a singer ... :)

Breaking news - Vidhu Prathap in Kannada - Jul '07 !!!

Things are "humming" for Vidhu Prathap. He just finished recording for 3 songs in Kannada. Music director is V Manohar, Hamsa Lekha's disciple and guru of Mano Murthy (of record breaking Mungaaru Male fame).

V Manohar himself just had a blockbuster movie - Duniya - completing 80 days at the box.

How it happened: Vidhu Prathap went to audition for V Manohar few months ago. Manohar was very impressed, and called him down to Bangalore last week. He was given 2 songs in a single movie - Vasanthakaala.

As he was singing, there was a producer in the same studio who was struck by his voice, and right then signed him up for his movie that was just beginning recording. He stayed on for 2 more days to complete that and is back after his first Kannada songs.

We hope everything goes well and the movies go on to be big hits!

Songs pics from a house visit - Jul '07

Latest movies/events - Jul '07

The Malayalam music industry seems to be "rocking". There is a deluge of movie songs and albums releasing every day. Everybody wants to hum something in public and if you have the right contacts then even sing in the albums and movies.

Music competitions everywhere ... mind-boggling prizes. Sponsers are giving away flats to winners as casually as Tharikada gives away free rice bags to by-standers. Finalists have super-star status ... media exploiting the human element to the hilt.

An entire crop of music directors have arrived ... from colleges. Mejo looks good with a Deepak Dev touch - his range will be tested in coming days.

Videos and lyrics are getting very creative.

Hope all this translates to a vibrant industry and makes it easier for the real talents to froth up through this heady mix.

Vidhu had several engagements - some shows, album work, interviews, shoots, private parties. South Indian Bank got Vidhu as one of their brand ambassadors. Huge billboards in Thrissur and Ernakulam with Vidhu, Mejo, Cicily saying "Our bank - South Indian Bank".

Movies:

- July 4th - Joshi's new movie with Dileep in the lead, mentioned in the previous post
- Suhurth - Venu Nagavally movie
- Pazhassi Raja - Mammooty's historical movie penned by MT, directed by Hariharan, music by Ilayaraja
- SMS - another college movie, music by Ilayaraja - co-sung by Vineeth Sreenivas
- Challenge - a dubbed movie that was missed in the previous post

Several albums in the works. Need to mentioned another video album that has a certain wonderful feel - "Monjulla pennalle". Vidhu Prathap won the Gulf Music award for Best Mapilla Song for the year.

Events:

- Dubai show done in Jun
- Several shows in Kerala

Latest movies/events - Apr '07

Vidhu Prathap had a busy Vishu as usual.

He sang in movies with heroes ranging from Kalabhavan Mani to Mohanlal.

Movies:

- Paayum Puli - song Minnana minnal, an item number with Rambha doing the usual heart-stopping stuff :) Generated some controversy as to why we had to waste the talents of the singer/music director on such tasteless scenes. But Vidhu has done a fantastic job with the huskiness in the voice, Mani completes the effect, lip-synching perfectly. Definitely gets my vote!
- Athisayan - song Athisayan, director Vinayan's experiments with animation
- Pandhaya Kozhi - song Sundariye chembakamalare, music by Alex Paul - chart-topper
- Hello - song Hello hello aval with singer Sujatha's daughter Swetha, Mohanlal movie directed by Rafi Mecartin
- Happy - a telugu movie dubbing - song Kodiparum Pooramalle
- An as yet un-named Joshi / Dileep movie, music by Ouseppachan

Album:

I have to remark on an album that I got recently - Vidhu has many wonderful album songs that have many fans, but this one needs mention:
- album Ormayil Iniyennum - song "Vaanaville ente nenjil paithozhinjille". The video is good if you discount the actors (is this their wedding album song?). Seriously, this is a romantic pathos song that has these ghazal like lilts, and it will creep into the hearts and mind of many guys and girls. Sounds like the "Pranayakalam" song from Vidhu's earlier days ...

Events:
- Swaralaya Gandharvasandhya awards - Vidhu sang "Santhana thenralle", Chitra later sent him an SMS saying it was "too good". He also sang "Kaathal rojave"
- Vanitha Fairever awards - "Kai niraye venna tharam" blew away the audience, very impressive. Also sang the closing song ...
- Yesterday, he just completed a tour of north Kerala starting Vishu day.

Couple of interviews - Mar '07

Came across 2 good interviews on the net recently.

Vidhu mentions a milestone in one - he has completed 100 films !

Here are the links:
Video clip of Webindia interview:
http://video.webindia123.com/interviews/singers/vidhuprathap/index.htm

Thusharam interview - transcript in മലയാളം:
http://www.thusharam.com/1182-kumbam/int-vidhu.htm

There was an interview by Yethukrishnan for American Cafe on Kairali TV today. Tried to call but did not get through!

Latest movies/events - Nov '06

Yeah, it's been a long time ...

Had to note some milestones before closing out this year of 2006.

Movies:

Of course, some of Vidhu Prathap's latest songs are in movies that went on to be hits:

- Classmates - song Kaattaadi thanalum, music by Alex Paul
- Notebook - song Mazhayude cherumani, with Afzal and others
- Vargam - song Kaavalaay, music by Thej

- Anuvaadamillathe - song Pakal mulla, music Berny Ignatious
- Colourful - song Swarna nila theril, music Sayan-Anwar

And now of course, Ara pavan from Vasthavam, MusicIndiaOnline song of the fortnight. Semi-classical and tailored to Prithviraj's voice. Music by Alex Paul.

There is also an Ayyappan cassette and video with Vidhu in the works. Not sure how many remember Thatvamasi from a few years ago.

Events:
- He was on Vasthavam's Students Only - did not get to say much however ...

More later, watch the space.

Latest movies/events - Mar '06

Movies:

Several movies came in the last couple of months, after a slight slow down in the industry. Some movies that featured songs by Vidhu Prathap :

- Out of Syllabus - song Poovinithal Cheppil, music by Bennet
- Vargam - Prithviraj movie, music by Thej
- Ravanan - Kalabhavan Mani as SP, music by M Jayachandran
- Aarya - Chiranjeevi's nephew as hero, song Feel my Love
- Another Vinayan movie in the works

- Ente Suhra - currently the most popular malayalam Mappila song album, great title song Ente Khalbinte Muthaya Suhra, sung with the pathos and feeling that only Vidhu can generate - see coolgoose for the song. Another tidbit - this is Mamooty's favorite song, said to be playing on his laptop always

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star is finally getting released, saw the trailer and songs on TV

Kannama song from Thanmaatra got the due credit from fans and critics alike, music director said he was most impressed by the "feeling" Vidhu imparted to the song

Events:

- Asianet Film Awards on Mar 21, Vidhu sang 3 songs at the star-studded show, including the popular Velmuruga Harohara song from Naran

Please comment ... come back for the next post.

Latest movies/events - Oct '05

Several trips to the Gulf and events in and around the hometown has kept Vidhu busy in Aug and Sep. Onam lunch was in the UAE as is routine now.

Events
- He was at 2 TV channels inaugurations in the past couple of months - Kairali's People TV and Amrita TV
- Upcoming show with Udit Narayan in the Gulf, Vidhu was picked because of his easy handling of Tamil and Malayalam songs and stage presence

Movies
- Thanmaatra - Blessy's new Mohanlal movie, heard this is the title song, very different - Music by Mohan Sithara
- Bus conductor - not sure about the name but sung by Madhu Balakrishnan and Vidhu - Music by M Jayachandran
- Mantram - Music by Alex Paul

Will update as details come in ...

Vidhu at DD interview (at home)

Latest movies/events - Jul '05

Latest songs
- Mayilin song in Pandipada for Dileep (Suresh Peters music)
- Song in Krithyam for Prithviraj
- Couple more movies and several albums
- Will update as details come in

Generally a slow time for malayalam movies and songs
Several costly movies have fared badly at the box office, should get better soon

Upcoming Events
- Another show in London during Aug '05
- Gulf shows in Sep for Onam (Vidhu has'nt been at home for several onams now!)

Post comments to bring any issues to my attention.

At a recent function
bale10

Vidhu pic - 05/25/05
bale10

Latest movies/events - May '05

Latest songs
- Kannil umma song in Alice in Wonderland (sang for Jayaram, Vidyasagar's music). Director Sibi Malayil had some good things to say to him after he heard the recording.
- Oridath oridath song in Adbuthadweepu (sang for Prithviraj, M Jayachandran's music)
- Velliyaranjanam song in Annorikkal
- Hey U Queen song in Twinkle twinkle little star (Ilayaraja's music)
- VidarumVarnapookal song in Iruvattom Manavatti (Alphonse's music)

Many albums, these are getting better than traditional movie songs these days!
- Mazha kaalamalle

All these songs are on Coolgoose.com - search for artist = Vidhu

Events
- Ajman show postponed to sometime in Jun '05
- Show in London (yeah again!) during Jun '05

Post comments to bring any issues to my attention.

Events/schedule - Mar '05

Vidhu is on back-to-back trips for the next few weeks. Only the major events are listed:

- First on the list is a show in Dubai
- Next there is a Singapore show, I believe this is his first time in Singapore
- End of the month is a trip to London, this is a 4-5 days programme

The US show seems to be coming back to life. It could be re-scheduled to sometime in September if the visa issues are sorted out soon.

Recorded for Ilayaraja

This is for a movie called "Twinkle twinkle little star".

Vidhu Prathap was in Chennai last week to record for this movie. The amusing thing about recording for Ilayaraja is that the maestro himself ends up singing some of the best songs in the movie - not sure if this is because of some technical reason or if he just liked his own music enough to sing it himself. And of course, who has the guts to question "the little king" ? :)

This movie is getting some publicity with its multi-lingual (Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu) scope and new movie making technology being used. This is a dicey story-line, so it will take some story-telling to pull this off. No amount of technical wizardry can substitute a weak story or weak direction. Need to wait and see how it develops.

US show cancelled

This show has been cancelled due to visa troubles for some artistes.

The side effect has been that even other shows and recordings that were scheduled during then had to be cancelled due to the month long US show that was supposed to happen in April.

Well, bad things just happen I guess !

Other shows have already come his way so he's not too disappointed.

Most exciting shows

Which shows did Vidhu Prathap himself enjoy and cherish ? Which were some of his mega shows? Have to unscramble old memories here, going back from the most recent -

- Ilayaraja's Symphony show in Chennai - the maestro released this album along the lines of "How to name it", Vidhu was one of the singers invited for the show - sometime in Nov-Dec 2004. Jyotsna and Vijay Yesudas were also there
- Mohanlal's 25th year celebrations - this was a mega show and done at several places at the same time. Artistes had to choose 2 locations to perform. Vidhu was at TVM and Kozhikode.
- Monsoon diary - this was an extremely well-crafted show in TVM and impressed Vidhu quite a bit - it drizzled and poured on the stage - the show was staged by Rajeev Kumar, and produced/planned by Shaheen, a young guy with a strong business tack. Good to see these talented guys getting into the limelight
- Vidhu Prathap's first European trip - performed in Germany, Austria, UK, Italy and other places - the troupe was led by Urvashi
- will keep adding as I recollect ...

Birthday and those good old days!

DOB - 1st Sep, 1980

-- Born in Kaithamukku, Trivandrum
-- Studied first few years in Holy Angels, then finished at Christ Nagar
-- College, Mar Ivanios - he was the Arts club Secretary during graduation year

-- University, district, Rotary winner in several musical categories, years in a row
-- Final competition attended was the Asianet Voice of the Year - he was in the 10th std when the competition started and 17 when it ended in 1997 - he won the title against impossible odds. More on this later ...

-- Going to competitions was his way of constantly getting better - I counted upwards of 300 trophies, cups, plates and statues on 3 lines of shelves in his house
-- the hard part was the saadagam, the practising, continuing music lessons, travel and school - a tough regimen to follow year after year
-- then he had the occassional urges - like learning kalari from CVN Kalari nearby (yeah the guys who taught J Chan for his new movie) - that stopped after sometime...

Email-id - its changing, watch this space

Email-id - his id is changing - the old one is full of junk mail
There are a lot of "chatters" who borrow Vidhu Prathap's name - dont fall for it.
Vidhu never chats - sometimes his friend gets on a session to be in touch with fans and faithfully reports most sessions.

Address:
'Govindum'
MRA 169
Kaithamukku
Trivandrum

Cell #:
When your cell bill is like Rs 10,000 a month - I can understand you don't want this posted!

Latest events/movies - Feb '05

This is going to be a regular title - listing upcoming events and movies that Vidhu is involved in.

Latest shows -

He just got back from almost a month-long show in the Middle-East. Led by Mohan Sithara and in the company of the latest crop of stars like Afsal and Jyotsna, this was a good show. He appeared on the DSF programmes (Dubai shopping festival) -- anchored by Santosh Paali -- several times.

In between, there was a program in Bangalore with Rimi for which he had to fly down for a couple of days. The show played to a packed auditorium and the sponsors were so happy that they asked for a date every month!

Latest movies -

Fewer recordings last month due to the month-long show in the Middle-East.
- Vinayan's experiments continue with Adbuthadweep - Vidhu has recorded for this movie some time ago
- Recording completed in Chennai for Pandipada - Dilip movie, Suresh Peters' music, Rafi Mecartin's direction
Few other movies too - updates coming ...

Major milestones

Can't list every milestone and award he has won - that would be the "opposite of fun" for me!

But major ones, in order of importance -
- Kerala State award, Best male playback singer, for the song Kalame Kaikolluka nee, movie Sayahnam, year 2000, music Perumbavoor G Ravindranath. Incidentally, Perambavoor is also his teacher on and off

- Asianet-Lux award, for the song Sukhamani Nilavu, movie Nammal, year 2002, music Mohan Sithara

- Asianet Voice of the Year - the first such attempt in the country to bring out latent talent from all over Kerala - lasting 1 and 1/2 years in 1996-97, it was a gruelling match of the best talent - music college toppers to professional musicians. The best judges and the best anchors. Vidhu came out best - at age 17, this was a feat. More on all this later ...

- First break in a movie, Devadasi, year 2000, music by Sharath. Unbelievable song Pon Vasantham with 12-13 shifts in talam. Singer Unnikrishnan rendered a song in the same movie which he declared was the toughest song of his career

- First hit song Valeduthal, movie Meesa Madhavan, year 2002, music Vidhyasagar

- The Week magazine, in their 2003 I-Day issue, projects Vidhu Prathap as one of India's 50 emerging stars - this link works on and off, so here's a cached link

- Vidhu's version of the song Shukiriya - from the movie Niram - most requested song for stage shows at that time

- Ilayaraja introduces him in Tamil, movie Solla Marantha Kathai - an offbeat movie with great songs. Song starts with a bold '70's style humming

The beginning ...

If you are imagining Vidhu Prathap's home to be a sangeetha sabha of veteran carnatic exponents, forget it! His father Prathapan was not muscial in any out-of-the-ordinary way nor his mother Laila. His appuppan (the Late Chief Judicial Magistrate, TVM), grandad on his mother's side, however dabbled a little.

Because or inspite of all this, they let the kid take up music lessons when he was 3 years old. His elder sister was already doing that and together they went out to music competitions. The kid pair used to visit their dad in Abudhabi - and go to every competition they could find. And they won prizes.

Vidhu excelled in several art forms - mono-act, recitation, light/classical music etc. More prizes stacked up in his room.

Skip, skip ... end of the begininng.

Pic - Vidhu Prathap with his neice

About this blog - Jan '05

Why a blog about Vidhu Prathap? Fair question. Because, lets see:

- there are a lot of people interested in knowing minute and latest details about this singing star
- people are confused as to why all this attention on "just another new singer"
- people want to get their facts straight on their favorite stars
- they need a compilation of details all at one place
- there is a lack of good write-ups on malayalam music in general
- also, there's my own urge to share this information
- many more reasons - too many to list ...

Being very close to Vidhu Prathap, I hope to do justice to all of you out there who follow his music. There will be frequent updates and unpublished details here - so check back often. There is a lot of hype about him but a lot of facts too, you will see these separated here as we go along. Singer Vidhu Prathap, regular young guy Vidhu Prathap, its a hard combination to carry around. Please post your comments by clicking on the comments link.

Now, onward to the posts ...