‘Stree 2’ is set to hit the theatres on August 15, 2024, and it is already creating a buzz, especially for its soundtrack. The credit goes to the popular music composer duo Sachin Sanghvi and Jigar Saraiya, popularly known as Sachin-Jigar.

Known for their versatility, Sachin-Jigar have delivered everything from high-energy party anthems like ‘Party Abhi Baaki Hai’ to soulful romantic tracks like ‘Saebo’ and ‘Apna Bana Le’ and even ghazal-inspired tunes like ‘Aaj Ki Raat’. Their ability to work in different genres has cemented their reputation in the industry.

In a recent interview with IndiaToday.in, the duo opened up about their evolving musical journey and the creative philosophy that drives them. They emphasised that their focus is not on chasing a particular sound, but on constantly pushing their artistic boundaries – a distinction that makes them truly stand out in the music industry.

Excerpts from the interview:

From ‘Shor in the City’ to ‘Stree’ and now ‘Stree 2’, how has your approach to composing music evolved? What new elements or experiments can we expect in ‘Stree 2’?

I think as composers we have become a little more aware of what people want from certain films. So, finally, we have understood what is center and what is off center. Earlier, we used to choose something that was a little off center because we felt that was the only way to break the clutter. Yes, but I think over time, making off center music has made people like that approach as well.

If you watch ‘Saibo’, you will find that it has very minimal space arrangements. Also, it came right after ‘Party Abhi Baaki Hai’. Now, the industry might typecast you, say, “These are made to be party songs“(They only make party songs) And then all your songs will sound the same. But we are lucky that after meeting Remo sir, we met Raj and DK, who gave us our first break. Raj and DK gave us the freedom to compose something different. If you see, ‘Shor in the City’ is very different from ‘Go Goa Gone’. ‘Faltu’ is very different from ‘ABCD’.

We weren’t very artistic or alternative, but we weren’t at the centre at all, not very mainstream. I’ll just give you an example. Now, we have the courage to make the main item song, a ghazal, for ‘Stree 2’ – we did ‘Taras’ in ‘Munjya’ with Sharvari, and now we did ‘Aaj Ki Raat’ with Tamannaah.

She is a dancer-entertainer in the film, so when she sings, she sings a song like ‘Aaj Ki Raat’, which is a ghazal. It should fit the character. You can’t experiment thinking ‘oh ab mujhe pata chal gaya’. It should still fit the film. The main item song in ‘Stree 2’ is a ghazal. I think it is the fans and the experience we have got that makes us more confident to do something mainstream in a slightly different way.

And I think that’s a clear evolution in our minds. I think we’ve become a little more comfortable about experimenting and choosing songs or tunes. I think we’ve become far more commercial now. It’s not that our earlier songs haven’t done well commercially, but I think in our minds, we’ve made peace with commerce, and art is now naturally aligning with our new business sense, if I may say so.

Is there a specific sound you define yourself by?

We have made a conscious decision to not define ourselves. We are trying to be a one or two brand that is always evolving. If you are a musician or an artist, the only thing that can stop or limit you is yourself. We never thought, “This is our sound, so we will make it like this.” If we have to make a romantic song in 2024, it will be ‘Khubsoorat’. This is what will keep us evolving. If we stop evolving, our art will also stop evolving.

Our big aim is that even when you listen to Sachin-Jigar’s song later, when we are done, you will find something similar in both the songs – something that makes us different. We decided not to have a certain sound, to be different and not repeat what we have done. For ‘Stree 2’ we decided that we will not use any songs from the first film; we will make a new album. Producers like Maddock support us in all this. This is what keeps the artist in us alive.

Your compositions often blend different musical styles. For example, ‘Aaj Ki Raat’ has a ghazal sound, but the composition is modern music. How did you strike a balance between the two?

The relevance will come from the arrangement, but the soul should be desi. In the past, AR Rahman, RD Burman and SD Burman used to achieve this. You have to pick a desi tune and create the right balance with a modern, contemporary representation. Sometimes, we also use a small sample to create the skeleton for a song. So, sometimes these tunes come over a beat.

Jigar, Amitabh Bhattacharya, Dinesh Vijan and I – we all meet for dinner and then discuss the films and the songs required for certain scenes. When they asked us if we had anything, Jigar told us that we had a beat and then we started jamming. I told Amitabh da that Tamanna’s character is Shama. She will not sing any Mumbaiya song. Then he gave the idea that her name is Shama, she can speak Urdu and is from a place like Chanderi. If she is a female dancer/entertainer, she will sing something like that.

That’s where the idea came from: we have this beat, let’s make a rootsy, ghazal-type tune, like Ghulam Ali used to compose, with a bit of colour in it. If you listen to the song, it definitely has a hint of Parveen Sultana.

So, we are using our knowledge to make something desi-cool or desi-modern. The system is always an attempt to make the desi soul even more cool and more delicious. So, yes, that is our process.

Watch the trailer of ‘Stree 2’ here:

Directed by Amar Kaushik, ‘Stree 2’ stars Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee and Pankaj Tripathi in lead roles. Produced by Jio Studios and Dinesh Vijan, ‘Stree 2’ will release on the big screen on August 15, 2024.

The film will clash with John Abraham’s ‘Veda’ and Akshay Kumar’s ‘Khel Khel Mein’ at the box office.