“Do you know that sambar is originally not a Tamil food?” Sean Roldan asks suddenly, slightly drifting away from our conversation about modern relationships, gender roles and love for cricket. He says, “It was a dish introduced by the Marathas when they came down south. We modified it and made it our sambar. Such is the Tamil culture; it embraces and absorbs different practices and makes those a part of it. Addressing this all-encompassing nature of the Tamil language is one of the aspects of Coke Studio Tamil season 2.”
While the theme of the first season was ‘Idhu Namma Isai’, the second season is all about feelings, titled ‘Idhu Semma Vibe’. He says, “Last year, we wanted to show what Tamil music is in Tamil Nadu. Now, we want to show what Tamil music is to the world and how widespread it is. The language is spread across different countries and has taken new forms. For instance, having grown up in the UK, singer Yanchan’s understanding of the Tamil language is also influenced by his culture. So, we want to bring all of those different expressions and experiences under one umbrella.”
Sean has been the curator of both seasons for Coke Studio Tamil. Besides composing a few scores, the music director brainstorms ideas for each song and chooses artists to collaborate with. Each season has around 6-8 songs. It is different from how it works in films, Sean tells us. “The film has its own challenges because the story has different complications. Sometimes, there are mostly template situations for a film’s playlist. It is different here because you are creating a story.”