In this episode of ‘Guest in The Newsroom’, our guest is Music Composer and Singer Salim Merchant and music composer Sulaiman Merchant. Salim–Sulaiman are an Indian music composer duo consisting of siblings Salim Merchant and Sulaiman Merchant. The duo has composed music predominantly for Hindi films. Apart from this they have a they work for a musical initiative “Bhoomi”. Watch the Full Episode to know more
00:00 – Interview Highlights
00:03:22 – Saurabh introduces Salim & Sulaiman
00:07:43 – Salim & Sulaiman react to host’s detailed intro
00:09:00 – The fight story: Collector’s item (Jungle Book/Gold Spot stickers)
00:10:30 – Sulaiman corrects: Injury was a fracture, not a sprain
00:11:03 – Part 2 of fight: Not speaking for 3–5 years despite sharing a room
00:12:04 – Music brings them back together
00:13:54 – Origin & purpose of project Bhoomi
00:14:04 – Realization: Lack of Indian folk/ghazals in “World” music sections abroad
00:16:01 – Bhoomi album started in 1998, released in 1999
00:17:04 – Salim sings “Kate Na Hi Raat More Piya Tore Kaaran”
00:18:03 – Bhoomi predates Coke Studio (1998–99 vs. 2003–04)
00:18:32 – Revival of Bhoomi in 2018
00:18:54 – Recording Sukhwinder Singh’s bandish “Sawwal Mod Mohara”
00:20:22 – Need to reinvent sound due to film music constraints
00:22:29 – Core purpose: Spotlight folk & reveal depth in contemporary singers
00:23:50 – Bhoomi 2025: Sixth season
00:24:47 – Childhood rebellion: Shoe marks on fresh school wall
00:26:51 – Most irritating & best habits of each other
00:29:21 – Salim’s best quality: Letting Sulaiman lead
00:31:25 – Host recommends reading Nirmal Verma
00:32:46 – Question on physical aggression revisited
00:34:09 – Admitting physical & verbal fights
00:36:26 – Introduction of Anshuman Sharma (Saiyaara- viral Kishore Da AI song)
00:37:43 – AI Advantage-Idea generator
00:38:51 – AI Advantage-Test singers’ suitability with AI voice models
00:39:37 – AI Advantage-Separating stems to study compositions
00:41:16 – Global AI-music royalty tracking efforts
00:43:55 – Sulaiman: “Songs are destined for certain singers”
00:45:03 – Salim: New singers need unique voices
00:46:39 – Band Baaja Baaraat lyric change: “Bheega” → “Dooba”
00:50:09 – Advice for siblings composing: Let music win
00:51:35 – Example of complex composition: “Rasiya” (Kurbaan)
00:53:14 – Risk of fusing Classical & Electronic music in Bhoomi 2025
00:53:44 – Goal: Make Classical accessible to new gen
00:57:09 – Devotional context behind romantic hits like Shukran Allah
00:59:11 – Composition begins at script level, visualizing scenes
01:00:59 – Example: O Re Piya composed before story was ready
01:04:49 – Recording Aashayein (Iqbal) with KK
01:10:01 – Salim’s solace: Spirituality (Vrindaavan, Najaf, Dwarka)
01:10:33 – Sulaiman’s solace: Silence (beach, nature)
01:12:24 – Viral concert video: Sonu Nigam & Sunidhi Chauhan join on stage
01:16:54 – Salim’s reason for quitting reality shows
01:20:20 – Sulaiman: Good songs often overlooked due to promotions
01:21:53 – Salim: Audience trends untuned singers, not labels
01:27:10 – Launch of Merchant Records: Community over Industry
01:35:27 – Aditya Chopra demanded a “Sports Anthem” → Chak De India
01:38:34 – Sukhwinder Singh’s quick recording sealed Chak De
01:39:24 – Chak De India had lowest SRK opening
01:41:00 – Popularity soared after India’s T20 World Cup win
01:43:08 – Maula Mere song story
01:44:28 – Melody originally written for Dor
02:10:38 – On remixes: “Old songs are gold, remixes make them brass”
02:19:00 – Creative conflict: “Halkat Jawani” lyric in Heroine
02:25:24 – Promise to make a Saatvik Bhojpuri song for Bhoomi
02:28:03 – Devotion to Maula Ali (Ismaili Shia Muslims)
02:31:31 – Composing Hanuman Chalisa (Shreya Ghoshal)
02:33:30 – Salim addresses backlash for religious posts
02:37:25 – India’s growing concert infrastructure (Coldplay example)
02:40:53 – Recording Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan for Or Pyaar Ho Gaya
02:45:00 – “Chand Sifarish” arrangement explained
02:47:19 – Role of BGM as “unseen narrator”
02:48:19 – Rule of silence in BGM
02:51:29 – BGM for Krrish: Western orchestral + Indian folk
02:53:14 – Current playlist: Bhoomi 25 songs (Shringar, Sukoon)
02:55:50 – Salim with Ustad Zakir Hussain as child
02:58:33 – Father left films in 1968 for devotional Gujarati music
02:59:26 – Salim sings father’s favorite devotional song
03:01:29 – Father witnessed first success
03:06:01 – Mixing Bhoomi (1999) at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios
03:13:21 – Salim’s cricket background & pendant
03:21:19 – Sidhu Moosewala’s unreleased romantic song
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Production: Akash Singh
Video Editor: Shakir Khan
