MUMBAI– Music composer Pritam, fresh off the release of his latest album Metro… In Dino, has revealed he was stunned to learn that celebrated lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya once wrote for Dev.D — a talent Pritam says he never recognized when Bhattacharya was his assistant.
Speaking to IANS, Pritam recalled, “Amitabh was one of my first assistants. He came to me for work when I was new to the industry. I thought he was only a singer — he never used to write. I made everyone a lyric writer, but somehow I missed this side of him.”
Pritam recounted how he often encouraged colleagues to try lyrics: “Amitabh Verma was an editor at my studio — I made him a lyric writer. Mayur Puri was Sanjay Gadhvi’s assistant — I got him to write a scratch. Ashish Pandit came to sing, and I asked him to write something for a presentation. But Amitabh Bhattacharya? He slipped past me!”
When he discovered Bhattacharya’s work on Dev.D, Pritam said, “I couldn’t believe it. The first song he wrote for me was for Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai. Since then, we’ve built an equation, and I trust him deeply with lyrics.”
The composer also hinted at a new collaboration with director Anurag Basu, revealing he’s “super excited” about a yet-to-be-titled project. “Anurag has a few fresh ideas. There’s one in particular — I can’t reveal much — but it excites me just like Life in a Metro did. I hope he makes it soon,” Pritam said. (Source: IANS)
