If you were one of those Chennai youngsters between 2014 and 2019 who were trying to be edgy and explore their musical inclinations, chances are you might have come across Kabar Vasuki and Tenma’s band Kurangan.

The two composers, who gave hits like ‘Rasathi’ and ‘Rockstar’ with distinctive musicality and whimsy in their songs, rose to fame a decade ago, giving way to the creation of an alternative genre of Tamil music that was different from mainstream cinema. It was very far. The duo were among the first few people in the industry to call themselves ‘independent artists’ when only a faint trace of the scene existed in Chennai.

Ten years later, a lot has changed. The band split up. Both of these artists created vibrant, distinctive music. However, the album Kurangan Era continues to find patrons.

Tenma worked with and produced Castless Collective, a band rooted in social justice. He was also instrumental in the formation of the Madras Indie Collective, where artists from different socio-economic backgrounds collaborated and met new audiences. he composed the music for Irandam Ulagaporin Kadaisi Gundu And Natchathiram NagargiraadhuThe films are also produced and directed by Pa Ranjith respectively. Before long, one could see that this music producer was helping to create the environment for independent Tamil music to survive and possibly flourish.

However, when artists like Arivu and Pal Dabba were getting millions of streams on audio streaming apps, the scene started gaining global attention. Barring sporadic sets of tweets on Chennai, music and anime, Tenma Gone MIA.

Where is Tenma and what is he doing?

artificially intelligent guardian

“I have been doing a lot of introspection for the last two years,” says the musician. “I did a lot of films and was building an independent ecosystem since 2013. Then I think this mid-life crisis hit me. It affected me and I felt… what am I doing?

The quest to connect with this deeper sense of self has led Tenma to take interesting artist residencies in different parts of the world, including Indonesia and Australia. In addition to interacting with musicians around the world and creating what he calls music of the global South, he also visited a village in Bandung, Indonesia, where he began painting.

“I tried painting at Loyola [College] When I was studying visual arts. However, my peers were better off, so I never took it up. In Bandung, they had a lot of organic paints, including ginger and turmeric, and so I started. The experience was fantastic and I realized I was interested in exploring the visual medium,” he says.

He says, since he had previously assisted filmmakers on set and during the shooting of music videos, he decided to study film production as well. “At this very moment, I found an interview with Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia [American multinational corporation in the field of graphics processing unit chips instrumental in the world of Artificial Intelligence(AI)] Who talked about learning to use AI to stay ahead. This is when I tried to create my own images and try my hand at the game,” he says.

Around the same time, Tenma was commissioned by the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for their Voices from the South programme. He decided to create three tracks using Korukkupet Pambai and Udukkai traditions for the work under the title ‘Ostrasized Guardians’.

Screengrab from The Valor of Madurai Veeran. Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Among them, there was a song called ‘The Valor of Madurai Veeran’, which talked about a Dalit warrior who was given the status of a deity and guardian. “I’m a nonbeliever, so I focused on humanizing the characters. Madurai Veeran was not just a warrior. Her love story with Ponni and Villiyammal is interesting, layered and political. To me, this quest for village deities seemed like a plain old honor killing story. Over the years, he has been sanctified. But it’s a story worth telling,” he says.

Tenma says the AI ​​helps bring these characters to life. That’s why he’s launching Pirated Films, an AI film and creative studio that wants to connect the worlds of new technology and music videos. When asked about conversations and debates about AI taking over jobs, Tenma says technology has always faced such dialogues in the past. He says it’s important to remain curious throughout the process.

Screengrab from The Valor of Madurai Veeran. Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Additionally, Tenma says he continues to work on jingles to pay the bills and work on specific projects that interest him. He says that he is currently working on a project with writer Tishani Doshi.

What’s on his playlist today? “I am not listening to as much Tamil music as I should. Nicolas Jaar dominates my playlist, but I also listen to Anirudh a lot when I’m driving,” he says.

Bravery of Madurai Viran Will be released on October 28 on Tenma’s YouTube channel TenmaMaxMusic.