FROM GULLY TO BOLLY

Since Gully Boy's release, the audience has been in love with the rap songs of the film and the life of rappers, which comes to life on the silver screen. One of the rappers whose life has inspired the film, Naved Shaikh aka Naezy, recently recalled his journey through Gully Boy. "I launched my first rap called Aafat in 2014. It was a complete DIY song which I shot on my iPad. At that time, I was really revved up because I wanted to put something out there. I had a lot of anger and aggression when I was 21 – I wanted to channel it and that's why I decided to make the rap video. The song, fortunately, went viral on YouTube and in the underground rap scenes across the country."

Recalling his first interaction with Zoya Akhtar, he says, "That year, Zoya Ma'am's Dil Dhadakne Do was in its post-production phases and someone showed her my Aafat video. She was fascinated by the song, the language I was using and how fast I was rapping. When she heard I had come from this small gully, she got interested, especially because she was aware of hip-hop history and knew rappers like Tupac, Nas, etc."

"She felt my content was good and that it had the right feel and authenticity. She really liked it and started researching on it. Later, we had our first meeting, where she was trying to learn about my life and she found it very interesting. Around that time, she decided that a movie should be made which represents gully rap," he adds.

Naezy was a tad nervous about his life bursting onto the big screen. "I have mixed feelings about all this. I am thinking positively about the film. It is not completely based on us, it is not a biopic. It is inspired (by our lives). I guess it is nice but normal for us now because in the last four-five years, we have received the love, popularity and the excitement that comes with it. But, yes, Bollywood is a big platform for us as rap has been limited to an underground movement and whatever we have explored has been in the Indie movie scene. Since this is a large-scale film, we will be going to the masses, going to everyone's homes, which will be great."

Naezy started rapping when he was in his teens. "It has been a long journey. I was born and raised in the gullies of Mumbai. I have seen a lot in life and struggled too. I have fought hard to get where I am today and it has not been easy. I translate those experiences into my songs. I first heard hip-hop when I was at a function and I got hooked to the fact that there was a beat going on and someone was just saying something through it. I was very fascinated that someone could use hip-hop and its beat to say what they wanted to – share their message with listeners. Then I started doing some freestyle rap in college to impress girls. People would be interested to see that I could do this, I could rhyme words and say it in a certain tone."

Shedding some light on the rap scene in India, he says, "People think it is only about partying, chilling, girls, etc. But there is another side to it, which we are trying to get people acquainted with but they are still not used to it. It will take some time for people to understand what we are trying do here with our songs."

Shooting with Ranveer Singh must have been a lot of fun. Naezy remarks, "It was a lot of fun working on the film. It really is a different world and we figured that out when we started meeting Zoya Ma'am. But hip-hop helped connect both our worlds. It is something that can connect anyone, anywhere. And Ranveer bhai has always been interested in hip-hop and he recognised us even before the introductions. He is very energetic and you never feel low around him."

Naezy says Singh has very keen powers of observation and the rapper didn't have to really instruct the ace actor. "He has also done very good research on the subject through videos on YouTube. With that and whatever he observed, he knew the character, how rappers speak, our body language, etc. He adapted very quickly."

The film has already brought a rap revolution to the country, especially among the youth. Acknowledging this, the rapper says, "I think this movie is going to change a lot of things. Bollywood is now waking up to our content. I also think this is validation that our songs have a place in the music scene. Bollywood will help us get the acceptance that we have always wanted from the masses. Zoya Ma'am has given a chance to so many budding artistes from this genre. There are a lot of talented people who have not had the right chance to show their skills. This film has helped them get recognition. Zoya ma'am has given them such a huge platform. The entire jukebox of the film is filled with these artistes."

He acknowledges that the makers of this film have made sure it appeals to the audience. "If they had only shown the workings of the underground hip-hop scene or Indie cinema, it might not have had a good impact at the box office. Keeping all these things in mind, they have introduced some controlled masala that will appeal to viewers. It is a combination of the Indie scene and masala, the mixture, the balance that will work well with the audience," Naezy believes.