Date : 13-08-2016
Bollywood’s much-awaited Akshay Kumar starrer ‘Rustom‘ has just hit the screens. ‘Tere Sang Yara‘ a song from the film, sung by the raspy voiced Atif Aslam has already become a hit on social media. But what has that got to do with Mangaluru?
Three young musicians from Mangaluru, led by Stephen Vijay Frank Madanthyar have taken the popularity of the song to new heights with their cover version of the song performed in their own personal style. The cover is also doing very well on social media especially on facebook getting almost 2000 shares on the first day of release, surprising the pundits!
Stephen Vijay Frank Madanthyar – who has produced, played the keyboard and melodica and arranged the music for the cover version of the song ‘Tere sang yara’ is a budding musician from Mangaluru. He visited the Newskarnataka office and spoke exclusively to Divya Cutinha.
Putting forth his reasons for choosing the ‘Rustom’ hit song as his latest cover, he said, “When I heard the song for the first time, I wanted to recreate it in my own style. I chose to replace Atif Aslam, the original singer, with a very good friend, but also a teen singing sensation and winner of the ‘Voice of Udupi’ Nihal Tauro. He has justified the selection. The audio has been mixed and mastered by another young talent from Mangaluru Darrel Mascarenhas and the excellent videography has been carried out by a young lad Vivek Gowda from Sakleshpur.”
A music director, Stephen had previously composed music for four albums, one in Kannada titled ‘Yadha’, one in Konkani, ‘Ek Geeth’ and two in English, ‘Blessings’ and ‘Time of Grace’. He has also rendered the background score for the short movie, ‘My wish my honor’.
Stephen’s covers – five till date – have all been well appreciated by his growing audiences, for they are performed in an inimitable and unique style, that blends the original with the new. His first cover ‘Eee Sanje’ from the Kannada blockbuster ‘Rangitaranga‘, Bollywood song ‘Samjawan’, another hit number ‘Galliyan’, ‘Hello’ by Adele and the latest ‘Tere Sang Yara’ have all created a buzz on social media.
Stephen said that he never let his humble background stifle his talent. He started learning music with the support of his uncle Valerian Frank at the age of 18 in Sandesha College of fine arts under Sr. Mary Gracelet and at 24, within a short span he had come out a well-rounded and talented musician. He was being modest – he was quickly becoming famous around the city!
Currently, in addition to his many initiatives and creatives in the musical field, he teaches music on his own at the Sandesha College. Other than playing the Keyboard, he learns Piano under the auspices of the Trinity College of Music, London from Mrs. Vimala Lobo and has completed 8th grade in musical theory. He has also performed in hundreds of stage shows.
Stephen bemoaned the lack of recognition, but sent out a strong message for those who want to start out as professionals – work hard and never compromise on quality of music. Being a young musician himself, he has plans to introduce new talents.
Stephen has his own YouTube page – Magical Fingers – and a Facebook page ‘@stephenvijayfrank’ through which he keeps his fans updated about his projects.
Watch this much liked and shared cover version of the hit Bollywood song ‘Tere Sang Yara‘ by Stephen Frank with videography by Vivek Gowda here, and dedicate it to your loved ones.
