Shruti’s name in Srimanthudu was inspired by the song charusheela: DSP

In between giving final touches to the music albums for upcoming releases of two of South India's biggest matinee idols — Mahesh Babu's Srimanthudu and Vijay's Puli — Devi Sri Prasad admittedly has "no time left for anything else." Not even to dwell on living upto the huge expectations surrounding the films. "There is so much to do, where's the time to worry," quips the composer, who has been having sleepless nights working on the music for the Tamil version of the Mahesh-starrer.

In the last 16 years that he's been around, DSP has composed music for over 60 films. yet, this is only the second time that he's composing for Mahesh. And the composer admits to have pulled out all the stops this time: "I was supposed to work for a few of Mahesh's films in the past, but things never materialised until 1 Nenokkadine. It was a serious film and I did not have the scope to introduce too many dance numbers. In Srimanthudu, I went all out and incorporated foot tapping dance elements that is sure to get the audiences on their feet," explains Devi Sri Prasad.
Whether it is the Michael Jackson-inspired Charusheela, the Indie rock style Jago Re Jago sung by Raghu Dixit, the folksy Rama Rama, the uplifting title track Srimanthudu or the soft romantic number Jatha Kalise, the music director has made sure there is something in the album for everybody. "Srimanthudu is the kind of film that will appeal to all sections of the audience. I was blown away by the story when director Koratala Siva narrated it to me. I tried to make sure the music also strikes a chord with everyone from the masses to the classes," says DSP.
Apparently, the song Charusheela inspired the name of Shruti's character in the film. "When composing the tune for the song, we came up with the opening phrase Charusheela. Director Siva loved it and decided to name Shruti's character Charusheela. It's a peppy dance number that has Mahesh sporting an uber stylish look. Lyricist Ramajogayya Sastry has come up with a fusion of chaste Telugu words and English slang and I incorporated the Michael Jackson rhythm in the song," explains Devi Sri Prasad, who turns a year older today. He'd rather not tell us how old he is though. "I'm over 30, but don't feel a day older than 25," he retorts. "Please bless me and wish me well, but don't ask me how old I am. In that sense, I'm like a girl I guess. But age is just a number, right? Why should it matter," he adds.
Srimanthudu is jointly produced by Naveen Yerneni, Ravi Shankar and CV Mohan under Mythri Movie Makers banner.