Brothers Salim-Sulaiman are the latest Indian music act to go global
A song about saving the Bengal tiger, composed in a studio in Juhu, Mumbai, and layered in New York with voices of American children, is Indian music’s latest claim to global recognition. Salim and Sulaiman Merchant’s We like being small, a number composed for the popular American show Wonder Pets, an animated series about saving animals worldwide, has been nominated for the Daytime Emmy Awards in the Outstanding Original Song category.

“The production team of the show approached composers from different countries. For the episode on the camel, someone from the UAE was asked to compose. When it came to the Bengal tigers, the team approached us,” says Sulaiman Merchant, the elder of the two.

For over a decade now, the Merchants have been making their own brand of music for the film industry—either striking background scores or peppy soundtracks with a distinct Indian touch for films like Fashion, Dor, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Chak De!India. The number that goes to the Emmys has a strong backing of Indian instruments such as the tabla, sitar, santoor and the flute and is composed in the operatic style. “Indian sounds find their way into our compositions quite often. But it is heartfelt, not forced, and depends on the script,” says Salim.

The brothers have been making music together for 25 years now. While Salim used to play with his church choir in school, and then in his college band, he never got into a rock band. Sulaiman has been there, pounding drums for a band in college. “We used to practice in the basements and garages of our building. We did one show and then broke up,” says Sulaiman.

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