MUMBAI: Couples that make music together stay together. Or so it would seem. The Indian film and music industries have had their share of couples who have been bound by music in more ways than one. On Valentine’s Day, we highlight a few whose off-screen chemistry played no mean role in the magical music they churned out.

R D Burman - Asha Bhosle

She sang for an array of composers, turning their tunes into sublime melody, but she kept that special magic reserved for the songs she crooned to RD’s music. Both had a turbulent personal life before they married in 1980. The couple scored innumerable hits together ranging from the ‘Piya Tu Ab To Aaja’ which must rank among Asha’s most energetic and sensuous numbers, where RD himself chipped in with the unforgettable ‘Monica, my darling’ line. And if that doesn’t put you in the Valentine’s mood, ‘Chura Liya Hai Tumne Jo Dil Ko’ from ‘Yaadon Ki Baaraat’ surely will. 

The duo continued to make music together till Pancham passed away in 1994.  

Sona Mohapatra - Ram Sampath

They are collaborators and business partners on the music they make with their production house Omgrown Music. Ram composes, Sona croons and he has gone on record terming her ‘the most positive turning point in his life’. And such magic they weave with their tunes - be it ‘Jiya Lage Na’ from ‘Talaash’, which was Ram’s first big ticket entry into Bollywood, apart from the edgy Delhi Belly. Another popular number from the duo is ‘Aaja Ve’, from her album ‘Sona’, which was composed by Ram. And if you haven’t yet heard the Punjabi folk tune inspired Ambarsariya, composed by Ram and sung by Sona for the film ‘Fukrey’, we recommend you give it a listen soon. And also, keep your antennae up for Rahul Dholakia’s 2016 release ‘Raees’, for which Ram has composed and Sona is sure to lend her vocals. This duo doesn’t disappoint.

Kavita Krishnamurthy - Dr L Subramaniam

She may have touched the pinnacle of popular success with the ‘Mr India’ number ‘Hawa Hawai’, but Kavita Krishnamurthy’s life appears to have travelled a wholly different and more fulfilling trajectory after her marriage to violinist Dr L Subramaniam in 1999.

She has been selective about the songs she has sung since and has expanded her artistic range to areas which were never explored. She was the main featured soloist in the Global Fusion album released by Warner Bros., featuring musicians from five continents. Together, they have travelled around the world including to the US, UK, Europe, Africa, Australia, the Far East, the Middle East, and South America. 

Together, they also launched a music institute, called the Subramaniam Academy of Performing Arts, in Bengaluru in 2007.

And yes, their latest collaboration has been for the 2015 Ananth Mahadevan film ‘Gour Hari Dastaan’. Next on the radar is an album of Hindi songs which Subramaniam has composed and Kavita has lent her vocals for. 

Nikhil Chinapa - DJ Pearl

DJing is what binds this couple together. Nikhil, associated with MTV India since its earliest days, went to become the Festival Director of Asia’s premier music festival Sunburn Festival in Goa before parting with Percept in 2013. Pearl, who started her career in small clubs, married Nikhil in 2006 and the two co-founded Submerge, which serves as a platform for many upcoming DJs in India.  Submerge Music has been known for having been instrumental in bringing the most prominent DJs to India such as the likes of Above & Beyond, Swedish House Mafia, Alesso, Deniz Koyu, Armin Van Buuren, Zedd, Hardwell and Tiesto.

Nikhil has a massive fan following among EDM (Electronic Dance Music) enthusiasts on Twitter and is credited by and large to be a pioneer for EDM in India. Nikhil has gone on record to say that Pearl is his inspiration – “Every time she plays, I’m amazed at how she strings together songs I’d never have the courage to play to create a beautiful soundscape of music and emotion.” 

Rekha - Vishal Bharadwaj

Rekha has sung for a myriad of composers - from A.R. Rahman to Himesh Reshammiya - but the best from her oeuvre appears to be the songs she has sung to husband Vishal Bharadwaj’s tunes. But it ‘Namak Issq Da’ or ‘Hamari Atariya’, the songs stay on in listeners’ minds long after the last tune has faded away. The two met at Delhi’s Hindu College during an annual function and struck a common chord. His strength is his poetry; hers is her training in Hindustani classical music. Rekha has sung for Vishal in practically each film for which he has composed the music. Vishal’s 2016 release ‘Rangoon’ should be worth watching out for - both for the music and Rekha’s vocals.

Clinton Cerejo - Dominique Cerejo

Clinton, music producer and singer, is best known for the various songs he composed for ‘Coke Studio’, ‘Madaari’ with Vishal Dadlani being one of the most popular ones. Dominique has been his partner in music since their college days. The couple has been married for over a decade. Both started out their careers in the ad jingles industry and have moved to Bollywood since.

Dominique is best known for her ‘Rock On’ hit ‘Yeh Tumhari Meri Baatein’, and has sung in over 30 Bollywood soundtrack albums.  Clinton’s range of work includes playback singing, vocal arrangements, musical arrangements, background scores, music programming and production. His latest release

‘Jugni’ has received rave reviews from critics for an original, intelligently crafted score. He has made Vishal Bharadwaj sing the quirky ‘Dugg Duggi Dugg’ - the first time Vishal has sung for another composer. Here’s to more from this talented couple in 2016!

Sonali Rathod - Roopkumar

Sunali, as she calls herself now, was earlier married to Anup Jalota, but appears to have found the perfect blend of musical and domestic harmony with Roopkumar, himself an acclaimed singer and composer.

They make several appearances together and have cast themselves in the mould of ghazal jodis like Jagjit-Chitra Singh and Bhupinder and Mitali. Roop Kumar, along with Sunali, has won the title of ‘Ustaad Jodi’ on ‘Mission Ustaad’, on a musical television reality show aired in February 2008 that aimed to create awareness about social causes. The two have together recently released a Sufi album called Kalmaa. 

Anil Biswas - Meena Kapoor

The millennials may never have heard of them, but this pair was among Bollywood’s earliest to deliver joint hits. Biswas, an acclaimed composer who composed some well-known film songs right from 1935 to 1965, and was instrumental in introducing Mukesh and Talat Mahmood to the Hindi film industry. In 1959, he married singer Meena Kapoor who was already well known for hits like ‘Rasiya Re Man Basiya Re’ and ‘Kacchi Hai Umariya’. Biswas, who is often credited for moulding the voice of Lata Mangeshkar as well, cut some sublime tracks in Meena’s voice, including the haunting ‘Kucch Aur Zamana Kehta Hai’ for Motilal’s ‘Chhoti Chhoti Baatein’. This was probably one of the earliest music jodis of Bollywood!