MUMBAI: An experienced person always tells the best stories about the changes happening in and around. Musician, lyricist, singer, composer, producer, Sanjay Maroo is that one person who has seen the industry up, close and personal. Maroo who has been in the industry for over two decades is also an entrepreneur– he has a logistics business. Maroo does not talk about things he has done in the past, but shares from his vast repertoire about the industry.

That the industry is changing drastically is a cliché. Most things have changed and nothing is like before, almost all things have taken their own routes and turns and more. But have we ever given a thought to the reasons behind the changes? Well, the answer to this is the audience, consumers, listeners, and much more opines the musician.

Maroo talks about the changes he has witnessed over the years and some of his reasons are things most people may not even have thought about. He says, “The consumption pattern has changed today. Earlier we used to have a CD compilation of 8-10 songs, and now nobody has the time to listen to 8 to 10 songs at one go.”

Maroo recently released a single - Altered Freedom. The single not only talks about freedom, in it Maroo also questions the audience about the kind of freedom that one seeks.  His unabashed lyrics ignite the listener's mind by bringing up very important points, with the number leaving audiences thinking, “What is real freedom, what does one need freedom from, what is the responsibility attached to such freedom and to what extent can one exercise it?”

“When we say freedom, what kind of freedom are we talking about? Is it freedom to do what you want, say what you think? Is that the freedom that society is looking for? These questions keep coming on my mind,” says Maroo.

Check the song below:

Radioandmusic asked Maroo about the reason for not releasing his single through any record label. He explains, “I don't find any labels for independent artistes that are truly worth it. So when I release it on my own, I can ask my friends and people I know to support me and share my videos. But how can I compete with films that cost Rs 50 to100 crores (Rs 500 million to Rs 1,000 million) in making and have a Rs 5 crores (Rs 50 million) budget just for marketing?”

“Further as independent artiste we have no intention of competing with films. This is the same scenario in the west and it works there. While in India, cricket and Bollywood are two things that you will not be able to take away from the people here,” he added.

“Things were not the same five years ago - technology has turned our lives in many and very different ways. Nothing is secret and exclusive anymore. It’s a very different world we are living in. While there is a lot of exposure and access to information, there is also a downside which we all can see but fail to recognise. We have started accepting things. We all have some kind of political control, be it television, media, social media. I think we should just be cautious about the things we say,” added Maroo.

Maroo holds a Limca Book of Records for the fastest double bass foot drumming at 1106 beats per minute. He was 14 when he started drumming. Coming from a conservative Marwari family, it was not acceptable for a boy to be into drumming. Because he had a set of drums, Maroo kept air-drumming in front of a mirror and that is how he learned the art.