Thaman S | |
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 Thaman at Damaal Dumeel Audio Launch | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Ghantasala Sai Srinivas[1] (1983-11-16)16 November 1983 (age 42)[2] Nellore,Andhra Pradesh, India |
| Genres | Film score |
| Occupations |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1994–present |
Ghantasala Sai Srinivas (born 16 November 1983),[3] professionally credited asThaman S, is an Indiancomposer andplayback singer known for his works majorly inTelugu cinema.[4][5] He is the recipient of theNational Film Award for Best Music Direction for his work in the 2020 musical hitAla Vaikuntapuramulo.[6]
His breakout film as a music director wasKick (2009).[7] His notable compositions include films such asEeram (2009),Brindavanam (2010),Mirapakay (2011),Osthe (2011),Dookudu (2011),Businessman (2012),Naayak (2013),Baadshah (2013),Greeku Veerudu (2013),Ramayya Vasthavayya (2013),Race Gurram (2014),Aagadu (2014),Bruce Lee: The Fighter (2015),Sarrainodu (2016),Tholi Prema (2018),Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (2020),Akhanda (2021),Sarkaru Vaari Paata (2022),Varisu (2023), andDaaku Maharaaj (2025).
Thaman has been the judge in the reality singing showTelugu Indian Idol. He is known for his frequent collaborations withRavi Teja,Surender Reddy,Sreenu Vaitla,Trivikram Srinivas, andBoyapati Srinu.,[8]Pawan Kalyan,Mahesh Babu
Thaman was born as Ghantasala Sai Srinivas in aTelugu family of musicians inNellore,Andhra Pradesh and grew up inChennai.[9][10] He is the grandson of veteran director and producer,Ghantasala Balaramayya.[11] His father, Ghantasala Siva Kumar, was a drummer, who worked for seven hundred films, under music directorK. Chakravarthy. His mother, Ghantasala Savitri, his sister,Yamini Ghantasala, and his aunt,B. Vasantha, are allplayback singers.[12][3] Sai Srinivas adopted thestage name Thaman and suffixed it with an S, the initial of his father's name Sivakumar.[1]
Thaman's father was his first teacher, who was also an accomplished drummer who worked with the likes of legendary percussionistSivamani. Thaman enteredTelugu cinema as a supporting drummer at the age of 11 when he accompanied his father for the background score for the filmBhairava Dweepam in 1994.[13] He performed in 7000 stage shows all over the world before becoming a music director. He worked for 64 Indian music directors as a rhythm box player, keyboard programmer anddrummer for 900 films before he became a film music director. His debut releases as a music director wereKick in Telugu andSindhanai Sei in Tamil, both of which released in 2009.[14][15] He made his acting debut with one of India's most celebrated directorsShankar'sBoys (2003).
Thaman studied at Boston School inChennai. He joined a music team consisting ofS. P. Balasubrahmanyam andG. Anand as a rhythm pads player when he was nine years old,[16] and discontinued studies at the age of 13 when his father died. He was compelled to make his hobby into a profession to overcome the crisis in his family.[17] He then joinedRaj–Koti and worked for three years on 60 films under their tutelage. He also worked withM. M. Keeravani for three years on 30 films.[citation needed]
Thaman considersMani Sharma to be his guru and spent eight years under his tutelage, while working on 94 films with him.[18] On the whole he put in fourteen years of rhythm and keyboard programming with the veterans before branching out on his own.[19]
Thaman made his debut as a composer in through theTelugu feature filmMalli Malli (2009), although the soundtrack album was released in 2008. Jeevi ofIdlebrain credited Thaman's work in the film is credited as "good".[20] The same year his second soundtrack, of the filmSindhanai Sei, marked his debut in theTamil cinema.[21] He has also made his playback singing debut by recording "Uchimeedhu" song from the soundtrack. Background score in the Tamil filmEeram (2009) received good reviews from the critics.[22][23] Although he started composing the music of the film in 2007, the soundtrack was released in 2008 and eventually the film was released in 2009. In May 2017, Thaman made his Hindi debut when he was one of the six composers who featured in the soundtrack album ofRohit Shetty'sGolmaal Again, a comedy franchise inHindi cinema.[24] In 2018, he composed a theme song for Rohit Shetty's successful ventureSimmba.
Thaman owns music bands named Band Thamania and Gongura band.[25][26] He is also a Cricket player, part of CCL[27] and He owns a team called the Thaman Hitters.
| Year | Title | Role | Language | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Boys | Krishna | Tamil | credited as Sai | [28] |
| 2009 | Sindhanai Sei | Himself | Special appearance | ||
| 2010 | Ayyanar | ||||
| 2019 | Mr. Majnu | Telugu | Special appearance in the song "Koppamga Koppamga" | ||
| 2024 | Baby John | Hindi | Special appearance in the song "Nain Matakka" | ||
| TBA | Idhayam Murali | Sachin | Tamil | Also music composer |
| Year | Title | Role | Network | Language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Super Singer Telugu | Judge | Star Maa | Telugu |
| 2022–present | Telugu Indian Idol | Aha | ||
| 2023 | Super Singer Junior 9 | Star Vijay | Tamil |
| Soundtracks |
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| Songs | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Artists | |
