Sreejith Edavana brings South Indian musical flair to Hindi crime series 'Janaawar'

Malayali music composer Sreejith Edavana, known for his work in South Indian cinema, recently made his Hindi debut with ‘Janaawar,’ a psychological web series starring Bhuvan Arora, Atul Kale, and Vaibhav Yashvir. The series, which has garnered positive reviews, is a gripping police procedural that follows SI Hemant Kumar as he investigates a missing person's case that eventually unravels into the hunt for a serial killer. A remake of the Tamil series Vilangu, Janawar is deeply rooted in local culture, and composing the music for such a unique narrative proved to be both challenging and rewarding for Sreejith.

To immerse himself in the authentic sound of the region, Edavana spent several days in the forests of Chhattisgarh, absorbing the folk music and culture of the indigenous tribes there. For the Kerala-based composer, this was a rare opportunity to step outside the genres he’s most familiar with. “I’ve worked on a Tamil investigative film, D3, and contributed to a segment in the Malayalam movie Thirimali, but in both cases, I never had the chance to explore music like this in such depth,” he shared.

Sreejith said the director’s vision was to give the music of Janaawar a distinct South Indian flavor while maintaining the tense atmosphere of a psychological thriller. “That was definitely a challenge,” he admitted. “The story is deeply rooted in local folk culture, so blending that with South Indian instruments and musical styles was tricky.”

To capture the authentic sounds of the region, Sreejith and his team ventured deep into the forests to record local music, studying the unique patterns and instruments used by the tribal communities. “We recorded sounds from their single-string instruments and bamboo, which became integral to the score,” he explained. “At first, I wasn’t entirely satisfied with the results, even though the filmmakers were pleased. But once we fine-tuned the sounds, everything came together smoothly.”

With the core sounds in place, Sreejith Edavana was able to complete the music for Janaawar, adding a rich, culturally layered soundscape that perfectly complements the intense, thrilling narrative. He shared that the series' director, Sachindra Vats, reached out to him after hearing his composition Kaadhal En Kaviya, sung by Sid Sriram. "I was surprised to learn that the filmmaker had been following my work, and that’s how he reached out to me," Sreejith explained. "I was on board with the project even before the shoot began."

Janaawar isn't the only debut for Sreejith. He also ventured into filmmaking with Cicada, a Malayalam film that follows a man battling hunger and attempting to escape a ferocious jungle. Sreejith revealed that his passion for direction grew as he worked on music for various films. "Whenever a director or scriptwriter shares the story with me, I always visualize the scene to translate the music," he said. "I also observed how different directors worked. I assisted as an associate director on a couple of films, and when I came across a good script, I decided to direct my own film. We're currently in pre-production for my second directorial project, which is a big-budget bilingual film backed by a major production company."

Despite his growing success, Sreejith believes that South Indian musicians are still facing barriers in North Indian cinema. "Even with the rise of OTT platforms, it's still rare to see Bollywood or North Indian filmmakers picking South Indian composers," he said. "That’s a hindrance we still face,” said Sreejith who has also composed music for numerous films, independent albums, and ad jingles. He is also known for ‘Tharam Padapichu Koodaram,’ ‘Nenjodu Chertu,’ and many others that have been dubbed into all major South Indian languages.