Actor Allu Arjun's latest movie Pushpa: The Rise, which hit the screens in December, emerged as a big hit in the Hindi belt despite facing competition from Spider-Man: No Way Home and 83. Its songs, in particular, have become a rage among music lovers due to the effective lyrics. Lyricist Raqueeb Alam, who penned the Hindi songs, says that he didn't expect them to become so popular even though he was aware of Bunny's fan following.
"There is a craze for him in the North. I know this quite well. In fact, my niece herself is a fan of his films. Even in remote areas, he is a brand. I, however, did not think the songs would become so big. Itni ummeed nahi thi," he told DH.
The Devi Sri Prasad-composed soundtrack featured five songs with Srivalli being the pick of the lot.
"Srivalli was the toughest one to write. There was no sync involved, which gave me some freedom. I improvised on the lyrics at some points," added the lyricist.
Alam is an accomplished writer in his own right as he previously penned lyrics for Rajinikanth films such as Darbar and Petta.
"Tamil is a bit easier for me than Telugu as I spent a few years in Chennai and can understand the flavour," he said.
He, however, admits that translating songs from Telugu and Tamil to Hindi is not an easy task.
"I have gotten used to the process but the sync is an issue. At times, there are things I want to write but the flow of the song does not permit," said Alam.
He is, meanwhile, awaiting the release of Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo's Hindi-dubbed version. The film, which premiered in the Telugu states in 2020, features Allu Arjun and Pooja Hegde in the lead. It was scheduled to release in Hindi this month but that did not happen. Alam has also penned songs for Shahid Kapoor's Hindi movie Jersey, a remake of the Telugu sports drama of the same name.