Aoora Talks About Bringing K-Pop Charm to Kerala Folk Music on ‘Thi Thi Thara’

From singing festival songs to trying his hand at Assamese and Bollywood classics, Korean artist Aoora’s latest song takes him to the backwaters of Kochi, singing “Thi Thi Thara (Kuttanadan Dreams)” with singer-songwriter Sireesha Bhagavatula.

Aoora says over a video call, “Before this song itself, I used to find so much South Indian music very interesting. I was listening to the songs, watching the music videos. I felt I could try working in this space of South Indian music. I have so many fans in Kerala also, who used to say ‘You should make a song like this.’”

In the process of being in and out of India over the years – including appearing on one of India’s biggest reality shows, Bigg Boss season 17 as a wild card contestant in late 2023 – Aoora has picked up a bit of the local languages. He excitedly shouts “Chalo!” and “Roko!” during our call. After putting out “Thi Thi Thara,” he mentions the Malayalam word “adipoli.” “It’s a very fun word,” Aoora says.

While that was just one word, it took the artist over a month to figure out how to sing Malayalam lyrics for “Thi Thi Thara,” which is produced by Fridayyy and features saxophonist Mellow Kitchen. “Malayalam is a little more difficult [than Hindi]. The part in the hook, I practiced it for a month and a half. I heard it every day and recorded and changed so many things to get to what you hear,” he says.

Bhagavatula, who joins the call later, says she also took help from a friend to sing in Malayalam. She adds, “The pronunciation is extremely different. I heard Aoora worked for five weeks on it, which shows how dedicated the entire team is. That impressed me a lot, and so I also made sure to give my best.” Calling Aoora a “household name” in India, she says she was excited to work with him when the project came her way.

Although she’s heard various versions of the Kerala folk song, even she was amazed by the way Aoora and Fridayyy gave it the pop treatment. “I didn’t think this song could be made this way. I’ve usually heard it in [veteran singer] Yesudas sir’s voice. How a song like this could be treated without losing its authenticity yet add some new flavors, is what I got from it. Fridayyy did a great job as well,” Bhagavatula says.

Aoora is all praise for his co-singer as well. “She has a beautiful voice and her soul is amazing. Together we made something amazing, I think,” he adds. He recounts that even with Fridayyy, they heard a lot of “South Indian instrumental music” that they incorporated into the song.

A big part of the appeal is not just hearing a Korean artist sing in Malayalam – which has often been Aoora’s USP with previous India-focused releases – it’s also seeing the artist immersed in Kerala culture, from the seemingly omnipresent Kathakali dancer to Mohiniyattam dancers, plus a boat ride in the backwaters near Kochi. Aoora dresses up in a mundu as well, looking as sharp as ever. He says about the video, “We went to Kerala for two days for shooting. It was very hot and I was sweating a lot. It was really fun because all we were doing was shooting, eating, resting and repeat.”

“Thi Thi Thara” will appear as a remix on Aoora’s next big project, in the upcoming Indo-Korean drama Landed in Korea in which the artist is also acting. He calls the show the first of its kind, in terms of a romantic drama that plays out with an Indian girl traveling to South Korea in search of love. “She finds four different kind of guys – a handsome guy, a kind guy, cute guy and a sexy guy. That’s the love story.  I’m making music for this soundtrack, including a remix of Thi Thi Taara. It’s a total of six tracks we’re preparing,” Aoora adds.

As Landed In Korea slowly finds its way to audiences, Aoora is plotting more collaborations in India, whether it’s a Punjabi song or a Telugu song. He says, “I’m hearing songs from all these languages and learning about Indian culture. I’ve had many learnings and I’ll keep trying. It’s been amazing.”