Pritam has little time for Bollywood these days. And that’s because the popular composer of Hindi songs has a big project in hand: he is fulfilling a dream that his father shaped. If all goes well, Calcutta will soon have a music school where students won’t be charged a fee.

His father, Prabodh Chakraborty, ran a similar school in the city once. It closed down in 1995 when Chakraborty, also a musician, fell ill.

“My father never charged his poor and enthusiastic students. And I had been planning to reopen the school for many years but couldn’t do so because of my busy schedule in Bollywood. This hurt me a lot. I have fulfilled all his dreams except this,” says Pritam. “But now I have started rejecting Bollywood films because I want to give time to my family.”

Following in his father’s footsteps, Pritam says the school will be for those who can’t afford to pay for lessons. It will be named Unimusic School like the centre run by his father. “Also, I shall open it at the same place where it was earlier. I will provide students with all the help needed,” he says. Once that’s done, he plans to start a similar school in Mumbai in his father’s name.

The composer of songs from such hits as the Dhoom series and Ready wants to ease his busy schedule. For a while now, he has been rejecting big projects. Among the films he has said no to, he lists Priyadarshan’s Tezz, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Rowdy Rathore, Salman Khan’s Bodyguard and Prakash Jha’s Aarakshan. “I feel bad about rejecting movies. I have declined to do many, but my biggest problem is I cannot say no to people,” he rues. So Pritam has agreed to do a song for Rowdy Rathore and another one for Bodyguard. “I have also become very selective about movies because at times my music goes unrecognised if the film is a flop,” he says.

Despite his many hits, Pritam, who grew up Calcutta, is going through a low phase. Being inundated with work meant he had little time for himself. “My health was affected,” he says. “But now it is very important that I see the outside world and go for a holiday.”

That’s of course easier said than done, for he has to compose for some 20 films and doesn’t want to score what he calls “passive” music. “I wish to do complete justice to them. This year, some of my music did not work out and I don’t want to break the trust that people have in my music.”

There has been trouble on other fronts too. Recently, he was sued by a man who accused him of using his lyrics in the song Character Dheela in Ready. The case was rejected, but Pritam is still upset. “People simply take advantage of my past record. I have always accepted that my music is inspired by other composers and I am diligent about giving credit where it is due. But now I am being blamed for plagiarising lyrics which I do not even write. I even get blamed for remixes which I do legally,” complains the distressed composer.

He, however, has decided he is not going to take “inspiration” from others’ works any more. “Now no one can say that my work is not original. I have also decided that I will take legal action when someone accuses me of plagiarism. I want to set an example so that no one will dare to accuse me wrongly again,” he adds.

What’s hurt Pritam is that an industry insider — composer Anu Malik — recently accused him of lifting his music from the song Mohabaat naam hai kiska from Ajnabee and charged him with copying R.D. Burman’s Dum maro dum without giving credit. Malik later apologised to the producer, T-Series honcho Bhushan Kumar.

“I was shocked when Anuji made such a statement. The tune, tempo and rhythm are completely different from his composition. There is a similarity of only one note which you can find in almost all songs. I have always respected Anuji as a senior composer and never expected this of him,” he says.

He was taken aback by the accusations regarding Dum maro dum too. “Even a four-year-old knows that this is RD’s composition. We have also given credit in the music CD. But I am happy that he has apologised to Bhushan. I deeply respect Anuji and that is why I have asked my legal team not to take action against him.”

Pritam now wants to put all this behind him and look ahead. In his new projects, he plans to feature talented newcomers from West Bengal. “I want to make Life in a Metro 2 with my metro band but in a new style and with new people.”

When he talks of newcomers, Pritam gets emotional, recalling his own experiences in Bollywood. “At times I just sit alone and think about my journey and how I achieved all this success,” he says, adding that he was pursuing sound engineering but always wanted to become a composer. “My break in Bollywood was like a miracle.”

But Pritam likes to stress that despite the successes, he remains the boy that he once was.

“I own several cars but wouldn’t mind taking an auto to go somewhere. I am a simple man and have no demands about clothes and accessories. I don’t mind wearing a T-shirt worth Rs 100, I can do without the AC and at times even sleep on the floor. I eat whatever people offer me. I am still the same Pritam who once used to struggle in Mumbai or roam the streets of Calcutta with friends.”

He stresses he can understand the problems that newcomers face. “That is why I want to give a chance to them. And that’s why I have decided to open this music school.”