If any modern composer has managed to blend the serious with the snazzy notes, film score composer Michael Andrews is right up there with the best. Funny People (2009), Cyrus (2010), She’s Out of My League (2010), Bad Teacher (2011), Bridesmaids (2011)… and now Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist (available on Universal Music). An email chat with the 45-year-old musician who can play the guitar, piano, cello, drums and marimba!

The Reluctant Fundamentalist takes you to a musically different space from that of Bad Teacher or Funny People. What were the challenges in composing the score for Mira Nair’s film?

Logistically there were a handful of challenges. First, collaborating across the world is extremely challenging. Starting my day as Mira ended hers or vice-versa meant that one of us was always exhausted when we discussed the score. The limited budget made it difficult. Musically, keeping the tension and emotional balance was also very challenging. Determining the level of musical fusion was constantly discussed.

How was it working with Mira Nair?

She is an incredible person who makes impossible things happen daily. She is an inspiration. She opened me up to an entire world of music. Even if I did not incorporate Indian music into the score to a large degree, I had to be aware of it. I had to immerse myself in it.

The movie requires you to blend your style with traditional Pakistani songs, besides working with Atif Aslam and, of course, Peter Gabriel. That must have been quite a task?

I had a basic knowledge; the music that comes over here in the form of pop music or world music. As for the singers, I actually did not meet either of them. I built the track with just Atif’s vocal as a starting place. Music (in this film) is the warmth and the guide. It is the weight and the wings. It is a tap on your shoulder.

Be it Funny People, Bad Teacher or Bridesmaid, your music is predominantly fun. In what ways is it different from working on albums?

Every project is different and I love making all kinds of music. True I have been hired for fun movies… so the music is fun. When I make a score for a movie, the movie is the master, the guide. It is also a very collaborative effort. Records are different, especially my solo albums, which are personal expressions based on my own unfiltered whims.

So, what makes your film scores distinctive?

The fact that I make them based on my own flaws and strengths. I feel like they are always personal. For better or worse they are extensions of myself.

What kind of music did you grow up on?

Mostly the typical western pop stuff…. Beatles, Rolling Stones... 1970s folk and funk.

Finally, who are some of the film score composers you admire?

I am a fan of Jerry Goldsmith (Rambo, Star Trek), Lalo Schifrin (Mission Impossible, Dirty Harry films), John Williams (Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List). The first score that struck me as amazing was Planet of the Apes by Jerry Goldsmith. I think I was 10 years old when I first saw it.