As doors between Eastern and Western music are flung wide open, making the crossover are some big names from the Indian film music world.

A R Rahman has made the leap with his music for Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Bombay Dreams. The play's soundtrack is a roaring hit in the West and has renewed international interest in Indian sounds.

Says Rahman: "I've had some very good offers for collaboration with the Western musicians, though I'm not at liberty to talk about it right now.

"I've also had some offers to compose music for Hollywood films. I do plan to station myself in London for a while every year because London is like the centre of the world between India and the US.

"But Chennai will always remain my home because that's where my family is."

Another gifted Chennai-based composer, Sandeep Chowta, is also beginning to strike global sounds.

Chowta, whose new film soundtracks for E Niwas' Dum and Deepa Mehta's Bollywood/Hollywood are ready to create a splash all over the globe, has been invited by popular London deejay and rapper Fat Boy Slim for a collaboration.

"We're going to meet in March. I will go to London to do a song with him. It'd be an original song, and he'd be re-interpreting it."

"After Devdas and Bombay Dreams, the curiosity and excitement for Indian popular music in the West is unimaginable.

"Over here we look up to everything in the West. But the fact is Westerners look towards us with equal respect. Suddenly there's a massive Bollywood wave in the West."

There's the Jimi Mistry-starrer The Guru, while Deepa Mehta's Bollywood/Hollywood is making waves in the US and Canada.

"Indian popular music is big in the Western market. They want our hardcore commercial cheesy stuff. My forthcoming non-film album Mitti will be the perfect voice from India to the West."

Bollywood's popular singer Sonu Nigam is also heading to the US. The singer, who's currently shooting for his second Hindi film as a leading man, says, "I had gone to the US recently for some concerts.

"Everywhere I went I got these offers from Americans to do world music. I've a company in the US to look after my interests. I got some acting offers as well.

"More exciting was the fact that Brent Lewis from the band the Grateful Dead came to one of my concerts. He was taken by surprise when he saw an Indian singer doing a popular act like any pop singer. Lewis invited me to his place in Los Angeles.

"One night we jammed together for a couple of hours. It was amazing. Now Lewis has asked me to do a fusion album with him.

"There's also Reggie Benjamin who has a number one hit called Hurry Up. He wants me to add my input to that song." He is currently working on Benjamin's song with Chowta.

"Sandeep is going to Britain. I'm planning to check out the US. So I'm eight hours ahead!" grins Sonu.