Leslie Lewis and Hariharan came together to formed Colonial Cousins music band. Their unique brand of music fused Indian and Western musical genres instantly won the hearts of young and old alike. Their eponymous first album hit platinum in sales in India alone and consistently headed the Indian music charts in 1996. The music band have received numerous awards, notably the MTV Asia Viewers' Choice Award, 1996, and the US Billboard's Viewers' Award, 1996. They were the first Indian Band to be invited to play live on MTV unplugged. They have scored two Tamil films, Modhi Vilayadu (2009), Chikku Bukku (2010).