The telegraph chats with Sonu Nigam, who was in patna recently for an event, about the changing trends and culture of music in india and a lot more The era when Jagjit Singh came was an era of ghazal lovers. Ab ghazal sunta kaun hai? Ab sab Honey Singh ko sunna chahte hain!
This is your second visit to Bihar. Have you noticed any changes?
I was in Patna in 1996 for a show, but at
that time I was not that famous. The reputation of a state reflects its
culture. Bihar has always been in news for something notorious or the
other. But now things have changed and one can actually witness the
development. But of course iske pehle main Bihar aane se katrata tha.
Lots of international singers are
becoming a part of the Indian music industry. Do you think they are
posing a challenge to singers here?
It is good that international talents are
composing and performing here. We are giving international musicians
space and scope to perform, which many countries don’t. We Indians know
the perfect meaning of secularism. Besides, when you have competition
from outside it leads to exploring of new styles of music and reviving
old ones. There should be a healthy competition among the singers. At
least for the sake of competition, musicians will come up with unique
compositions.
You made your career with independent music albums but now we hardly hear of them. What is the reason behind it?
Digitisation led to the fall of
independent music. Who will buy CDs/cassettes when the songs can be
downloaded for free on the Internet? I still remember 1 crore cassettes
of my first album Deewana were sold. But times have changed and people prefer listening to those songs but on the Internet.
According to you what are the pros and cons of the fall in independent music?
The universe has replacement for
everything and anything. Although independent music is fading, it has
led to a number of stage shows across the world. Now a singer who is
talented is overloaded with events. These events are a platform for
these budding talents. Anybody who has got the slightest of talent will
never be without work in the music industry.
From remix to mash ups, do you feel there is innovation in music or it’s mere commercialisation?
Whatever music you hear today would have
been called stupid and mad if it were composed in the 60s and vice
versa. The lingo of cinema has changed. The lingo that we use today is
different from what we heard earlier. Experience should get reflected in
music. And of course it is all about making money and step towards
commercialisation.
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Do you think Punjabi pop and rappers such as Honey Singh and Jazzy B are taking the young generation away from classical music?
Every singer has got his or her style of
singing. We should be happy that nowadays there is music of different
genres and people can choose to listen to music according to their
tastes. Classical is the root of any music. One can’t get rid of the
roots. I love Honey Singh’s beats. What’s wrong if someone is
experimenting with music and beats?
After the demise of Jagjit Singh, who do you think will do justice to ghazals?
The place of Jagjit Singh will remain the
same and no one can replace him. May be after a year or two, new
singers will crop up, but the way Jagjit Singh sang no one will. The era
when Jagjit Singh came was an era of ghazal lovers. Ab ghazal sunta kaun hai. Ab sab Honey Singh ko sunna chahte hain!
Do you think films can promote vernacular music?
Cinema is a powerful medium and it can
promote any kind of regional music. However, care should be taken while
choosing the quality of music. Cinema needs to utilise the resources
properly in an organised manner.
Why didn’t we see you in any film after Love in Nepal?
Love is Nepal was a nice movie so I
did it. But gradually I have realised that my time is precious and I
need to work with people who are as crazy as me. And now there are very
few people who are making good films and are sincere towards their work.
Since I did not find anyone with equal artistic intent, I chose not to
take up any film.
What are your upcoming projects?
I have completed my new album India,
which is a compilation of English songs. DJ Abhijeet was a great help
to me in this album. I have composed the title track of the movie, Singh Saheb The Great and given music for Jal and Super Se Upar.
SHAMBHAVI SINGH
Source: http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7788707356673688935#editor/target=post;postID=3897593033274093204
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