that was a great experience and it teaches you a lot of patience . Even if it is not your fault , you still need to start from the top , which gives you a sense of community that we are all together , and that is what I believe in my life : if we progress as a community , we also progress as an individual . You need to make everybody shine , and Coke Studio was so amazing in that way , and I feel really very fortunate to be a part of it .
What are some difficult songs you ’ ve had to master and what made them difficult ? It would be great if you could break down a song that you found challenging and reveal how you went about it !
It was very challenging from the movie , “ Mudhi Mudhi .” It was very early in my career and standing against Ilayaraja Sir was the most intimidating factor because he is such a stickler for discipline , stickler for how the song should be and also because it was such a difficult song , even lyrically . So , Swanand and Balki Sir really were a great help in making me sing that song in the way I did , and technically it was very difficult too , so that was Mudhi Mudhi . The other difficult song was Bulleya from Ae Dil Hain Mushkil , and it was difficult because of the connection with the relationship , because if the connection with the relationship in the movie doesn ’ t happen , the song doesn ’ t come through the way it did , so to understand that relationship you need to understand the story of the character . I mean , each song has its own journey , and it helps to go with an open mind without any baggage . It helps .
You have made it clear that you don ’ t differentiate between film music and non-film music for instance , and see it all as ‘ music ’ at the end of the day . However , how much do you explicitly categorise different forms and styles of music in the way you think and approach new music ?
It ’ s just music , and I don ’ t think you should think too much , so stop thinking and start feeling . How do you feel about the song ? That ’ s the most important question and nothing else ...
The Future
How have the dynamics as a playback singer changed over the course of your career especially in lieu with all the advancements in digitization and use of increasingly sophisticated technology ?
So , obviously , when you have an aeroplane you will not take a cart , so you absorb all the advancements that have happened with technology , but one thing you cannot remove from life is human error , and human error makes things beautiful , so being very aware of yourself and accepting your flaws and putting those flaws in pride in what you do is the most important thing and that will make you unique . So be it any changes , you should be the subject of change in your mind . It should be very clear and it ’ s OK , you should be flexible .
Artists are increasingly under constant pressure of having to invest time and money in marketing / promotion and sometimes at the expense of making music ! In a world devoid of financial interests , do you think there would be a significant change in how one creatively expresses themselves ? What about you personally ?
I feel that you can do as much as you want on the marketing but if there is no soul in the song , then it won ’ t go very far . So find that soul and eventually it will find its way and I believe that .
How is the scene for female musicians , not only singers , but composers , producers , instrumentalists etc ?
It ’ s always a great place for female vocalists , producers , and composers , and that ’ s because a guy is just telling a story and only a part of it , and when you have a female perspective on it , it completely changes the story , so we need more females coming into the scene and it just completes the story . QS :
What are challenges that are specific to women ? What changes would you like to see and what would be some ways to implement these changes ?
The challenge is that if you stop looking at it as a gender perspective , you are a human being who is telling your story in your own way , and I think if you
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