The singer talks to TOI about her journey so far, response from the audience and why she can’t make a foray into acting Be it singing in films like Golmaal and Jism 3 or doing albums like Akriti or bagging international collaborations such as one for Barbie movie —
The Magic of Pegasus, Akriti Kakar has been there and done that. On her recent trip to Ranchi, the singer took some time off for a little chit-chat with TOI before heading off to Jamshedpur.
Exerpts:
Why do you think Bollywood singers have failed to cash in on their popularity and good looks for a career in movies? It depends. If you think you have that kind of talent to be the face of your own voice you can try but being good looking is not the only criterion here. Modelling might be about popularity and good looks but then you see that many prominent actors in our industry aren’t exactly the best looking people. Acting is also God’s gift, just like singing. For example, Irrfan might not be your typical hero but he is a brilliant actor.
Sonu Nigam ne try
kiya tha but it didn’t work. But then, we have seen Kishoreda, who was as much an accomplished actor as a singer. Ayushmann Khurrana is another big example in today.
Do you have any plans to act? No I’m extremely camera shy.
Main toh camera
ke samne freeze
kar jati hoon. Though I have shot for some of my videos, but that’s it.
How difficult it is to be an independent singer in India? I feel that here in India, Bollywood dominates every sphere. I remember, when I was in school, we used to spend all our pocket-money on pop albums because pop and alternative music used to be huge those days. We had Falguni Pathak, Devang Patel, Baba Sehgal, Anaida, and many such singers who used to sing non-filmi songs and commanded scores of fans. KK,
Shaan or
Lucky Ali bhi pehle apne songs hi gate the. But gradually
jab in sab logon ne industry
mein move kiya toh the difference between film music and non-film started blurring. Whatever the difference was earlier, in terms of music or lyrics are no more. So, it is difficult for a independent artiste to be on his own.
Why is it that contemporary Indian English music has failed to take off on the international scene? On the contrary, I think the market is now opening up. Lot of our singers are going abroad and many artistes from the West are coming to India, looking for collaborations in contemporary music set up. Just because we don’t get to listen to those things doesn’t mean that it’s not happening. Also, the success of songs like Ganganam style internationally should ideally be attributed to the marketing done by the music labels as it is they who control everything.
Like Priyanka Chopra? What’s your take on her song, In my city? It’s nice and a fun song. I liked it on a personal level but professionally it would be difficult to say whether it will open doors for others in the International market because you can see that even Priyanka had to collaborate with an established international artiste like Will.i.am to cut a single.
Censor is constantly speaking about the derogatory and cuss words being used in lyrics nowadays... (Laughs) I don’t know... maybe film ki situation aisi hoti hogi ki aise words gaane me use kiye jaye. On a serious note, as a singer, I cannot really comment on this because it is in the hands of lyricists and the director about what kind of songs they want in their movies. We as singers are only doing our jobs by lending our voice. My job doesn’t require me to question the lyricist. But then, I feel
ki jo log is tarah ke songs
ko criticize
karte hain woh log khud mere concerts
mein aa kar bolte hain ki falana gana ga dijiye. I think our audiences are hypocrites.
What are your projects in pipeline? There are a few projects in progress, notable of them being a song in 2 States, which is based on the book by Chetan Bhagat, starring Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt. I’m also working in collaboration with some prominent western singers, which should come out by the end of this year.
Have you been to Jharkhand earlier? How do you find the place? It’s my first time here in Jharkhand. Despite being an industrial region, it’s very green around here in Ranchi.