Abhijeet Bhattacharya's Insight: AR Rahman's Songs Are 'Only Patchwork'

Lehren Retro

Renowned singer Abhijeet Bhattacharya, in an unfiltered interview with Lehren, shares intriguing insights into his experience working with Oscar winner AR Rahman.

Transcript

00:00 Sir, if someone asks you to sing a song of Yes Boss, will you sing one?

00:04 I won't sing Yes Boss.

00:06 - It's possible. - Any song of yours.

00:08 Yes, yes.

00:09 It happens.

00:10 Many people don't want to do this work from the inside.

00:15 When you get a job satisfaction,

00:18 you think that if the environment is not good, I can't do this work.

00:23 I'm talking to Mr. Rahman.

00:25 I had a super hit song.

00:28 I sang with him.

00:30 "O' Viewers, Listen."

00:32 And before that, I was invited to Rangila.

00:39 So, already Udit had sung that song.

00:45 "What to say, or not to say, or how difficult it is."

00:50 Whatever that song was.

00:52 So, I was invited to sing that song.

00:54 The lyrics had changed.

00:56 The character was also changing.

01:00 Since Udit is singing for the character,

01:03 now you will be using it in a different way.

01:06 Maybe Aamir Khan's character was being shown there.

01:11 So, Ram Gopal and I went together in a flight.

01:15 We went to Chennai.

01:17 We sat and discussed in the hotel.

01:20 Then I sang that song.

01:23 On the first day, I had the experience that

01:26 we go to work when we work.

01:28 We don't know anything about singing.

01:32 We knew that after A. R. Rahman's "Roza",

01:35 new songs like Rangila were coming out.

01:37 Completely fresh.

01:39 So, there is no system to work.

01:43 I was sitting in the hotel.

01:45 I got a call, "We will call you."

01:49 I was thinking, "Let me get the lyrics."

01:53 I was scared.

01:55 What if I can't do it?

01:58 We have exams.

02:01 I know what to do with people I haven't worked with.

02:06 I was scared.

02:09 Suddenly, I got a call.

02:11 The next day, I was going back to Bombay.

02:17 In that mental state, I got a call from here.

02:21 Anu Mallik, the secretary of Jagdish, called me.

02:27 "Dada, where are you? Today, you have this and that."

02:30 I was like, "How? What should I do?"

02:33 I was not certain what was happening.

02:36 Suddenly, I was called to sing this song.

02:40 I felt that there is no music here.

02:44 It was just a patch.

02:46 They are giving you a song,

02:48 and you are told to do this much,

02:50 and this much,

02:52 and this much line in this lyric,

02:54 and this much line in different lyrics.

02:57 I was like, "What kind of a thing is this?"

03:00 Sing the song, get ready, go in front of the mic.

03:04 I didn't know the patchwork from here to there.

03:08 I was like, "I will reach this stage."

03:14 Then, I don't know what happened,

03:17 but later I saw that the song was being picturized.

03:20 It was different lyrics.

03:23 Then they kept the original song.

03:25 If you ask my favorite singer, that is Udit Narayan.

03:30 So, that was a very bad challenge for me.

03:33 I told Udit, "Don't ask me as a singer,

03:36 but when he hears that song,

03:39 his voice, that is what is established."

03:43 So, I was shocked.

03:46 I didn't know what I had sung.

03:51 I didn't know what was coming in my head.

03:55 At first, it felt unmusical.

03:58 After that, I sang the next time.

04:01 At 2.30 at night, I got a call.

04:07 I was called to the hotel in the morning.

04:10 I left on the morning flight.

04:12 At that time, I was recording more music.

04:15 All the music directors.

04:17 When I reached there,

04:19 they told me to go to the hotel.

04:21 They didn't know what the song was.

04:24 I found out that there was an assistant.

04:28 He was calling me to sing.

04:31 He was telling me what the song was.

04:34 I told him that I had gone to sing a song by A. R. Rahman.

04:37 I didn't know who the music director was.

04:40 I sang the song.

04:43 I missed my next day's schedule.

04:49 I missed one song.

04:51 I still remember it.

04:53 It was a big hit.

04:57 I had rehearsed the song and then I had to dub it.

05:02 I couldn't reach there.

05:04 Who sang the song?

05:06 I think it was Shanu.

05:11 It was a long time ago.

05:13 I missed that song.

05:15 After that, I got a call.

05:19 This song became a super hit.

05:22 A. R. Rahman's song.

05:25 "Hey, listen to me, my dear."

05:30 After it became a hit,

05:32 I got a call again.

05:37 I think it was the secretary's name.

05:40 Lawrence or someone.

05:43 "Sir, another song. This super hit song."

05:48 I said no.

05:50 My return flight will be at this time.

05:53 And tomorrow I cannot come.

05:56 I cannot come tomorrow.

06:00 He said, "Tomorrow you should come."

06:05 "You should not miss Rahman's song."

06:09 I said, "I missed my song."

06:13 "So, better I will give you the date."

06:16 "And tell me the time."

06:18 "I will come at this time."

06:21 After that, I never worked with him.

06:26 Because if you work on someone else's terms and conditions,

06:31 and the rest of the people who are like my God here in Mumbai,

06:37 who work in music,

06:39 patching, putting this here, putting that here.

06:42 Now see, there is a song, it is such a super hit.

06:45 In that, Sonu is not even aware.

06:48 Sonu has a record, and the song is of Javed Ali.

06:52 This is a very sad, very bad thing.

06:56 No one knows who is who.

06:59 So, all these things become strange.

07:03 After that, we don't do it.

07:08 One last question, sir.

07:09 What would you like to appeal to the audience, the fans, through Lehren Channel?

07:14 Or they can see you singing in films again.

07:18 No, no, no, don't do this scenario at all.

07:22 In films, you, you, who doesn't know the music?

07:26 In every film, 6-7 music directors, so many singers.

07:31 You, we, why should I be in that league?

07:35 If they record my song today, you won't even understand that it is my voice.

07:42 I don't know what they do to it.

07:45 Why should I do it?

07:48 And who is that music director who sits with us and prepares the song and creates it?

07:53 It doesn't happen.

07:54 We have to sing in the studio.

07:56 We will sit at home and send the song.

07:59 It doesn't happen.

08:00 That you have made a room at home, you have kept your mic.

08:04 The music director is sitting somewhere, thousands of miles away.

08:08 The singer is singing from his farmhouse.

08:11 Or he is singing in the car, or wearing a helmet.

08:13 How did we come into that culture?

08:15 So, I will tell the audience that these people are very good audience.

08:22 Who are listening to our songs to the maximum these days.

08:26 The songs are being heard to the maximum.

08:29 Either they are making our songs again, or listening to our songs.

08:33 So, the audience should be like this.

08:35 With time, the music is changing, but you are with us.

08:39 That is the biggest thing.

08:41 If you want to sing two lines while walking.

08:44 "The queen of my thoughts, the queen of my thoughts, all around."

08:54 Thank you very much for talking to us.

08:56 This was Jeet Bhattacharya, the famous Parsi singer who was talking to us.

09:00 Rehan Hussain with cameraman Khalid.

09:02 Lehren, Mumbai.

09:03 [Music]

09:09 you

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