Sukhwinder Singh, who was in Goa for a roaring New Year show, is no stranger to Goan soils.
“I have performed in Goa before but this is the first time I have performed for
a New Year show here. I was really excited to ring in the New Year here. Goa is
a very interesting place as it reflects both, heritage and modernity; the
people of Goa as so well mannered. I try my best to spend some quality time in
Goa but it is difficult as I travel for concerts to various places. However, I
come to Goa at least 3-4 times in a year. I travel all over the world but I
have noticed that Goa is the best place for many reasons, especially its
culture and people,” said Sukhwinder about his love for Goa.
Reflecting on the year gone by, he recollects his performance at
the biggest and grandest wedding of the year, the wedding of Isha Ambani. He
had performed along with A R Rahman at the Mumbai reception. They performed the
Oscar- and Grammy-winning song ‘Jai Ho’, from the film ‘Slumdog Millionaire’.
“Rahman called me and said, ‘Sukhi, we’ll perform together.’ Rahman and his
band brought around 80-90 musicians from England and many Indian musicians as
well for the performance. It was a grand show. Previously, I had done a concert
for the Ambanis and their hospitality is very good. It was a nice experience,”
he said.
But the singer doesn’t differentiate between the platforms he
performs on. “What is important is how I perform for a show. My passion for
singing is completely the same, whether I’m singing for a concert or for my
friends at home. With singing, we have to carry etiquette of how we behave with
people, speak on the stage and deal with fans. The identification of a good
artiste is a mixture of all this.”
The song ‘Issaqbazzi’, from the film ‘Zero’ is Sukhwinder’s most
recent song. The song features Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan. “From ‘Dil Se’
to ‘Zero’, I had the opportunity to sing for many of Shah Rukh’s films. They
explained to me that Salman will also be there in this song and it is very
folk-oriented. I must appreciate music directors Ajay-Atul as they have
maintained the quality of the folk song and Irshad Kamil, the writer of the
song, who maintained the folk temperament with his golden words. When they
narrated the song, they told me that the actors will be dancing in a very folk
style to the earthy song. The narration of the song is very important to me as
it helps me gauge the delivery of the song,” he explained.
Elaborating on his bond with Shah Rukh, Sukhwinder reminisced
about his first song that was pictured on Shah Rukh Khan. “I always sing for
the character of the film. Shah Rukh Khan was the first hero of my film. When I
saw him on screen, dancing on a train with a beautiful girl (Malaika Arora) and
I heard my voice on screen for the first time, I was so happy that I said one
thing to my soul, ‘Khush Raho, Aabad Raho’ (be happy and prosper). Shah Rukh is
the man who has got a tremendous quality of appreciation. I have done three
shows with him, abroad and in India too. Whenever he speaks about me, it is all
appreciation. He is a big fan of ‘Chaiyya Chaiyya’ and I am 100 per cent sure
he will one day re-record ‘Chaiyya Chaiyya’ in his movie,” the singer said.
The new year has a lot in store for the fans of Sukhwinder’s
singing, as he has a number of big releases lined up. He will be singing songs
for films like ‘Ek Ladki ko Dekha toh Aisa Laga’, ‘Bharat’, ‘Sonchiraiya’ and
‘Housefull 4’. “‘Ek Ladki ko Dekha toh Aisa Laga’ is a very cute film that has
a story with a twist. The song is a family party dance song. I loved the song
and the music is very good. For ‘Sonchiraiya’ by Abhishek Chaubey, the maker of
‘Udta Punjab’, the film has different content and the music is by Vishal
Bhardwaj. There are two songs – an item number and a situational song with a
dark theme. Both songs were recorded on the same day. When you are in love with
your content, those are the golden moments of your life,” stated Sukhwinder.
He added that he enjoys listening to every genre of music as it
helps him to sing different types of songs. While many Bollywood singers get
categorised according to their ability to deliver, Sukhwinder is happy that
filmmakers consider him for every song. “I had the opportunity to sing romantic
songs like ‘Haule Haule’, action-hero songs for ‘Singham’, ‘Dabhangg’ and
‘Sultan’, now ‘Issaqbazzi’, and even something like ‘Kar Har Maidaan Fateh’ for
‘Sanju’. I am lucky that people don’t think of me as a particular situational
singer. They give me the opportunity for every kind of song, which means that I
can deliver the best for any situation, be it drama, romance, action and even
dance. Dancing numbers attract me the most,” he said.
Sukhwinder
used to listen to songs by Whitney Houston, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle in
his childhood and now enjoys quick tempo songs by Shakira and Britney Spears.
“I have noticed in India that young singers focus a lot on their appearance,
spending a lot of time in gyms and beauty parlours rather than on vocal
practice. I believe that if you are talented, you automatically start looking
good. I too work out, but I don’t devote my day to it. When I go on stage,
people listen to my voice. Yes, having stage presence and looking good is also
important but for any singer, your talent and practise should be of utmost
importance,” he advised.
