Kailash Kher excited about projects 'Desi Kattey' and Kapil Sharma's 'Bank Chor'

Kailash Kher, who was in the city recently, said he has been in the city so many times for concerts that he considers it like his workplace now!
Bhopal ke baare mein jitna bola jaaye kam hai,” is what Kailash Kher said when we asked him about his recent trip to the city. A frequent visitor to Bhopal, Kailash said the city has become his ‘karma bhoomi’ because of the number of times he has performed here.
In town recently for a brief stopover, Kailash was headed to Sagar for a concert (which was cancelled last minute after the fatal accident of BJP leader Gopinath Munde). He said, “MP is a divine land; it has so many references in our Vedas and Upanishads. I guess that’s also a reason why people here are so welcoming and warm. They have a strong cultural backing, and the best part is people are still attached to their roots. I frequently come here and go to Maheshwar, Ujjain and Sagar. Aur MP toh Malwa sangeet ka gadh hai. I’m also planning another album with MP’s folk singer Prahlad Tipanya; my fifth album had him singing two songs.”
READ: I am not politically inclined: Kailash Kher
But that’s not the only reason Kailash likes Bhopal. He said, “The state government has set an example by being one of the most cooperative administrations in the country. I go back to Mumbai and tell my filmmaker friends about MP and that they should come here and shoot. In the last few years, a lot of films and TV shows have been shot here, aur iski wajah yahan ki administration hi hai. Mere sabhi jaanne waale jo yahan pe aaye hain, bolte hain kya jagah hai Bhopal. Yeh baat bilkul sahi hai ki jo Bhopal ek baar aa gaya woh yahan baar baar aata hai.”
He had something to say about Bhopalites too. “Yahan ke logon ko gaane ki samajh hai. Whenever I’m here for a concert, it carries on beyond the time limit. It’s because people here demand song after song. Unki farmaishein poori karte karte der ho jaati hai. It’s not easy to perform here, as Bhopalites are very demanding (laughs). Aur yahan response itna achha milta hai ki Bhopal mein baar baar aane ka mann hota hai,” Kailash said.
I TRY TO REINVENT MYSELF WITH TIME Kailash, who has many music albums like Kailasa and Rangeele to his credit, said that an artiste needs to be honest towards his craft to stay in people’s memory. “If you see my body of work, I have sung all sorts of songs, be it Sufi, semi-classical, folk or a typical romantic number. No matter what I do, I’m always honest towards my craft. Having said that, one also needs to keep reinventing oneself from time to time. Tabhi log aapko yaad rakhenge. They like surprises, ki arey, yeh banda toh yeh bhi kar sakta hai,” Kailash said.
INDI-POP IS NOT VERY POPULAR BECAUSE WE’RE NOT ABLE TO DELIVER QUALITY And what does he think is the reason behind pop music not being as successful as in the West? “Yahan log risk nahi lena chahte. It’s not that people don’t want to listen to pop music; we are not able to deliver quality content to them. Blindly aping the West won’t help. Simplicity nahi reh gayi hai gaano mein. Woh kehte hain na, jahaan risk nahi wahan ishq nahi. Unless we realise the true potential of Indian music – folk, Hindustani classical, Carnatic, etc – we won’t be able to create new kinds of music. Baahar dekhne se pehle apne desh ka sangeet toh pehchaan lo. People need to create original music, baaki rock, hard metal, yeh sab toh videshi artistes create karte hi hain,” Kailash asserted.
READ: India does not give music its due: Kailash Kher
EXCITED TO DON THE MUSIC DIRECTOR’S HAT Kailash has earlier composed music for selective songs in films like Dasvidaniya, Allah Ke Banday and Chandni Chowk To China, and said he is excited to be the solo music director for the first time in the upcoming film, Desi Kattey. “I’m really happy with this new phase in my life. Ab tak toh maine ek-do gaano ka music diya hai films mein, par yeh pehli movie hai jismein main music director hoon poori film ka. There’s another film Bank Chor, starring Kapil Sharma, in which I have given music. I hope people will like my music and I’m able to strike a chord with them,” Kailash said, adding, “I’m trying to keep pace with the youth these days. Maine Twitter aur Facebook pe bhi apna account bana liya hai, and I keep tweeting regularly. I like it when people comment on my posts and reply to my tweets.”
But he doesn’t agree that singers can ever fade into oblivion. “This is a misconception that the singers of the ’80s and ’90s are jobless now. Jagjit Singh was busy till the day before he died. Awaaz kabhi mar nahi sakti. A singer will always be identified with his voice, aur aap awaaz ko kaise maarenge? I agree, there has been an influx of new talent in the music industry. But that doesn’t mean the old singers will lose their credibility. Jo evergreen hai woh toh sada bahaar hi rahega na,” Kailash said.
LISTEN: Songs of Kailash Kher on Gaana.com
WATCH: Kailash Kher's music video 'Teri Deewani'