Having been featured in Bollywood before, with tunes such as ‘Tho Phir Aao' and ‘Tera Mera Rishta Purana' on the soundtrack of Mahesh Bhatt's “Awarapan”, Mustafa Zahid, frontman of the Pakistani band Roxen, is once again set to lend his voice for the upcoming Bhatt thriller “Blood Money”. Excerpts from an interview with the singer.
Could you tell us a bit about what you've been doing for the film?
‘Blood Money' is a new film directed by Vishal Mahadkar and produced by Mukesh and Mahesh Bhatt, featuring Kunal Khemu and Amrita Puri. I've sung three of the songs on the soundtrack. I have a long connection with Mahesh and Mukesh, as I made my Bollywood debut with them in 2007… my work in this film is kind of a comeback. They said my voice would do justice to the songs, and so, we got together in the studio in Dubai, and recorded them — and they're supposed to be releasing this week. They're great songs. In fact, a couple of them are composed by musician Jeet Gannguli.
Is it just you who is featured on the soundtrack or your band Roxen as well?
No, just me. The music we (Roxen) make together are our own compositions — composed and written by me. When we came to India as a band and performed in the video with Imran, that was a different project altogether. I'm doing the film as a playback artiste —I'm just singing the songs, not composing them.
What's it like working on a film rather than being in a band and performing on stage? Which do you prefer?
To be honest, I enjoy more being in a band because that's the kind of gig I like doing, and that's the kind of music I've grown up listening to. I love rock and roll, I love pop rock music. In a band, you get to do a lot of live shows and you interact with the audience — it's a lot of fun. But what I've realised over the period is that you learn a lot as a playback artiste. You're provided a storyboard, and you're given a situation according to which you have to sing and convey a certain emotion. It's a new experience.
So what do you think of the film?
I haven't watched it yet, it's in post-production. I'm sure it's going to be very good and the Bhatts are known for making very serious films on quite serious topics — I think it's not really an underworld film per se, although it does have some connection to that. I'm hoping it's going to be a good one!
