‘When I write a song, the words are from the heart’

Gurdas Maan on his new album, staying relevant and how he still connects with his audience

August 15, 2017 09:31 pm | Updated 09:32 pm IST

Mumbai:August 04, 2017. FOR INTERVIEW: Singer Gurdas Mann at his studio Mumbai. Photo:Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury. Mumbai:August 04, 2017. FOR INTERVIEW: Singer Gurdas Mann at his studio Mumbai. Photo:Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury. -

Mumbai:August 04, 2017. FOR INTERVIEW: Singer Gurdas Mann at his studio Mumbai. Photo:Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury. Mumbai:August 04, 2017. FOR INTERVIEW: Singer Gurdas Mann at his studio Mumbai. Photo:Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury. -

When Punjabi folk legend Gurdas Maan was drawing up a list of songs to incorporate in his album Punjab, he decided to include the one he performed in Rajgir in Bihar on Guru Gobind Singh’s 350thbirth anniversary. “ ‘ Mittar Pyare Nu’ is a Sikh religious hymn; a shabad, by the tenth guru Guru Gobind Singh ji, who recited it in the Machivara Forest, oblivious to the fights around him. The words are so beautiful that we decided to incorporate in the album,” says Maan who has also shot a short musical conceived and conceptualised by his son Gurrick G Maan. The video shows how the Sikh community has bounced back, despite being targeted during Partition and the riots, that occurred after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.

Although Maan has lived in Mumbai for the last three decades, he is deeply rooted to Punjab and hopes that his music is able to mirror societal evils. The first video, titled Punjab garnered three million views on YouTube the day it was launched and featured an adolescent Bhagat Singh shattered by the prevalent drugs abuse, steroid abuse and contamination of crops. “When I write a song, the words are from the heart. I try to incorporate and highlight some or the other social message for society,” he adds. But this isn’t the first time the singer has responded to social causes. Following the 1984 genocide of Sikhs, he wrote ‘ Main dharti Punjab di loko vasdi ujar gayi’ — a song that acquired anthem status in Punjab. In 2008, he wrote ‘ Challiye teeyan hundiya teeyaan’ onfemale infanticide. “Through my songs, I want to connect with the younger generation. This generation and the older generation remember me for my TV appearances. Even today, middle-aged women tell me how they’d run out of the kitchen, leaving their half baked rotis aside to watch me on TV,” he says while blushing.

Maan who has a master’s degree in physical education initially had no aspirations of making his passion for singing his profession. “In my village, it was common to sing during festivals and weddings and my mother and aunt were gifted singers. In my school, Saturdays would be for extra-curricular activities and I would be asked to sing by the teachers. That was my first stage and audience,” reminisces Maan who also remembers his uncle telling them stories, some of which have found a way into his songs. But it was while performing a play on the eternal lovers Sassui Punnuh, that Surinder Sahni, a producer for Doordarshan, noticed him. “The play had a qawwali called ‘ Dil Da Mamla Hai’ and I was asked to perform the song live on Doordarshan as part of their New Year’s Eve package in 1979,” recalls Maan of the song that set his career in the music industry rolling. Maan credits Doordarshan for giving him his stardom, sharing that despite several hits, that song still remains the most requested by audiences. “Even now, whenever I get invited, I never refuse them and before entering the studio, I pay my respects. It’s my Mecca,” he says. A few years ago, the singer performed two back-to-back shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall. After performing to a packed hall, he then flew back to India and within three days, performed for an audience of 70,000 fans at a small village near Barnala on a stage made of boxes. “For me, the passion of performing is what has kept me going,” says the star who will be performing across Canada next month and will start shooting for his film Nankana in October.

As Punjabi music diversifies into various genres — from rap to hip-hop, Maan has stuck to folk and has the same fan following that he had three decades ago. The singer though refuses to take credit for keeping folk music relevant and says that there are times he has been critical about what he has penned. “ Jo cheez khushi deti hai aur dil ko chuu jaye (what gives you happiness should also be meaningful)…it should come from inside,” says Maan adding that for an artist it is essential that he goes through the layers of emotions to come up with the ‘bhaav’ that will connect with the audience. “ Khushi gham hi uske geeto ka aadhar hai..jab tak na dard ho seene mein fankar adhura rehta hai (Happiness and joy are the essence of song, there is no art without pain),” says the singer who has penned and composed most of his songs outside his studio. Case in point: his song ‘ Baithi sade naal savari utter gayi ’ that he wrote and dedicated to his driver Tejpal who died in a road accident in 1998 that left Maan seriously injured. “I generally never sit on the front seat but that night I did. Tejpal asked me to put on the seatbelt and during the journey I fell asleep. When I woke up, he was no more,” Maan recalls. The song is a poignant dedication to those who have lost their loved ones in accidents.

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