Bollywood singer Kunal Ganjawala says he’s found home in Karnataka and West Bengal — two states whose film industries have opened their arms to him and have given him a phenomenal run in his singing career. He expresses a bitterness about the Hindi film music industry and reiterates that he’s feeling so home in Karnataka now, he’s planning to work on a Kannada music album!
The man who shot to fame when he sensuously crooned “Bheege hont tere” for the Mallika Sherawat-starrer Murder , has over 400 Kannada songs to his credit now, including his first big Kannada hit “Neene neene” for the Puneeth Rajkumar movie Aakash in 2005. And it is here that his intimate association with the state started.
“I still remember my interaction with Dr. Rajkumar, or Annavru as he’s popularly known. When I sang for his son in the film Aakash , I had gone to their house and he fed me with his hands. I am honoured that I even got a small mention in his biography,” said Kunal. He was in Bengaluru for the Alive India In Concert series last weekend and also unveiled the Max Spring Summer collection 2015.
He had just come jubilant from a concert at the Manyata Tech Park where 8,000 techies had rocked to his voice.
“Music is a big part of every one’s diet today — but it shouldn’t be just digital music, it should be ‘alive’ music,” he reiterates. Which is why he’s keen on doing stage concerts, says Kunal.
The Alive India In Concert series is going to go national, and soon you will hear of concerts in Pune, Kolkata and more. “Come on, you are all willing to pay 5,000 Rupees for the concert of an EDM artist from abroad, but ghar ki murgi daal barabar …”
He hasn’t been singing in too many Hindi films, says Kunal “because actors, film directors, and music directors are wanting to sing! So we singers are turning to other things”. You just can’t miss the sarcasm in his voice. “Moreover, you can’t beat the influx of singers from across the border. Arijit (Singh, singer and music producer) is a great gift to the industry. He’s driven out Pakistan from our music scene completely; they are such incompetent neighbours! And they are plagiarising us.”
And then he appeals to his hosts: “We musicians come cheap, unlike actors so please endorse us. We are the step children, just as audio is the step child of video…like what TV did to radio.” But then he softens a little as he continues talking. Kunal says he’s now moving on to composing music; people like Vishal Bhardwaj and Sanjay Leela Bhansali have shown the way, he says. “It’s a great time. There are no boundaries. Every thing is fusing into everything else.” He’s also conceptualising reality shows that are “different”.
Kunal’s own voice is often branded as “different” in the film industry. But asked to describe his own voice, he says: “My voice is like me. It’s all heart and no head. It’s unconventional. I’m not a silken voice. I knew right from the beginning that I won’t be singing 20,000 songs. My influences are rock, pop and of course Hindi films. Mine is an honest voice.”
The singer has been spending quite a bit of time in Karnataka — “Studio recordings don’t give you your bread and butter. We need to meet fans. I’ve toured almost eight cities now. I’ve been to Karwar, Chitradurga, Badami, Bijapur, Hubli and am heading next to Mangaluru as well for music festivals and concerts.” He was in Bengaluru too just last week recording for a Kannada film, he adds.
“I sing my Kannada songs after I have written it down in the Devanagari script. I can understand Kannada, but can’t speak,” he admits with a smile.
Kunal seems keen to reiterate his Karnataka connection and says that his cousin is married to a Kannadiga living in Mysuru — so there, that’s one more connection!
Kunal expressed great delight that music director Ricky Kej won the Grammy for his album Winds of Samsara . “I’ve worked with him before for a Kannada film. I’m in fact tying to work on a Kannada album, doing one song each with music directors and composer friends I’ve worked with before like Hamsalekha, Mano Murthy, V. Harikishna…”
Kunal, along with singers like Sonu Nigam, has been on the forefront of the fight for the intellectual property (IP) rights of singers, through organisations like Indian Singers’ Rights Association.
“The Government of India did change laws in 2012, thanks to representations from people like Javed Akhtar. We feel the rights of our singers have to be on par with those in the rest of the world. Only recently, a Delhi restaurant has been hauled up in this matter. Radio stations are now denying singers their share, acknowledging only the rights o composers. The fight is on, and sooner or later, they will have to accept it.”
