Tell us about your music album MohabbatIJ
It’s the first album with my band The A Team. I’ve composed half the songs and it is getting a good feedback. It has garnered over 2 million viewers on YouTube. It’s a concept album which has not been seen in India before. In concept albums, you’ll find every song in an order and telling a story through music. It starts off with the single life which is all about loving life. Mohabbat talks about what people have say about love and what I have experienced.
You made your acting debut in Shaapit which bombed at the box office…
For the outside world, Shaapit might be a flop but for me, it was my biggest success because till Shaapit happened, I didn’t knew what to do. Working on Shaapit answered a lot of questions. I learnt so much that no acting school in this world can teach me. But then I realised that everything was happening too fast in my life and soon I would run out of steam. So I re-gathered my thoughts and went back to the basics. I joined Sanjay leela Bhansali and became an assistant director for his movie Ram leela. I was not expecting any songs or an offer from his end. But then he spotted my talent and gave me an opportunity to sing two songs Ishqyaun Dhishqyaun and Tattad Tattad in the movie. Both were chartbusters.
Did you missed out on things because of early stardomIJ
As a child, I didn’t get too much time to spent with my parents. Not because I was working but because both my parents were working. I come from a family where my grandfather was a farmer. Even though my father became a popular singer by the early 90s when Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak had released, we were still not very well off. We were like any other middle class family. My father and I used to live at my mother’s house till 1993. He was busy working and saving money to buy a new house and a car. That time my mother was still an air hostess. It’s not like there is any regret because it was something that my parents had to do to secure my future. All the hard work paid off.
Who do you credit your success toIJ
My parents. They let me make my own decisions, mistakes and allowed me to taste success. They never made me feel that we have any problems in life. If I wanted something, even though it would take time for my parents to get it for me, they ensured that I did get it. Though I am their only child they never pressurised me to do anything that I didn’t want to. They told me to do my own thing and enjoy myself. They told me if I don’t enjoy what I am doing like a child enjoys a new toy I must find something that brings me joy. So for me, it is not about earning or competing.
When do we get to see your father Udit Narayan and you working togetherIJ
My father has lent his voice to so many big actors. My wish is that one day I become a big actor and he sings for me. Hopefully, that should happen sooner than later.
When did the acting bug bite youIJ
When I was working as a child artist, I used to see Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan come out of their BMWs and sit in their luxurious vanity vans and deliver their lines. Subconsciously, a seed must have been planted then.
It’s not just the need to become an actor and be seen on the 70 mm screen. I found the process of cinema very fascinating. I believe that my happiness lies in creating art, it doesn’t matter what the medium is — films or music.
