After giving hits like Baby Doll and Chittiyan Kalaiyan, Lucknow-born Kapoor is out with Cheater Mohan which has crossed 8 million views. She speaks with Shalini Saksena about her return to indie space among other things

What is your latest song Cheater Mohan about?

It is a fun song. My grandmother tells me that she doesn’t understand any of my songs since they are in Punjabi. I kept that in mind for this song. I had a nice melody and a nice beat with a funny message. I sat down with Shakir Ahmedji a dear friend of mine and a great lyricist. I explained the theme to him — what is happening between a girl and a boy today. He put the words together and came up with the name — Cheater Mohan. Aditya Dev arranged the music on the  composition.

Most of your songs are peppy. Is it a coincidence?

I have sung some award winning songs like Baby Doll from Ragini MMS 2  for which I got the Filmfare Award in 2015 for Best Female Playback Singer. People loved that song. Hence, I am constantly asked to sing, dance/item number.

You are a pure classical singer. Was it tough to sing for Bollywood?

I used to do a lot is riyaz but not so much now. I moved to London when I was young and my voice became light. When you are singing pure classical, your voice is different but I got back to music 10 years later. Over the years, my voice has calmed down.

Is there a dream composition?

Yes, there is and one day people will hear it from my heart.

When you playback is it important for you to know the actor whom you are singing for?

Definitely! Sometimes you hear a song and find that the voice of the actor and the playback don’t suit each other. You have to keep the actor in mind to ensure that there is a connect. But things have become commercial and people really don’t bother about such things most of the times.

Have you turned down a song because you felt that your voice doesn’t suit the actor?

    There have been such instances and yes the project has been turned down. It is important that my voice is similar to that of the actor.

How would you describe yourself?

I am a straight forward, honest and a person who sings from the heart. People can expect to hear dance, sufi and love songs from me in the future.

What made you get into the indie space?

I started my journey from an indie song — Jugni Jeet. Then went on to do Bollywood but decided to go back to my roots with this song.

Is there a mantra that you follow?

Like I said — honest, straightforward and from the heart.

What next?

I have three songs coming out in the near future. Two independent and one song from the movie Baazaar.

Today, the trend is that one song is sung by two-three singers. What’s your take?

It depends. I have never sung a song where it has been sung by another. Vice-versa, none of my songs have been sung by others. Probably the same song is given to different singers when the director finds that he is not getting what he is looking for.

Is this the best time for indie music?

It is bigger and better than before. There is more that can be done. The public has to change their mindset and start buying music.

Does that mean a singer can make money from independent music?

Why not? There is so much that the space has to offer. In the West there is no distinction between Hollywood and independent music. We can have that here in India as well.