I’m a singer, not a mimic:KK

doweshowbellyad=0; KK. (TOI Photo)More picsSinger KK tells Zinia Sen that he cannot modulate his voice to suit SRK, Hrithik or Tusshar.
It’s been more than eight years since Pal’s release. What took you so long to come up with your second album?
Blame films and the normal grind of life. You tend to flow with the tide and not upset the normal routine. But there’s an interesting story that I would like to share.Seven years back I was in Kaziranga with the whole band of mine. After a day or two, when we were through with our show, a part of the gang decided to stay back and have fun while Kalyan, the guitarist and me — the shadishuda members — decided on returning home. We were to take a flight back from Kolkata. The scheduled time was 18:30 and somehow I thought it was 8:30 pm. When I reached the airport, it was past 7 pm and the flight had taken off. Though we heard our wives screaming their heads off over the phone, there was no other option but to stay back. Since we had all the time in the world, we started jamming. It was back then that we came up with the tune of one of our numbers, Yeh kahan mil gaye. But soon we got back to our routined lives and only three years back a movement started within us, since a lot of people kept asking about the possibility of a new album. It was time to give the second album a serious thought.
Is that the reason why you dedicated this number to your wife, Jyothi?
Precisely so. And you can’t also miss out on the North-east connect.
The album’s title track has an interplay of Hindi and English lyrics and there’s also a full-fledged English track. Are they a tribute to the time when you were fully into English music?
I love English music. The Hindi lyrics of the title track is penned by Mehboob and I’ve written the English portion. It’s like a jigsaw puzzle and we’ve put it all together. Mehboob has done a wonderful job.
There’s baul influence in one of the songs. Do you listen to Bengali music?
It’s folk interspersed with rock. Though I’m not that much into Bengali music, thanks to music director Shantanu Moitra, who is a close friend, I’ve heard some.
Did you feel any pressure while doing this album since Pal remains a favourite with the masses?
Did The Eagles ever repeat Hotel California ? Pal and Yaaron are my hits and they’ll always be known as my works. A few days back a friend of mine asked me to run a search on a website with the word Yaaron. I did the same and was amazed to see a group of guys, who didn’t look like Indians, singing the number. It gave a different kick altogether. But I’ve worked hard for this album too and that is what matters.
Having given the biggest chartbuster of the year, Aankhon mein teri (OSO), how does it feel?
All I can say is that I thoroughly enjoyed singing the number. Someone even told me that Shah Rukh had really liked the number and that it was his favourite romantic number in the flick. So, that’s a bonus.
And this is the first time that SRK was seen lip-syncing to your number...
When I sing a number, I don’t think about who it will be picturised on. Such things are immaterial to me. I’m not a mimic and can’t make different voices for Shah Rukh, Hrithik or Tusshar. All I’m bothered about is doing justice to a number.
A lot of singers are on reality TV these days...
I’m a shy guy and wouldn’t be interested in reality shows.
Isn’t it important to stay in the news?
Sometimes it is, but not always. You can do some good work and get noticed but to do something to stay in the news is thoroughly embarrassing.
Ever thought of becoming a music director?
That’s a scary proposition. I’m a selfish guy and would keep all the good self-composed numbers for my album.
What are the projects in the pipeline?
Jannat, Showbiz, Dharma...I keep forgetting the names. At times I need to be reminded of a number that I had sung. When my friends call me up to say my song is there in a film’s promo, I have to think twice on whether it’s my song or nor. Work is work and once it’s done, it’s done.
So, what keeps KK going?
My family, in a large way. When I’m through with the day’s work, I go home and chill out in my fata hua T-shirt and shorts. At times we go out for long drives, maybe, Mumbai to Goa or Pune and the drives are not just mentally relaxing but also the higher the speed is, it gives me a sense of freedom. That feeling lives on even after reaching the destination.