Anybody can be a singer today: Babul Supriyo

In town recently, Babul Supriyo talks about MSD’s hint at retirement from Test cricket and why Captain Cool could try being the angry young man
Performing in every city can be both a unique and a similar experience. Did Ranchi offer you anything special? It was truly a humbling experience for me to perform in Ranchi. Despite the show being cancelled a day before due to bad weather, people gathered in thousands the next day with equal enthusiasm. This gesture is rare to find in any other city. Since 1980, I have been making regular trips to Ranchi. Some of my relatives stay here. Back then, I used to relish the junk food on the street. The burger, the chowmein — I have had a thing for them. I really miss those days. Ab woh sab possible nahi ho pata. Dhoni is also from Ranchi. That is something which also makes Ranchi special.
What sort of bonding do you share with Dhoni? I met Dhoni in Ranchi during the inaugural function of Jharkhand Premiere League. After that, we have met each other at different public functions. We know each other as professionals.
While on cricket, Team India’s performance in Australian tour has got flak. The serial defeat has been an issue of criticism both in the foreign and Indian media. Where do you think the fault lies? I think, BCCI is to be blamed for all this. There is too much of cricket being played. Players don’t even have time to sit and think on their performances. The team went to Australia six days before the Test series. Considering the fact that Australia will have a different wicket and climatic condition, they should have gone there at least 15 days in advance. County cricket toh jaise hum khelna hi bhool gaye hai. We are involved more in 20-20. That is more about enjoying a blind hit with the bat. Playing a Test match is about knowing the grammar of the game. That can’t be ignored. But people actually are losing interest with excessive dose of cricket.
Players often complain of fatigue... They can get fatigued, but if they complain, there is this ridiculous argument about why they are not giving high-paying IPL a miss in favour of performing their national duties. That’s a stupid logic and I feel, there is no reason to question any player’s commitment simply because he plays the IPL, which also is a BCCI venture. Dhoni is intelligent and is hinting at retiring from Test cricket so that his move will not raise too many questions.
What you have to say on Dhoni’s Captain Cool image? Dhoni is one of my favourite players and captains from India. He has done a lot for Indian cricket but, sometimes, aggression is equally important to win. That was there in Sourav Ganguly. He was the captain who gave confidence to the team to register a win in foreign pitches. I think, sometimes, Dhoni should shed his Captain Cool image and play the role of an angry, young man.
You’ve done Bengali films as an actor. Will you be continuing with acting? I love acting and so will continue doing roles in films. But these will not be as protagonists. Anything from comedy to characters with grey shades will satisfy me as an actor. People have this perception that singers can never be good actors and that’s because of the way some singers-turned-actors have delivered on-screen. The common view is: “Dekho, ek aur singer chala doobne”.
Coming to music, your last musical album, “Suno Mere Dil Ki Baat”, wasn’t as huge a hit as “Sonchta Hoon Uska Dil”. Do you think this is any indication of how private albums are less accepted these days? Ab aisa toh nahi hai ki pehle main zyada achcha gaata tha aur ab nahi. In fact, be it Sonu Nigam or Sukhwinder Singh, nobody is coming up with their own musical albums. The TV and FM channels are responsible for this bad phase of private albums because they don’t promote these numbers. The movie songs are repeatedly played and the rest of the slots are reserved for reality shows. If you don’t make people listen to these songs, how will they become popular? Singers ka bahut bura daur chal raha hai. Good singers are sitting idle and amateur singers are doing good with software music. Look at “Kolaveri Di”. My daughter likes it and, even, I like the catchy tune. But then, if such songs become hits, can I then insist that youngsters must be trained and be correct with their pitch to be successful? I think, anybody can be a singer today. There is no need to even take formal training in music.