Exclusive: Arjun Kanungo: I’ve never been a big believer in marriage

Arjun Kanungo recently proposed to his girlfriend of four years, Carla Dennis, in Dubai. The singer-composer-lyricist known for his romantic songs says that his recent single is actually based on his love story with Carla.
Talking to Bombay Times he says, “’Waada Hai’ with Shehnaaz Gill, is about undying love and romance beyond time and space. It's about two soulmates meeting each other and if they don't have each other they don't want to be with anybody else.The music video ‘Waada Hai’ is based on my relationship with Carla.”
He explains, “I have always struggled with the concept of marriage and I have never been a big believer and that's what the music video is about. It's about me, overcoming my fear of marriage and asking the person I love, to marry me and that's what the music video is pretty much in a nutshell.”
This song and the music video is very close his heart for obvious reasons. “It's super special as it's about my life. It's real to me and the lyrics pretty much encompass how I feel about Carla. So it's different from all my other songs specially because it's special to me personally as it has a great connect to my life and I think when people see the music video I think they will get to know me a little better. Like I said I have never been a big believer of marriage my entire life and Carla is the one person I'm so sure of, that I never had to think and it's so important to her and I felt it was the right time. I wasn't nervous about it at all and it just felt right and I didn't have to thinks about it and it did not come from a philosophical place but it came from a place of so much happiness and so much sureness, it did not take me too long, it just felt right,” shares an emotional Arjun.
The love is about how love triumphs over everything else. Arjun says, “When they feel they are perfect for each other, nothing matters and they will do anything to be with each other. So this is what the song is about. It's a love ballad about soulmates, commitments and promises, and is larger than life. It is a declaration of how much you love someone.”
Not many know that Shehnaaz featuring in Arjun’s music video was actually due to a fan request. Talking about Shehnaaz, Arjun says, “Shehnaaz is a lovely girl. She is very easy to work with, and professional. She is a bubbly personality, so, fun to work with on the set. We got along well with each other we have now become good friends. My collaboration with her started with one of her fans requesting me to collaborate with her on Twitter, so, amazingly, we made it happen.”
Arjun with Shehnaaz Gill in 'Waada Hai'
Manoj Muntashir
The lyrics of the love ballad has been penned by Manoj Muntashir, “I would say lyrics are what makes a song. Honestly Manoj Muntashir's lyrics add depth to the song. I believe without the soulful lyrics it's pretty much just a pretty melody but the main thing was that we wrote this song around the important main line which was ‘Tere Bina jiye bhi to kyu ye sawaal baar bar ata hai tere agar na ho sake to kisi aur ka naa honge, Waada Hai’. So around this, we had written the whole melody and the whole song. So, I think it's safe to say that he is the Hero Of The Song! While 50 per cent of the song is due to the lyrics, the other 50 is due to the melody.”