After making his Bollywood debut with a “dream” project, starring Shah Rukh Khan, last year, another of singer Abhay Jodhpurkar’s Bollywood songs is now out.
He says getting these films was not easy as in the past, he has been replaced by “big names” like Arijit Singh and Sonu Nigam. He has no regrets though as he feels that all newcomers have to go through it and that it takes hundreds of scratches for one song to materialise.
“I had done a lot of scratches while I was travelling to Mumbai (from Chennai where he was studying). I had done songs in the past which were supposed to release in my voice. Unfortunately, they couldn’t release as the films’ producers wanted big names or music labels wanted Arijit or Sonu Nigam. My voice has been replaced several times, but it’s okay,” Abhay said in a telephonic interview.
“I guess that’s how it is supposed to be. That’s how the journey of a newcomer happens in Bollywood. It takes hundreds of scratches for one song to materialise. Everyone has gone through it and I have no regrets,” he added.
Mere naam tu, which featured in SRK-starrer Zero, had instantly become a hit. He teamed up with music maestro A.R. Rahman and singer Arjun Chandy for Wako naam Fakir from the forthcoming film The Fakir of Venice, starring Farhan Akhtar and Annu Kapoor.
Abhay is new in Bollywood, but is a known name in south Indian film industry. He has worked in south Indian films like Kadal, Jomonte Suvisheshangal and Koode.
“I didn’t have an agenda per se when it came to playback singing. I was always passionate about music and just learn it for the love of it, but I never thought that I would have a playback singing career,” he said.
Things changed when he moved to Chennai a few years ago for BTech.
“I was also doing part time music at A R Rahman KM Music Conservatory. That was the time when my interest shifted more towards music than academics. I finished my BTech. Ultimately, my calling was Carnatic music or world music,” said Abhay.
Talking about south Indian films, he shared: “It has been a long journey of singing in south Indian films despite me not knowing the languages. It was a challenge.”
He moved to Mumbai in 2017.
“I thought that ‘Okay, let’s try and make it big in Bollywood because I was getting saturated in south.”
SRK is not the first superstar that he has sung for. He has even lent his voice to movies starring Prithviraj Sukumaran and Dulquer Salmaan.
“It is extremely important (to have a superstar starring in the film that he sings in). They give you face value. They are the ones who embody the character of your voice.
“When SRK is lip-syncing to a tune, it has that power and impact. Having a big star attached to it, has a bigger reach and impact,” he said. – IANS
RISING STAR: Abhay Jodhpurkar says he was replaced by big names like Arijit Singh and Sonu Nigam in the past.
