Hailing from an illustrious musical family does mean that the atmosphere at home was very melodious; it was rather equally competitive, especially with feisty uncle Anu around! Amaal recalls, “When my song Sooraj Dooba from the movie Roy came out, he patted me on the back, but also told me to wait for his new song, which turned out to be the lilting Moh Moh Ke Dhaage.” But he goes on to remind us how his uncle, who debuted in 1977, was still very much around. No mean feat indeed.
“With soundscape changing every two weeks, it’s anyway not easy to survive in this industry where the competition is sky high. The best of best have to eat a humble pie,” he says. But on the flip side, he also professes, “It’s a great time for music where you don’t have to only compose/sing for films.” Thus, amidst the bheed of “five lakh singers and 50,000 music composers, artiste Chaar Diwaari, with cutting edge music, could capture your imagination.”
To those who continue to dwell in musical nostalgia and lament that melody has all but vanished from the Hindi film industry, he counters, “There is good and bad music in every era. You can’t discredit any.” And to ensure melody doesn’t elude his grasp, he has the nerve to say no to 21 films, ‘also removed from 27’. He asserts, “I can’t do a remix for every film. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 was an exception for the song Ami Je Tomar 3.0 was central to the franchise.”
Music for him is a very personal thing and each time his composition goes out into the world, his heart aches for sharing something so close to him. Today, as he is ready with music of upcoming film Inn Galiyon Mein, in which he has given a racy tongue-in-cheek song to brother Armaan and Palak Muchhal, he is in no rush to get anywhere. “I just want to remain in people’s hearts.” With his dance anthems like Kar Gai Chull and Aashiq Surrender Hua still rocking the musical scene, he is certainly here to stay. In hearts and on the hit lists!
