Ahead of Valentine's Day, Bollywood playback singer Aditi Paul released her new romantic indie single Aur Baatein and we caught up with the beautiful crooner on the same. Excerpts from the chat.
Tell us about the new song?
Aur Baatein is a romantic song in the swing jazz genre. And this is for the first time that I have written the lyrics of my song.
Though every song is derived from the same 12 notes, each of them is different from the other in terms of expressions, arrangements and treatment, thus making it unique in itself. Aur Baatein too is unique in its melody.
How difficult is it to survive in the Bollywood music industry?
There are two aspects to this question. The first part is what makes a song so good that it becomes a trend and the other aspect that is there is the competition. For me, competition is inspiring since it hones one's skills.
What are the lessons you have picked up?
The lessons or to be specific, the professional lessons that are pivotal for being in this industry are that one has to be both persistent and resilient while being open to fresh ideas.
As a singer what kind of music inspires you?
All kinds - it is very difficult, especially for a singer to be choosy about music that inspires. Anything classical, folk, modern, Hip Hop, Sufi - anything that you know, - Western classical - all of them are equally inspirational.
How do you grow as a singer?
Regular and meticulous practice and exposure and the readiness or openness of the mind to try out any new thing that is given. One should observe the little experiences that life gives us and incorporate those emotions and experiences into our songs.
How do you feel the market for indie music has changed over the years?
I think the Indie market has come up strongly in the last few years. There is more support now from the audience and organisers to promote Indie music.
Your other projects?
I am working on a couple of songs that are also my compositions. I have recently collaborated with Shantanu Ghatak and Ronkini Gupta on a song that will be released soon hopefully. I have also sung for a couple of films. Recently I have had the opportunity to sing in Varun Grover’s film All India Rank which was screened at IFFR, as the closing film. The music is given by Mayukh-Mainak. Some more are lined up further but can't really talk about them now, but hopefully will do so soon.
Any particular composer and singer you wish to work with and why?
So many, in fact, I want to work with everybody. There are so many new composers who are experimenting with sound. And I would love to work with all of them.
Who's ur favorite singer and why?
I think I am quite an old school when it comes to choosing a singer. I love to listen to Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhonsle, Kishore Kumar, Mohammed Rafi, Manna Dey, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Salamat Ali Khan, Nazakat Ali Khan, Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand, Ella Fitzgerald, Doris Day and the list is a million miles long.