Bollywood has delivered a series of commercial successes lately. Many songs from these films have become popular, such as the Arijit Singh solo numbers ‘Satranga’ from Animal and ‘O Maahi’ from Dunki, and duets like ‘Tum Kya Mile’ from Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (Singh and Shreya Ghoshal), ‘Jhoome Jo Pathaan’ from Pathaan (Singh and Sukriti Kakar) and ‘Chaleya’ from Jawan (Singh and Shilpa Rao).
‘Satranga’ is a melancholic number, ‘O Maahi’’s soothing tune flows like a breeze, ‘Tum Kya Mile’ is a lively romantic number, ‘Chaleya’ makes us tap our feet gently, while ‘Jhoome Jo Pathaan’ is a pulsating dance track. The songs, in other words, are hardly similar. But, as Singh’s fans will tell you, his versatility as a playback singer is unmatched in modern-day Bollywood.
A soft-spoken 36-year-old performer from Jiaganj in Murshidabad, West Bengal, Singh was noticed for the first time when he appeared in ‘Fame Gurukul’, a reality show, in 2005. While some of his countless fans have been lucky enough to interact with him during his ‘live’ performances, he is a famously shy person. His down-to-earth nature has attracted attention, too, and one of his popular video clips on social media shows him driving a scooter on the streets like an average person might. Many of his fans, who love his distinctive voice, shared the clip on social media. Praise poured from the skies, an instance of his popularity among those who follow Hindi film music.
What makes Singh so popular? His USP is his ability to sing a wide range of songs with more or less equal ease. His voice has a unique texture that is wonderfully appropriate for slow tracks such as Kalank’s title track (2019) composed by Pritam, his frequent collaborator. Almost every Hindi film music fan loves to hum ‘Tum Hi Ho’, a haunting number from Aashiqui 2 (2013) composed by Mithoon. When Singh appears on the stage and performs these melodious numbers, audiences sing along with him. Music composers create slow numbers especially for him, knowing he can cast a spell on the listeners with his soulful rendering.
Trained by his guru Rajendra Prasad Hazari, Singh’s voice touches the higher notes effortlessly. He innovates deftly, imparting his trademark touches to songs that enhance their popular appeal. Had any other modern-day male singer sung his portion in Pritam’s ‘Gerua’ from Dilwale (2015), it might have become another one of those lively and reasonably likeable songs that make way for others soon. However, ‘Gerua’ lives on in the listener’s mind because of Singh’s contribution to the duet sung with Antara Mitra. Composed by Pritam, ‘Channa Mereya’, a far better solo track of a similar variety from Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016), gives Singh an opportunity to showcase his precious skills. He does that remarkably, showing what makes him the most wanted singer of his generation.
Singh is a performer of the modern era, a period when too many songs from too many films vanish from public memory in no time. Not many songs have been spoken of as ‘item numbers’ recently, but the fact remains that a few songs have made news simply because leading stars have lip-synched to them in big-budget productions. A truly good song is one that needs no such support or highlight. It works because it is a good composition that music lovers wish to hear long after the film is over. Singh’s contribution with his share of ‘good songs’ is huge, and his list of such songs will become significantly longer with time. After all, his popularity is undeniable. Besides, leading composers love his work as much as listeners do.
Singh has been described as a singer whose voice is best suited for singing romantic songs. That is a sweeping generalization because a significant number of Hindi film songs of diverse genres have romantic lyrics anyway. The singer has expressed his admiration for all kinds of music, right from folk music to retro Hindi film songs. He loves singer KK, whose tragic passing on May 31, 2022, was an irreparable loss for Hindi popular music. He is a fan of Coldplay, the eclectic British rock band. His fondness for variety makes him what he is: a flexible singer who knows how to adjust his style of rendition in keeping with the requirements of compositions of different genres.
What sets Arijit Singh apart is his consistency, a rare quality that is evident when he sings a simple but melodious number like Pritam’s composition ‘Kesariya’ from Brahmastra: Part One – Shiva (2022) and also when he lends his voice to an offbeat Sanjay Leela Bhansali composition like ‘Binte Dil from Padmaavat (2018) which is soaked in middle-eastern flavour. He pours his heart into his performances and makes an impact — if the composition is not disappointingly mediocre.
Music is making an increasingly significant contribution to Hindi films once again. Arijit Singh has played a big role in making it possible, a fact for which the industry must thank the young man from Murshidabad.
The writer, a journalist for three decades, writes on literature and pop culture. Among his books are ‘MSD: The Man, The Leader’, the bestselling biography of former Indian captain MS Dhoni, and the ‘Hall of Fame’ series of film star biographies. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.
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