K Jo didn't CREDITED Rahat F A Khan for HSKD Song

• Bindu Rai

A visibly nervous Rahat Fateh Ali Khan admits he's scared. His first album in seven years, Back 2 Love,' has just hit the airwaves with a teary-eyed Gauhar Khan and Kushal Tandon lending their famous faces to a music video for the same.

Khan, who launched his album in Dubai with filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt doing the honours, said: "I'm really scared. The feel is like that of an artist who paints a portrait and is worried about audience opinion. In this case, there are a lot of pictures and strange canvases used in my new music. I have attempted different genres such as Arabic with Habibi' and classical fusion with Raag Champakali'; let's see how people react.

"Upon hearing, people will be either surprised or shocked. If it doesn't work, then it isn't the end for an artist."

Khan addressed the lack of individual creativity in India was on the decline with the Bollywood juggernaut curtailing the popularity of private music albums.

"Producing a private album today is akin to committing suicide. People are so scared that an artist even loses confidence and trust in his own music," he revealed. "Sometimes though, those who produce music, their thinking itself is limited that what can an artist do. The problem is, today there is no concept of visual. All they ask about a song today is, is there a video for it and who does it star."

He continued: "I think sometimes it is also a case of an artist not having enough content. Today, I have enough music to make 20 albums. That's the amount of work that has been generated by my uncle, Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, my father and myself. At least 4-5 new compositions are created everyday by me."

However, even with his creative talent winning him several awards over his career, the singer found himself replaced when filmmaker Karan Johar purchased the rights of Khan's hit song, Samjhawan' and had the up and coming Arjit Singh take over the vocals for the soundtrack of Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania'.

A pensive Khan says: "I don't want to take names, as I respect all those people involved. But Pakistan's Sahir Ali Bagga arranged the composition and I sang Samjhawan', which went on to become a huge hit. Now I hear, a big company bought its rights and now another singer has been roped in.

"I am not troubled that someone else is singing my song, but the man who created it, who owns, someone should ask him, credit him surely?"

Quiz the maestro if he would ever compose a Bollywood film album to overcome such hurdles facing him in India, and he replies: "If Salman Khan asks me to compose music for his film, then I will put him ahead and even do it. But I am of this thought, an artist can take risk on himself, but on a trillion-dollar film industry you cannot take a risk."

Remind him that even his late uncle, the maestro Nusrat, had composed a film album for Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's debut film, Aur...Pyaar Ho Gaya' and Khan promptly replies: "You think I am Nusrat? Some artists are born with talent. I am walking in his footsteps. I am still struggling. I am incomplete.

"I will only fill that void when Nusrat comes in my dreams and says you are okay. It is a spiritual connection."

Khan is also expected to release another album for Ramadan, according to sources; meanwhile, the singer is collaborating with Nokia MixRadio to release a series of his personally recommended playlists that will be available on the app over the next few weeks. The app aims to personalise mixes to suit your tastes by recommending tracks and creating playlists based on your listening profile.

SRC