‘I am basically a composer and singer’

'I am basically a composer and singer'
By MIO Team

Despite everything he has recently recorded an album based on the works of Sahir Ludhianvi. The music for the album is composed by Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and is produced by Yash Chopra. On his experience with working with Pandit Sharma he says, "It is a learning experience to be working with maestros. Their approach to music is broad-based, and they are very receptive to new ideas and sounds. As for Pandit Sharma, I have always been a big fan of his music. The work he has done on this album is very different."

Rathod is a trained classical singer under the tutelage of his father, late Pandit Chaturbhuj Rathod. He learnt tabla and played with Pankaj Udhas and Anup Jalota. His elder brother Shravan (of the Nadeem-Shravan duo) took up music composing and younger brother Vinod took to playback singing. He was passionate towards tabla, but in 1984 he turned towards signing and initiated with ghazals. He didn't get much recognition in Bollywood, until 'Sandese Ate Hain' from 'Border' happened to him. After gaining foothold in the industry he turned to a composer himself.

He is working with is wife Sunali on three albums currently. "The first involves using bandish with an international feel to it, which we are releasing under world music. The other has geet and ghazal and in the third we have used Sufi poetry with lounge music."