‘Let the young talent grow’

Ghazal singer Pankaj Udhas tells TOI about his long association with the city and his career moves...

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Pankaj (TOI Photo)His heart-wrenching chitthi aai hai... made people cry, and his deewaroon se milkar rona achcha lagta hai...created a flutter in the hearts of those who were nursing a broken heart.
Once again, the ghazal singer has come up with an album that expresses pain in a relationship. While in the city, Pankaj Udhas spoke to NT seedhe dil se.
On Nagpur
Pankaj Udhas has been visiting Nagpur for the last 30 years, sometimes to meet his childhood friends, and also to perform for his die-hard city fans.

He says that he always comes back because of the immense love and affection he gets from his city fans and has seen the city grow in all these years. "The city has undergone a sea change. Everything from the roads, to the buildings to the infrastructure has improved over the years. It abounds with energy and immense potential."
Serenading sadness
His latest album speaks of broken hearts and separated lovers. Ask him why did he choose such a sad subject for his new album and the singer says, "Last year, I came across a section in the newspapers, which had loads of romantic messages. Some of the messages were from lovers who had separated. Though the words were not so refined, I could actually feel their pain. That got me thinking and I decided to work on the subject."

Of singers and ghazal singers
There are so many talent hunt shows for the budding singers on almost every television channel. But there are no such platforms for ghazal singers. Try saying this in front of Pankaj and he counters that a few years back he had initiated a reality show for ghazal singers, but had to stop midway due to several reasons. Lamenting the fact that not many youngsters are taking to ghazals as a profession, he adds, "It is really unfortunate that the younger generation only wants to earn money and hence prefers playback singing to ghazals. Rendering ghazals involves a lot of hard work and nafasat of language." But he is optimistic about the future of ghazal and feels that the genre will never fade away.
Personal favourites
Pankaj Udhas has sung numerous melodious numbers in a career that spans 28 years. Ask him to choose one ghazal, which is closest to his heart and he says, "Now that's a difficult task. All my songs are my babies." But goad him a bit more and he says, "One song that I keep humming quite often is Chaandi jaisa rang hai tera..."
Passing on the legacy
Though Pankaj's older daughter, Nayaab, has taken to film direction and will be starting her career by capturing her father on camera for an album, his younger daughter Reba is the one he hopes will take after him. "Reba presently is too young. But I am training her in classical singing. She is also learning piano."

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