Sporting a new trim (but not yet slim) look, Adnan Sami walks into the press conference room. His sleepy singing voice and catchy tunes have made the singer-composer an international star. His victory in the battle of the bulge has now furthered his pop appeal.
Jovial, candid and full of self-deprecating humour, Sami is one of the nicest celebrities to meet.
Here he talks about his new album, Kisi Din, plagiarism and Indian music.
Excerpts:
There was a long gap of three years between your last album and this new one. What was the reason?
After my last album Teri Kasam I got busy with Bollywood assignments. I also did a lot of concerts all over the world. Then I realised that I had to seriously look after my health and that tuning up also required some serious time and efforts. Hence the delay.
So now you are looking fit and fresh. How much weight have you lost?
110 kg so far [smiling]! But still some way to go!
You once said that your music reflects your life. So what exactly is reflected in your latest album?
For nine years I was away from my son. Only last September could I meet him after waiting so long. The intervening period was one of the darkest periods in my life, when all I could do was to keep hoping that some day it would change for the better. The album's title Kisi Din is almost a literal translation of that wishful "some day".
Some albums are strong on melody, some are strong on lyrics. What is the strong point of Kisi Din?
I think the main strong point is Adnan Sami [laughs]. Jokes apart, I feel the album is strong on both counts. I have always believed that the greatest songs have always had the greatest melodies and I have focused on finding the right melody and the right words for every song.
All your albums have at least one fun-song. Is there one in this album?
Yes, this time around it is Salaam Aalaikum. This popular expression can be used with different intonations and in the song I have used it in a naughty way. The guy singing this is a lech [lecherous man] and he uses "salaam aalaikum" as his pick-up line. But nowadays pick-up lines don't work, do they [grinning]?
Your music videos have always made waves.
Teri Yaad and Kisi Din are the two videos we have made so far. Both have emotional, romantic story lines and a new-look Adnan. The first one was shot in Mumbai and features a new face as the heroine. The second one featuring Yana Gupta was picturised in Malaysia.
How has the Bollywood experience been?
The Bollywood experience has been great and I really admire talented composers like A.R. Rahman and Vishal Bharadwaj. Earlier I composed music for Lucky and currently I am working on three other Bollywood film soundtracks.
Today the composers and the audiences are much more in sync with world music and that's what reflects in contemporary tunes.
Fusion has been around for ages in Bollywood — even the masters like Naushad, Shankar-Jaikishan, S.D. and R.D. Burman have used it in their compositions.
But whereas people never noticed foreign influence in earlier times, now they immediately spot such tunes, thanks to their exposure to world music. It has made plagiarism risky for current composers.
You were one of the first of the new voices to succeed without conforming to the Kishore Kumar-Mohammed Rafi formula.
As an artist I have always believed in individuality rather than blindly following someone else's popular style. I am thankful to God that people have accepted and appreciated my artistic individuality. If my success has created openings for other talents, then I am really happy about it.
Diet trivia
- Before starting on his astonishing weight-reduction programme, Adnan Sami had a "last supper" — a 32-ounce steak, mashed potatoes loaded with gravy and some tiramasu.
- His current diet consists of salads, salads and more salads! A piece of grilled fish is sometimes taken as an indulgence.
- He now does at least an hour and a half of cardio exercises every day.
- He says he lost weight just to be healthy and rubbishes reports that say it's all due to some mystery girl in his life.
