“Composers and singers remixing or remaking old songs without giving credits to original creators is theft and legal action should be initiated against them,” said Sukhwinder Singh, renowned for his songs like ‘Chhaiya Chhaiya..’, ‘Jai Ho..’, and ‘Chak de India..’ among many others. Singh was in conversation with ‘The Hitavada’ on Thursday before his performance at the Ramtek Festival. In a wide-ranging conversation, the veteran singer gave a glimpse of his down-to-earth nature. Even while performing in some of the biggest venues in the world, he likes to be connected with his audience. “Since my childhood, in almost 60 per cent of the shows, I have gone into the crowds to sing with them. While some singers might personally feel the infrastructure in the country not suitable for music concerts, I have not felt any such thing while performing at any venue in the country,” he stated.

 

Sukhwinder Singh, who has performed in the Nagpur and other parts of Vidarbha multiple times, holds the city in very high regards. “ Nagpur is one of the few cities in India where I always have great time and look forward to visiting again.” He also recalled his first visit to the city, when the nameplates in Marathi in the city on his way back to Mumbai from Chhattisgarh, gave him feeling of reaching his home in Mumbai. While sharing his experience of being part of multiple cultural events, Sukhwinder Singh praised them for being a great platform for new singers from local communities. “These festivals give a very good platform for hard working and talented singers from local communities. These singers sometimes have very strong follower base and very sound musical roots. They just need a platform that they get while singing alongside an established artist like me.”

 

When asked about his feelings on new AI models capable of reproducing a singer’s voice and fit it in any song on social media, Singh had no problem with it saying that no technology can reproduce human emotions as it is. “Kagaz ke phulo ko mahek nahi hoti,” he said with a smile on his face. “The people recreating my voice via AI only gave more attention to my creation. This is actually beneficial to me and for my music.” The singer also spoke highly about artists producing their independent music. He said, “Many established singers in todays film industry have come through their independently produced music albums. Even though I have not been part of it as much as I would have liked to be, but its a good proving ground for creative artists.” He still remains an avid lover of Bollywood music and find comfort in songs within storylines that he has always sung.