Jasleen Royal to cut down on film work to focus on independent music

Singer Jasleen Royal has found a new perspective towards her career. Going forward, she wants to focus more on independent music. And that’s why she has decided to slow down with taking up Bollywood projects, and become more selective with her choices.

“I’ve found a silver lining amid the pandemic, and it’s finding a new perspective towards work. Sometimes you get stuck in the rut ke iski deadline, uski deadline, ya yeh karna hai, woh karna hai. Between all this, you lose perspective of what you want to do and what kind of music you want to put out. I got a break from it because of the pandemic,” Royal admits.

Now, the singer-songwriter is determined to only make music which is close to her heart and what she truly connects with, so that there’s no risk of getting lost in the process.

“I want to be very selective while picking films, and work more on my independent music. I just want to do one or two films,” clears the Din Shagna Da (Phillauri , 2017) hitmaker, and she’s quick to confess that before the pandemic, “I was in the space where I was finding it very hard to say no to work coming my way. Woh hota hai na ke when big people call you and you don’t know how to say no.”

The blurring lines between the popular music and Bollywood music has instilled confidence in Royal, 29, to explore it more actively.

“It’s no longer the case that only Bollywood music is popular; independent music, too, has found a new place,” says the singer, who started her career by releasing singles, before heading to the film world and winning it with her distinctive voice and music.

There was also a sense of unhappiness which was seeping into her as she worked more in Bollywood.

“A part of me was unhappy with the way it becomes an actor’s song. I never thought this before, but now I feel it is wrong. So many times, most of the filmmakers, actors, or directors, thank each other when a new film song comes, with no mention of musicians or lyricists who worked on it. I didn’t understand that,” reasons the Kho Gaye Hum Kahan singer.