Singh shabads help Asees Kaur deal with life’s ups and downs

Mona

Asees Kaur loves coming to Chandigarh. That many of her songs shot in the city went on to become chartbusters is one reason, but the most important reason is the food. The singer visited the city recently to shoot for a song and as usual she had a great time and loads of lip-smacking treats.

“A trip to Chandigarh is always amazing. I went there to shoot a brilliant song. I can only drop a hint that it’s with a popular rapper and you will definitely love it. Food is my weakness, and food there is just awesome.” 

Asees, who started the journey in the world of music with shabads early in life, says, “Music uplifts my soul. It’s an integral part of my being. I guess life without music would be very boring!”

With a supportive family which moved from Panipat to Mumbai to be with her, Asees is living her dream. For many aspiring singers, reality shows come in handy, but the real struggle, Asees points out, begins post the show. “While reality shows are a great medium to get recognition, it’s only after the show is over that ‘real’ reality starts. The real success is to land a proper song,” she says.

That aside, she says the industry remains largely male dominated. “In most songs, a female singer is only asked to sing four lines or at times an antara or just mukhda.” 

What she finds heartening is that independent music is coming out of the shadows of Bollywood music. “Now, independent music gets similar play listing or marketing. Most labels are doing great business. It’s really a good time for budding singers as people have opened up to all kinds of music.”

While Asees loves all her songs, there are two which are closer to her heart. “There is something about Jaan Nisaar with Amit Trivedi and Jaan Ban Gaye with Mithoon which I absolutely adore.” Noor Jehan and Arijit Singh are her favourite singers. “I am so influenced by Noor Jehan, and Arijit is a living inspiration for all of us singers.”

She’s glad that finally the pandemic related restrictions have been eased out and the world is inching closer to normalcy. “The best thing for a singer is to perform live. To know that your fans love you and your songs is the best feeling in the whole wide world.”

As she started her journey with shabads, she still banks on them to sail through life’s ups and downs. “Sansar Samunde Taar Gobinde is the shabad I am following. It makes me feel closer to God. It always calms me.”

And, Asees has many songs in the pipeline. “There is a peppy Punjabi number with Universal Music; then we shot a non-filmy song with a famous Bollywood actress, then the surprise song that brought me to Chandigarh and another one with Mohit Chuhan!”

Easy breezy

Asees Kaur’s latest track is a peppy number, Easy Na Lai, with the Akhtar Brothers. “Easy Na Lai is an out-and-out commercial and peppy song. It has a fun and happy vibe to it and we thoroughly enjoyed shooting for it. I had a great experience working with Hyundai Spotlight and I hope the audiences enjoy the track as much as we did creating it,” says Asees.