Badshah’s kingdom of hip-hop
ish in India. Scores of homegrown rappers have shot to fame in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and indeed Chandigarh, Badshah’s home turf. Moreover, Badshah’s style of making music has influenced music directors in Bollywood as well. “I think it is artistes like us who have gone out there and did our own thing without being told what to do and without being influenced by Bollywood,” he says. “These are artistes who want to make independent music, in their own way, and blend their music with folk tunes and melodies.”
As a songwriter and lyricist, Badshah is quite spontaneous. The rapper says, “There is no particular flow to my creative process. Sometimes it is the beat that comes first in my songs, sometimes it is the lyrics. I don’t stick to one thing and I like to go with whatever comes to my mind.” And most importantly, he doesn’t have to bother with keeping up with contemporary music trends because, in his own words, “I make those trends”.
With songs like “Tere Naal Nachna” and “Kala Chashma” to his name, Badshah has become the go-to rapper for top music directors in Bollywood. In his most recent hit—“Tareefan” from Veere Di Wedding— he even tried his hand at a more conventional style of singing. He says, “I knew ‘Tareefan’ was a good song but I never imagined it to travel so far so soon. I was a bit nervous since this was the first time that I was actually singing. I didn’t know how people were going to take it. But surprisingly it turned out to be a great song.”
Talking about how different is film music from making independent tracks, he says, “When you are working on some Bollywood song, you have to be very careful about many things. But in my case Bollywood has been really kind to me. They [the filmmakers] have actually created situations [in the plot] so that my song could fit in. The producers and mak- ers have been really supportive of me and have put their trust in me. Whereas in in- dependent music you are free to do whatever you feel like, whether it is the situa- tion, any particular thing I want to sing about, it is all up to me. It is like I am making the song for myself.”
Of late, the trend of remaking old songs has taken the industry by storm. Badshah himself has created many remakes, which became huge hits in no time. “I have made remakes of songs that I really believed in, like ‘Kala Chashma’, because I really liked that song. ‘ Humma Humma’ was done because the director told me to. When I remake songs, it is not just a remix but is like creating an entirely new song. In ‘Humma Humma’ you can make out a drop in music. There is a new-age vibe to it, the vocals are mellowed down. This is my version of that old song. I became a part of ‘Tamma Tamma’ only because of nostalgia. It was because Shashank Khaitan [director of Badrinath Ki Dulhania and Humpty Sharma Ki Dhulania], Alia [Bhatt] and Varun [Dhawan] were coming together again. All four of us did Humpty Sharma Ki Dhulania together for the first time as a team—a film which had ‘Saturday Saturday’. As for remakes, artistes are apprehensive at times when they think whether the audience is going to appreciate these songs or not. But I think the day you start thinking that way is the day you start dying as an artiste. You should trust your instincts and go ahead with it. You are not here to do a job. You are a creative person. At the same time, I think the saddest day for Bollywood music would be the day when an album releases on which every song is a remake.”
Any piece of advice that he would like to share with young independent artistes? Badshah responds, “You know, when I made my first song, it was meant for me, as I had no audience and expectations. I just made it and put it out of my system. But it was after that song that people started liking my music. After that, I had an image, I had to live up to the expectations of people. That was when I found my constraints, even came across haters. But in no time I was working for Bollywood and this all started 12 years ago... What I want to tell budding musicians is: do what you feel like, but give it your best. Do it for yourself and not for anyone else.”