I’m stronger now: Yo Yo Honey Singh
He gained instant stardom by belting out hits such as Main Sharabi, Angrezi Beat and Lungi Dance. Punjabi rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh, who has openly spoken about his struggles with bipolar disorder and alcoholism, says he has emerged stronger after his battles with his demons.
Singh was missing from the limelight around 2016-2017. He made a stunning comeback with songs like Dil Chori and Chhote Chhote Peg in the film Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety. He was even featured in a music video after four years with the single Makhna.
Has he come out stronger? “I have become stronger now. I never faced such problems in life but when it happened I had my family to support me and help me fight and get out of it,” Singh said.
Singh, whose real name is Hirdesh Singh, says he was sick and hence his career got a little slow during that phase.
“I was sick and when I recovered I chose to stay in the studio, and I think I made around more than 35 songs from 2017 to 2019. All these songs will come out soon.”
Singh can be labelled as the face of Punjabi pop in the late 2000s. His tracks became Bollywood specials, often a film’s main ingredient, as he started giving one hit after the other in movies such as Cocktail, Chennai Express, Khiladi 786
and Boss.
However, Singh has faced his share of brickbrats as his work has been perceived as misogynist by many.
How does he deal with the criticism? “I just keep working. I think an artiste should keep working. Many people might feel bad about several things but my intention has never been to hurt anyone. I just make music. Whether it works or not, and if it is liked or not or if anyone is hurt... I can’t do anything about it,” he said.
This year Singh was named Best Music Director for the film Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety.
He finds winning awards a huge motivation.
“It is a big thing for me. In fact, any award an artiste wins becomes a big inspiration for them. They may say that awards don’t matter, but I feel winning an award does matter to an artiste. It motivates one to do more good work,” he said.
Now since he has made a powerful comeback, what can his fans expect from him? “Lots of things are coming. There is a song by me for the film Pagalpanti. There is a single featuring Sidharth Malhotra and Nushrat Bharucha. I have another single coming up in December. It is a crazy song,” he concludes. Kalki Koechlin is pregnant with her first child with boyfriend Guy Hershberg, a classical pianist. The 35-yearold actress, who is five months pregnant is planning to deliver through water birthing in Goa.
“I already feel the changes in the way I react to things. I am more deliberate, slower, more patient. When motherhood comes eventually, it brings with it a new consciousness to your sense of person. I still want to work but it is less about the rat race and more about nurturing oneself through one’s work. It becomes about infusing concentration and energy inward,” she said.
The actress has also reportedly decided the name of her child. The name is such that it works for both male and female gender.
On the work front, Kalki’s latest is the ZEE5 original web series Bhram. The actress, who recently made her Tamil film debut with Nerkonda Paarvai, is currently prepping for another web series.