Abhay Jodhpurkar: Pronunciation is key when singing in different languages

Abhay Jodhpurkar

In the midst of juggling his Marathi and Tamil film ventures, Badhaai Do singer Abhay Jodhpurkar finds himself receiving much acclaim for his latest Hindi offering, Meherbaan. Attributing the song's success to the freedom offered to artistes like him from independent music labels, the singer says, "When the technicalities of creating a [chartbuster] are put aside, creative minds get the opportunity to work on music, as they please. There's no need to succumb to producers' demands, and we can create music without boundaries, and only for the sake of our love for music. There is less fear attached with such offerings. With people more receptive of indie music today, musicians will finally get to work on the projects they deserve."

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A student of AR Rahman's academy, the singer found himself catering to the needs of south Indian music when Rahman handpicked him for projects. "I was thrown into the world of Tamil music and exposed to this beautiful world during my time in Chennai. I have sung in 12 languages, so I have been exposed to different cultures and experiences. Navigating different languages has been easy, and each language has its own essence," says the singer, adding that two factors play a crucial role in determining a singer's success across languages. "The first is pronunciation. That is essential if one wants to do justice to the language. The next is understanding the song's meaning so as to [render] it appropriately, according to the melody. It helps me keep the soul of the song intact. Learning these aspects has been satisfying. When it is all put together, it is beautiful." Given that he began his journey with Tamil music, Jodhpurkar says it is the language he enjoys the most.

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Jodhpurkar is currently working on creating his own music label on YouTube. "Several indie and film songs across languages are also being worked on."