As a child, I travelled all over the world with my family. I am half-Greek and half-Persian by birth and it wasn’t until I was about 16 years old that I moved to India.

The first turning point of my life was when my music career took off. I was 16 and it changed my life. When songs such as Hotline and Love today hai nahin aasaan became huge hits, it was a big thing for me. But, looking back, I realise that at the time I couldn’t entirely do what I wanted — people either influenced my decisions or made decisions for me.

My mother’s death two years ago, crushed me and turned my life around negatively. It took me a long time to deal with my loss. In fact, I withdrew from public life for about eight months and couldn’t even bring myself to perform on stage.

Today, I’m back, not just as a musician, but also as an artist and I’m only doing what I love and believe in. With my debut exhibition in Delhi at The All India Fine Arts & Crafts Society this February, I shared my paintings and ink abstracts on paper for the first time with the world. I also showcased my leather carvings — a technique that includes stamping and cutting leather to make attractive items. Some of the paintings date back almost 17 years, while I developed the leather- carving technique on my own.

Right now I’m participating in events whose proceeds are directed towards a social cause. It gives me great satisfaction to know that my art can come handy for a good purpose. Music-wise, I am only working on international projects currently.

(As told to Tania Bhattacharya)