Playback Akhtar

The star cast of Blue: Kylie Minogue, Akshay Kumar, Lara Dutta, Zayed Khan and Sanjay Dutt

Is Farhan Akhtar going to sing for director Anthony D’Souza’s shot-in-Bahamas-and-Bangkok extravaganza, Blue? Or has Farhan’s sore throat proved a sore point? Anthony, better known as Tony to friends, confirms, “Farhan is definitely singing the song in Blue. But the lyrics are not ready, yet. Unlike the other songs of Blue, however, this song will not be written by Abbas Tyrewala as Abbas is busy with his next directorial venture.”

Ask Tony why Farhan Akhtar and he explains, “I loved the way Farhan sang in Rock On!! His voice is …,” he struggles to find the right word and comes up with “different.”

Who will the song be picturised on? Sanjay Dutt, Akshay Kumar or Zayed Khan? Refusing to let the cat out of the bag because he feels it will spoil the surprise element, Tony says, “Wait and watch.” We take a shot in the dark and ask, “Maybe Farhan himself?” Tony laughs, “No.”

The other songs of this thriller are sung by international pop star, Kylie Minogue (a sure-fire chartbuster, according to insiders), Sonu Nigam (for Akshay), Shreya Ghoshal (for Lara Dutta) and Rashid Ali (for Sanjay) besides Udit Narayan (for a background song). Two songs have yet to be recorded and shot, including one that will feature Katrina Kaif.

Summing up his experience of working with Rahman, Tony says, “You can only expect the best from him. He spoils you for choice, and once you select a number, he enhances it tenfold with further nuances. The end result is awesome.”

Tony elaborates, “Rahman prefers to record after eight in the night because he likes silence. He recorded one of the songs in four hours flat. If given a choice, I would repeatedly work with Rahman and Sonu,” says the first-time director.