Miss India Asia Pacific Niharika Singh features in a video of Babul Supriyo’s forthcoming album Kuch Aisa Lagta Hai and (top) the singer strikes a pose

What is your new album all about?

It’s called Kuch Aisa Lagta Hai. It’s my first release in three years. Sochta Hun came in 2002. Here in India, whatever is non-filmi is called pop. Unlike in the West, we do not have categories like soul, rock or R’’B. I wouldn’t call my album different since I don’t think you need to be different to reach out to the listeners.

The album’s got everything we are exposed to ? television to radio to newspapers. It’s just eight good songs that happened to me.

How is it different from Sochta Hun?

For albums like Sochta Hun or the single Khoya khoya chand, it’s the same playback singing for me. I just go out there and record the song in the studio ? it’s not in any way different from singing for a film. But for this new album, for the first time, the music company Universal did not interfere at all.

They gave me the money and the artistic freedom to create anything I want. It can backfire? the eight songs can go horribly wrong. But the best part is in their being artistic in supporting me.

Who has done the music and written the lyrics for the album?

The Bombay Vikings guy Neeraj Shridhar has scored five of the songs. Then, there’s a semi-classical song. I thought whenever there’s a classical or semi-classical song, it’s either sung by Hariharan or Sonu Nigam. So this one track is very special for me. I had Ajoyda (Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty) composing the song for me. Then there are two other songs, the composer of which I don’t want to name. The lyrics have been written by Dev Kohli and Nawab Arzoo.

What is your take on scoring music for your own songs like Shaan and Sonu Nigam do?

I have done that but I don’t want to go around town telling people that I have composed the songs. My job is to excel as a singer and there’s no extra greed to take accolades for other departments. Music direction is something very tough. If the song is good and becomes popular, people will come to know anyway.

You have shot the first video in Greece?

Yes, it’s called Tere Liye and has been shot on one of the islands created by volcanic eruptions called Santorini. It features Niharika Singh, Miss India Asia Pacific.

There’s something about the Miss India winners and me. Khoya khoya chand featured Dia Mirza who was also Miss India Asia Pacific. It’s also the first time that I am the only male in the video. Usually they have other guys romancing the girls and I make these appearances ? kokhono gachher daale, kokhono joler pipey? But here I am the only one. The video is beautiful ? blue skies, white buildings?

It’s the same place where Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukherjee shot one of the songs in Chalte Chalte.

What’s happening on the film front?

I have at least one song in all the important films ? Dus, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya, Pyaar Mein Twist. I have never been a person who makes a noise with every hit song. Even after the Hum Tum title track, I didn’t set up and give interviews.

ka Yagnik won the Best Playback singer award in many ceremonies for the same song but I didn’t. The awards maybe are saved for the future. I am basically looking at a career of 15 to 20 years like an Udit Narayan or Alka Yagnik.

But songs are disappearing from films?

I think it’s good that the importance of songs has gone down in the movies. Earlier, songs used to be thrown into films by hook or by crook. But now, directors like Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Ram Gopal Varma, with cult musicals like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Rangeela, are making songless films like Black and Sarkar. Even while watching the films I felt that songs would have completely shaken up the mental frame.

And has the rivalry between the singers got any better?

No, it’s still very much there. The difference between me and Sonu Nigam is that he gets the best films and I don’t. The best songs go unnoticed if the films do not work. I don’t have the right to choose the films or the songs. I can only hope that every second Kaho Naa? Pyaar Hai and every second Hum Tum comes to me.

If the music industry is a game of basketball, I am a part of the six-member team. And on a given day, any of us six can score a winner. So the scene is very competitive, very exciting.