A taste of heaven on earth

As a singer and songwriter, Kailash Kher does not need any introduction. Having belted out chartbusters like Allah ke Bande and Dhol Vajda, he has definitely made a mark on the Indian music scenario. He is counted as one of the finest sufi singers we have today, but Kailash Kher insists there is more to him than just sufi music.
Many things remain the same for the famed singer, he stills believe in a love that is quintessential in nature and he still maintains his appointments in his sleek Nokia 9500 but what about his flowing, silky tresses? “Oh God, they were such a pain to maintain,” he says laughingly. “I got it chopped off yesterday and was shocked to see the amount of hair that lay on the ground.”
Often compared to the great Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, he frowns, “He was a walli. He just came to Earth to spread the message of love and compassion. Comparing me to him is like comparing a mosquito to an elephant.”
In his first solo album, Kailasa, Kher says he reflects his real identity. “ I don’t sing songs for my beloved that your eyes are like this and your ears are like that, for me music comes from the heart.” Though most of the music in Kailasa is deeply influenced by sufi music. “It is something I have grown up listening to. My father used to sing a lot of mirguni bhajans and I loved listening to them as a boy.
“As I grew I up I tried doing a lot of things for a livelihood but somehow things did not work out quite right for me and I moved to Mumbai to launch my music career,” he says.
It was in Mumbai, that major record labels heard him sing the tracks made famous by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and he was hailed as the new sufi voice. A title Kher is not very keen to carry forward. “I am just a singer. I have miles to go before I can even think of being a part of his legion.”
Kailasa also marks Kher’s collaboration with the former Bombay Black boys Naresh and Paresh Kamath. “We are looking at evolving the sufi rock scene in India and Kailasa is the beginning. Kailasa means heaven, so the love and the music we are talking about is meant to give you a heavenly experience.”

Published in Hindustan Times Next on April 5, 2006