Alisha Chinai shares FASCINATING ‘Kajra Re’ trivia: “I was called at the last minute; I rushed from Alibaug…Gulzar wrote the alaap in 10 minutes”; says “Aishwarya Rai looked like a GODDESS”
Alisha Chinai had a conversation with Komal Nahta in which she shared fascinating and not-so-known trivia about singing the iconic song ‘Kajra Re’ from Bunty Aur Babli (2005). She began by saying, “The makers told me that it was an item song and that maybe Aishwarya Rai Bachchan would be doing it. Moreover, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy were the composers, while Gulzar saab had written the lyrics. I was completely spellbound by the whole experience, especially how Gulzar saab wrote the song. The alaap in the song was created on the spot. He wrote it in 10-15 minutes. I sang the song and completed the recording. Then he said, ‘Something is missing’. That’s how he came up with the alaap. I was wowed!”
Alisha then revealed how she was approached to sing ‘Kajra Re’, “I was chilling in my house in Alibaug. I am a loner. Main duniyadaari mein bahut zyada vishwas nahin rakhti. I have no social skills, though I am learning. So, Ehsaan called me and asked, ‘Can you get here in 2 hours?’. I replied, ‘No. I am chilling in Alibaug’. He replied, ‘Alisha, it’s a very important song. Please get here’. I asked him, ‘Can’t we do it another day?’. His answer was, ‘No. We have to do it now’.”
Alisha continued, “So, I quickly left and reached Purple Haze Studio. I was pleasantly surprised as everybody was waiting for me – Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Gulzar saab, Rani Mukerji and Abhishek Bachchan. Shankar started playing it and I asked him, ‘Mera gaana kahaan hai?’. He said, ‘This is the song you have to sing’. I replied, ‘Yeh toh qawwali type gaana hai’! He said, ‘Yes. Sing it your way’. I liked that because they made a modern pop qawwali out of it. The way I sang it, it just sounds different. That worked wonders. It was like magic. On top of it, there was Aishwarya Rai; oh my God! And it doesn’t end there. Mr Bachchan and his son, too, featured in the song.”
Alisha Chinai then added, “I finished recording the song in just 2 hours. They called me back a week later. I was told that Mr Aditya Chopra wanted more of Alisha’s voice in it. I was like, ‘Wow. Ok. Thank you’! So, I came back and sang another verse. I can’t remember now what exactly it was.”
Alisha Chinai also stated that she was amazed with the response to ‘Kajra Re’ in cinemas, “Sab paise fek rahe the in theatres. As for Aishwarya, she looked like a Goddess. Also, my voice (matched her); it seemed like she herself was singing the song.”
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The post Alisha Chinai shares FASCINATING ‘Kajra Re’ trivia: “I was called at the last minute; I rushed from Alibaug…Gulzar wrote the alaap in 10 minutes”; says “Aishwarya Rai looked like a GODDESS” appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.