In colonies and neighbourhoods across north India, people wake up to the booming voice of Kailash Kher, who drives through garbage collection vehicles of municipal corporations and municipalities, urging people to keep their surroundings clean. Kher calls the popular cleanliness anthem, ‘Swachh Bharat Ka Irada’, a “pleasant and successful” way of infusing music with a mundane task like garbage disposal. “Often where lectures don’t work, two-three meaningful lines accompanied by music change minds and hearts. A line like ‘A river of cleanliness will flow from us, we will light the flame of cleanliness in every home’ It expresses the larger purpose behind the mission. This song by default takes my voice to homes that haven’t heard me otherwise.”
Kher says he heard this song, written by Prasoon Joshi, being sung by school children in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, during school assemblies. Kher felt the need for an anthem for the cleanliness drive when Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed him as one of the Navratnas for the Swachh Bharat Mission. “At first I got photographed with a broom and also adopted a ghat, but later thought my real contribution could be through music.”
Across party lines
Over the last few years, Kher has emerged as a go-to singer for party songs. No, not for pubs and discotheques but for political parties contesting elections. Interestingly, whenever elections are held, Kher’s voice remains the connecting link between the warring political parties. This Lok Sabha election was no different as his voice could be heard at rallies and door-to-door campaigning with songs recorded at different times for the Bharatiya Janata Party, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party.
Analysing his demand among political parties, Kher says that whenever he gets an offer, he tells them that he has sung for a rival party, but people still insist. “I think in my genuine voice, their half-truths and lies sound pure and credible,” he says with a smile. Kher says his voice and music have an “honest and provocative quality” that can “mobilise mass support for a party or government scheme.”
Describing himself as non-partisan, Kher says that for him humanity is the biggest party. “When you go to a hospital, you don’t find people boasting about ideology and political affiliation,” he says. Kher reminds us that he was the first person to compose and sing music for Anna Hazare’s India Against Corruption movement. “‘Ambar Tak Yahin Naad Goongega’ became so popular that it was later used for the campaign of the Aam Aadmi Party as well.”
However, her electrifying song from the Bhojpuri film ‘Sita Nahi Milegi Kaise, Ek Ram Chahiye’ mutiny It is often used on social media to promote strongmen leaders. “When a song comes back to me as a reel in a new context, I can only laugh. You can’t take yourself too seriously and apply the copyright act to a 30-second reel. It’s all equal. My Bahubali The song ‘Jai Jaikara’ is often played before Prime Minister Modi’s programmes abroad.
From ‘Allah ke Bande’ (That happens too) and ‘Subhanallah’ (destruction) in ‘Ram Dhun’ I am steadfastKher has covered a wide spectrum of spirituality and romance through his music. “For me, religion means more of a duty than a ritual. When Covid-19 cases were going down, I composed a song ‘Aanadi Anant’ and released it on YouTube. The love it received from people further strengthened my belief in the healing power of music.”
Kher compares his music to “desi (pure) ghee”, where the purity of language, meaning of words and lyrical quality are supreme. Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Southern Riffs
Kher has sung songs in 22 languages, but what is not often talked about is his association with AR Rahman right from his early years in the music industry. Kher credits his command over Sanskrit for his prowess in recording songs in south Indian languages. “When I was learning Sanskrit in the Rishikesh ashram, it was considered old fashioned, but it has helped me a lot in singing songs in regional languages. I am proud of my Filmfare (South) Award for the Telugu song ‘Pandagala Digiwachavu’ (Chili,
He shares a spiritual bond with Rahman. “Whether it is Amir Khursau, Bulleh Shah, Sant Raidas or Baba Gorakhnath, we both love and are inspired by the music of great saints.” The hardships that Rahman went through in his early years deeply affected Kher. “Rahman’s mother loved me a lot. After a recording in Chennai, she asked me to stay here and slowly I became like a member of their family. I brought him away from his serious side.”
Technological advancement means that Kher no longer needs to go to Rahman’s Chennai studio. “These days I record my parts in his Mumbai studio and he listens to it in real time in Los Angeles and works on it.” The two have recently worked together shiny where they sang a soulful duet ‘Bol Mohabbat’. “Rahman keeps experimenting and that’s what keeps his music fresh. The difference in our tones and textures makes it an exciting experiment. I love Rahman singing in Punjabi,” says Kher, showcasing Rahman’s vocals.
Kher poses for a photo during the wedding of Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai. Photo Credit: ANI
Kher compares his music to “desi (pure) ghee”, where purity of language, meaning of words and lyrical quality reign supreme. On his 50th birthday, Kher, whose band Kailasa is one of the biggest attractions in the non-film circuit, has come up with ‘Ishq Hai’, a new romantic number that captures the essence of love in a sarcastic tone. “I believe imagination has no age. We have seen Gulzar sahab writing romantic numbers at a mature age.”
However, he is losing hope in film music as he feels most producers and composers look at a hit number from the past as a reference point while creating an album. “It may give you instant gratification but it is not the way to break new ground.”
Meanwhile, his innovative format of a music reality show based on folk songs on Doordarshan is gaining popularity. “It is one such show among the foreign formats on Indian television that draws inspiration from the ocean of Indian folk music. We spend 12 to 18 months with the contestants before airing them,” says Kher, who has produced the show and is one of its judges.
