The Saiyaara fever has not only been dominating the big screens, but it has also taken over social media. All over Instagram stories and reels, a deeply melodic male voice can be heard crooning the lyrics, “Saiyaara tu toh badla nahi hai“. As of now, the Mohit Suri-directed film has created box office records with two debutants, Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda, in the leads. However, a huge credit for this success also goes to the soulful album of Saiyaara that has brought back the frenzy among people for Bollywood romantic musicals.
Saiyaara‘s film director, Mohit Suri and its music composer, Tanishk Bagchi, have become the talk of the town for their masterful creativity. But very few people are aware of Faheem Abdullah, the singer who gave his vocals to Ahaan Panday’s ‘Krish Kapoor’. Mohit had made Arijit Singh a household name by launching him through Aashiqui 2. Now, the director has revealed why he chose a new voice this time, rather than Arijit. So, here’s everything to know about Saiyaara singer, Faheem Abdullah and why he was chosen by Mohit Suri.
Faheem Abdullah hails from Kashmir with no connections in the film industry
Even though most of the songs in the Saiyaara album have been composed by Tanishk Bagchi, the title track was created by Faheem Abdullah and his collaborator, Arslan Nizami. Both of them were born and brought up in Kashmir and had no connections with the film industry. In their hometown of Srinagar, Faheem and Arslan had achieved considerable recognition, but their music remained unknown to the rest of India.
Faheem Abdullah came to Mumbai with enough savings to last 2 weeks
In an interview with Hindustan Times, Arslan revealed that he once told Faheem that their music isn’t reaching the world outside. They need to get out and do that. To give their passion and creativity a chance, the singer and composer duo set out to Mumbai for only 14 days, because they had enough savings to last them for two weeks. Fortunately, on the 13th day itself, they met Tanishk Bagchi and were roped into the Saiyaara project. And as people say, the rest is history.
Mohit Suri reveals why he chose Faheem Abdullah instead of Arijit Singh for the Saiyaara theme song
Arijit Singh is currently the voice behind almost every romantic or sad song and is unmatched in popularity as the new age Bollywood singer. Mohit Suri also plays a huge part in Arijit’s success. The singer had been a part of the music industry for a long time, but he became an overnight sensation with Mohit’s previous musical blockbuster, Aashiqui 2. Despite this connection, Mohit hedged his bets on the new voice of Faheem rather than going for Arijit.
In an interview with NDTV, Mohit Suri revealed his reasons for doing so and said Arijit Singh represented a cinema that he did 14 years ago. Moreover, the director is also always on the lookout for new voices. Mohit stated that he loved the late singer KK, but didn’t feel like he represented Emraan Hashmi, who was the main lead in his initial movies. Hence, he found Arijit to give his vocals to Emraan. Similarly, Mohit felt that Faheem was the voice that he wanted for Ahaan Panday’s ‘Krish Kapoor’. In the interview, he was quoted as saying:
“Arijit represents a cinema that I did 14 years ago. I love Arijit, I did use him in one song. But when I was looking for Arijit… I love KK sir, but that wasn’t Emraan Hashmi for me in those early films. Then I found Arijit. So only when you seek, shall you find the answer.”
Mohit Suri is hailed among both cinephiles and music lovers for exploring and launching new musical talents. Talking about this, the Saiyaara director said that one needs to keep searching to stay relevant. Mohit also believes that failing with someone new is preferable to being unsuccessful with someone established, as it is less intimidating. He shared in the interview:
“Even when I was talking to Akshaye (YRF CEO), I said, you have to give yourself room to fail. Failing with someone established is far scarier, it means your fundamentals have changed. But failing with someone new? That’s not that bad. At least you tried something different.”
T-Series have signed Faheem Abdullah for major upcoming projects
After the widespread success of the Saiyaara title track, T-Series has welcomed Faheem Abdullah into their camp for many major upcoming projects. Faheem will be working with one of the largest music labels of India for film songs, albums, and even singles. With this opportunity, Faheem is also hopeful that he will be able to bring more singers and undiscovered talents from Kashmir to the centrestage. Talking about his excitement to join T-Series, Faheem shared:
“I feel blessed and honoured to be joining hands with T-series. All these years in my hometown, I have always looked at T-Series as the pinnacle of music, and now collaborating with Bhushan Sir (T-Series MD) on multiple future projects is both an honour and an exciting new chapter for me. This partnership not only opens new doors for me in my artistic journey but gives me the opportunity to bring fresh talent from my homeland onto a global stage.”
What are your thoughts on Mohit Suri choosing Faheem Abdullah over Arijit Singh for the Saiyaara title track?
Also Read: What Happens To Ahaan And Aneet In The Ending? Here’s An Explanation Before ‘Saiyara’s OTT Release