Papon: If I wanted to make money and become popular, I would have done ten other things
It’s a rarity in today’s times to find musicians who are creating fresh tunes only for the love of it, when most others are chasing views and numbers. Singer-composer Papon calls him an exception and stresses that he’s not a part of any race. “If I only wanted to make money and become popular, I would have done 10 other things,” he says.
The Assam-born musician explains, “When I pick any track to sing, I look at its soul, and not the commercial aspects. May be that’s why people often tell me that whenever we hear your music, we know that it’s a Papon song. There is a uniqueness to it.”
Despite not too many Bollywood songs to his credit as compared to his contemporaries, Papon has a vast discography that he’s proud of. However, he confesses it has been a tough journey to maintain his individuality and not surrender to people in power.
“I come from the times when the person calling shots (director/producer of a film) was not really well-versed in music. So, to find middle grounds, I’d go to them and understand their needs and requirements for the song. And then I’d tell them, ‘Okay, I’ve got it. Now, let me do my part, which is my expertise. And I’ll give you whatever you want, because you aren’t a musical, I am.’ That has happened quite a few times,” shares the singer, asserting that there’s no harm in taking advice from someone who knows about art and music, as that would help the entire project.
While the 47-year-old admits being picky about songs, there’s a lot of regional work to his credit. Asked if that’s because the kind of music Hindi film industry creates that doesn’t interest him much, and the singer says, “I’m a little choosy but there’s another way I see this whole situation. It’s not just me choosing what I want to do, but the universe also deciding what all songs I can sing. And that’s why, whatever I do is fortunately liked by people. Having said that, yes, it’s a conscious decision (to create music in regional languages) because my father was a very renowned folk musician. He was called the Bihu king. So, it’s my effort to stay connected to my roots by working on regional music every now and then.”
In fact, Papon also expresses his desire to break the monotony and constantly create music that is experimental. “I enjoy doing different genres, and different styles of music. That’s why I keep digging out new stuff. I’ve to find another good song and it doesn’t matter where it comes from. That’s the reason my songs are spread across different styles, genres and categories. Every song I make, I ensure it is different from the last one. Music for me is a journey of discovery,” he wraps up.
