Singer Armaan Malik doesn’t hold back in calling out Bollywood for overshadowing musicians. After actor Sonakshi Sinha was said to be performing with Canadian pop star Justin Bieber, Armaan got into a Twitter feud with the actor and said that “a singer should get a chance before an actor” to perform at international concerts in India. Not just this, even Bollywood actors appearing in independent music videos irks Armaan.
“It’s non-film music, and it gives musicians a chance to show themselves to the audience. If the song’s video has a Bollywood actor [dancing], then the singer who has actually created the entire song, gets lost somewhere in the background. I’m not sure if that idea helps musicians to expand their fan base,” says Armaan.
The singer’s last independent single, Aaja Na Ferrari Mein, was a big hit and he feels that such music videos are the only way musicians can face the camera and get noticed.
“When I release a song, written and sung by me, many will wonder why am I not there in the video? Some will definitely be looking forward to see me there. Then, it will be another case of an actor lip-syncing to the song and when the audience sees someone else in it, they’ll not know who I am. I am not just a playback singer and I don’t want to be known as that [only] either. I am a singer-songwriter, and when I am making my own music, I am showcasing myself, as a singer, and not a Bollywood singer,” adds Armaan.
The 22-year-old singer, however doesn’t completely rule out the idea of working with Bollywood stars for independent singles. “I am not saying that it’s a wrong practice; and that it shouldn’t happen at all. Emraan [Hashmi] featured in my single Main Rahoon Ya Na Rahoon as well and that went on to become a big hit. I’m saying that they shouldn’t feature in every non-film song, because that is about the singer/musician who has written and sung the song,” he says.