Remakes have become a norm in Bollywood music today with their fair share of hits and misses. Many old songs have been recreated over time with new singers giving their own touch to the cult classics. However, having the original singer return to croon the remake song just gives a level of authenticity, while also creating curiosity for the newness in the latest version. In recent times, many legendary singers have sung recreations of their old classics after decades and we spoke to some of them to ask about their return.
Sonu Nigam- Recreated Ishq Vishk Pyaar Vyaar for Ishq Vishk Rebound
I actually sang the newer version twice. After hearing my first attempt, Ramesh (Taurani, producer) ji insisted I up the energy a bit. I then sang it with renewed vigour and full throttle and got it right the second time. It was a feeling of immense joy to revisit something I did more than two decades back. I also missed my times with Anu (Malik, composer) ji who created the original piece, but Rochak (Kohli, composer) had given a very apt, original and clever twist to the song. The biggest validation for me came from Rajesh Roshan ji. I didn't know his daughter (Pashmina Roshan, actor) was debuting in Ishq Vishk back when we met. He said she made him listen to the song and then he heard the earlier version. He couldn't stop praising my new rendition. According to him, this was the first time he heard a singer sounding younger and even more energetic after two decades.
Kumar Sanu- Recreated Mirchi Lagi Toh for Coolie No. 1
Recreating Mirchi Lagi To was a different experience altogether. The old version was set inside my mind and heart for so many years but DJ Chetas and Liso gave me the idea of today’s musical style, so I tried adjusting accordingly because it was for Varun Dhawan, who’s much younger than how old Govinda was during the original. It’s a universal fact that the voice changes according to the age and people need to understand that. And the makers that I worked with, believed in me and didn’t put any kind of pressure. That made it easy for me to sing according to their expectations. It brought back all the beautiful memories when I was recording in the studio with Anand-Milind (composer duo) and Sameer (lyricist) da. Most of my duets with Alka (Yagnik) ji are hits and so was this one.
{{/usCountry}}Recreating Mirchi Lagi To was a different experience altogether. The old version was set inside my mind and heart for so many years but DJ Chetas and Liso gave me the idea of today’s musical style, so I tried adjusting accordingly because it was for Varun Dhawan, who’s much younger than how old Govinda was during the original. It’s a universal fact that the voice changes according to the age and people need to understand that. And the makers that I worked with, believed in me and didn’t put any kind of pressure. That made it easy for me to sing according to their expectations. It brought back all the beautiful memories when I was recording in the studio with Anand-Milind (composer duo) and Sameer (lyricist) da. Most of my duets with Alka (Yagnik) ji are hits and so was this one.
{{/usCountry}}Udit Narayan- Recreated Main Nikal Gaddi Leke for Gadar 2
The biggest difference in singing Main Nikla Gaddi Leke in 2001 and now again after 22 years was that this time, Aditya (Narayan, singer-son) sang it with me. In 2001, the challenge was to make a good song, but this time, the pressure was double as people could have felt that we destroyed a hit song. For six months, I kept going to Mithoon’s (composer) office because I wanted to imbibe the style he wanted from me. The flow and the diction needed to be changed as per today’s style, and for six months, I worked on it diligently. I was a bit doubtful if I’d be able to match up the original’s success. The first day I went to record, Mithoon didn’t make me sing and just sat and spoke to me for two hours. We actually recorded a week later, and he even said to me that it feels like I have just started my career. I did not listen to the original even once before recording the new version. It was the magic of the melody that delivered as melody never dies.
Neeraj Shridhar- Recreated Bhool Bhulaiyaa title track for Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2
I was quite new when I had recorded the original Bhool Bhulaiyaa and I did it twice, as the first time we recorded, the audio file didn’t come out right. The second recording that we did, actually was the first ever song recorded at Pritam’s (composer) studio. After 15 years, I got a call again from him saying he wanted me to record the same song again. In between, Bhool Bhulaiyaa was recreated once more, but it didn’t do well. So, when I was recording the song this time, there was a certain pressure, but I was told to sing the same way as I did the first time. My voice is different from other singers, so when I recorded it originally, I tried to do it in a way that suits Akshay (Kumar, actor). This time, I knew it was Kartik Aaryan, so I had to make my voice a little sharper, cooler and younger. I was done with the recording in just one-and-a-half hours. The challenge was to keep the same style as you tend to sing the song differently each time.