A mad song of love

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It’s a sunny late afternoon as we reach Kailash Kher’s residence. As we take some time to make ourselves feel comfortable, the man himself comes in hurriedly as he shakes hands with us and perches himself upon a couch.

It’s not difficult not to feel at ease in his presence with the kind of warmth he exudes. He begins narrating about his journey in music so far and how it has been overwhelming to receive love and appreciation from millions of listeners across the world. “Despite touring all over the world, we didn’t realise that our music would be such a huge success. People have been extremely kind to shower us with that kind of love and appreciation. Right from 2002, when I started playing music professionally, I’ve learnt so much from experiences. In the last nine years we have ended up performing at an average of 100 concerts every year. Travelling to different places has helped me learn and imbibe so much from other cultures,” he says.
His band Kailasa is out with their latest album Rangeele, a compilation of 11 tracks. “The album will show you different perspectives of love. It’s not just any other music album. It has an international vibe with nuances of jazz and other different styles, but the thoughts and words are completely pure and honest. The music in this album can make you meditate and be one with yourself,” says Kailash as we move onto talking about love. You can’t help but notice the sheer intensity and passion with which he talks about the emotion. It’s rare to see that streak of madness about love, which is unconditional and giving, something that’s hard to find today. “There is no definition of love. You can devour it and yet you feel incomplete without it. You have to experience love and express your innermost feelings. Then on, everyone has their own opinions on the same,” he says with utmost honesty and excitement.
The process of creating a song and writing is highly evolving for any musician. The lyrics in Kailash’s songs have always stayed with the listeners, giving them a different perspective to love, relationships, humanity and a lot more. “It all begins from the thought that makes you sit up. I believe I have no mind. I simply have a heart. So a thought that emerges from my heart and makes my mind take notice is what I find attractive. Novelty and unconventionality in thoughts is what I look for. Then the words emerge and the inspirations from various experiences give rise to new possibilities, rhythm and lyrics. The way the words and rhythm shapes up is exciting,” explains Kailash.
There is an interesting story about the immensely popular and one of the most touching tracks by Kailash, Saiyyan. Kailash says that the thought came from watching a cuckoo who would perch herself on a tree outside his home. “She would come there every day and sit for couple of hours. It felt as if she was longing for her lover and I felt attracted to that emotion. And one day, her lover, which was another cuckoo, actually came. Her body language completely changed and they embraced like never before without making any noise. They were completely oblivious to everything around them and gave birth to the lines Tu Jo Choole Pyaar se, Aaram se Mar Jaon. They were madly in love and lost in it. I believe women can adapt to anything and have the capacity to love you unconditionally. They can dedicate and devote to anything they want. They are so crazy emotionally that they can go to any extent to let the madness remain alive. That intense connection and purity can happen when you just feel it or else it’s just words,” says Kailash.
Coming back to Rangeele, Kailash says that the album asks one to live life wholly. “Don’t fake it. Live your moments as you want to and try and listen to your heart. It requires you to be conscious of yourself. Most of the people end up doing something that they don’t want to and wait for the longest time to do something. But don’t wait and do what you feel like in that moment. Another track is about how people whine and crib about relationships of all kinds. Parents complain about kids, etc. It speaks of different expressions of love, from agony, nervousness, angst, hatred, lust, dedication, devotion. There’s madness in your heart when you know you can’t live without your lover and you want to simply embrace. That’s the unspoken feeling, which is the crescendo of the song. My son Kabir also has lent his voice to this album. He would playfully fidget so much in the studio that one day we finally made him sing, and boy, he was a revelation,” says Kailash.
After so many albums and delivering one hit after another, Kailash says the only challenge and competition is their own body of work as a band. “We are our own competitors. We don’t like to be repetitive and constantly strive to make something unique. We are untrained and unintelligent musicians and have drawbacks. It’s those drawbacks that are now benefitting us. It’s unique and I believe I am unique. If I feel slightly good about a song, I make my family listen to it. Then if they like it, I understand and go ahead. I don’t follow any methodology or any theory. My fans are not stupid and I’m not selling churan. It’s wholesome music that I am giving. And if they find a connection and take to my music immensely, then somewhere I’ve done the right thing,” says Kailash.
He admits that life has changed after marriage, especially after his son Kabir was born. “Family life certainly has changed me in some ways. Music is me and it reflects me. Since Kabir’s birth, I’ve gone mad and he has made me innocent and child-like. I would be mildly short-tempered but these days when I look at him, I re-think and he melts my heart,” says Kailash.