Sonu Nigam: Touching hearts with his Music, Talent & Generosity
By Ranj Rustogi
August 4, 2009
Singer Sonu Nigam
In an industry infamous for its blatant nepotism and “casting couches”, Sonu Nigam has emerged as a bright and shining star, with scrupulous passion and ethics built on his unfaltering dedication to music and commitment to improve and grow not only as a singer, but evolve into a consummate musician and performer.
Today, no introduction of Sonu Nigam is anything short of a never-ending string of appellations, moniker, titles and honors. Indeed, he is not only the voice of our generation but the generation that grew up admiring singing greats of the yester years like Kishore Kumar and Mohammed Rafi. With his relentless desire to evolve and better himself, Sonu has not only transcended genres of music ranging from folk, classical, semi-classical, pop and rock but has perpetually delivered hits in more than six languages including Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Bengali, Punjabi and even English. With his ability to alter his voice to the mood and style of song, he makes us feel and believe what the lyricist meant, composer intended, the actor depicted and the director envisioned that song to be.
Singing however is not the only thing Sonu has up his sleeve. He has dipped his feet in almost every facet of the entertainment industry ranging from hosting the very first singing reality show on TV which was then called ‘Sa Re Ga Ma’ to producing and composing his own music, Radio, acting and even modeling. But if you think that everything Sonu Nigam does is related to the entertainment industry, then you would be wrong. Sonu brings his passion and humility to dedicate his time and means to various charity and non-profit organizations all around the world that provide support to people living with AIDS, Cancer, Blindness, Leprosy among a few as well as supporting causes such as the women’s welfare organizations. “There are some charities I support, but I do not disclose the names, because when you disclose the charities you are showing off, I do a lot of things but I do not disclose the names… I made a promise to myself, I don’t make a big deal out of it, because the whole reason for you to do to charity becomes diluted because you want to show off and show how kind you are and how charitable you are.”
Sonu Nigam is a legend in his own right, he’s a mentor to the young talent of India whether in person or purely through his music. His message to his fans: “Thank You's, Love You's, Promise You's and See You's!”
Today, no introduction of Sonu Nigam is anything short of a never-ending string of appellations, moniker, titles and honors. Indeed, he is not only the voice of our generation but the generation that grew up admiring singing greats of the yester years like Kishore Kumar and Mohammed Rafi. With his relentless desire to evolve and better himself, Sonu has not only transcended genres of music ranging from folk, classical, semi-classical, pop and rock but has perpetually delivered hits in more than six languages including Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Bengali, Punjabi and even English. With his ability to alter his voice to the mood and style of song, he makes us feel and believe what the lyricist meant, composer intended, the actor depicted and the director envisioned that song to be.
Singing however is not the only thing Sonu has up his sleeve. He has dipped his feet in almost every facet of the entertainment industry ranging from hosting the very first singing reality show on TV which was then called ‘Sa Re Ga Ma’ to producing and composing his own music, Radio, acting and even modeling. But if you think that everything Sonu Nigam does is related to the entertainment industry, then you would be wrong. Sonu brings his passion and humility to dedicate his time and means to various charity and non-profit organizations all around the world that provide support to people living with AIDS, Cancer, Blindness, Leprosy among a few as well as supporting causes such as the women’s welfare organizations. “There are some charities I support, but I do not disclose the names, because when you disclose the charities you are showing off, I do a lot of things but I do not disclose the names… I made a promise to myself, I don’t make a big deal out of it, because the whole reason for you to do to charity becomes diluted because you want to show off and show how kind you are and how charitable you are.”
Sonu Nigam is a legend in his own right, he’s a mentor to the young talent of India whether in person or purely through his music. His message to his fans: “Thank You's, Love You's, Promise You's and See You's!”