Kunal Ganjawala: Singer, philosopher and so much more

So, the end of the world is finally here (at least, that’s what half the world thinks) and nobody seems better prepared than singer Kunal Ganjawala. The crooner was in town on Saturday night to enthrall audiences and here’s what he had to say about being the finale performance for the festival — “The Alive — India in Concert is a great endeavour and a wonderful musical movement and I am glad I could be a part of it, but shifting focus to my beliefs about the end of the world, I do not go by the Mayan calendar. However, I strongly believe that the earth is shifting axis and is moving towards another consciousness, physically and spiritually,” says Ganjawala, as he sips on his green vegetable juice, served in a tall glass.

Kunal, who is an ardent devotee of Sri Sathya Sai Baba says, “I am highly spiritual, I believe in the power of miracles. In fact, some day, I want to cross bodies and see God in flesh and blood.” Serious as he might sound, the singer has a simpler side to him and loves the mysteries of the universe as he tells us, “I love anything that’s out of this world. I love sci-fi books and movies. Inception by Christopher Nolan continues to be one of my favourite films. As a child, I was fascinated by Star Wars and Star Trek and I still remember the days when I used to watch these shows on TV and make toy cell phones out of matchboxes.”

An avid traveller too, Ganjawala loves cities that are historical, clean and green, which is what connects him to a city like Bangalore. But there’s another reason why the city is close to his heart. “I love the Kannada icon, Rajkumar. He was a man who was filled with positive energy. There was a time when he took me to his home, fed me and kissed me. I really miss not having him around,” reminisces Ganjawala fondly.

Moving on to his music, Ganjawala is famous for having sung sevaral songs in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Punjabi, Marathi and Malayalam. He has also worked with several music directors and, each time, he tells us, the experience has been different. “I have worked with both Ilayaraja and AR Rehman. Raja sir is an early morning person, while AR is a late-nighter. But both are passionate about what they do and I love working with both of them,” he says.

His love for new languages was another factor that led him to sing for different movie industries. “I learnt that by singing in Bollywood, I reach out to just 30 to 40% of the population in the country... my foray into regional industries has helped me take that a full 100%,” he tells us.

However, the most truly exhilarating experience for Kunal is coming face-to-face with his audience. “I love doing live shows. It’s great to capture the expression of your audience,” says the singer.

In conclusion, we ask Kunal if there’s anything he wants to do before the world comes to an end... and pat comes the reply, “I only ask God to give what He thinks is best for me,” Kunal concludes.