There’s a timeless quality to Kishore Kumar’s voice. Over the years, we’ve heard the late singer’s classics, their remixes, and more recently, new hit songs reimagined in his voice. Now music producer Shamir Tandon has embarked on a new venture — in Ek Aur Baar Kishore Kumar, he has revived the legend’s original voice and paired it with contemporary singers. What inspired him to create this project? “His voice does not age,” he begins.
He observes that earlier tributes to Kumar often focused on imitation. That, he notes, doesn’t ever do justice to the magic of the original. “People have paid homage to him by trying to emulate him, as was done in the cover-version era with singers like Kumar Sanu and Abhijeet Bhattacharya. But the millennials and Gen Z kids want to hear the real voice.”
Kishore Kumar
With modern recording tools, that became possible. But Tandon was certain of one thing — that he wouldn’t use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to tamper with the evergreen voice. “Without using AI, we can use the voice recorded in the 1960s and 1970s legitimately, after securing all rights. I thought, why not create duets with Kishore da?”
The result is a beautiful collection of evergreen songs where Kumar’s voice is joined by that of Nikhita Gandhi, Palak Muchhal, Shalmali Kholgade, Neeti Mohan, and others. Tandon says, “To preserve the songs’ soul was crucial. I kept the same key, tempo, the same voice, and built new sounds around it. You can’t disturb the sanctity of what RD Burman and Anand Bakshi created.”
Neeti Mohan and Palak Muchhal
AI: Yay or nay?
Recently, the title track of ‘Saiyaara’ was reimagined in Kishore Kumar’s voice with the help of AI. Asked about the increasing use of AI to recreate legends’ voices, Shamir Tandon responds thoughtfully. “I am a pro-technology person. However, we cannot use generative AI till regulations are in place. We must ensure that the original creators get their dues, in terms of money and credit, within a legal framework. Till then, we should refrain from using generative AI,” he emphasises.
