The five-song album is released primarily in a VCD format, keeping in mind that her fans like to watch her performances. After 20 years in music, the singer honestly says she makes albums keeping in mind its sell factor.[break]
Please tell us something about your latest album.
This is my 13th album. Since 2005, I’ve made sure to take one album out in time for the Teej festival. Teej has its own tradition of singing songs. My first Teej album was ‘Poila Jana Pam’ and it was a huge success. My forte is folk songs but for my latest album ‘Pati Devka Lagi,’ I have a surprise for my listeners. The new album has a dominance of gazal flavor instead of my usual folk songs. I’ve tried to keep the folk influence down to a minimum. I’ve worked very hard and I’m pleased with the reaction I’ve received. A lot of attention was given to the lyrics, music, to the concept of the video, the location and my costume. Around 5,000 albums are out in the market, and I’ll slowly have another batch out soon.
Many say that you are one of Nepal’s most controversial singers due to your bold lyrics. Do you think that’s true?
No, I don’t. I know my albums have created quite a stir but I honestly don’t see why it happened. People had a problem with the word ‘poila.’ We had done a thorough research before recording the songs. From discussions with a lawyer, to weighing up the appropriateness of the word ‘poila’ with many people, I went ahead only when I felt confident that I wasn’t doing anything wrong. Teej is a specific festival. Goddess Parvati fasted in order to get Lord Shiva, and the bottom line of Teej is that an unmarried woman fasts to find a good husband. I also unwittingly got involved in a controversy because I called Shiva ‘badmas.’ I’m sure every wife calls her husband ‘badmas’ once in a while. It’s done lovingly, and that’s what I meant to do. It depends on the way the word is spoken.
What concert would you say is your most memorable one?
In 1997, I went to the UK with Hari Bangsha Acharya and Madan Krishna Shrestha. My album ‘Malmal Kiri’ was extremely well received by people. My mother had written the title track, and after I sang it on Radio Nepal, a lot of listeners would call up to ask for the song. Seeing its popularity, I released the album. We did five shows in the UK.
What are you busy with at the moment?
I’m busy with my work as a senior news editor at Radio Nepal and my stage performances. Due to time constraint I had to stop my TV program on folk music ‘Ukali Orali Bhanjyang Chautari’ at Kantipur Television. However, I’m interested to do a show based on women empowerment, and also focused on politics. I’ve put out proposals to some TV channels.
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