In SRK’s Chalte Chalte, Sukhwinder Singh took Kailash Kher’s place; here’s why.

Among India’s leading singers, Kailash Kher has made an enduring impression with his contributions to a wide range of songs and performances in more than 20 languages. In a recent interview, the singer spoke up about a time when he didn’t get the credit he deserved for a song he sang in Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji’s 2003 film Chalte Chalte, directed by Aziz Mirza. He said that after the audio CD for the film had already been out, he found out that he had lost the song to Sukhwinder Singh.

In a chat, Kailash Kher reflected warmly on the excitement he had when the Chalte Chalte writers asked him to write a song. “I was asked to perform a song for the Aziz Mirza film Chalte Chalte, which was penned by Javed Akhtar. I reasoned that if such a prestigious director was phoning, it couldn’t be random. He must be requesting that I perform a song. These people phoning are well-known figures. I went there and performed a song as a result. The song was similar to grappling, as the saying goes, “Gaana bhi ek dum aise kushti vala.” It was quite difficult to sing, he remembered.

Kailash Kher had a couple songs recorded, and he even told his sister about his chance to sing in a Shah Rukh Khan film. But when he got the first audio CD of the movie, he was shocked to see that his name had been changed to someone else’s. But the original audio CD for the movie didn’t have Kailash Kher’s name on it, the man complained. It bore another person’s name. I had my first setback at that point. I reflected, “Even big people do such small things,” or “Bade aadmi bhi choti harkat karte hain.” They forced a few other vocalists to perform the song.

Sukhwinder Singh eventually sang the song, Layi Vi Na Gayi, which he thought was his own. Kailash Kher claims that this encounter gave him new perspective. The film included portions from Layi Vi Na Gayi, which had the lead actors Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji as Raj and Priya, respectively.

The singer’s musical approach is greatly inspired by Indian folk melodies and classical masters like Pandit Bhimsen Joshi and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, among others. Kailash Kher was nurtured in a household with a strong heritage of folk singing. The vocalist of Choti Si Chiraiya, who had previously experienced financial difficulties, gained international acclaim only as a result of his unrelenting dedication and tireless perseverance.

For the movie Andaaz, Kailash Kher sang Rabba Ishq Na Hove, his first Bollywood song. His cover of Allah Ke Bande from Waisa Bhi Hota Hai-Part II and his most well-known song, Saiyaan from his 2007 album Jhoomo Re, helped him achieve enormous success later on. Recently, the singer and music composer Pranaay worked together on the song Ho Tayyar for the film OMG 2, which features important performances by Akshay Kumar, Pankaj Tripathi, and Yami Gautam.