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“When it comes to Bollywood, there are some standards that have to be met.”

– Ali Haider rejects Bollywood and returns to the limelight with a new video, ‘Hamesha’


With 12 albums to his credit, Ali Haider simply cannot be dismissed. Hs years of success have followed years of struggle. As Ali continued making music albeit some experiments that never went right, it was the year 2007 when Ali Haider returned with the smashing record Jaanay Do. It was Ali Haider doing what he knew best, making melodic, multi-layered pop music.

Over the years, Ali Haider has given countless hits including 'Qaraar', 'Purani Jeans', 'Zalim Nazron Se' and more recently his comeback hit, 'Jaanay Do' off his 2007 record, Jaanay Do.

Ali is back in the spotlight with a brand new video, 'Hamesha'. It may not be a groundbreaking video but it is one that grabs attention because of the strong tune. Somber, melancholic and soft, 'Hamesha' definitely works.

Instep Today catches up with Ali Haider and finds out more about the video and what he's been up to...

Instep Today: You've just released a new video, 'Hamesha'. Tell us a little about it?

Ali Haider: Its directed by Jameshed Jan Mohammad. It's his first video and I have to say that he's very talented. He wanted creative freedom and in the given budget, he did a good job. The video is a story about two people. We shot it in one day.

Instep Today: How has the response been to the song?

Ali Haider: For some reason, I neglected this tune. But since the video has released, I've gotten great feedback from people. I do have another video in the pipeline with Sohail Javed but the song is undecided for now. It might be a new song.

Instep Today: You were planning on working in Bollywood...

Ali Haider: Yes, there was a movie College. They wanted my song 'Purani Jeans' for it and offered 4000 dollars. 'Purani Jeans' is a massive hit here and across the border still. It is an original composition and the sum wasn't sufficient. How much does Sonu Nigam charge? And he is the playback singer, not the composer.

My manager asked them for 25,000 dollars as remuneration for the song plus a 3-day stay in a five star hotel, business class flights for me and my manager and they didn't agree so I refused to give the song.

I will not sell my music for short in India. Reema (the Lollywood actress) asked me for 'Hamesha'. She really liked the song and wants to use it in her film. I told her she could have it for free. As it is, our film industry is struggling and when people are trying to revive it, we should support them. So for Reema, the song is free because the focus should be Pakistan. But when it comes to Bollywood, there are some standards that have to be met.

Instep Today: You've also opened your own production house?

Ali Haider: Yes. Instead of making telefilm, I call it musifilm. I get acting offers for serials but acting is not what I do. I can't reject one but do another because sometimes personal relationships are involved. So the idea is to do one, maybe two musifilms via my own production house.

Instep Today: In the aftermath of Mumbai attacks, are you still planning to pursue a case against MasterCard India?

Ali Haider: Yes I am going to pursue it relentlessly soon.

Interview "TheNews Instep Today"