If you're in Bollywood and working in any category, and you receive a Filmfare Award for it, it's a huge thing for any creative person.

Oh, it was a tough call to reach Mumbai leaving friends and home behind but I knew 'it's now or never.' So I embarked on my new journey.

My Mom and Dad, I saw them struggling in their lives for me and my brother Ankur Tiwari. They struggled so that we could enjoy our lives.

It doesn't matter if there are 5,000 or 500 people in the crowd, if you can sing well and with absolute honesty, people will love you back.

I am not against remakes. They help in selling a film or creating a buzz around it. But it's my personal choice to stick to original music.

When 'Aashiqui' released there was no social media, yet it was a hit. Today we have the Internet which makes music very accessible to people.

In today's day and age, one looks forward to experimenting and it pays off at times and at times it doesn't. This does not mean one should stop trying.

Every music composer has his or her own distinct style. If I listen to any song by - say Mithoon or AR Rahman - I'll instantly know it's been composed by them.

Actually, 'Phir Na Mile Kabhi' is a very emotional and a heartbreak song and somewhere it does touch the heart of the listeners as it touched my heart as well.

I'm a composer, music director, singer and performer. So it is a Bollywood rule that people don't know who has sung a song and whether your voice will be chosen.

Music composition was a creative call for me, and it gives me a kick. But I never thought that I would ever sing professionally, even though I used to sing a lot.

It has been a contented journey, as I made it without a filmi background tag, but at the same time, a lot remains to be done because there is much good music in me.

I feel that if Bollywood singers focus on non-film music as well... like this EP 'Naina,' which has songs sung by Sonu Nigam and Devender Pal Singh, it is really good.

What can I do if the director and producers comes to me with a certain demand for a vision for a song? I will try my best to give them a song that matches their vision.

Yes, I do go to movies with my female friends. But I make sure there is an empty seat between us. That seat will only be filled by my wife whenever she comes in my life.

'The Villain' is another project with Mohit Suri under Balaji Productions. It was again very tough to impress him even after 'Sun Raha Hai' but some how I manage to get in.

When I met Zaeden, I bonded well with him he had an instrumental piece ready so we worked on it, composed, and added lyrics. Then we came up up with this EDM-Bollywood fusion.

At the end of the day I also need to earn my bread and butter. Just because I am not getting to show my versatility doesn't mean I will leave the projects that are coming my way.

While my father has a music group of his own, my mother sings devotional songs. So, right from childhood I would sit with them during practice and I trained under Vidod Dwivediji.

The purpose behind coming to Mumbai had always been music and I feel blessed to have got the opportunity to showcase my talent, work with prominent directors and reach out to my fans.

It is my brother's belief in me that got me this far. Ankur has always been my biggest source of strength. Had it not been for him, I could've never reached the heights where I am now.

As a musician or composer, whenever I am recording a song I imagine myself sitting beside my piano and singing the song with a little fear that whether I will be able to perform or not.

For 'Dil Cheez'... people wanted me to credit DJ Khaled. I was told to do that by the makers. But, I still made changes in the notes. This is a legal thing. I'm a musician, not a thief.

Sometimes you have something to say, but you cannot say it through movies because there are restrictions - situations given by the director that you have to follow - so you are tied up.

As a composer, I want to try different genres, and I always look forward to trying different things, but I think the word 'romantic' is synonymous with my name, and that's why I am offered such songs.

The most thankless job in our film industry is that of lyricists. Next in the list are writers. These two don't get any recognition at all, whereas they have the most important roles in every film today.

Every musician creates a bank. You'll first check if any of the songs from the bank fits in, and if you feel it does, you suggest it to the filmmakers. Sometimes it works, while sometimes it gets rejected.

There are many songs... but there's one song from the movie 'Mr. X' called 'Tu Jo Hain,' and it's special. People usually ask me what my biggest achievement is so I tell them that it is hidden in this song.

I'm a born music lover and want to sing for all music composers as well but due to some false impression many makers feel that I prefer to make my own music and sing, though I'm equally comfortable in both.

I left my native place to come to Mumbai, got routinely cheated, was given bad words, had phones and doors slammed on me. All my work and time was going down the drain. I didn't get credit for some work I did.

It so happens that whenever I come to Delhi, my schedule is always packed. But sometimes, I call my friends to my hotel itself. And of course, I ask them to get the food I love. This way, I get to meet them and enjoy my favorite cuisines too.

Almost every second film today has a rehashed version of an old song. In fact, even non-filmi songs are now being rehashed and used in Bollywood films, which is a good thing. But I don't want to be a part of that trend, not as a composer or as a singer.

When I decided that I will become a music director, the first thing I wanted to do was to make songs for Vishesh Films as I used to love their musicals. I had eight to ten songs which I had made only for them and fortunately 'Sun Raha Hai' from that list was liked by them and it actually opened doors for me.

There is no dearth of talented lyricists and I know many of them don't get an opportunity. After I received success, many of them approached me via e-mail or phone calls to tell me about their work. If I feel that a song written by a lyricist is fit for a film on which I am working as a composer, I give them the break.

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