I'm mentally agile.
I love to cook, and both Pancham and Gulzarbhai loved to eat. Gulzarbhai loves my karela ghosht and my Bengali kheer.
I prefer selective memories. Some songs and some co-workers are all that I want to remember, as memories are not always so pleasant.
My rebellion has always been positive and connected with my work. That's how I've sung in foreign languages and collaborated with international artistes.
I'm not keen on films which depict a lot of violence.
Hindi film music has always been completely driven by the plot. We singers never had any say in compositions.
I have sung as many as 6,000 songs of various hues, be they classical, pop or folk songs. I have even performed free of charge for the Maharashtra government.
I have sung in over 20 different languages and enjoyed it. I have even sung in foreign languages like Spanish and Russian.
Acting is not my forte.
I performed six concerts all over the U.S.S.R. during the time of Gorbachev. The entire audience was Russian. There were no Indians. Period. The audience turned out in large numbers and gave standing ovations to all my songs. They knew each song. That was an amazing experience.
I've enjoyed my life. There has been great tragedy but also moments of great happiness. I've taken both in my stride, and if I were to replay my life, I would do it all over again.
If you are already happy, music heightens your joy.
The music industry is an unforgiving place, and it shall unceremoniously show you the door if you can't perform to high standards.
Most of my colleagues have been insulated in Indian music alone - they did not think of the world beyond what they knew - but I always did and still do.
I enjoy keeping busy, and fortunately for me, there's a large audience out there who are keen to hear me sing. It's their love and affection that keep me going.
I went to London in the '70s and also visited Madame Tussauds there. At that time, the only Indian figure that was exhibited there was of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's.
You cannot enter a studio and just start crooning before the mike. It is essential to understand the mind of the composer, mood of the song, and meter of the tune.
I never regret any of the work I've done.
Let children come across good as well as bad things. MTV is unnecessarily criticised for dishing out obscenity.
It is unethical to promote old songs sung by new artistes, and the government should ban these things.
