Singer, actor, anchor, celebrity judge – Sonu Nigam is all this and more, and he will admit himself that he can play all these roles with elan. Lucknow Times caught up with the all-rounder on his visit to the city.

You haven't been doing many songs lately. Are you being choosy?

It's just that I haven't been around to take every offer that comes my way because I have been travelling a lot. And that's why I have been selective and am doing only quality work. My songs in Parineeta, Fanaa and Jaan-E-Man come like a whiff of fresh air in these times of DJ mixes, and they will be remembered for many years to come.

After acting in three Bollywood flicks, you returned to full time playback singing. Was acting not as satisfying?

There's no harm in trying a different art. When I took to acting I had secured my position as a singer, so I could easily give acting a shot. And obviously, even directors thought that I was reasonably good looking, with a good sense of humour, good speech delivery, etc and that's why the offers kept pouring in. But since my movies didn't do well at the Box Office, the quality of offers deteriorated. And after three flops, there was no way I was taking a chance unless the offer was exceptionally good. The offer that I have from Akashdeep right now, has an infallible script. We are just waiting for the right producer and I'm hopeful of hitting back as an actor with this movie.

Having judged a singing contest, do you think that reality shows provide the right platform for the selection of the best singer and is public voting justified?

We all have struggled before making it big. At least, now talented singers get a ready made platform. And as far as public voting is concerned, what's wrong with that? The best candidate is being picked democratically with people choosing their favourite. Who gets the Best Singer award from among the singers in the industry is decided by a panel of judges who are non-singers. And the Best Singer award usually goes to a non-singer. Who's there to question that? The day the award committees decide to have singing experts on the judges' panel, I'll make an appeal to call off this voting system in reality shows too.

Why do you think Pakistani singers like Adnan Sami and Atif Aslam are more popular than some of our own singers and music groups?

That's because we have a fondness for foreigners. Our people underestimate home-grown talent. In Pakistan, singers are more popular than actors, unlike here where stars and cricketers get all the hype. Moreover, anyone who is so well respected in his own country as Adnan Sami is, will command equal respect in another country as well.

Are you happy with this exchange of talent?

There's nothing wrong with it. But my only point is that there should be equal acceptability on both sides of the border. My bus was bombed when I'd gone to perform in Karachi in 2004. Something like that would not happen with a Pakistani singer in India. The situation needs to improve.

No matter how beautiful the lyrics of a song, the singer always gets the credit. Comment.

A singer sings the lyrics, so it's natural for anyone to associate the song with a singer. But a lyricist earns more for writing a good song than a singer for singing it. So while one benefits monetarily, the other does so with fame.