| Name |
Hariharan |
|
| Profession |
Singer,
Composer |
| Date
of Birth |
April
3rd, 1955 |
| Place
of Birth |
Puthan
Theruvu (Thiruvananthapuram) |
| Education |
Degree
in Law and science (Chemistry
and Zoology) |
| Nationality |
Indian |
| Family |
Father:
Ananthasubramani
Mother: Shrimati Alamelu
Wife: Lalitha
Sons: Akshay and Karan |
| Debut |
Hindi
song: "Ajeeb Saane He Mujh Par Qarar"
from the film 'Gaman'
Tamil Song: 'Thamizha Thamizha'
from Roja
Album: Colonial cousins |
| List
of Ghazals and Pop songs |
Ghazals:
Shamakhana, Mausam, Sukoon
,Aab Shaar-e-Ghazal (with Asha Bhosle),Ghazals
by Hariharan,Hariharan in concert,Dil Nasheen,
My Favourite Hits ,Dil Ki Baath, Horizon, Reflections,
Paigam, Ghazal ka Mausam, Hazir (with Ustad Zakir
Hussein on tabla), Gulfam,Qaraar, Vishaal, Jashn,
Aasthwan Sur, Kaash, Lahore Ke Rang
Pop songs: Colonial Cousins
(with Leslie Lewis),Halka Nasha |
| His
father |
*
H.A.S Mani was the first chief of ‘Shanmukhananda
Sabha Music School’ named ‘Sangeet Vidhyalaya’
but sadly passed away when Hariharan was only
8.
* Was one of the first batch of graduates in music
from the Travancore Music College
|
| About
his mother |
'In my life, my career, the first person who has
stood behind me to make me what I am today...
is my mother' |
| Guru |
* Carnatic music: His mother
* Hindustani Classical music: Ghulam Mustafa Khan
|
| Guruji's
style |
"My
Guru Ji perfected the ‘Gharana’ house style, and
taught us about the limitless improvisation that
can be sung – this is known as ‘Khayal’, a Hindi
word meaning imagination, for making the notes
come from the heart, imagining the sequences inducing
pure creativeness.” |
| Marriage |
*
Married Lalitha in 1984
* Was an arranged marriage
* On their first New Year together, they had to
sit at home and watch television, simply because
they were too broke to go anywhere |
| About
Urdu |
“Urdu
is simply a beautiful language which has a tone
quality that draws the ears to listen to it being
uttered, whether in poetry or song, I practically
lived at my Urdu Teacher’s home, until my Urdu
became satisfactory.” |
| About
North and South |
"In
Hindi films, they stick to a certain format of
singing. In the South, you have more scope for
variation. The film industry is very disciplined
here and time is valued." |
Inspired by |
Mehdi
Hassan, Jagjit Singh |
| Hobbies |
Music
and travelling |
| Friend,
Philosopher and guide |
Jaidev |
| Admires |
Mehndi Hasan, his all time favourite
Mohammed Rafi for his versatility
Kishore Kumar for his liveliness
S. P. Balasubramaniam for his vocal power,
K. J. Yesudas for his classical depth
Other favourites: Ashaji, Janaki, P.Susheela
|
| Personal
favourites |
Deity:
Lord Ganesha
Dress: Ethnic
Colors: Black and white
Food: Anything which is eatable and not
too spicy / Veg and Non-Veg
Past time: Listening to music
Actress: Rani Mukherji
Music Director: A.R. Rehman
|
| About
his pony tail |
'The strength in my music comes from my ponytail' |
| Maintaining
his voice |
' I usually practice for about 2 hours everyday
in the morning. On days that I perform, I tend
to rest my voice and do a 10-15 minute warm-up.
I avoid oily foods and excessively cold foods.'
|
| Remix
songs |
"Remix
is not as easy as it sounds on the ear. It is
not just about adding new rhythms to an old tune.
The beauty is in retaining the essence of the
song and the feel of the period."
|
| His
style of ghazal |
Fusion
of gayeki, Urdu poetry and contemporary sounds
|
| About
Ilayaraja and Rehman |
Ilayaraja: Heavily influenced by the classical
compositions of Mozart and Bach.
A.R..Rehman: Is more jazzy. |
| About
Indian and Western music |
"We
should take the best from their music and best
from ours and create wonderful music. In Western
music harmony is strong, whereas in Indian music
melody is prominent. But we can draw a parallel
between ‘raagdari’ and scale”. |
| MTV
unplugged |
A.Hariharan
("Hari") and Leslie ("Lezz") Lewis became the
first Asians and only Indians so far to have performed
on the prestigious show. |
| Other
performances |
*
Performed various concerts for the Kargil Relief
Fund and for mentally challenged children's institutions.
* Rendered the invocation song at Parliament on
January 26, 2000, during the centenary of Independence.
|
| Facts
|
* Donned a cameo role in the film 'Boys' and acted
with Kushboo in the film Power of Women.
* Entered as a Ghazal singer
* Is a Trivandrum Brahmin
* He has sung for a number of TV serials,
e.g., "Junoon"
* Does not know to play rap music
* Would like to sing in 50 albums before
he retires
* Likes to work from night 9 pm till
5 am in the morning
* Likes to dwell in his own world
* He has collaborated with Pakistan based band
Strings for a track called "bolo bolo". Also released
an album called Destiny with Punjabi / Bhangra
artiste Daler Mehndi. |
| About
him |
"Though
an extrovert, I am a deeply spiritual person"
|
| Awards |
*
Won the All-India Sur Singaar competition
1977
* His ghazal
"Ajeeb Saane He Mujh Par Qarar" in that
movie became such a hit
that it won Hariharan an Uttar Pradesh
state award
* 1998, when the patriotic song "Mere dushman
mere bhai" from the Hindi movie "Border"
won Hariharan the coveted National Award for "Best
Male Playback Singer".
* Diva Award `The Best Album Of The Year` - 1994
'Abshaar-e-Ghazal'
* Tamil Nadu State Government Film Awards 'Best
Male Playback Singer' - 1995
* MTV Viewers Choice Award and US Billboard Award
for Colonial Cousins
* 2004 - he was awarded the prestigious Padma
Shri and K.J
Yesudas Award for his outstanding performance
in music.
|
| Address |
101 (1st Floor), Legacy Tower
Powai Vihar Complex
Powai
Mumbai 400076
India |
| Quote |
'The
whole world has become capitalistic and we have
brought miseries to ourselves by creating competitions.
Life is beautiful, and be humorous. Laughter is
essential for health as it prevents cardiac arrests.
Be simple in life and communicate with open heart.'
|
