Words come easy to lyricist-actor Swanand Kirkire when he is sipping his favourite tea. In Amritsar recently, the lyricist-actor tells us what he likes about Punjab

Neha Saini

It is not every day that you are offered a piping-hot cup of tea, on a chilly winter evening, with crisp fritters and a conversation with the master storyteller and lyricist Swanand Kirkire on the side. Kirkire takes his tea seriously, “If you have only one cup of tea a day, you should have a good one, just as you like it,” he explains.

The young generation, whether in Punjab, Maharashtra or anywhere else in the world, listens to Sidhu Moosewala. Why? Because somewhere, their ideas resonate with his songs irrespective of the language barrier

The same goes for his body of work. From Tu kisi rail si guzarti hai (Masaan) to Bavra mann (Hazaaron Khwaishien Aisi) to All is well (3 Idiots) to Monta re (Lootera), each song stands testimony of his versatility, his flair for evoking emotions. “If I have talent or skill to write, then I should do that in the best way possible. I don’t believe in doing bad work. I cannot do everything, if you ask me to dance or to cook or keep accounts, I will be terrible at it. But writing, even singing, I give my all,”

he shares.

The lyricists’ three National Awards are enough proof that he believes in doing what he says, his sense of humility in place. Poetry, is another thing that is close to his heart.

Performing live at the opening ceremony of the second edition of the Sacred Amritsar Festival with excerpts from Ibn-e-Insha, a book dedicated to eminent Pakistani Leftist Urdu poet of the same name, Swanand delves into the rich repository of poetry that Punjab has. “Punjabi poets and writers have always touched the common men, resonated with their dreams, aspirations, challenges and longings. Whether it’s Waris Shah, Bulleh Shah, Amrita Pritam, Shiv Kumar Batalvi, Lal Singh Dil or others, Punjab has a rich history in literature. The young generation, whether in Punjab, Maharashtra or anywhere else in the world, listens to Sidhu Moosewala. Why? Because somewhere, their ideas resonate with his songs irrespective of the language barrier,” he says.

All for embracing one’s roots to thrive, Swanand says that traditional art forms are a powerful medium to connect with the masses. The reason, maybe, on his Instagram handle, he refers to himself as a Bhaand-Nakkal (a community of mimicry based folk artists).

Swanand recently wowed the cinephiles with his film, Three of Us. Happy with the rave reviews and success of Three of Us, a beautiful, poignant story that nobody knew they needed, Swanand, a National School of Drama graduate, says that the film happened to him as an experiment. “So, the character of Dipankar that I play in the film cannot sing and Shefali Shah, when she heard that, joked that she really wants to see me singing out of tune. Also, as an actor, something like this, a character that is opposite to what I am, seemed like an opportunity to explore my skills. After playing the role of Dipankar, my heart really goes out to people like him, who dream to achieve the simplest of things in life, like singing in tune, and strive to do it despite being told the opposite.”