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.'
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