Arijit Singh can often be spotted riding a scooty in and around his hometown Jiaganj in West Bengal's Murshidabad district, far from the glitz of Bollywood and most unlike a star who has given voice to some of the biggest hits in recent years.
So is the 38-year-old “Kesariya” and “Vida Karo” singer going back to the quiet, almost pastoral life? That was the question on Wednesday, a day after his shock announcement that he is formally retiring from playback singing though not from music itself.
Many people opt out of the rat race. It’s rare though in showbiz for anybody at the pinnacle to step back from the fame and adulation after a dazzling 15-year career. The speculation of the whys and how comes are intense.
"Stepping away from playback singing feels less like an exit and more like an arrival into freedom, authorship, and possibility," said singer Sona Mohapatra.
"I'm sure the reasons are deeply personal and entirely valid. What matters is the choice. None of his predecessors even imagined this path: stepping aside to make space. For himself first, to explore, to create, to sing his own songs on his own terms. And yes, whether intended or not, this will create space for newer voices who today remain 'scratch singers' on demos... for songs they'll never be allowed to sing," she said.
The voice of love, longing and heartbreak, one of the most in-demand this era, called it quits from playback singing on Tuesday night in an unambiguous Instagram post.
“Hello, Happy New Year to all. I want to thank you all for giving me so much love all these years as listeners. I am happy to announce that I am not going to be taking any new assignments as a playback vocalist from now on. I am calling it off. It was a wonderful journey,” he wrote.
Though Singh has been elusive ever since, not responding to calls or messages for interviews, some outlets shared comments credited to his private X account called WhoamI.
"There is not one reason behind this, there are several reasons plus I have been trying to do this since a long time. Finally I have gathered the right courage. One of the reasons were simple, I get bored pretty quick, thats why I keep changing arrangements of the same songs and perform them on stage. So here is the thing, I got bored (sic)," he wrote on X.
"Another reason is I am excited to hear some singer come up and give me real motivation," he added.
The account on X is verified with a blue tick and with pictures of Arijit and his family, but it could not be independently established that he is the one operating it.
Singer Shreya Ghoshal, who teamed up with Singh on hits such as "O Mahi", "Manwa Laage", "Tum Kya Mile" and "Tere Hawale", said it is the start of a new phase for him.
"...and I am truly excited to hear, listen and experience what this genius churns out!! I can never call this the end of an era. An artist of his calibre can never be defined by the traditional means and medium and be boxed in to fit in the set formula. Time to soar higher my dear Arijit," she wrote in a comment section of his Insta post.
Actor Neena Gupta said she was initially surprised but then realised how brave a decision it was on the singer's part. "Initially, I was very surprised but then I thought it was a very brave decision on his part. Sometimes we get stuck in a rut... He said he wants to learn more about music, which is a great thing... I'm very impressed by him. We are going to miss him and his songs but maybe he will come up with something else, so kudos to him," Gupta told PTI.
Singer Chinmayi Sripada said, "Whatever he has planned for himself as a musician would be nothing short of divine."
Singh's rise in the Indian music industry has been nothing short of meteoric.
He started out as a contestant on reality show “Fame Gurukul” in 2005 where he was eliminated from the competition midway. After the reality show, he worked as a music assistant to Pritam for some years before making his playback debut in 2011 with “Phir Mohabbat” from the Emraan Hashmi-starrer "Murder 2". He also sang "Raabta" from "Agent Vinod" and the popular reprised version of "Phir Le Aaya Dil".
The hits are too many to count but one song that catapulted Singh to the top was "Tum Hi Ho" from "Aashiqui 2", which earned him the best playback singer Filmfare. Over the years, he became the voice of choice for producers in Hindi cinema giving multiple hits every year with songs such as "Agar Tum Saath Ho", "Gerua", "Channa Mereya", "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", "Bulleya", "Naina", "Zaalima", "Galti Se Mistake", "Ae Watan", "Mast Magan", "Rait Zara Si", "Kesariya", "Apna Bana Le", "Jhoome Jo Pathaan", "Tum Kya Mile", "Ve Kamleya", "Chaleya", "Sajni", "Vida Karo", "Dhun" and "Gehra Hua".
He became the playback singer for major stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar and Ranbir Kapoor with almost every major hit coming out of Bollywood in the last few years mandatorily featuring at least one song from Singh.
In between, there was also criticism about his voice being overexposed but that did not dim his popularity.
Born on April 25, 1987 to Kakkar Singh, a Punjabi Sikh, and Aditi Singh, a Bengali Hindu, Singh inherited his love for music from his family.
In July last year, Singh edged past global pop stars Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran to emerge the most followed artist on music streaming platform Spotify with 151 million followers.
Despite his overwhelming popularity, Singh led a life away from Mumbai in his hometown of Jiaganj in Murshidabad district of West Bengal where locals often spot him riding his favourite scooty around town like any guy next door.
A glimpse of this life can be spotted in British singer Ed Sheeran's hit "Sapphire", which features him seated on the passenger seat of the two-wheeler as Singh drives him through the streets of his city.
Fans are shocked with Singh's retirement from playback but also eager to see what their favourite musician does next.
