Entertainment
Runs in the family
For Swaroop Raj Acharya, his father, veteran musician Bhakta Raj Acharya, has always been his biggest source of both inspiration and support.Could you tell us something about your upcoming album?
The songs in my new album are all my own compositions. The lyrics have been penned by Uttam Bhaukaji. The tone is different from those of my previous albums. Most of my earlier songs have a folk melody to them; this time, I've tried experimenting with semi-classical, soft pop and even hard rock. All the songs have a romantic feel to them. I am a student of Western music and since I don't really have knowledge regarding Eastern music, this is has been a challenge for me.
What are your interests, apart from music?
I love travelling. My friends and I go on tours every now and then. I've been to quite a few places within Nepal. Of these Jiri, Daman and Illam are my favourites. They're such beautiful places. I also like Pokhara and Nagarkot and end up going there pretty often. I have not been to Jomsom yet, but it's on my wish-list. Apart from travelling, movies interest me a great deal as well. I also like reading; I just finished re-reading Jhola, actually. Right now, I'm been mostly busy with my music tour and haven't seen the film yet. But I'm really looking forward to it. I also read Baalak Gurung's Oili Jharecha Sayapatri recently and found it an engaging read.
What kinds of films interest you?
I like watching films that have good storylines. Performances are also important to my film-watching experience. Nowadays, even badly made films manage to do well at the box-office so I try and avoid such movies as far as possible. Gunday was one of those films. I really admire Aamir Khan. All his films are perfectly worked out. I also like Kajol. She is a wonderful actor. Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Imtiaz Ali are amongst my favourite directors. Their films are really well-made, and I'm looking forward to watching Ali's Highway soon. The direction in which the Nepali film industry seems to be headed also seems quite positive. There are many talented filmmakers coming up here and I enjoy their work immensely.
If a film were to be made on your life, whom would you want playing you?
When a film was made on my father, my brother Satya took up the role mainly because the director, Prashant Rashailay, wanted to cast someone who wouldn't need to 'act' as such, but be as natural as possible in front of the camera. Satya was best suited for the role because a son knows his father better than anybody else. If a film was to be made on me, I'd want my son, Sargam, to play me. He is only three now, but I hope I'll be able to do something significant by the time he grows up (laughs).
What was your childhood like?
My brother and I got into a load of mischief as kids. It was Satya who usually planned our escapades, and I who had to carry them out. I was more than happy to execute his plans, and these landed us in trouble many times. Satya and I were so taken by a fight sequence in a movie once that we decide to re-enact it. Satya was the hero and I the villain. I broke my arm in the mock-scuffle and and my brother and I got an earful from our mother. Luckily for me, it was Satya who got scolded most of the time.
What are your biggest strengths and weaknesses?
I am an introvert and hardly trust or even open up to people unless they're very dear to me. I think this is both a strength and a weakness. I sometimes wish I had a sense of humour like Satya does. He can make people laugh effortlessly.
Are you a tech, gadget person?
Since I'm an arranger and composer, I try to keep myself updated on software and technology related to the same. I feel like it's important for me to do so. In terms of gadgets, I'm not someone who runs after upgrades. I have an iPhone 4S and a Toshiba laptop and am quite satisfied with these.
What would you have become if not a singer?
I have never thought about that. I got into
music at a very early age and there's never been an alternative for me. As I kid, I somehow felt like it was important to make money and was fascinated by the idea of becoming a businessman. I still want to launch a business venture, something related to music, at some point...maybe a studio or a music school, I'm not sure yet.