Despite leaving listeners spellbound for decades, Kumar Sanu’s vocals have been few and far between of late. In fact, Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015) was the last big Hindi film he sang for.

Sanu recently returned to India after a host of live shows in the United States. He’s been performing regularly at concerts, so why haven’t we heard him recently in films?

The singer replies, “Mera journey abhi tak bahut achcha raha hai, everybody respects me in the industry. Log respect toh dete hain, pyaar dete hain, humara gaana bhi sunte hain [but] I don’t know why they aren’t using my voice for more songs in Hindi films.”

The 66-year-old goes on to elaborate, “Yeh question mann mein hota hai — they show [me] so much love when I am in front of them, why not let me sing too?”

Even so, Sanu asserts that the voices of his generation are still relevant. “I am doing sold out shows. Public demand hain. I am also bringing another set of live shows in October and November. Industry wale samajh jaayein toh achchi baat hai, nahi toh unka durbhagya hai,” he wraps up.