I am the son of a diplomat. So, growing up, we were told to never blow our own trumpet and be humble. But now we are living in a time when everyone is marketing themselves: ‘Maine yeh kar liya, maine woh kar liya’. Earlier, if I felt sharing my opinion on something would be slightly controversial, I would just stay quiet, because main jhooth nahin bol sakta. But log khamoshi ko meri kamzori samajhne lagey, unhe lagne laga, ‘yeh to backfoot pe hai’. Hence, I started speaking the language people understood, because the trolls needed to be told off.

When you’re born into a family of a certain faith or social status, it’s not your choice. You inherit it. But when you convert to another religion, you study the philosophy of that belief. So, it’s an informed decision. Making India my home didn’t come on a platter. I could’ve become a German, British, Canadian or US citizen. I chose India because of conviction. And that’s something Pakistan cannot stand. I too grew up amid the same propaganda in Pakistan, until I came here and witnessed things myself. If someone says I moved to India for money, they should know that I left assets worth crores when I moved to India. When I stand at any Indian airport and look at the flag, I tell myself: ‘My kids better remember what their father went through to get that flag, because it’s something that didn’t come on a platter’. I live with those emotions. I have every right to love my India, my country.

People evolve. I realized a few years ago that the good old cliche that ‘the truth will set you free’ is so apt. Hum poori zindagi darr ke rehne mein guzaar dete hain. But when you realize ki zindagi ka sabse bada khauf sirf maut hai, aapko aur kisi baat ka khauf nahin hona chahiye. Your destiny is written by the Almighty, so why have the fear of anyone else? I have seen so much in life that I don’t care about the consequences anymore.

Asha ji is like a mother to me. My relationship with her is how a normal mother-son bond is. We love each other and we fight too. There’s no one as brilliant and versatile as her. She’s 91 and is still so magical. Lata Mangeshkar (late singer) once said, ‘Jo gaane main gaa sakti hoon, woh Asha gaa sakti hai. Par jo gaane Asha gaati hai, woh main nahin gaa sakti’.

Pakistani musicians such as Mehdi Hasan, Farida Khanum, Ghulam Ali, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan etc. were working in India for many decades. But when I and some other Pakistani musicians (such as Atif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Ali Zafar) came in the scene, there was a difference between them and me. I was living in India and working here, while they would come, work and leave. So, this section that had an issue (with outsiders) comprised artistes who were frustrated and were barely working. They should have realized that India was such a big market for music that people from across the world would want to work here. But the reason for not allowing Pakistani artistes in India now is absolutely valid. There’s nothing like art has no boundaries. No matter who you are, you belong somewhere. Else, artistes wouldn’t have been issued passports!

Yes, very much. She is 8 and plays the piano. I don’t teach her. She has a teacher who comes in, as learning music needs a certain kind of discipline. She’s also passionate about singing and writing poetry.

I always wanted to send her to a school where she could just be herself, and was not seen as a celeb child. I want her to have a normal childhood. That’s why I try to keep her away from all the filmi things, because this is not the time for it. When I enter the house, I am just baba who makes her a sandwich. That’s my way of keeping her guarded. Baaki sab upar waale ke haath mein hai.