Ace singer Shaan is set to honour his ‘first guru,’ the legendary Kishore Kumar, with his first-ever tribute concert, **Forever Kishore Shaan Se**. Presented by Namrata Gupta Khan and Rabbani Mustafa Khan of NR Talent and Event Management — the family of Shaan’s guru, Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan — the show is scheduled for September 19 at NMACC, Mumbai.

In an exclusive interaction with *The Free Press Journal*, Shaan opens up about the deep impact Kishore Kumar has had on his musical journey. He shares how Kishore da’s natural and heartfelt singing inspired him to become a singer, and how this concert is his way of giving back to his mentor and legend.

The show promises to be a magical evening filled with timeless melodies, memories, and soulful renditions of Kishore Kumar’s most iconic songs.

—

### Excerpts from the interview:

**Q. What inspired you to create a tribute show for Kishore Kumar now?**
A. Well, it was now or never! Of course, it’s been a fantastic coincidence that this show is also brought to us by NR Talent and Event Management. NR would be Namrata and Rabbani—Rabbani, of course, is Ustad ji’s son.

Actually, it all started with a conversation with Rabbani. He wanted to do a show, and he had a date at NMACC. He said, “Let’s do a Shaan show.” So I said, “I’d love to do a tribute to Kishore da.” He jumped at the idea, and within two days, posters were printed, the name was fixed, and within a week I was like, “Yaar, nikaal de poster, nahi ho payega!”

You know, this is something I hadn’t thought through. In two and a half hours, to put out a concert singing Kishore Kumar songs—I realised it’s not going to be possible. There are so many songs, so many emotions, so many facets to him. How am I going to put all that down in such a short while?

But once you’ve committed, you’re in. Since then, I’ve been working on it, and I think now I’ve reached a comfortable zone. I think I’m ready for this, and it’s going to be a fantastic show. We’re already sold out, so there’s no backing out!

—

**Q. What does Kishore Kumar mean to you personally and musically?**
A. Everything. I mean, you know, the fact that I wanted to be a singer is only after I heard him sing. His voice is a voice that resonates with me. His voice so effortlessly lives every emotion that he sings.

His voice is not dated. Aaj bhi agar koi gaana aap gaana chahte ho, aaj ki tareekh mein, I would think the ideal way to sing it would be how Kishore Kumar would have sung it. No extra frills, no extra fuss, no extra gaayaki. But feeling that emotion.

Not just energetic happy songs—even a sad song was sung with such grace and dignity. You’re not overdoing it. You’re not dwelling. The emotion automatically connects.

—

**Q. How did you prepare for Forever Kishore Shaan Se?**
A. The idea of that took many days. First, I thought maybe I’ll do a tribute with all the collaborations—the songs that he has sung with his co-singers, his composers, songs that he has sung for the top actors.

But then I realised that even that would not justify it. Then I thought, what if today Kishore da was doing a show for an audience of today? He would select songs based on emotion—runna bhi hai, hasna bhi hai. With at least 250 superhit songs, if an artist has to perform a few, they’d pick them to take the audience on a journey.

So we have almost 70 songs in a short span of two and a half hours. Some songs are short bits, some full songs. The journey is full of music, stories, and nostalgia. Everyone has a story connected to one of his songs—it should feel like that. So that’s how the journey is shaped.

—

**Q. Which Kishore da song do you find most emotionally challenging to sing?**
A. All his songs are emotionally challenging—because I get emotional when I sing them. But I enjoy that. The challenge is not the song.

Technical challenges are there if your voice is not in form. And of course, there’s a disclaimer—please do not compare me, a small artist, with the great Kishore Kumar. I will never, never, never measure up to that. But enjoy the journey along with me.

Though it’s not just a show—it’s a connection. So when you come, even if you’ve bought expensive tickets, you’ll be taken on a beautiful Kishore Kumar journey through his songs, with storytelling. Who better than his own son to tell us about his discography?

Google mein aapko mil jaayega, but this will be something else. Using his songs, it’s a journey into a world full of nostalgia, beautiful lyrics, poetry, and melody.

—

**Q. Are you planning to add your own twist to his classics or keep them as original as possible?**
A. No, no, no. They’ll be sung the way he sang them. Of course, there will be some finer changes. It’ll be a little different—but only slightly.

—

**Q. Can you share a glimpse of your next musical project after this concert?**
A. Yes! I’ve released a ghazal album which is doing very well. It’s called *Ghazal Ho Gayi*, and it’s composed and written by the great Nida Fazli sahab. It’s being released soon, and we’re making the best of it.

—

**Q. What message would you like to give to Kishore Kumar fans through this tribute?**
A. All I’d like to say is—Kishore Kumar hum rahenge na, hamari awaaz, hamare gaane rahenge. Kishore Kumar ki awaaz, unke gaane, unka charcha—they will always live on.

And as an inspiration, he will always be there. As long as someone understands what music is, what feelings are, what emotions are—he will always be relevant.

The beautiful thing about Kishore da’s singing is that it never gets dated. People will love it as a song of today and still feel his special touch. I think… you feel that. You feel that song.

—

Stay tuned for an unforgettable evening celebrating the timeless legacy of Kishore Kumar through the soulful voice of Shaan.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/entertainment/how-kishore-kumars-natural-and-heartfelt-singing-inspired-shaan-to-become-a-singer

**Shaan to Honour His ‘First Guru’ Kishore Kumar with Tribute Concert ‘Forever Kishore Shaan Se’**

Ace singer Shaan is all set to pay tribute to his ‘first guru,’ the legendary Kishore Kumar, with his first-ever tribute concert titled *Forever Kishore Shaan Se*. Presented by Namrata Gupta Khan and Rabbani Mustafa Khan of NR Talent and Event Management—the family of Shaan’s guru, Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan—the concert is scheduled for September 19 at NMACC, Mumbai.

In an exclusive interaction with *The Free Press Journal*, Shaan opened up about the profound impact Kishore Kumar has had on his musical journey. He shared how Kishore da’s natural and heartfelt singing inspired him to pursue a career in music and described this concert as his way of giving back to his mentor and legend.

The show promises to be a magical evening filled with timeless melodies, memories, and soulful renditions of Kishore Kumar’s most iconic songs.

—

### Excerpts from the Interview:

**Q. What inspired you to create a tribute show for Kishore Kumar now?**

*A.* Well, it was now or never! It was a fantastic coincidence that this show is brought to us by NR Talent and Event Management—Namrata and Rabbani. Rabbani is Ustad ji’s son. Actually, it all started with a conversation with Rabbani. He had a date at NMACC and said, “Let’s do a Shaan show.” I said, “I’d love to do a tribute to Kishore da.” He jumped at the idea, and within two days, posters were printed and the name was fixed.

But within a week, I thought, “Yaar, take down the poster, this won’t work!” I hadn’t really thought it through. In just two and a half hours of concert time, singing Kishore Kumar songs—it’s not going to be possible. There are so many songs, emotions, and facets to him. How can I encapsulate all that in such a short span?

But once committed, there’s no turning back. Since then, I’ve been working on it, and now I feel comfortable and ready. It’s going to be a fantastic show—and we’re already sold out!

—

**Q. What does Kishore Kumar mean to you personally and musically?**

*A.* Everything. I wanted to be a singer only after hearing him sing. His voice resonates with me deeply. It effortlessly expresses every emotion he sings—his voice is timeless.

Even today, if you want to sing a song, I believe the ideal way is how Kishore Kumar would have sung it. No extra frills, no fuss in singing—but the pure feeling of emotion.

Not just his energetic, happy songs—even his sad songs were sung with such grace and dignity. He never overdid it or dwelled unnecessarily. The emotion connects automatically.

—

**Q. How did you prepare for Forever Kishore Shaan Se?**

*A.* It took many days to conceptualize. Initially, I thought of doing a tribute involving all his collaborations—the duets, songs with other composers, songs for top actors. But even that wouldn’t do justice.

Then I thought—if Kishore da was performing today, he’d select songs based on emotion—sometimes to make you laugh, sometimes to make you cry. Out of his 250+ superhit songs, he’d pick a few that take the audience on a journey.

So in these two and a half hours, we have almost 70 songs—some are short bits, some are full songs. The journey is filled with music, stories, and nostalgia. Everyone has a personal story connected to one of his songs—it should feel like that.

—

**Q. Which Kishore da song do you find most emotionally challenging to sing?**

*A.* All his songs are emotionally challenging because I get emotional singing them. But I enjoy that. The challenge lies not with the song itself, but if your voice isn’t in form, the technicality becomes difficult.

Of course, a disclaimer—I am a small artist; please do not compare me to the great Kishore Kumar. I will never match him. But I hope the audience enjoys the journey with me.

This is not just a show; it’s a connection. Even if you’ve bought expensive tickets, you’ll be taken on a beautiful journey through Kishore Kumar’s songs, with storytelling. Who better than his own son to tell us about his discography?

You can find his discography on Google, but this will be something else—a nostalgic journey into a world filled with beautiful lyrics, poetry, and melody.

—

**Q. Are you planning to add your own twist to his classics or keep them as original as possible?**

*A.* No, they will be sung the way he sang them. Of course, there will be some finer changes—a little different, but only slightly.

—

**Q. Can you share a glimpse of your next musical project after this concert?**

*A.* Yes! I have released a ghazal album called *Ghazal Ho Gayi*, composed and written by the great Nida Fazli sahab. It’s doing very well and will be released soon. We’re making the best of it.

—

**Q. What message would you like to give to Kishore Kumar fans through this tribute?**

*A.* All I want to say is—Kishore Kumar hum rahenge na. Our voice, our songs, our discussions about him will always live on.

His voice, his songs, and his legacy will always remain relevant. As long as someone understands the essence of music, feelings, and emotions, he will be there as an inspiration.

The beautiful thing about Kishore da’s singing is that it never gets dated. People will continue to love his songs as contemporary classics and feel his special touch. I think you feel that too—you feel that song.

—

Stay tuned for a soulful evening celebrating the unmatched legacy of Kishore Kumar, brought to life by Shaan’s heartfelt tribute.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/entertainment/how-kishore-kumars-natural-and-heartfelt-singing-inspired-shaan-to-become-a-singer