Ash King reveals Arijit Singh suggested his name for Salman Khan's I Love you song from Bodyguard: The confidence Arijit gave to me, I will never forget

Time of India

10-07-2025

Ash King
has been keeping a relatively low profile in the playback scene, with only a handful of releases in recent years. He admits he isn't entirely sure why the slowdown has happened, but he's trying to use the time constructively.
'I don't actually know the answer to this,' he says, 'but I have to be positive and think that maybe I'm being pushed by the industry to start making my own music instead of only relying on composers to keep my voice on a song. If I think negatively, then it won't allow me to be the best version of myself for anyone who relies on me for the work I am grateful for.'
Ash has been leaning into that shift, exploring genres and reconnecting with the creative independence he had before his Bollywood debut.
'The way to deal with this feeling is to start creating music of my own, which is what I did before my Bollywood journey. I'm currently exploring some genres to see what I feel is me, as opposed to just my voice. For me to be in a video, I would have to feel like I belong there, so some of the music would definitely be mixed in with English.
'
He acknowledges that self-marketing plays a big part in the current music ecosystem, something he hasn't always prioritised.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Đây có thể là thời điểm tốt nhất để giao dịch vàng trong 5 năm qua
IC Markets
Tìm hiểu thêm
Undo
'I can also blame myself for not promoting myself enough, but as long as I'm consistently able to sing amazing songs, that is my main focus. There will be times when a singer loses out on the opportunity to sing because they don't have a marketing value, but then no one stops us from making our own music, which is why I respect any artists who release independent music alongside their Bollywood playback songs.
'
Reflecting on his career, he speaks with genuine emotion about a key turning point. 'My most memorable experience has to be singing
I Love You
for Salman Khan, in the film
Bodyguard
.
It was 2011 January and nearly three years since I had recorded my first song. It was the second time I recorded a song in a studio and that too—from A. R. Rahman to Pritam! A young Arijit Singh, who at the time was assisting Pritam, had recommended my voice on the song. I was told they wanted the main hook 'I Love You' to sound authentic as it's English, but the rest of the song Hindi, therefore the singer had to be able to deliver both languages at the very top level as the project was very big.
The confidence Arijit gave to me, I will never forget. And Salman Khan accepted it. So many top names in one experience gave me verification that I had a long career ahead as a singer in the Indian film industry we call Bollywood, as I didn't feel like a one-song wonder.'
Ash also talks about how his craft has matured, particularly as he developed a better understanding of the language. 'I have definitely become more attached to the meaning of lyrics as I can now understand Hindi, as opposed to when I started—I pretty much had a 10% idea of what I was singing. When
Tanishk Bagchi
called me to sing the song
Baarish
for Shraddha Kapoor in the film
Half Girlfriend
, the challenge was to sing an intense love song as opposed to the mostly quirky songs sung previously. The lyrics came with their own difficulty as many of the words were new to me. Tanishk really kept his patience and helped me to deliver one of the biggest songs of my career. After this, I started to experiment with this style and I have recorded a song which I hope to release soon in this space.'