My Hanuman Chalisa single is not a commercial venture - Shekhar Ravjiani

In this day and age, when singers and musicians look at commercial and money making ventures, Shekhar Ravjiani emerges as that rare artiste for whom money doesn't mean everything. The musician for long wanted to do something selflessly for the benefit of others. And out of this thought was born his latest single, Hanuman Chalisa which was released by none other than Amitabh Bachchan. We spoke to the singer-composer to know more about his new religious non-profit venture. Have you always been spiritually inclined? I have been spiritually and religiously inclined right from my early childhood. My grandmom used to religiously perform pujas at my place. Whenever Hanuman Chalisa used to be recited either at home or temple, I used to take part. That played an important part in my upbringing. Every Saturday, I used to make it a point to visit Hanuman Mandir which used to make me feel at peace. So Hanuman Chalisa has always been a part of my life. Why did you take so long to come out with this single? Every tune comes only at the right time. It can come 3 am in the morning or even after a week. Every song comes in my mind only when it is destined to come. I don't know how and when it comes. The moment has to arrive for the song to be born. And now was the moment for Hanuman Chalisa. So you mean to say this was not a planned venture? Not at all. The basic idea was not to think about it. It came straight from my heart. It was not a project taken from a client. Sometimes it is important to listen to your heart. I had never thought about it. Everything fell in place. Right from the music company coming and saying, ' Can I make a music video for you' to even the IT company coming into the picture to develop apps for Hanuman Chalisa, everything happened on its own. Did you take Vishal's opinion? I didn't take anyone's opinion on this. I just took the mike and sang. Sometimes it is important for an artiste to move away from things that you would listen to while doing a commercial project. It is important that you make something of your own. You should make your own drawing rather than listening to what others have to say and drawing as per their wishes and advice. Why did you choose a beach to shoot the music video? I love to walk on the beach. There is strong connection I feel with the sea. So we drove off to Kashid beach and shot the video there in three hours. Why according to you should one read Hanuman Chalisa? One shouldn't read Hanuman Chalisa expecting miracles. You should read it to make you a better human being. It will eliminate all fear from your mind. Believe that Hanuman overlooks you. Let faith be greater than your fear. Pray from your mind. The values of Lord Hanuman are extremely important and should be imbibed. He symbolises power and devotion. He was a very powerful man but he never misused his power. He selflessly did a lot of things for people in need. We have become selfish these days. That needs to change. Hanuman used to think about others. Do you feel younger generation still identifies with Hanuman Chalisa? Yes. His values still hold good. I have seen 16 year-old teens reciting Hanuman Chalisa. My daughter is 11 and she reads Hanuman Chalisa. She doesn't sleep at night without hearing my version of it. Why did you choose Amitabh Bachchan to release your single? Bachchan Sir is more than family. He has been close to me for a long time now. I remember sending him a message requesting him if he could release my single and he was in Brazil then. I didn't expect him to reply immediately. But to my surprise, he immediately texted me back saying yes. Bachchan sir is the most amazing human being I have seen and known. How much of profit are you looking at from Hanuman Chalisa? Whatever profit I have received from all my singles till date have been donated to an NGO that looks after the welfare of kids. The same will continue here as well. Whatever little comes from Hanuman Chalisa will go to the NGO. There is no commercial benefit for me in it.