Arijit Singh's retirement left us stunned, says filmmaker Joe Rajan

Director Joe Rajan shared his surprise over Arijit Singh's sudden retirement announcement while recalling their memorable collaboration on the romantic track Tere Sang. He praised Arijit's simplicity, kindness, and selective approach to music, expressing hope that the singer might return.

Director Joe Rajan, who collaborated with Arijit Singh for the recently released romantic track Tere Sang in his short film Echoes of Us. While the song has struck a chord with listeners, the filmmaker, in an exclusive chat with India Today, also reacted to the singer’s recent retirement announcement, admitting that it came as a complete surprise to him.

Speaking about how Arijit came on board for Tere Sang, Rajan revealed that the singer was not part of the original plan.

He said, “Arijit wasn’t even on our radar when we first conceived the song. It was initially meant to be Lulia Vantur’s solo. While jamming, we suddenly felt a male voice could elevate it into a duet, and that’s when Arijit’s name came up. We weren’t even sure he would be interested, but we sent him the track anyway. He liked it instantly and said, ‘I’m liking the song, let’s do it.’”

The team then travelled to Jiaganj, Arijit’s hometown in West Bengal, to record the song, an experience Rajan describes as memorable and reassuring about the song’s potential.

“Then we all went to Jiaganj, his village in Kolkata. During that whole process of travelling there, we realized this song is definitely going to make some noise. The making of the song coming out very soon; those moments made us feel that somewhere down the line, this song would create an impact. It’s a beautiful, well-written track. The lyrics are very touching and romantic. So yes, we had a hint that it might make noise in the music circle.”

Rajan also addressed the fact that Arijit is known to be highly selective about his work, especially when it comes to projects outside mainstream cinema.