Just Like Acting, Performing LIVE is my Passion: Ayushmann Khurrana

by  EVENTFAQS Bureau Entertainment | April 27, 2018 | News

Ayushmann Khurrana

From a Radio Jockey and Event Host in his early days to an accomplished Actor and a livewire Performer today, Ayushman Khurrana is one exceptional man who is truly the 'Master' of all trades. In this exclusive interview with EVENTFAQS, he talks about the challenges of being a LIVE Artist, his evolution and what gives his band Ayushman Bhava an edge over other bands in the country.

How did your journey into the LIVE Entertainment and Events space start off?

My first live show was on February 14, 2018,  with the Channel V Fest in Goa with my band Ayushmann Bhava. It was a great experience, but I was also nervous at the same time because I was performing in front of thousands of college students across the nation.

After that, I started doing a lot of college events because I always believe that the youth connect is most important and I have a good youth connect. I’ve performed at Mithibai, Usha Pravin Gandhi College of Management, and Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics for starters. I have also gone on to perform at various other colleges and the response was tremendous.

In your opinion how has the LIVE Events industry evolved over the years?

LIVE events have definitely increased over the years and today, we have a lot of vectors for independent music as well. We have audiences for every genre which is great. It’s a great era to be an artist especially as a live performer right now because there are better opportunities in the market.

As a LIVE artist today is there any special preparation that you do before a performance?

New challenges evolve every single day. The audience is very smart as they are exposed to every kind of music across the world, so I think you need to up your game with every single gig, with every new city and with every new venue. Essentially, that I believe is a big challenge.

What has been your most memorable moment on the stage?

The most memorable moment on stage was while I was performing at Kala Ghoda Arts Festival in 2016. When I came to Mumbai for the first time, it was a part of my bucket list to Perform at the Kala Ghoda Fest because it’s the most revered festival in Mumbai and the student crowd is amazing. I still remember it was a full house for my gig. I loved performing in that arena.

As a LIVE artist what challenges you on stage?

It depends on where you are performing. If you are performing at a college gig, wedding gig, or a college show the tonality must be different and the way you interact with people has to be different. The setlist remains the same but the interaction and the kind of banter you indulge in with people and how you weave your songs with the audience, I believe that's most important.

It’s always challenging to perform at weddings because there's no ready audience and you have to make it interactive. At college gigs you get a ready audience, they are there only to listen to your music but at wedding gigs there are kids running around, the Bride and groom are interacting and there are different families. The age group goes from 2-year-olds to 90-year-olds in the crowd. So, I believe that becomes more challenging as an artist to interact with everybody.

You started off as a Radio Jockey and Host and now you are an accomplished actor as well. How do you manage your time between a full-blown movie career and a LIVE performer?

They are two different vectors for me and I’m glad that I am doing both parallelly and simultaneously. Our Films are about song and dance and I believe we are fortunate that we have some great music in Bollywood.

I have the opportunity to sing all my songs at my gigs and it’s a great break from my films because I’ve always been a live performer. I used to have a live band in college and I used to do a lot of street plays and stage plays which again involves a live audience interaction. I come from a radio and anchoring background, so the stage has always been my love. Just like acting is my passion, performing LIVE is also my passion.

What can the audiences look forward to from Ayushman Bhava in the future?

More tours and singles... the plan is to release more singles when there is a gap between my films and sing more songs for my films so new material will be out this year for sure and more gigs of course.

In your opinion what gives Ayushman Bhava an edge over other LIVE performing bands at events today?

Our biggest edge is that I am an actor and I add face value to the gig. I always maintain that I am an actor who sings, and it gives me an edge over others because of course, I am more of a performer. I interact on stage and being a LIVE anchor and an emcee gives me an edge over the others because I weave a story around my set list and it's always great to be on stage.