Kona everywhere
The vivacious songstress with the honeyed voice has had a rather bustling month this year — as divulged by Dilshad Nahar Kona herself. Not only did her latest collaboration with Muza, "Daane Baame", drop this ongoing month but Kona has been touring and performing in around 17 scheduled concerts across Bangladesh, on top of also accumulating praise for singing a romantic rendition of the Rabindra Sangeet "Bhalobeshe Sokhi" on Pavel Areen's "Living Room Session". Additionally, the versatile musician lent her voice to 11 songs for different dramas and films on television this month alone.
How did your participation in 'Daane Baame' come to be?
Muza and I met while working as judges for a reality show last year, which we had great fun with. He was the one who came to me and told me about having a song he wanted me to sing. He is a musician who prefers to produce music with danceable beats, and I had my share of it with "Daane Baame".
As a creative person, what do you prioritise when choosing a project?
I primarily regard the character of the song, considering I am offered songs to sing for various media. When working on projects where I have a personal stake, I think of the video or at least I imagine what a potential visual could look like. I am a filmy person, so I do try to realise my imagination or vision. For collaborative projects, I tread accordingly or subjectively. For instance, when I sing a track designated for a film, I have to pay attention to what the music producers say. For Muza's project, I prioritised his vision.
What was taking on a Rabindra Sangeet like for Pavel Areen's 'Living Room Session'?
Pavel is a good friend of mine, but when I was asked to sing a Rabindra Sangeet, I did hesitate. As a fan and student of his songs, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do justice to "Bhalobeshe Sokhi". However, now that the whole project is done and I listen to my rendition of it, I can't help but feel like it was a job done well.
How did you have to personally dwell with living before and after the age of the social media avalanche?
It simply felt like a software update for me too, similar to how most of us have to upgrade to a more advanced format of digitisation. Also, as an artiste, I have to keep my audiences in mind. If their tastes and preferences shift, then I must also shift accordingly. Social media has proved to be a great way for me to interact with my fans online and I do enjoy the whole process of actively interacting with them.
What's your take on the current state of the music industry and the state of female singers?
As far as female singers are concerned, I'd say we have many talented ones. There are, however, only a handful of all-female bands in our industry, not to mention the lack of female music technicians and creatives in terms of lyricists and composers. Then again, I believe that change is already in motion.
Are there musicians you would love to work with?
I feel lucky to have collaborated with a lot of renowned and upcoming musicians, including the likes of Habib Wahid, Fuad, Tahsan, Bappa bhai, Pritom, and Muza, just to name a few. However, I would really like to sing with Arijit Singh.