MUMBAI: When one hails from a musical family, it is expected to take up the same profession as if it is a family business. Composer Zain Khan was also in the same notion but his heart called for something different. Coming from a rich classical music family while Khan’s grandfather Jamaluddin Bhartiya was a known personality and his father got into music composition, Zain chose Bollywood over classical.

"I hail from the Tansen family. My brother, Sam and I are the fourth and the last descendants of it. Classical music is in my blood and of course my father being a great instrumental in his time, I have taken many learnings from him. I went ahead with composing because that is something I wanted to do since childhood," said Zain Khan.

The composer made his debut into Bollywood with Pallo Latke for the film, Shaadi Main Zaroor Aana. "After a hit with Zee Music Company, the team offered me some great projects. I have around four to five projects with the brand. For these projects I have worked with Arijit Singh, who recorded a romantic number while Jyotica Tangri has done a dance number for me," said the composer.

Apart from this, Zain is also working on a film for T-Series and two other movies are offered by the directors. "I have signed a film called Saroj Ka Rishta, which will release in November and Band Of Maharaja, featuring Chitrangada Singh. For this I have recorded with Navraj Hans, Divya Kumar, Shahid Mallya and Asees Kaur. Sukriti Kakkar and Mika Singh have recorded a quirky dance song for Saroj Ka Rishta and a female song is backed by Neeti Mohan," he added.

On asking if he is willing to work on any independent music project, Zain seems to have a different perspective. He said, "In India, independent music space will take time to build itself. The problem here is people are fans of Salman Khan, more, than that of an Arijit Singh. The audience does listen to good music but cannot appreciate it. Whereas the scenario in Hollywood for singers is very different."

The composer who is very happy with the work he is getting and his songs that are being quite appreciated, further talks about the role labels play in Bollywood. "Labels play a very big role today. You cannot do anything in Bollywood without a label backing up.  But the plus point is, a song liked by a label is promoted in a big way. Also getting a song in a film through a label is much easier than a director. Today, the music labels have the decision-making power. There are very less producers and directors who decide on what songs do they need in the film," he added.

Lastly, he spoke about his upcoming project as a solo composer, where he told about working on the movie, Haseena Kameena directed by Vicky Bahari and releasing next year. For this Zain has five songs to work on with different emotions and the composer is extremely excited about the project.