Music composer Pritam, known for delivering chart-topping Bollywood soundtracks, recently celebrated his 55th birthday on June 14. Post that, he shared a post on Instagram thanking fans for their wishes.
However, what caught attention was his statement that he has decided to “gift himself a few years” to live life differently and catch up on what he has missed. In his cryptic note, he wrote that ‘mainstream’ has been a great ride, but it’s now time to set off on ‘new journeys’. His post left fans wondering whether he is retiring from Bollywood music. This comes months after singer Arijit Singh announced his retirement from playback singing.
Pritam Hints At Taking A Break From ‘Mainstream’ Music
Sharing black-and-white photos of himself on Instagram, Pritam wrote, “Thank you for all the wishes. Can’t answer everyone individually, but please accept my sincere gratitude.” He further shared that he is embarking on new journeys, hinting that he might take a break from ‘mainstream’ music.
“Today, I have decided to gift myself a few years to live life differently. To catch up on what I’ve missed. Time to set off on new journeys, which have been kept on the back burner for long. Mainstream is a great ride. But I’ve always been more curious about the roads unexplored. Thank you for all the love & support. Always,” he wrote. Check out his post below!
Fans React
Netizens are convinced Pritam is taking a break from Bollywood music. One fan commented, “I think you are also taking break from music industry. I will miss new songs of Pritam, specially arijit+ Pritam combination,” while another one wrote, “First Arijit, then you…taking a break from mainstream Bollywood Music. It will be loss for them, but for a true music lover it will be boon in disguise. Waiting for some magical & musical experience….perhaps with Arijit again!” A third comment read, “Now dada coming in indie scene.”
When Pritam Spoke About Wanting To Retire
Last year, around the release of Metro… In Dino, Pritam told Screen that he wanted to “pull back from commercial music a bit” to spend more time with his children, who were preparing to move to the US for higher studies. However, he continued to take on new projects, composing music for several films, including his latest, Cocktail 2.
In May this year, the composer reiterated his desire to take an extended break from work, saying he wanted to follow a path similar to Arijit Singh’s. Speaking to Screen, Pritam recalled how a recent detox retreat reinforced that decision. “It felt like my body was hugging me for taking a break and not doing anything,” he said, adding that while the initial days were challenging, he eventually grew comfortable with the idea of slowing down.
“Now, I’m very sure. I’m not going to let my friends down who’ve been listening about my retirement for a year now (laughs). The thing is the industry doesn’t let you retire even when you want to. But I’m just so tired of deliveries and deadlines now. I had to ‘retire’ twice in the past for people to take me seriously. I did it once in 2014, and then in 2017. But those were also breaks of only six to eight months. Now, I want to take a longer break, of at least three to four years. How do you plan to manage that, given your long list of pending commitments? Yes, I still have about 10 albums to go. I’ve requested exit from the ones I haven’t properly started so far. And then there are some non-lip sync ones that can be managed later once I get back. Like Kabir’s next and Vikramaditya Motwane’s Dada (Sourav Ganguly biopic starring Rajkummar Rao). The work on Anurag Basu’s next (with Kartik Aaryan and Sreeleela) is almost complete,” he said.
