Junaid Khan would love to work with Arijit, Diljit

Artist wishes for cross-border collabs to return

Being a multi-talented artist, Junaid Khan is someone who makes sure to keep his avenues open. We've seen him both light up the small screen and serenade our ears with memorable songs as part of the band Call. And now, he has revealed that he's taking a dip into the world of sports by investing time and energy in cricket.

However, new discoveries don't mean bidding farewell to old ones for him. In an interview with Vasay Chaudhry, the 43-year-old actor expressed his admiration for artists in the neighbouring country, as well as dropping names of Indian singers he would surely work with if he's ever given the chance.

Voicing his insights on Pakistan-India showbiz interchange, Junaid shared that he is open to the numerous possibilities of cross-border collaborations. "There is much that can happen, in terms of music, film, and TV. There's a lot of talent there, and much here as well. The producers there want to invite actors from here, or just have everyone over. And we also want their actors to come here and work with us," he said.

"I, too, have enjoyed this part. At the time, the relationship between the two countries was great, so people travelled frequently. As for the artists of today who are becoming popular and delivering excellent performances, I want for the situation to improve once more so that they can travel abroad and witness how their popularity unfolds across the world, as well as how much love they'd receive," he added.

Junaid believes that India is home to a number of good singers. As for whom he enjoys listening to, he said, "Arijit (Singh) is a great singer. Diljit (Dosanjh), too, is a good singer and performer. If I ever get the opportunity to work with them, I would definitely avail it."

Aside from his appreciation of other artists, Junaid expressed fondness for the music industry by sharing that he enjoys listening to different kinds of acts. From Pakistan to India, there have been many who inspired his artistry. He cited Sonu Nigam, Mohammed Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Junaid Jamshed, Mehdi Hassan, and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan amongst the singers he would avidly listen to.

However, it is rock music with which the Laree Chootee singer's heart truly lies. "Rock music gave me the opportunity to vent out my frustrations," he explained, adding how that enabled him to explore even more artists who covered the same genre.

As for acting, Bollywood and Hollywood also served as inspirations, with renowned names like Amitabh Bachchan and Madhuri Dixit making it to Junaid's ever-expanding list.