Hariharan to bring out `Hazir 2` with Zakir Hussain

Kolkata: After working with Zakir Hussain in the album `Hazir`, singer Hariharan is all set to launch a sequel soon.

"It is 15-16 years we since we launched Hazir. I have been hearing from people why we are not taking the initiative beyond what we experimented. In Hazir 2 I guess we have sought to further our musical trip and a whole new listening experience," Hariharan said here at the launch of a new weekly tabloid `Good News Tab`. Asked about his equations with Zakir, he said, "It is vibrant and we understand what the other wants." Hariharan who also got the National Award twice for playback singing, will bring out a new album with Leslie Lewis in October. The duo co-founded the Colonial Cousins. He hoped it would get positive vibes like the Colonial Cousins, The Way We Do It and Aatma (2001). The 1996 album had won platinum as the first Indian act to be featured on MTV Unplugged. "I know Lewis for many years. We complement each other with our own styles of singing," he said. Referring to late ghazal king Mehdi Hassan, Hariharan said "You can term him the university where singers like me were the graduate and post-graduate students. He was an institution where we merely studied and qualified." Recalling when he sang the Md Rafi number `aaja aaja main hoon pyar tera` with Asha Bhosle in Kolkata, he said, "I would love to perform again with Ashaji in this city." Asked about his views on reality shows, Hariharan said, "It is a good platform for children. But winners should not consider themselves stars and instead consider it as the first step of sadhana to attain stardom after a long journey." PTI