'Happy girls are the prettiest,' and to be in the camera frame makes me happy. I just want myself to keep working. I can be in front of the camera for 48 hours continuously without any breaks.
Recording a Hindi song takes me around 40 minutes whereas a Kannada song takes me about two hours. The music isn't a problem, since the notes used are universal. The language is the problem. I try my best to get it right, as I'm sensitive about respecting every language, since all of them are sacred in my heart.
Ineffective substitute teaching is a problem that means thousands of hours of lost learning for America's students. It cannot be dismissed with a sigh and 'Just wait for the teacher to come back on Monday.'
When I won the first world title in 2011 I was practising six, seven or even more hours a day.
You have to put in the extra hours away from the tournament. There's no other option.
I have a great tip - I have a jumping rope in the house, and I just do ten minutes of it whenever I can. You don't need to work out for hours, just ten minutes will do.
We spend so many hours a day - even if we're not physically in the office - working, thinking about work, and planning and setting up and organizing with work, even with our families.
When my boys were little, I'd throw so many toys at them, but they didn't want to play with any. Then I'd give them a truck, and they would play for hours. I believe the same thing applies to a consumer - edit their choices, and they will be more intrigued.
At a festival, a lot of people came to see other artists, so you have to put on a signature set and performance: 'This is what I do, this is why I'm here.' At solo gigs, I'm a DJ - I'll play two-and-a-half hours, and not just my own music, also my favorite songs by other artists.
However dark, however demanding the realities of existence are, artists provide the lift, the light, the ways to make it through. They help us find the joys and delights, the hopes we need for our days and hours. I am grateful for their gifts.
