Pritam Reveals The Real Reason Behind Arijit Singh's Playback Singing Exit: 'Sometimes Directors Pressurise All Of Us...'

Music composer Pritam Chakraborty opened up about the real reason behind Arijit Singh stepping away from playback singing. Recently, he said that the singer was overwhelmed by constant professional pressure and simply needed a break from the industry.

In an interview, Pritam clarified that Arijit’s decision should not be viewed as a permanent retirement. According to him, the singer had been under immense pressure to continuously deliver songs and had become exhausted with the demands of commercial music.

Explaining the situation, Pritam told Screen, "Artists don’t retire. They take a break and redirect to something that is interesting them more. Let him move at his own pace. There’s so much he wants to explore. To start with, he is directing a film with a beautiful and meaningful script. Also, it’s his life, his voice, so it should be his decision when to sing and when not to sing what to sing and what not to sing. He was singing so many songs, maybe he doesn’t want to sing for now. Sometimes, directors also pressurise all of us. I also feel bad to say no to them. He wants to make his film now. Give him time, he’ll be all okay."

The composer urged fans not to overanalyse the word “retirement” and instead allow Arijit the freedom to step back and focus on what he truly wants to do. He suggested that every artiste reaches a point where they need distance from constant expectations and work pressure.

Speaking further about the reaction to Arijit’s announcement, Pritam said, “People are thinking too much into his retirement. Why are you giving him so much pressure? Let him do what he wants. He’ll sing when he wants to. Somebody said if he’s retired, why are his songs still coming out? Arey, but why are you bothered? Why are you after him? He has a life. Every artist wants a break. A lot of things trigger us.”

Pritam and Arijit have delivered several hit songs together over the years and are considered one of Bollywood’s most successful composer-singer collaborations. Interestingly, Pritam revealed that Arijit’s decision also made him rethink his own desire to step away from work for a while.

Recalling a personal conversation with the singer, Pritam shared, “I've told Arijit a few times about retirement. Everyone has been to his hometown, Jiaganj, except me. He'd laugh and tell me, 'You wouldn’t come.' I told him, 'No, I am retiring. Once I make the announcement, I'd come to you, and we'd go to Tarapith together.' He was hearing this from me for the past one year. One night, he told me, 'The day you retire, I’ll also retire.' The next day, he announced his retirement from playback singing. After doing that, he called me and said, 'Aapse nahi hoga' (laughs).”

Earlier this year, Arijit had announced on social media that he would no longer accept new playback singing assignments.

The 38-year-old singer later clarified that he still had ongoing commitments to complete, which is why audiences would continue hearing new songs from him over the next couple of years.

Even after the announcement, Arijit has remained associated with major Bollywood projects and has collaborated with names like Vishal Bhardwaj, Aamir Khan and Aditya Dhar on several popular tracks.