"Well, after my MBA, I decided not to sit for placements. I was already getting a lot of media coverage daily. By that time I was very sure I didn't want to work at a corporate set-up. Also, for my summer placement, I worked with a music company. And I would choose my assignments also such, that they be related to music as much as possible. So I had learnt about the music industry, I was doing live shows, and didn't see the point of working with a company now and leaving it later."

"Then I came back to Mumbai and started learning music formally from Pandit Askaran Sharma. I even went abroad to Singapore and learnt Western classical singing. Then I started looking for band members to play with me. Also, I realised that I didn't have any songs that would work on stage -- most of my songs were slow and philosophical, not fast and peppy enough for live shows. So that's when I sat down and started writing more songs. For about 6-7 months, I kept learning music, and didn't do anything at all."

"In September 2006, I met (drummer) Ranjeet Barot, and we were both keen to work with one another. We started recording in October 2006, and it took a whole year to finish the album. I got my first big show, and a chance to perform in front of 3000-4000 people in Mumbai, which was a JAM (magazine) CAT concert. That got me good coverage, and then in 2007, I played with the Pakistani band called Junoon in Ahmadabad. So then I started meeting labels and record companies to get my album out, and it was just like the way they show in movies, you know -- some want you to put in an item song, some want something else..."

"Finally it clicked with Universal, who appreciated the sound. Then it was running around to promote the album and record the videos. Now I realise that an album's success is measured not in terms of sales, but in terms of how many downloads you have and how many hits on Youtube. Today there are about 250-275 videos that college students have made on my song. So that's when you know your song has reached audiences you didn't think it would."

"Also, now I have a band of musicians who have been playing with me for two years now. There's Dev Jyoti, the drummer who's from Kolatta, DJ, who's a bass guitarist from Mumbai, John Fernandes who's a guitarist and then there's Sarosh who's played with some really big names in the past. I've started work on my next album, and am also interested in breaking into films. I'm looking at working as a composer and have been working towards it. Hopefully, by 2010 you'll see a film with my music. The thing with the music industry in India is that it's synonymous with the film industry. It's not a separate industry, so you have to align yourself with that."

Also see: 'Listen to your heart and never fear failure'