“India is like second home to me!”

At the second edition of music fest Lollapalooza India, legendary English musician Sting proved that age has nothing on him. The 72-year-old crooner painted Mumbai with nostalgia and took everyone's breath away with 16 of his most popular songs. But the biggest high for Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner (Sting), by his own admission, was "coming back and performing in one of my favourite countries in the world!" He may have won 17 Grammy Awards, an Emmy, a Golden Globe and has been nominated four times for the Academy Awards and yet, Sting considers performing in India "a huge high".”I got to share stage with music greats like Halsey, Anoushka Shankar, Jonas Brothers and Raghu Dixit. It was a multicultural and multi-sensory experience because there was good food, great art, fashion and so much more. It was a great Woodstock-like setup. India is like second home to me and this homecoming was special," he says.

Stung By Nostalgia

Sting's first visit to India was also for a performance. Reminiscing, he says, "This was way back in 1980, when I was part of 'The Police' (popular 1980's band). What a debut that was! And it led me to fall in love with India forever! I have such vivid memories of ladies in their sarees standing up on their seats with their umbrellas and dancing. There was even a stage invasion!" Speaking about his fascination with India, the crooner says, "India has always had a profound influence on my thoughts, life, growth and music. I am not unfamiliar with the vastness of this prolific culture, and I want to learn more and more. Trudy (wife Trudie Styler) and I have been fascinated by all things Indian – from Hinduism and sitar to yoga and a lot more! I have been coming here for more than three decades. I have celebrated New Year in Goa, camped in the Thar desert and visited the holy headwaters of the Yamuna and Ganges rivers. I’ve been lucky enough to share it with my family, and now my children love it as much as I do." Indian culture has inspired the work of many musicians and Sting is no different. Revealing how most of his standout work has Indian influences, he says, "I heard a street-side singer in Mumbai once. He was singing a song from a Hindi film and very unlike what I had ever heard before. That inspired a lot of jamming when I went back. Another experience that moved me enough to inspire me to incorporate it in my work was my road trip on a bike across Rajasthan. That experience and the visuals I encountered were the inspiration for the song 'Desert Rose.'"

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Moved By Spirituality

Indian culture and spirituality have moved people globally. Sting also believes in the "idea of India". “The basis of Indian philosophy, if I have understood it correctly, is journeying within your own self. And it makes so much sense. I've bathed at Gangotri, contemplated mortality in Varanasi, and hitch-hiked in the Himalayas. All through my travels and explorations, I have met different parts of myself and learnt to live in harmony with everything," avers the singer, adding, "India teaches you to live with differences, harmoniously. I have seen the whole spectrum, the poverty and the fantastic wealth. I enjoy India’s paradoxes. It’s a complicated society, it’s not perfect, and I enjoy that. Aren't we all like that?"

Sting secrets

In High Spirits

Sting has recently co-developed an alcohol brand, Amante 1530. Speaking about it, he says, "I wanted it to reflect who I am, what I like, and what hopefully a lot of people will like too. Through Amante, I want to send a message of connection, reverence, passion, love, joy and fun. And what better way of sending a message than in a bottle!"

India bucket-list

Next on his dreams is to explore Indian vineyards to try and see "the fun part of India", as he says.

Working in India

The singer is "open to the idea of collaborating with musicians in India." Lauding the global influence Indian musicians have had, Sting says, "Look at the heights 'Shakti' (Indian band) reached, now that they are lauded for their contributions at the Grammys. I want to meet A.R. Rahman and a few independent musicians. It would be really nice to collaborate."

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