Had I followed others, would have been lost: Anu Malik

Mumbai, April 22 (IANS) Composer Anu Malik, who recently composed songs like "Aila re", says people love him for his unique style. He feels he would have been lost, if he had tried to follow others in the field.

"People have accepted me. You have to raise the level of your performance and take risks. If I had done what everyone was doing, I would have been lost," he told IANS.

"I think people love me for my style. If I had to follow what others are doing, it would not make sense. People are very smart, they know my music," he added.

Son of composer Sardar Malik, he debuted in the late 1970s and got his due with the success of "Phir Teri Kahani Yaad Aayee". It was followed by Shah Rukh Khan starrer "Baazigar", which had hits like "Kitaben bahut si".

Some of his other hit numbers are "Ek garam chaye ki pyali", "Oonchi hai building" and "East or West, India is the best".

He is happy even today people wait for his songs.

"I always felt that if I want to make a mark, I had to come up with a different style - Anu Malik style. Today also people wait for that kind of music. With so much music around, you have only few chances," he said.

He has composed two songs for "Shootout At Wadala" and said he bent rules for Sanjay Gupta by composing "Babli badmaash" and "Aala re aala".

"Being a brand, I should not do one or two songs. But if your songs will make a mark, then why not? I did it because Sanjay Gupta was honest enough to say that he wanted me in the film. He respected my brand of music," he said.

The composer has also signed up for "Border 2".