The Himesh Reshammiya comeback is a rebellion against polished, curated celebrity culture

I was five when Himesh Reshammiya dropped his era-defining hits, and . So no, I am not part of his original millennial fanbase that was losing their minds at his recent comeback “Cap Mania Tour”.

But nostalgia? It hit me in the stadium like a tidal wave.

In July, Reshammiya – the cap-wearing hit machine who ruled our playlists somewhere between 2005 and 2014, with high-pitched hooks, sometimes absurd lyrics and characteristically nasal vocals – packed out his first Delhi show so quickly that another date was added at the same stadium. That sold out too.

I was probably in Class 1 when the big rumour hit town: that singing the verse “ek baar aaja aaja” from Jhalak Dikhla Ja would summon ghosts. I was convinced.

Reshammiya tracks haunted every birthday celebration and dinner with my parents’ friends. His songs weren’t optional, they were the party.

But then, sometime around 2014-’15, Reshammiya all but disappeared from the playlist. Perhaps audiences felt they’d had too much of the elements that defined his style.

His “so bad, it’s good” appeal had worked in films like Aap Kaa Surroor (2007) and Karzzzz (2008), where he tried his hand at acting. But it carried him only so far. By the time Happy Hardy and Heer, featuring him in a double role, hit the screens...

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