Harshdeep Kaur Marks 15 Years Of ‘Rockstar’, Recalls AR Rahman’s ‘Katiya Karun’ Story

Singer Harshdeep Kaur has marked 15 years of Imtiaz Ali’s film ‘Rockstar’ by revisiting the story behind recording one of its popular tracks, ‘Katiya Karun’, with music composer A.R. Rahman.

Taking to Instagram, the singer shared a video recalling her experience of working on the song and expressed gratitude to Rahman, lyricist Irshad Kamil and director Imtiaz Ali for making her part of the film’s celebrated soundtrack.

Recalling how she landed the opportunity, Harshdeep said she received a call from Rahman asking her to visit his studio to record a song for ‘Rockstar’. She was delighted when she discovered that the track was Punjabi, as she had strongly hoped to be part of the film’s music album.

The singer also revealed that Rahman composed ‘Katiya Karun’ spontaneously during the recording session, which took place around 2–3 am. She recalled how a guitar riff played by Rahman on the piano reminded her of a poem by Sufi poet Sultan Bahu, inspiring a moment in the song.

Harshdeep further shared that she had written the song’s credits in her personal music diary even before the opportunity was confirmed, listing A.R. Rahman as composer, Irshad Kamil as lyricist, Imtiaz Ali as director and herself as the singer.

Released as part of the 2011 film, ‘Katiya Karun’ features vocals by Harshdeep Kaur and additional vocals by Sapna Awasthi. The song was composed by A.R. Rahman, with lyrics by Irshad Kamil. The film starred Ranbir Kapoor and Nargis Fakhri.

Fifteen years after its release, Harshdeep noted that the track continues to find a place in listeners’ lives, with audiences using it in social media reels, travel videos and personal moments.

‘Rockstar’, which released in theatres on November 11, 2011, remains known for its music album composed by A.R. Rahman.