Last year, the celebrated singer returned to Bollywood with a song for the film 'Do Aur Do Pyaar'.
Every now and then, a clip of Lucky Ali strumming his guitar in an impromptu jam or performing live in front of a sea of fans goes viral. And each time, it reminds us how much we've missed his soulful voice in Bollywood music. Thankfully, he is back now, but there was a long gap when he wasn’t. For nearly nine years, Ali chose to step away from the industry.
Now, why did he walk away at the peak of his fame, and what kept him away for so long? Today, on his birthday, let's look back at the story behind his absence.
When Lucky Ali was at his peak in Bollywood, the industry was a very different place. It wasn’t as corporatized as it is today, and there was genuine respect for artists and their craft. But by the mid-2010s, Ali found the shifting culture of Bollywood exhausting. He was uncomfortable with the way films were increasingly leaning on formula, glamour, and violence. After lending his magical voice to 'Safarnama' in Ranbir Kapoor-starrer 'Tamasha' (2015), he decided to step away from the scene.
(Credit: T-Series)
In a 2017 interview, Ali didn’t mince words. “This place has a lot of disrespect. Bollywood has changed. The films being made these days lack inspiration, and there’s nothing to learn from them,” he said. He also felt that modern cinema was leaving a damaging impact on society, “People are getting violent because they are inspired by what they see in movies. I believe less patience and more greed are being promoted through films today.”
Not everyone knows that Lucky Ali is the son of legendary comedian and actor Mehmood. And after his father’s passing in 2004, Mumbai never felt the same to him. Despite having countless connections in the city, he felt like an outsider. This inner disconnection eventually pushed him to leave Mumbai and settle in Bengaluru.
Speaking in a 2022 interview, Ali revealed, “I’m not someone who stays in one place for long. I need to move, to wander. But when Dad passed away, I realized I wanted to leave. I felt I didn’t belong here anymore. I knew so many people, yet I felt like a stranger in the crowd.”
Though he has made sporadic comebacks, Lucky Ali remains largely detached from Bollywood and has no strong plans to return. Instead, he has carved out a life that keeps him closer to music, nature, and people on his own terms.
Ali regularly performs live concerts around the world, drawing massive crowds who still resonate with his soulful simplicity. Off the stage, however, he proudly calls himself a farmer. On his farm near Bengaluru, he grows crops and works the land, an identity he says keeps him grounded. “I’m a farmer and I take that very seriously. Farming is ann (food) for me,” he has said.
Beyond farming, he co-runs Tribe Nation, an online marketplace that connects farmers directly with consumers (an extension of his philosophy of living authentically and sustainably).
(Credit: nafisaalisodhi)
And when he isn’t traveling for shows or tending to his farm, Lucky Ali often retreats to Goa, where he spends time surrounded by nature, away from the chaos of fame.
