KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 28 — Arijit Singh, one of India’s highest-paid and most prominent Bollywood singers, abruptly announced his retirement on social media last night, leaving millions of fans in shock and disappointment.
Expressing his gratitude to his fans, Arijit said he would not be taking any new assignments as a playback singer — a popular term in India referring to vocalists who pre-record songs to be used in movies or series.
“I am calling it off. It was a wonderful journey,” the 38-year-old singer posted on Facebook and Instagram yesterday.
However, it was not immediately clear if Arijit would continue doing live performances or switch to other careers related to Indian music or cinema.
Arijit debuted in Bollywood with the Phir Mohabbat track for the film Murder 2 in 2011 and has reportedly sung over 600 songs in various languages including Hindi, Bengali, Tamil and Telugu.
His repertoire primarily features romantic ballads and some of his sensational hits include Tum Hi Ho from Aashiqui 2 (2013), Channa Mereya and Bulleya from Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016).
His latest track, Gehra Hua, in India’s highest-grossing Hindi film of all time, Dhurandhar, emerged as one of the most listened-to songs in 2025.
The two-time National Award winner has topped Spotify’s charts as India’s most-streamed artist for seven consecutive years since 2019.
