Are you a morning person?
Yes, very much so. I believe in the phrase 'Early to bed and early to rise keeps a man healthy, wealthy and wise'. I make it a point to wake up by 5-5.30 in the morning. I love the fresh cool air. It's full of vitality. I usually take a stroll in my veranda then.

Are you involved in any social welfare activities?
I have been doing social service for a long time. I try to give medical support to the needy. In my view this is an essential service we should all be involved in.

Any memorable anecdotes of the recent past?
By the grace of God there have been quite a few. The most recent was during a programme where a girl of hardly seven came up to me and asked me to sing Mamunia, a hit song of 1977. Minutes later a middle aged man came up to me and requested me to sing the same song. This really elated me. The song was composed and written by Nurul Huda, ex-state minister for information. He was a magistrate when he composed this beautiful song. My other hit number Agey jodi jantaam was also written by him and tuned by Lucky Akhand. I get similar requests for the song Emon ekta ma dey na, composed by a dentist residing in the US.

What's the most interesting tidbit that you would like to share with the readers?

I am a very proud father. My son Habib has made a niche for himself in the music scene. The interesting news is that my latest album for the Eid, titled Ogo tumi jey amaar, is almost ready for my fans. It was a beautiful experience to work with my son as the composer of an original soundtrack along with re-mix versions of my old numbers. This is a tribute to the eminent music director Alam Khan. During the recording session, my son would not compromise with the minutest details in the songs. I had to sing three lines almost 35 times to bring it to perfection before I got a nod from the young music director. But that made me immensely proud. I am sure my fans would go head over heals for the new album on Soundtek Banner.

Do you idolise any one?
Many people have heard Ahmed Rushdi of Pakistan. He had a golden voice and his renditions were truly magical. When I was in class eight I watched the film Armaan. From then on the noted singer had a tremendous influence on me. People would say that my voice resembled the great singer.

What keeps you going in a crisis?
I have come across several incidents where people become agitated and restless during a crisis. On the contrary, I am very composed under such condition.

Why do you dress up in jazzy gear? Do you have an affinity for dark glasses?Hey, that's the way people like to watch me. The simpleton looks don't go with my appearance [laughs]. By the way my dark glasses are power glasses. During my TV performances my eyes watered and the doctors advised me to wear glasses. I thought the dark glasses looked cool! I have about 10 in my collection, since I have a habit of losing them all the time.