BOYISH MAN

Irish singer and former Boyzone vocalist Ronan Keating is on a whirlwind India tour this month

- Amit Gurbaxani

It's a great year for Indian fans of 1990s boy bands. After the Backstreet Boys performed here in May, Ronan Keating will stage a three-city tour this month (November 17-19), just a week before fellow Irish chart-toppers Westlife visit.

Keating, who became a household name as a member of Boyzone and forged a successful solo career thereafter, is proof that acts that are often dismissed as bubblegum can last much longer than critics predicted. "For me, I think the greatest achievement is longevity," says the singer who celebrates 30 years as a professional artist this year. "I think in the '90s, there was a lot of stigma attached to boy bands, especially when we were up against Oasis and Blur, and all of these bands that were trying to be credible. [But] we were having a great time, we were living the dream, I have continued to."