Chatting with the 'Zara Zara' girl

Tell us about your new song from Anjaana Anjaani.

It's the title track of the film. It's a party number and I had fun singing it. Initially, there were six tracks in the film. But the director (Siddharth Anand) wanted a club track as the title song so it was added later. All of us, including music directors Vishal-Shekhar, love this song.

You had an early exit from Indian Idol but made a confident entry into Bollywood…

After Indian Idol, I met a lot of people from the industry. The first person I met was Pritam-da. He really liked my voice and after singing some songs for him, I got introduced to Ramesh and Kumar Taurani of Tips Music. They were coming up with Race and Pritam-da was doing the music. It just clicked and I recorded the song. That's how "Zara Zara Touch Me" and "Khwab Dekhe" happened. After that, I got to work with Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Vishal-Shekhar.

How did singing come your way?

My entire family has strong musical roots. My first record was at the age of six and a half for HMV, Kolkata. Honestly speaking, I do not even remember since when I'm singing. I took lessons in classical music under Pt. Ajoy Chakravarty and Pt. Jagdish Prasad.

How much did a show like Indian Idol help you?

Indian Idol helped me survive in a city like Mumbai, which is even costlier than New York. I could shift to Mumbai only because of Indian Idol. I was not much into live shows as I wanted to concentrate on my career as a playback singer. I always dreamt of having a playback number to my credit. But gradually, post Indian Idol I also started getting live shows.

How has the journey been so far?

It's not been a smooth journey. Ups and downs have always been there. But I have a positive attitude, all thanks to my family and friends, and I know if I sing well and stay grounded, there's none to stop me from getting good songs. At the same time, I was lucky to have songs like "Khudaya Khair" (Billu) and "Meow" (Golmaal Returns) come my way.

Who are your favourite singers?

Obviously, Lata-ji and Asha-ji are the best. I personally like Richa Sharma a lot. Then of course there are Sunidhi Chauhan and Shreya Ghosal. Last but not the least, I admire my guruji Pt. Jagdish Prasad.

From a participant in Indian Idol to a judge on Zee Bangla's SaReGaMaPa L'il Champs…

Being a part of Indian Idol, I could very well relate to what a contestant went through on a reality show like SaReGaMaPa L'il Champs. It was very difficult on my part to say 'No' to a participant because only a few years back, I had gone through the same disappointment.

What's coming up next?

A song I composed for a Mumbai clothing retail outlet will be launched on 4 September. The entire Bollywood fraternity will be present to grace the occasion. Besides, I've recorded a song for the upcoming thriller Knockout. Shankar Mahadevan had announced on the sets of Indian Idol that I would be singing with them. So, that is also due. I also have projects with Pritam-da, Vishal-Shekhar and Amit Trivedi in the pipeline.


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