KOCHI: Singer Sanah Moidutty comes out as a bold and unapologetic person. Her latest rendition of Malayam ever-green classic Karutha Penne with a touch of rap might have ruffled quite a few feathers but the singer is confident that a lot of Malayali audience have been receptive of the song.
"Karutha Penne remains one of my favourite classic Malayalam songs to date. I have rendered it giving due respect to its makers, especially since it has a huge cult following. My song is a tribute to the original version," says Sanah who was in Kochi for an event.
The Mumbai-based singer says she decided to improvise on the music by adding a rap version to the classic song because she felt it was apt with the lyrics of the original.
"Karutha Penne is addressing a woman of colour. Through my rap version, I have condemned a social issue (on colour) our country still faces. It is personal because I wrote the lyrics. I think people felt that the essence of the song was lost when I added the rap version. There were comments which said the addition was unnecessary and destroyed the essence of the original. The brick bats were expected because I was improvising on a benchmark song, which had Lalettan and Shobhana chechi playing the main characters. However, I still believe it was the perfect platform to address the issue," she said.
Sanah found a huge Malayali base through her YouTube Channel. "I have so far rendered 67 Hindustani covers and 10 Bollywood numbers. My first Malayali rendition was Pon Veene from 1986 hit Thaalavatam. It took people some time to understand my work. But, very soon, I found that my Malayali subscribers were increasing by the day. I was able to understand the Malayali audience through my renditions," she said.
She feels it is impossible to keep away from electronic, acoustic and other genres of music in today's world of music. "Even when we are rendering the old numbers, it is more of revisiting them in a new way than creating a new single. Our generation is influenced by them to a large extent," she said.
Sanah, whose parents are from Kerala was born and raised in Mumbai. She began her musical journey at the age of 5 when her mother enrolled her at a music school. The computer engineering graduate is currently undergoing an advanced course in Hindustani music. She shot to fame singing for songs composed by A R Rahman for the movie Mohenjo Daro.