BHUBANESWAR: Her voice sounds different from the rest. Be it the naughty numbers that are meant to cajole, the sad ones or the item numbers, Pami Mishra has exemplified her versatility through her songs not only in the Odia music industry but outside too. Apart from Odia, she has lent her voice to film and non-film songs in Bengali, Chhatisgarhi, Telugu and many other languages and dialects.
Wearing a happy-go-lucky attitude, the singer’s tryst with music started when she was four years old. Studying in St Joseph’s Convent Higher Secondary School in Sambalpur, she was initiated into music through the school choir and her attendance at the church where she used to be sing carols.
“But it was my maternal grandfather who was instrumental in developing a love for music in me since my childhood,” says Pami.
It was when Pami was in Class V that she performed on stage for the first time in front of a mass audience along with the late legendary Odia singer Akshay Mohanty. “I was known as Baby Sangeeta (her name is Sangeeta Mashi but she is known by her pet name Pami all over) and I had no stage fear as I was regularly performing at school functions.”
It was only after Pami graduated from GM College, Sambalpur in 1992 and began working as a teacher after her marriage, that offers to sing in albums from various places started pouring in. “I had no inclination for a career in music as I was happy with the way things were. But my husband insisted that I must not let go of opportunities to sing, if singing has been close to my heart for such a long time. And I decided to give it a shot,” says Pami.
Highly inspired by Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle, Pami had the skills to modulate her voice to suit the songs. “I was game for any genre of songs.”
Pami has around 70 to 80 Odia film songs and innumerable album songs to her credit. The singer had formal training in Hindustani Classical from Guru Gyanaranjan Mohapatra.
College life for the singer was the most memorable as she was the cynosure of all eyes. “I was pampered a lot. By the time I enrolled in GM College for my Plus Two, I was already a celebrity, as I was performing a lot locally. My seniors in school became my seniors in college and they were very protective of me. So it was like getting special treatment. On the first day of my college, I moved around the college accompanied by my seniors the entire day. They wanted to ensure that the college students know that I am special and no one should mess with me,” says Pami with a feeling of contentment.
“I was named Lollipop in my college but I am not aware why! Maybe because this is one candy that is loved by all,” she winks.
Ask her about bunking classes and Pami is frank enough to say, “Bunking was a part of my college life. When I had to bunk during a class, I used to start shifting from the first bench to the second, then to the third and in five minutes, I was at the last bench to escape through the back door. But that never reflected on my marksheet because I used to be in the top ranks always and get scholarships too.”
Pami says her college taught her to be independent and straightforward. “I was very naughty during my college days and played a lot of pranks. We once targeted one of my teachers, who used to use the word ‘actually’ very often in sentences. One day in class, we counted out loud the number of times he used the word, everytime he used it. He was so irritated that he shouted at us for being unruly,” reminisces Pami about her many misdoings.
She got along with both guys and girls well during her college times. “But I would retort if anyone commented anything bad and I have been in trouble for this many times.” Her teachers and students (she taught in a convent school for some time) recognise her as the ‘nightingale’ or the ‘lark’ when they meet her or watch her on television. “This gives a lot of satisfaction apart from the love and appreciation I have got from my fraternity in the industry here,” she signs off.
— kasturi@newindianexpress.com