Singer Shilpa Rao, who first rose to fame after her song ‘Khuda Jaane’ from the film Bachna Ae Haseeno, has become a voice to reckon with in the Bollywood music industry. On her journey through these years in Bollywood, the 35-year-old says, “I have worked with everybody in this industry that one can imagine. It feels great to work with everyone, in fact, learn from everyone while working with them. The best part is that nobody tried to change me in any manner. I never wanted to change my voice in any manner. The industry has let me be myself. I have got to do the kind of work I wanted to, so it feels great.”
The singer who will be seen in Hungama Spotlight’s music show is known for trying new styles in her songs and singing for different genres. On the trend of remixing old songs, she says, “I think the songs were classics because they were originals some years ago. So, we need to make some originals so they can be classics too some years from now. Therefore, I think we should put our energies into making original music.
That will stand out as unique.” She also points out that most albums these days predominantly feature male voices. In the ’90s, you had duets or male-female versions of a song. Then, women started getting item numbers. But now, it’s not equally divided. We need more solo female songs. There’s so much talk in the UK and US about female representation, and movements in Saudi Arabia about women’s right to driving, why can’t we bring about that change in our industry?” she asks.
Trained in Indian classical music by her father, S Venkat Rao, and ghazals by Hariharan, the 35-year-old counts Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder and British singers Sting and Sade among her inspirations. “I listen to any music that I like listening to. I enjoy trip-hop like Zero 7 or funk like Jamiroquai alongside [sitarist] Nikhil Banerjee or Mehdi Hassan. I basically enjoy listening to all genres of music.”
Shilpa’s memorable experiences have been with music directors such as Amit Trivedi, Pritam, Vishal-Shekhar and Mithoon. “These composers have taught me so much and I have always tried new styles of songs with them. They have given me immense freedom to be myself and bring something new to a song each time,” she says. But it was musical maestro AR Rahman who had a lasting impression on her. “It was a dream come true to have worked with the living legend. His outlook towards work, music and musicians is so inspiring. I had a very inspiring time working with him,” she says excitedly.
The music industry in recent years has seen a lot of singing talents emerge and the competition is tough. But how can a young singer create a niche for himself or herself in such a competitive scenario? With several platforms now available for singers to showcase, their work Shilpa feels the vital point is to “keep updating yourself”. “I keep trying to look for new music, new bands, new artists, new vocal techniques. This way with every new song I can put out something new each time for my fans,” she ends.