CHITRA
I CAN'T CONTINUE
SINGING FOR HEROINES
ALL MY LIFE

Did you expect this award for Payali chunmun song from Virasat?
I am so happy to win this award for best playback singer and I must thank Screen first. I never expected this. Even when I was informed about my nomination earlier, I was not confident of winning, considering that there were other contenders like Ashaji (Asha Bhonsle). On the day of the awards, I had to attend Ilayaraja’s programme held in Chennai at the same time. That is why I couldn’t make it to the awards ceremony. The song Payali chunmun is a melodious one. The Tamil original of the song Ingi iduppazhaga had been rendered by Janakiamma in Thevar Magan.

Tell us about your musical background?
My father was a vocalist, who used to perform for AIR-Thiruvananthapuram, and my mother was a veena-player and music teacher. I entered the industry as a singer in 1983. At school, I was awarded cultural talent scholarship which enabled me to learn Carnatic music under Dr Omanakutty, a professor at the Music College, Thiruvananthapuram. I graduated in music, but had to discontinue further study in music because of a number of offers to sing in films. But the reward has been worth it, as predicted by Ilayaraja when I first sang for him.

When did you make your debut as a playback singer?
In 1983, in a Malayalam film. I was offered a song by music director M.G.Radhakrishnan, a brother of my guru Dr Omanakutty. The song was a riddle of sorts, which I sang along with several other kids. During my school vacation, after my SSC exams, I sang a duet with Yesudas which was released before my first song. Since then I have sung in several shows of KJ Yesudas and also for his cassettes. The offer which brought me to Chennai was for a Hindi film by KS Gopalakrishnan, Kushi Aur Kushi. SP Venkatesh was the music director, and the song was written by PB Srinivas. But the film was never released.

Which was your first Tamil movie?
I first came to Chennai in 1984 to sing for Poove Poochoodava, but before that I sang a duet along with Gangai Amaran for Nethana Antha Kuil. But it was the song Chinnakuil padum from Poove Poochoodava that made me popular with Tamil music lovers. My fifth film Sindhu Bhairvai gave my career a big boost. I won the National award for the song Padariyen padipariyen. This song is unforgettable because, I had to skip my MA final exams to record it. It was Ilayaraja who helped me decide whether I should sing it. He said, “Music has more in store for you than academics.”

Who is your favourite music director?
(Smiles). That is a difficult question to answer, since I like all those who give me work. But I must admit, I owe a lot to Illayaraja. He is the main reason for whatever I have achieved so far, and I will be forever grateful to him. I like Deva, AR Rahman and Vidyasagar, who have given me good melodies to sing, and made the best use of my voice. Once I had gone to Mumbai to sing for the late RD Burman for the Tamil movie Poomazhai Pozhiyudhu. I was so scared because, I couldn’t communicate in Hindi. But he sensed my problem and put me at ease.

Is language a barrier to your singing Hindi songs?
Hindi was my second language at school and I can write and read well but conversing is a bit difficult. I try to understand the lyrics before rendering them. I have no such difficulty with Telugu and Tamil, because I am familiar with them. For a multilingual singer, the basic knowledge of all the languages he or she wishes to sing in is a must to do full justice to the songs.

Does the fact that melody is losing out affect you?
It does. Channel [V]and MTV aim at the teenagers and the dance buffs. I wish the old magic of melody returns. Nowadays, the orchestra over-rides a singer’s voice, supressing it rather than supporting it. It was not so earlier. Earlier, the voice used to stand out against the accompanying instruments. The background music should be mild and supportive. The quality of music apart, the standard of lyrics have also gone down. That is not because the lyricists are incapable of writing better songs, but because they are compelled to write inane stuff.

What do you feel about the growing popularity of pop albums?
Pop music has become very popular in the South as proved by cassette sales. I had done a Rap album in Hindi for Magnasound a few years ago titled Rugga Rugga. Since I was not used to the video culture, I just stood and gave lip-movement and the rest was done by professional dancers. Sometime later, after the release of the cassette, I had gone to Thiruvananthapuram for the Usha Uthup Show. Surprisingly, there were demands from the audience that I should perform to songs from that album. But I was not prepared, since I had never expected it to be so popular among home audiences.

Are you planning to cut your own album in the near future?
I am inclined towards private albums. Our cassette company, Audio Tracks, run by my husband, is producing devotional and folk cassettes in Tamil and Malayalam, which includes Islamic and Christian devotional cassettes. If I get offers from recording companies, I will certainly sing for private albums like I did for Magnasound. When I have enough time from my busy schedule, I will certainly cut my own album.

You are a graduate in classical music.
Aren’t you thinking of classical music concerts?
What I have learnt so far is not enough. I am not yet ready for concerts. I had never expected that I’d be a playback singer. My ambition had been, and is, to be a classical vocalist, but it needs a lot of training. A classical musician’s career is forever, while a playback singer’s is temporary. I can’t continue singing for heroines all my life. I want to return to classical music at some stage. I still have a lot to learn and a consoling fact is that my guru, Dr Omana Kutty, once said in an interview that if she could snatch me away for just a month from playback singing, she would prepare me for a classical concert. It has given me a lot of hope and confidence.

But Asha Bhonsle’s versatility has enabled her
to sing numbers for Urmila even at the age of 60-plus.
Ashaji and Janakiamma (S. Janaki) have been blessed by God. Age has made no difference to their voice quality.

Who has been your inspiration?
I owe all that I have achieved so far to my parents, who are no more, and my husband. My husband is an engineer who is very supportive, undemanding and shares my devotion to music, though he can’t sing himself. My mother-in-law can play veena and my sisters-in-law are dancers and singers. So I get a lot of support from them. My recording schedules never allow me to discharge my duties as a housewife, but they don’t mind it. You could say that I am a very pampered daughter-in-law.