Akriti Kakar has sung playback for many Bollywood films and in several regional languages. Her debut song was “Chham se woh aa jaye” in the 2004 film Dus . Her song in the Bangla film “Paglu” was a chartbuster. In April 2010 she released a non-film album Akriti for which she composed music along with Shankar Mahadevan.
The singer is also a judge in Zee Bangla’s programme “Sa re ga ma pa Lil Champs 2013” along with Kumar Shanu and other celebrities. In the recently released 2 States she sang “Iski uski”, a Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy composition. Singing since the age of five, she was also part of music directors Kalyanji-Anandji’s group “Little Stars” which toured the world. She shares her views in an interview with Friday Review. Excerpts:
Your singing style ranges from deep and philosophical songs to fun and quirky ones. What was your training like?
My music upbringing has been quite holistic. My mother, Nirmal Kakar, has been my first guru, followed by my Guruji, Byomkesh Banerjee who has literally shaped my singing abilities. My musical training started from Hindustani classical music, including Khayal, Dhrupad, Dhamar, etc. Also I heard songs by Lataji and Ashaji all through, since that was like an Encyclopaedia of great songs to learn from. Fortunately in my career I have been given an opportunity to sing all kinds of songs and not get caught up in one genre which has been a blessing!
Tell us about your entry into Bollywood and your debut song…
My debut song in Bollywood was with music composers Vishal-Shekhar in the film “Dus”. I had just gone to meet them at their studio to introduce myself and give an audition. I was told I would receive a call from them soon. To my surprise I did receive a call asking me to sing in this big film. I sang for Shilpa Shetty in a multi-starrer film and that was my formal entry into Bollywood.
How did you get this song “Iski uski”?
I’ve known Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy from the time I came to Mumbai. I was extremely fortunate to share the stage with them for a long time and learning so much at the starting of my career. I have sung the title song of “Johnny Gaddar” for them, and many more for the trio. This time around I was called for something they said was very much up my alley. I had great fun singing the song. It’s always a party in the studio while working for them and that’s how the song also turned out to be super. I’m really happy to be a part of this movie since it was one rollercoaster of emotions and everyone is loving it.
Do you think that the lyrics which are is being written these days will leave impact on audiences for a long time?
There are different kinds of movies that require and deserve different kinds of lyrics. A fun quirky movie cannot have serene deep philosophical lyrics. Similarly an art movie cannot have lyrics that don’t add value to it. There are great songs in today’s times too that will be timeless and won’t age. But that’s what will set the great songs apart from the clutter. My recent favourites are “Bol Na Halke” by Gulzar, “Manmarziyaan” and “Monta Re” by Amitabh Bhattacharya, “Nadaan Parinde” by Irshad Kamil, “Sun raha hai na tu” by Sandeep Nath, etc.
Do you prefer non-film songs and performances?
It’s not like I prefer non-film over film. Singing for a movie has its own charm and it’s a huge challenge. One has to play a certain character behind the mike and that character is certainly not us. It depends totally on the movie and script and the composer’s decision. A non-film performance gives us liberty to put our heart out and show our audiences who we really are. If both go in tandem, then the balance seems beautiful and I think that’s what really makes my journey as a singer exciting.
