Sunitha Upadrasta is looking forward to treating her fans to a live musical performance at Shilpakala Vedika in Hyderabad. All set to perform at the venue after five years, Sunitha says a live audience enthuses her. “This concert, a ticketed event at a prestigious venue, is a special one; the vibe will be different as we get to know the audience’s pulse,” says the singer.
With an impressive set of approximately 30 songs, the three-hour show will see the singer, accompanied by singer Dinker Kalvala and chorus, croon her popular tracks in different genres, including the ever-popular ‘Ee velalo neevu em chestuvuntaavo…’ from Gulabi.
Feather to her cap
Screenshot of Sunitha from the single ‘Entha Prema’ | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
With a repertoire of 3,000 songs in Telugu, Tamil and Kannada, Sunitha is also a dubbing artiste for more than 750 movies. She was the voice of Aishwarya Rai’s character in Ponniyin Selvan 1. She is one of the judges in the music reality show Paadutha Theeyaga on ETV. Adding another feather to her cap, she turns director for the video of her new independent track, Entha Prema, launched recently by Mango Music. Composed by Achu Rajamani, the almost-four-minute Telugu number shot at picturesque locations features her along with a few Tamil lines sung by Achu. “I was a bit nervous but the song mammalni baaga drive chesindi (the song pushed us) to create good music,” says the singer who was last seen in a music video for the song ‘Kshanam Kshanam’ from the Nayanthara-starrer Anamikaa.
Emotional song
(file photo) At a concert in Ambedkar Stadium in Sangareddy | Photo Credit: MOHD ARIF
Entha Prema is a bhava geetham (emotional song), says Sunitha. “The song is a feeling… an urge to be with a loved one.” Clarity of thought played a key role while directing the song. “When we were scouting for locations or discussing shots with DoP and editor, I knew how I wanted the song to shape up. “ Being in the industry (films) has helped her to gain some experience in all the departments and, eventually, her “thoughts led to direction”. She showed the project to her director friend Shekar Kammula for his feedback, before launching the music video.
With plans to experiment and launch songs every two months with different themes and singers in Telugu, the music label hopes to venture into Tamil music too. “We (Sunitha and Achu) recently did a couple of projects with Karthik and tried to recreate the vibe of veteran composer Ilaiyaraaja. Memu Ilaiyaraaja gaari veerabhimanulam (We are die-hard fans of Ilaiyaraaja garu.”
While she is excited to expand her music space with independent music, she clarifies: . “Unlike a movie song which becomes an instant hit or flop, an independent song might take time to grow on listeners but it does make a mark with its organic growth.”
Judge on television
From Paadutha Theeyaga on ETV | Photo Credit: special arrangement
Talking about her stint as a judge on the reality show Paadutha Theeyaga, earlier hosted by (late) SP Balasubrahmanyam and now hosted by his son SP Charan, she says, “It is an honour to be a judge on that musical show. We walk into the set with devotion and immense respect, remembering Balasubrahmanyam garu . We felt a deep void during the show but carry on with his music in our memories.”
Taking life as it comes is her mantra. “I work as if there is no tomorrow and give my 100 percent but have never been desperate. I go with the flow to enjoy the journey.”
Finally, Sunitha goes down memory lane to recall legendary actor (late) Akkineni Nageswara Rao’s comments on an earlier interview of hers with The Hindu MetroPlus. “He called me at 6am to compliment me for the photograph and interview. His wishes are a beautiful memory etched in my mind.
Sunitha Upadrasta Live in Concert at Shilpa Kala Vedika in Hyderabad on March 22 from 7 pm onwards; Tickets: ₹1,000 bookmyshow.com
