In the din of the busy evening at a cafe, singer Sanah Moidutty’s withdrawn and shy nature is even more apparent. She speaks softly, and I have to lean forward to listen: “I love this city. My band is based here so I I come here often for rehearsals.” But now, she is in the city not for practice sessions — “I am here to meet a few music directors.” The Mumbai-based singer is currently basking in the success of her latest song for the Arjun Kapoor-starrer India’s Most Wanted .
The young musician who shot to fame through YouTube music videos (mostly covers of Hindi songs) which consequently led to her singing for AR Rahman, is now venturing to set foot in Kannada and Malayalam music industries.
But who does she want to collaborate with, in the Tamil industry? She laughs, saying, “I love Tamil songs a lot, and almost all the composers here. But, I would really like to work with Anirudh.” Her cover version of ‘Kanmani Anbodu Kadhalan’ from Guna was also received well by many. “People from Kerala and Tamil Nadu listen to both Malayalam and Tamil songs diligently.”
Speaking of concentrating on the South Indian playback scene, Sanah’s cover of the popular Malayalam song ‘Karutha Penne’, from the Mohanlal-starrer Thenmavin Kombathu , was an instant success — her followers back home multiplied by the second and the video crossed 19 million views. It also marked the beginning of her experimentations with classics. “I have always been a huge fan of Mohanlal, and these are the songs that I grew up listening to. I have special memories connected with these songs. I also used to watch a lot of Malayalam movies as a child,” says the artiste whose parents hail from Kerala.
Her penchant towards iconic songs was fostered by her mother Razia Moidutty who is also a singer. “The younger generation might not have listened to these songs. But at the same time, those who are familiar with the songs have a different version to listen to.”
While tweaking iconic songs, most often emotions — which ultimately shape popular opinion — are hurt. Sanah readily agrees. She has been scrutinised more than once for her choice of songs. “Many have asked me why I ‘tamper’ with these songs. But I don’t do it for the shock value. I do it for myself as well, you know; these are the songs that I love. If I had to always think about views, I would simply go for the latest songs,” says Sanah, who is trained in Carnatic music and is currently pursuing the Hindustani Classical form.
Music videos, she adds, are also about the visual presentation; which is why, a narrative is present in all of her videos. On that note, what does she look for in a song, before deciding to cover it? “The melody and the arrangement of the song really matter to me. Second in priority is the lyrics; how they sound while I sing it. Third is how much value I can add to it and fourth is how much does the song mean to me.”
