On Sunday evening, the ‘Melodious Moments with Sunitha’ concert will have Sunitha Upadrashta performing live at Shilpakala Vedika auditorium, presenting some of her most memorable numbers. This is Sunitha’s 25th year as a playback singer and she strains to remember when she headlined a live concert in Hyderabad last time. “I think this is my first solo concert in the city, though I’ve sung along with other artistes earlier,” she says.
Sunitha will be accompanied on stage by a guest performer — prodigy pianist Lydian Nadhaswaram. Sunitha has been in touch with Lydian to see how they can jam together and surprise the audience. “His sister [Amrithavarshini] who’s a flautist, will also be on stage. I am waiting to listen to their music,” says Sunitha, adding that Hyderabad-based band Capricio, known for its trance music, will also add sheen to the concert.
In the days leading to the show, the organisers mooted a campaign on Facebook, asking music lovers to list songs they want to hear at the concert. “In addition to presenting my songs, I want to pay short tributes to a few senior singers I’ve enjoyed listening to. Say, if I am paying an ode to S Janaki-amma, I will sing her all-time hits like ‘Chinni Chinni Koilamma’ ( Mouna Ragam ),” says Sunitha.
Lydian Nadhaswaram
Sunitha’s own repertoire begins from her playback debut with the ‘Ee Velalo Neevu’ song from Gulabi (1995). Traversing 90s and 2000s to the more recent hits like ‘Em Sandeham Ledhu’ from Oohalu Gusagusalade (2014), the concert will cover a mix of old and new numbers. In the nearly three-hour concert, the focus will also be on some of Sunitha’s independent songs and devotional numbers. She asserts there will be new songs as well, and reveals that she has recorded more than 30 songs by lyricist Kalaga Krishna Mohan.
The last few days have been a blur for Sunitha, as she juggled her time between recording studios and rehearsals. The playback singer and dubbing artiste is a household name thanks to the television show Swarabhishekam .
In the last 25 years, Sunitha has collaborated frequently with composer M M Keeravani and recently, her daughter Shreya too debuted as a playback singer with the song ‘Tick Tick Tick’ composed by him, for the film Savyasachi . “When I was a relatively new singer and working with him for the first time, I was nervous at the thought of singing for ‘the’ Keeravani. But I discovered that he had the ability to get along with people of any age group; he made me feel at ease, talking like a peer,” recalls Sunitha.
When her daughter Shreya recorded with Keeravani, Sunitha waited outside the studio, not wanting to make her more nervous. “Shreya stepped out after recording her song and told me ‘it felt like I knew him for years, ma’,” adds Sunitha.
Apart from new songs waiting to be unveiled, Sunitha is also looking forward to the period film Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy , in which she is dubbing for Nayanthara.
(‘Melodious Moments for Sunitha’ is on August 4; 6.30 p.m., at Shilpakala Vedika, Hyderabad. Tickets on bookmyshow.com)
