Two South African white Afrikaans—speaking sisters surprised one and all at a concert with their stirring renditions of popular Hindi Bollywood numbers in flawless diction.
At the concert of the Drisha Music Academy, where sisters Katharina and Frances van der Walt have have honed their skills, they had the audience in awe as they performed a duet from the Shah Rukh Khan—starer film ‘Chennai Express’.
Inspired to sing by their parents, mother Theodora and stepfather Kevin Drummond, both professional musicians, the pair says they love all kinds of music.
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Their interest in Bollywood music began when they first watched Shah Rukh Khan sing to Kajol on screen in the film ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’.
The sisters, dressed in sarees, enthralled the audience at their debut performance with renditions of Hindi songs that put even many local Indian singers to shame.
In order to learn Hindi so that they could understand the Bollywood songs, Katharina, 23, an honours graduate in developmental studies from Wits University, and Frances, 19, a second year law student, went to the Indian Cultural Centre near their home in Parktown, Johannesburg, to join Hindi language classes run by Virjanand Garrib.
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A joke from Garrib — that they had to sing a song for him before they could join his class — further encouraged them to join the music classes run by Monali Shome at the Drisha Music Academy.
“We continued with both classes. Knowing the language definitely helps in not only understanding but also performing the songs,” Frances said.
“We were very nervous about performing on stage at the show, but Monaliji really supported us,” she added.
“Performing regularly as the jazz band Hot Club D’Afrique with our parents also helped,” said Katharina, who plays the piano, bass and clarinet.
Frances, meanwhile, is skilled with the violin, guitar and bass.
The sisters say that they sometimes sang Bollywood songs for friends and family, but often got a little shy about it, although they were well-received.