Life seems to be a never-ending happy song for Tanvi Shah. After the global success of ‘Jai Ho' from “Slumdog Millionaire”, the versatile singer from Chennai has collaborated with music biggies such as Snoop Dogg and DJ Salah. Now, she makes it to the Latin circuit for her duet with Gustavo Alarco for his album Mundo Extrano. “Oh, I'm so excited. Hope this song helps me break into a new circle of music lovers,” she trills from Las Vegas, where she is participating in the prestigious green carpet event. In a brief telephone conversation, she speaks about her rendezvous with Alarco, the new markets she's looking at and more…
CRESCENDO After ‘Jai Ho', life's been a whirl. My new tour de force is Gustavo Alarco's Mundo Extrano. If things go well, this is a new market for me. I was introduced to the California-based Alarco by a friend in April this year. He's fascinated with Indian music. I just did a tester for him, and he loved it. The collaboration happened rather quickly. I've rendered a duet called ‘Lluvia Lejana' for the album. It's a romantic number, rich in sentiment. I sing in Hindi and in Spanish. It was a real challenge to get the Spanish pronunciation right. I read the lyric several times before singing. A friend also chipped in and helped me with understanding the nuances of the lyric. Mundo Extrano is in the nomination ballot for the 54th Grammy 2012 under the Latin/ pop/ rock genre.
DIFFERENT BEAT I'm living out of a suitcase, city-hopping in the U.S. to promote Mundo Extrano. People are open to new forms of music. And they simply love it when you sing in their language. Wherever I've visited, music lovers have been welcoming. I feel blessed because I can sing in many languages and test different waters. And at the end of the day, I learn something new. I'm happy to attend the Latin Grammy with Alarco. Mmmm… I'll be walking the green carpet!
STYLE AND SOIGNE My dress for the Latin Grammy is from Soigne K, a boutique dedicated to high-end, modern fashion at Madison Avenue in New York. It is the first boutique in the U.S. to bring multiple contemporary Indian designers under one roof. I'll be wearing a Vikram Phadnis outfit. Mitali K is doing my pre and post Latin Grammy styling.
