A few hours before her performance in Hyderabad, Akriti Kakkar is in a sleep mode. The reason has been her hectic schedule and back-to-back performances at Asansol and Kolkata. “It has been a busy Dasara,” she smiles as she gets ready for her performance at Keyes High School in Secunderabad. Organised by Bangiya Sanskritik Sangha as part of 51st Durgotsab celebrations, her show was electrifying and continued for more than two-and-half-hours. “It was an absolutely incredible performance,” she states and adds, “There were 25,000 people and I had not expected it to be such a long concert I think it because of the power of pandal; so many accomplished artistes have performed there that energy would definitely have a positive effect.” Akriti’s show was a mix of Sufi, Bengali and retro numbers that had the audience mighty pleased, especially when she took their requests and sang independent songs and popular numbers.
Akriti has sung in movies like 2 States and Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya and has also released her independent music album. She believes live singing and recording in a studio have distinct styles. “Both have their own challenges and benefits. If you don’t sing in a studio and make your music popular, then you can’t showcase your talent in live singing. In a studio, one sings in a contained environment but have the option to sing till the time you get the line correctly. However, on stage, it is a litmus test for the singer. If you don’t get it right, people start hating you. ‘Hating’ is the word because in this era, people can’t be fooled.”
Her popularity soared with 2 States and Humpty Sharma ... but Akriti has also sung for Kareena, Katrina and Neha. She is trying to find a foothold with her independent music albums. Her quirky Batti Gul with Benny Dayal is in contrast to the single Amma which was written and composed by her. She affirms how the music spreads across regions. “In Asansol, as we were ending, someone from the audience screamed ‘ Batti Gul. ’ I was shocked but felt thrilled that even in a small place like that, people knew my songs and requested for it.”
Akriti’s sisters Sukriti and Prakruti are also into singing and have sung a few tracks. When we ask her about any sibling rivalry, Akriti retorts, “I am sure you have a sister and you know that there is no competition among sisters. They are young and we as a family are inspired. They certainly look up to me for being the senior,” she points out.
On the small screen, Akriti turns into a host along with Sumeet Raghavan on Sony Mix’s Raina Beeti Jaye . ‘Every episode has a talk on famous personalities. There is a discussion on Kishore Kumar, Shakti Samantha and Sharmila Tagore and their songs and rekindling memories,” she shares. Clearly she’s enjoying this phase of her career.
