Usha Uthup is probably the only female singer in India whose voice can be called a baritone. “I studied in a convent in Mumbai and the sisters never knew how to place me in a choir. My voice always stood out,” she told Metrolife, during a recent visit to the City.
Despite her natural talent, singing as a profession happened by accident, when Usha picked up the microphone at a night club, during a family get-together, and sang. The rest, as they say, is history.
Her inspiration
She was highly inspired by Pancham Da. “He was a genius. He often came to listen to me at Trinkas in Kolkata.” Despite working with him in many films, her name never appeared in the credits. But she refuses to be drawn into an argument. “In the 1960s and ’70s no one knew what famous singers looked like. Even Lataji and Ashaji were identified by the heroines they sang for. But they could place a face to my voice. Contrary to popular belief Pancham Da’s last project was a Bengali puja album with me and not ‘1947 - A love story’.”
For all her talent, Usha has not been able to break into mainstream playback singing. The awards too have been few. “Music is not my business, communication is. So when I can connect to my audience be it in Kannada or Swahili, their response is my reward.”
A little known fact is that Usha is an excellent non-vegetarian cook, despite being a strict vegetarian herself. “I learnt to cook meat when I married into a Kerala household. I just followed the recipes and thankfully they turned out right.”
Usha has been in the news recently for the promotional track, ‘Wicket Bachao’, to be featured during World Cup cricket tournament. “Pritam (music director) called to ask if I would work with him on this song and I said ‘yes’. I had seen Milan’s (Lutharia) ‘Taxi 9211’ and loved that song ‘Meter down’.”
Thursday, March 1, 2007
