Good girls got Lata ji and Asha, bad girls got me: Usha Uthup

Dehradun: “All the good girls got Lata ji and Asha, and all the bad girls got me” -- With this trademark burst of humour, pop icon Usha Uthup summed up the mindset she encountered early in life, one that shaped her rise as one of India’s most distinctive voices.

Known for her powerful vocals, Kanjeevaram sarees, a flower tucked into her styled hair, and a bold bindi, Uthup has always been distinctive both in her attire and sound.

At 78, she captivated the audience at the concluding act of the seventh Dehradun Literature Festival with eclectic songs and conversation packed with humour, proving she understood from the start that imitation was never her thing.

“I realised I could never sing like Lata ji or Asha. There was a preconceived idea that all pure and good girls only got Lata Mangeshkar’s voice. So all the good girls got Lataji and Asha… and all the bad girls got me. So, yes, I could never sing like anyone else. But staying true to myself is why people still love me," she said to a thundering applause from the audience.

In a freewheeling conversation, Uthup reminisced about her nearly six-decade career, which began with performances at Nine Gems, a nightclub in Madras, in the 1960s.

She also recalled how her very first Kanjeevaram saree, costing just Rs 126, came as payment for a performance at the Hotel Savera in Madras -- a memento that perhaps marked the start of her iconic style and lifelong love affair with music and sarees.

When she took the stage, it was as if someone had opened a jukebox: she swung effortlessly from her cover on Oscar-winning song "Skyfall", called "Skyfall in a sari", and American singer Lionel Richie’s 1984 ballad "Hello" to the foot-tapping Punjabi number "Kali Teri Gutt" and cabaret-style "Darling aankhon se aankhe chaar karne do".

Having enthralled audiences in 17 Indian languages and eight foreign ones, she said her fluency in different languages was not for the sake of creating a record -- it was simply how she performed and continues to perform.

“I’m the first Madrasi girl who sang Punjabi properly, by the way. Nobody else did it before me. And no matter where I go in the world, people always request ‘Kali Teri Gutt te paranda tera lal ni’,” she added.

Her journey, she added, was shaped less by formal training and more by the radio and her audiences.

“Many people ask if I was inspired by a singer, but the radio was my teacher. Whatever I learnt, I learnt from the songs on air and from the people who listened to me,” she said, naming American singer-actor Harry Belafonte as the only performer who truly left a mark.

It is her individuality, she explained, that eventually became her signature strength.

“If you realise your limitations and turn them into your strengths, it becomes fantastic. Even today, people accept me because I’m different," she added.

Uthup also reminded the audience that her rich, deep voice has powered some of India’s most iconic advertising jingles -- from "Come alive, taste of Nescafé" to "Vicks ki goli lo" and the energetic "Amul doodh peeta hai India".

“You didn’t know it was me? The big stars never did these. Middle-class people like me happily did,” she said, evoking laughter and applause.

But her singing talent and accolades aside, the Padma Bhushan awardee is not someone who takes herself too seriously -- and she advises everyone to follow suit.

She regaled the audience with a hilarious anecdote about being mistaken for Hindustani classical singer Shubha Mudgal or renowned Bangladeshi playback singer Runa Laila, even after decades in the industry.

“There was this girl who walked past me two, three times with her phone in hand. I thought, wow, she’s going to take my selfie. I got my saree right, smiled, everything ready. Later, when she came up, she asked, ‘Are you Runa Laila?’ And I said, ‘No, I’m Usha Uthup.’ So she put her phone away and just walked off. Didn’t even take a selfie!”

“So, 'aisa bhi hota hai' (this also happens). Don’t take yourself seriously. Remember, everybody will love you if you give them a chance,” she said, her hearty laughter filling the packed venue.

The three-day festival at Doon International School, themed "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: Voices of Unity", saw celebrated figures such as former CJI DY Chandrachud, actor-filmmaker Nandita Das, writer Shobhaa De, and filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj in attendance.

With discussions spanning a wide range of topics, the event celebrated the power of words to connect people across cultures and generations, fostering dialogue and unity in an increasingly fragmented world.

The literary extravaganza came to a close on Sunday.