Usha Uthup is right when she says the song is bigger than the artiste, which is why, we keep humming her songs - Dum maro dum, ouva ouva, Darrling, and many more to date. They became unique on their account of composition and rendition. Her deep base voice and style made them stand out. Singing for the last 48 years, the effervescence and originality has remained intact in her music. The senior artiste was in town to attend “Outperformers 2017”, a western music competition presented by Asawari Music Foundation in collaboration with the Majolly Music Trust. She was chief guest at the event. Soon after reaching Bangalore Club, where the singer was put up, we met Usha Uthup for a brief chat. Exhausted she might have been but sharp wit didn’t leave her for a second.
On her love for live singing
I am a complete live singer. I started off as a live singer. I was singing in night clubs in Chennai and Kolkata. I was doing stage shows, live events. It was vice-versa for a lot of singers, singing for films. They started doing stage shows pretty late in their lives. I was singing at Oberoi Continental in Mumbai when Navketan Film Unit noticed me. And I was offered Dum Maaro Dum in Hare Rama Hare Krishna. I enjoy a live interaction with the audience. I am an entertainer. Those were the days when there was no electronic media. I was not coming on TV. So people would come to hear me and word of mouth would spread.
On having a unique voice and style
What people first noticed was the incongruity. A woman in a sari, wearing big bindi, gajra nd bangles was singing regional songs, English songs and maybe one Hindi song. It was unheard of. I broke certain notions. People expected a girl in a short black dress there and they found me. And then I had the voice that I had. My journey has been full of contrasts. I was a cabaret artiste. A cabaret artiste, according to a lot of us, is someone who strips in a nightclub but it is not true. A cabaret is a series of acts in a night club, a floor show. About 20-30 minute spots are given to singers, dancers and actors each to perform.
On carving an original style
My unusual voice meant I could only sing for bad girls, the item songs. It was fun. I was very happy doing different kind of work. I sang for the leading ladies too like for Rekha in “Roti ki Keemat” and Sridevi in “Naaqabandi” . I even sang for Mithun Chakraborty. So, I turned my weakness into strengths. I didn't copy anyone and sang in my original style. Even if I was singing a SP Balasubramaniam song, it would be my own rendering. And now because of reality shows, our country is booming with talent. It is just so fantastic.
On her recent appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati
The issue of transgenders is close to my heart and I have been associated with it for a long time. Gauri Sawant, a well-known transgender activist expressed her desire to have me on the show. She feels inspired by me. So, I was very happy to be there. And I have a long relationship with Amit ji as well. He used to come to the night club in Kolkata where I used to sing. I also worked with him in Bombay to Goa.
On Asawari
When everything is so commercial, doing projects like these give me peace and happiness. I feel blessed. I may not have lot of wealth but I feel so content. I do a lot of shows like Asawari and they are in alignment with two-fold focus - people and music. I don't like taking music for granted, I don’t like taking people for granted. Where ever I see an opportunity to grab a bit for love, I go for it.
lip smacking
Usha Uthup’s latest hit is a song in Bengali Ranna Banna. Released during Durga Puja, it has become a massive hit on YouTube. The song features famous actor Kharaj Mukherjee as a cook in a pujo pandal, who is seen questioning Didi’s culinary expertise in preparing Bengali food. The entire song is about Bengali food with different dishes being mentioned in it. In Bengali, Ranna means food.