On the contrary, the singer who got everyone singing Pareshaan, Daaru Desi and more recently Aga Bai, is on a high with the success of these songs. Shalmali, who considers Amy Winehouse her idol, believes that her USP lies in the fact that she can combine two diverse musical styles, giving rise to a new sound. CS speaks to the singer about her future plans:
Singing lessons
Music has been around me from the time I was born. My mother gave Indian Classical vocal lessons at home for around 12 years and I was made to sit in for my music class twice a week for an hour.
But I've spent more time getting inspired by the music my brother, eight years older than me, used to listen to. He heard all the pop and rock bands of the time, like Queen, Phil Collins, Michael Jackson, Aerosmith among others. So at the time, definitely, these were my bigger influences.
The power of Bollywood
I am amazed at how popular the three songs I've sung have become! No doubt I loved and enjoyed singing all of them, but since I wasn't well acquainted with Bollywood before this, the outreach of a Bollywood song has really opened my eyes to the power of this industry.
I am thrilled to hear people humming the songs, and bringing it up in conversation but I am also very anxious about what is in store for me here on and the pressure to perform at par or better than the existing songs is immense!
Experimenting galore
I don't consider myself a very good Indian Classical singer and so songs with more western arrangements suit my palette more easily than others. But I want to indulge in things I cannot do easily and challenge myself. I am very open to experimentation with any genre that comes my way.
