Sowmya Raoh hails from Bangalore and is the daughter of the reputed playback, folk and devotional singer B K Sumitra. As she puts it, singing was in her genes and at the tender age of 7, Sowmya began to sing on stage.
After completing her BA, Sowmya began working as a dubbing artist. Her playback career began while she was in Bangalore in 1993 following which she sang for films in Kannada, Telugu & Tamil. She has sung for the Telugu version of MAST, the Tamil version of RUN, KHUSHI, etc.
The title of the "Hottest Singer" was bestowed on Sowmya after the Telugu hit "Greekuveerudu" from the film "Ninna Pelladata" starring Tabu & Nagarjuna. The track ran for 20 consecutive weeks in the box office charts at No.1.
Credited with almost 200 songs down south, Sowmya Raoh has sung for well known Music Directors such as A R Rahman, Illyraja, Deva, Vidyasagar, Hamsalekha, etc. But Sowmya wanted to take up the challenge of singing for Bollywood and so she decided to move to Mumbai in 2001.
Her first entry into Bollywood was through Sandeep Chowta in JUNGLE with whom she had been working since Bangalore.
Since JUNGLE (Aiyyo Aiyyo Rama) she has sung for various films including PYAAR TUNE KYA KIYA (Rhounde Hai…), COMPANY (Aankhon Mein Rahon), DUM (Jeena, Dil Hi Dil Mein), BOLLYWOOD HOLLYWOOD (Sooni Hawa), EK AUR EK GYAARAH (Gungunaata Hai), SAMAY (Laila Laila, Zindagi), BUNTY AUR BABLY (Nach Baliye), FAMILY (Katra Katra), and some that are due for release.
Sowmya has also rendered her voice to non-film projects including Sandeep Chowta's Mitti & Now That's Sandeep Chowta, the remix hit "Hai Re Hai Mera Ghoongta", Dance Fever – Yeh Hai Reshmi Zulfon Ka Andhera to name a few.
Sowmya Raoh won the STARDUST AWARD in 2003 as the Best New Singer for " Laila Laila" from SAMAY.
As a performer, Sowmya has the capacity of mesmerizing her audience purely by her voice. Her range and versatility gives her the ability to perform and render songs of any genre be it soft ballads or hard core mass appeal item songs.
Sowmya believes that the industry is still waiting for the 'right' song for her.
PERFORMANCES:
Corporate shows: All over the country
Live shows: Australia, Europe, West Indies
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS :
STARDUST AWARDS 2003 - Best Female Playback Singer
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| On stage you have to exert your voice or you have to be little loud. In a studio you have to be extra careful" – Sowmya Raoh | ||||||
| By IndiaFM News Bureau, July 19, 2006 - 23:39 IST | ||||||
| Sowmya Raoh – does the name strike a chord? Well, it surely will when we tell you that she is the voice behind songs like Nach Baliye (Bunty Aur Babli), Dilbara (Dhoom), Jeena (Dum) and Laila Laila (Samay) ! Just to name a few. This trained singer from South believes in quality work. Sowmya speaks to IndiaFM about her singing down south, in Bollywood and her journey so far. Was taking up singing as a career your personal choice or something that happened due to the influence of your father, considering he was a reputed singer? My mother was a Kannada singer and I used to accompany her to the recording studios. Then I started as a child singer. My father was with RBI. He was also a singer and along with them I started singing. Then I took a break for some years and resumed singing when I was in college. That time I was not quite serious as I never thought that I will take it as a profession. Did your training happen at home or did you take any formal training in singing from outside? It's a discipline in South that each child should learn either music or singing. I learnt Karnataka classical singing for 5 to 6 years. Later I shifted to light music.
Yes, when I was in Bangalore in 1993, I started as dubbing artist. After that people began to know me and my work. Music composer Sandeep Chowta was looking for a singer, who could sing Hindi songs. Initially when I used to sing with Chitra, I used to observe her. I learned few things from her. And of course everyone learns from trails and errors, I too. It is a slow process but quality has been a part of my work. Wasn't the Telugu song "Greekuveerudu" from the film "Ninna Pelladata" a turning point in your career? Yes it was. I was singing for Sandeep Chowta at Banglore when 'Ninna Pelladata' happened. The response was quite appreciating. Sandeep wanted a singer to sing in Tamil and Telugu along with Hindi. How did you start out in Bollywood? Well, I can say that I grew up watching Hindi music so there were no extra efforts to grasp the language. In year 2000, when I used to visit Bombay on and off, I got my first project. I lent my song for the 'Soul of Jungle' and then a background track of 'Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya'. Company was my first Hindi film as a singer. After that, other Hindi films like Dum, Bunty Aur Bubli happened. Does the actor's personality affect the voice you lend to them? No, it doesn't affect to any actor's personality. While in my case my voice is heroine oriented so I don't have to modulate my voice. I have sung for many actresses in various languages and different types of songs.
I love to experiment; similarly I would like to try the entire genre. I want to explore my voice in every genre. Till now I have not restricted myself to any specific types of songs. I am open to every new thing that excites me as a singer. How tough is it to sing in different languages? Kannada is my mother tongue, so if you know Kannada language then you end up following Tamil and Telgu languages too. I used to hear lot of languages and grasp it quite fast.
I like Lata Mangeshkar, Sukhwinder, K.K, Shaan and they all are good singers. But if you ask me about my favorite singer then I would say its Sonu Nigam. He is the most versatile singer in Bollywood. He is an idol for me.
I have worked with most of the music directors like Sandeep Chowta, Anu Mallik, Vishal Shekhar and Shankar Ehsaan Loy. There are many with whom I would like to work with. I want to work with everyone as they all have their own style of music. You have done many live shows. What's the difference between performing live and singing in a studio? Performing live on stage is totally different from singing in a studio. On stage you have to exert your voice or you have to be little loud. Whereas in a studio you have to be extra careful as there is lot of creativity involved in making a song.
Winning an award is good but it doesn't mean that if you get an award, you are a good singer or vice versa. It feels good when you are appreciated by the audiences. But at the same time you have to be realistic as there are so many talented people around. So in that case winning an award is like getting appreciated by our audience.
There are some films that I am working on. But I can't name them as they are under production. I have sung for Khosla Ka Ghosla that's releasing soon. I am also singing for a Yash Raj movie. |
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Sowmya Raoh speaks on 'SOWMYA'!
| By Sameer Wadekar, Bollywood Trade News Network |
She is credited with more than 200 songs down South and is a huge craze amongst her fans there especially after her stupendously hit Telugu number "Greekuveerudu" (from the film NINNA PELLADATA) which ran for 20 consecutive weeks at No 1 position. She has extensively worked with maestros like A R Rahman, Deva, Illyraja and Vidyasagar. But she was eager to sing for Bollywood and that opportunity came through Sandeep Chowta with 'Aiyo Aiyo Rama' (JUNGLE). She then sang some wide popular songs like 'Ankhom Mein Rahon' (COMPANY), 'Zindagi' (SAMAY) and 'Jeena Tere Liye' (DUM). But it was 'Katra Katra' (FAMILY) and 'Nach Baliye' (BUNTY AUR BABLI) that has catapulted her to the zenith. We are talkin' about Sowmya Raoh!
BUNTY AUR BABLI was one of 2005's biggest hits and its songs were an absolute rage. 'Nach Baliye' was a standout for its easy-on-ears catchy tune and Sowmya's soothingly ecstatic voice. The talented trio of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy did the musical score for the film.
And now this brilliant singer has added another gem into her kitty! Her self-titled album SOWMYA had its official launch on 5th April 2006 at the hands of veteran actress Dipti Naval and versatile composer Sandeep Chowta. The album is released by Times Music.
The album has in all nine tracks, five of which she has sung previously including the peppy 'Haai Re Haai Tera Ghoongta' (from the album JALWA 3). The rest four numbers are original compositions of which one is composed by Sowmya herself! The track is called 'Nazar Na Lage' which is more in the Qawwali format.
But is it the right time to cut a pop album? There's a 'Sowmya' reply, "Yes I know that the non-film music segment is not doing well these days. But I have made an effort to keep my album as innovative as possible so that it reaches out to a vast multitude. Isme Har Mood Ke Liye Gaana Hai. (This album has got songs for every mood)."
There is a video song called 'Pyaar Hai' composed by Taufees Akhtar who has also done the remix of the same number. Directed by N C Matthew this is Sowmya's first commercial video "It was wonderful to work with Matthew. We shot the video in Chennai in soaring temperatures but it was a lot of fun," Sowmya chuckles excitedly.
What are her current assignments? "Well, there are a few film songs I am doing right now but it's too early to speak about it, you see."
And her expectations from this album; is she nervous? "I am excited but I haven't kept any exorbitant expectations. Basically this is another crack at my musical endeavor and I hope my fans would welcome it open-heartedly! That's all I wish at this moment," she concludes.
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