Chhaayaageet #147 - "Saari umar maine to sirf raat mein hi gaana gaaya hai."
Her name has been spreading steadily. People in Delhi and around the suburbs had started recognizing her. But not beyond that. There is an invitation to perform a devotional concert in Bombay. Who would give up this opportunity? She had always dreamt of singing in Hindi films but family values allowed just devotional songs. They were all Mata ke bhakts.
She reaches Bombay. She is busy rehearsing for the concert when someone informs her of a phone call. “Mein Saawan Kumar producer/director bol raha hoon. Aap wohi hai jo Dilli mein Mata ke jagrate mein gaati hai?” This is Saawan Kumar, the producer/director of films. Are you the same person who sings at Mata’s Jagratas in Delhi? She is excited to hear about this opportunity to perform in front of a filmmaker. “Bahut acche. Kya aap mere ghar aa sakti hai. Maine Mata ki chowki rakhi hai.” Very nice. Can you come to my house to sing at the Mata ki chowki? Of course, the answer is yes.
She reaches his place a bit early. As she is settling in, the guests begin to arrive. She is shocked. The guest list includes Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Ravindra Jain, Aadesh Shrivastav, Asha Bhosle, etc. She is almost giddy. She performs her usual Mata ki chowki routine with all her typical songs. There is plenty of applause for her. Saawan Kumar comes to the stage and gives her a hug. “Mein jab bhi apni agli film banaaoonga, ussme iss bacchi ko gaane ka mauka zaroor doonga.” Whenever I make my next film, I will have this young girl a chance to playback for a song.
She is hopeful, someone will call her. She has the voice to wake up Durga Mata. But not for heroine playback. She is still hopeful. A year passes by. And then she hears again from Saawan Kumar.
She leaves for Bombay and records her debut song in a Saawan Kumar produced film. Once back home, she never hears back from him. The film and the song are a huge flop. Even she has a hard time remembering the lyrics of that song. Such an embarrassment.
Not everything is bad. At least her resume now has one film where she provided playback. She reaches out to all composers, big and small. No response. Sends them her cassettes of selected recordings. Still no response. She is back again signing up dates for bhakti concerts. At this point singing in film seems distant.
She has a concert coming up in Punjab. For a few of her duet songs, there is a male counterpart. He is a well-known voice in the film industry. Both have wide vocal ranges and can sing with a great deal of intensity and emotion.
He is working on a film with a well-known filmmaker and the industry’s best composer. They are looking for a strong female voice to match his power. Almost a force of nature. He makes a call to Bombay. “I think I have found the voice that we are looking for.” He hangs up and tells her, “Aap seedhe Bombay ki flight lekar chalee jaao.” You take a direct flight to Bombay.
She reaches Bombay and checks into a hotel. The whole day passes by and no word from anyone. It’s midnight now. She changes and is ready to retire.
The phone rings. “Kya aap abhi recording studio aa sakti hain?” Are you able to come to the recording studio right now? She leaves right away for the studio.
At the studio, everything is hustling and bustling at this late hour. There is the filmmaker and the composer of course. But also musicians and technicians. She is completely overwhelmed.
The filmmaker wants to make sure, he is getting the best voice out of her. “Aapka gala to theek hai? Kya aap raat mein gaana gaa sakengi?” Is your throat ok? Will you be able to sing in the night? She can’t believe what they are asking. Since she was 8 years old, she has been singing in jagraatas and Mata ki chowkis. Those events always begin around midnight and go through the entire night. “Saari umar maine to sirf raat mein hi gaana gaaya hai. Aap chinta mat kijiye.” All my life I have sung songs only during the night. Please don’t worry.”
Richa Sharma sang Ni Main Samajh Gayi in the film Taal along with Sukhwinder Singh. The music was composed by AR Rahman, lyrics by Anand Bakshi, and the film was produced/directed by Subhash Ghai. The song was picturized on Aishwarya Rai and Anil Kapoor.
Richa Sharma grew up in a middle-class family in Faridabad, Haryana. Her family were hardcore devotees of Durga Mata and participated in the jagratas and Mata ki chowkis that were scheduled during the season. That’s where Richa Sharma got the bug of singing. She wanted to sing all kinds of songs including film songs but her family was quite conservative. They were against film songs but Richa Sharma had other plans.
She was initially picked up by Saawan Kumar Tak to sing in his film, Salma Pe Dil Aa Gaya. That film was a big flop and Richa did not find the launchpad that she was looking for.
A few years later, she was spotted by Sukhwinder Singh in one of the concerts. Subhash Ghai and AR Rahman were looking for a strong female voice to match Sukhwinder’s tone. When Sukhwinder heard her, he felt that they found the right voice.
Richa Sharma continued singing devotional songs. In March 2011, Richa Sharma and her family inaugurated the Saibaba Temple in Faridabad and launched her first Saibaba devotional album Sai Ki Tasveer released by SaReGaMa India.
Singer: Richa Sharma, Sukhwinder Singh
Music: AR Rahman
Lyrics: Anand Bakshi
*ing: Aishwarya Rai, Anil Kapoor
Producer/Director/Writer: Subhash Ghai
Film: Taal (1999)