Meet The SHEROES: A QnA With Bollywood Singer Smita Jain

Smita Jain is a young Bollywood singer, a dynamic performer and a wanderer in search of her song IF and WHEN she’s not sleeping! Let's get to know her better today!
 

Tell us a little about your life 
I hail from the Pink City – Jaipur, born in a Marwadi family but raised as a Punjabi kid, I have great memories of my childhood and the city. After my schooling I had to shift to Mumbai for my College, and though it was incidental, the main motive was to pursue music from Dr Prabha Aatre. 
The credit to bring music into my life goes to my mother, if not for her, I’d have never even realized my calling. Like any small town family girl, my dreams made me follow the city of dreams. The journey has been quite thrilling and exciting, and I just love it. Mumbai is my new home.

So what made you turn to Bollywood? Any Inspiration? Or Fan Following? 
Like any other Indian I have been bought up with Bollywood stuff around me. Big “B” still rules my heart, while Sharmila Tagore’s hot sense of styling intrigued me! With my inclination towards music, I wished to be part of such a big industry. By god’s grace and with the blessings of family and friends I am glad I found my footing here. I so wish someday they would use my voice for a film that features Sidharth Malhotra in it :)

As for inspiration, Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar’s music has shaped up my thinking. I have practically grown listening to them. George Michael , MJ, Dido, Coldplay, Maroon 5 are amongst some of my Western favorites . 

How did you make an entry into Bollywood?
Well, how I entered the film industry may be accidental but it’s an exciting story. 

A completely non-filmy background made it difficult to break in at various levels but I am an incorrigible optimist. I sang for various Ad-jingles. Work led me to more work and meeting more composers. Singing scratches for film song pitches is the perhaps the only way to get your Bollywood ticket as far as singers are concerned! I sang for a zillion scratches. Had to face so much rejection, so much waiting until I finally found my first break for the title track of the film titled “Issaq” ! 

You Hail from Pink City Jaipur, which is rich in culture heritage and music. So do you also prefer regional flavors in music as the modern time is all about pop and rap music?
Oh absolutely! I love Rajasthani folk music. In fact I’m a sucker for good folk and other alternate music. I listen to a lot of Coke Studio and other Independent, Folk and Sufi artists. I believe there’s room for all kinds of music and their consumption. Though I love pop and rap just as much. There’s hardly a genre out there I don’t like! 

Did you ever have to suffer a setback? How did you overcome it?
Of course yes! Don’t we all? We fail but the important thing is how quickly we get up and get going. So often, as artists, we record songs that do not get released – those are the kind of setbacks that one learns to live with and put them under professional hiccup category. I try to concentrate on the now more than the past or the future. It’s tough but I guess Chinese cuisine comes to my rescue!  

Were you nervous when you recorded your first song?
On the contrary I was quite relaxed because I was recording my first song with Music Composer duo Sachin-Jigar and I share a great rapport with both of them because I have done quite a lot of scratches with them prior to this song. The vibe at their studio is so homely that I get relaxed and comfortable while singing. I always wished that my first song would be a romantic melody with great lyrics. Issaq Tera is a deadly combination of all my favorite elements… so I naturally gave it my best.  

How is your typical day at work?
Well, there’s really no concept of a ‘typical work day’ in our industry. We take each day as it comes. There are days when you are super busy with recordings for films, TV commercials, jingles or live shows and then there are days when you are just chilling at home , doing your routine riyaaz or hanging out with friends. No two days are same for us. Tough ones are those where u has to choose between a show and a recording, but studio is where I belong ?
 
Any particular actor and director you dream of working with?
I admire Vishal Bharadwaj a lot for the kind of movies and music he makes. So it’d be a privilege to work with him on a project. Amongst the actors who I would like to lend my vocal texture, I feel, Priyanka Chopra would be on top of my list.  

What are your future projects?
There are quite a lot of scratches for films that are still in production, I am hoping they surprise you all very soon. Apart from that, thanks to internet and Smartphone that I could work on individual level and share it my audience, so I am planning to release few of them very soon.

Post the release of my second song “khamma ghanni” from the movie happy ending; I did a unplugged version of the song for my YouTube channel (Smithaa9). I am glad to have found such a whooping response. I firmly believe that singles or covers are the way forward for every artist. 

What is your favourite song?
It’s practically impossible to handpick one song but there are a few that I’d invariably end up performing at most of my events. ‘Raabta’, ‘Kabira’, “Sun Saathiya”, “Duma Dum Mast Kalandar”, ‘Lean On’, ‘Love me like you do”, …’ are very close to my heart.  
 

If you were not a singer, what other profession would you have chosen?
I would have still been a singer albeit without my name on any credit roll. Music is all I know and my only passion. 

What’s your mantra to chase your dreams?
I am really not in a position to give anyone any advices – I can definitely share the mantra that I follow to keep up my spirit. ‘Have patience, faith and keep doing the hard-work’. More on the lines of “hakuna matata” ! 
 

Any tips for our readers who are mostly working women struggling to strike a balance between work and family.
I’d say they must celebrate themselves first! Family is always a priority but it takes a lot of courage to explore that window to identify oneself. And to top it up, getting into a professional commitment means spreading their wings and challenging the sky. But whatever you do, give it all your heart and enjoy the process.