In 77, The The incomparable Usha Uthup All set to electrify the stage at this month’s NH7 Weekender in Pune. In a candid chat with Screen, the pop legend shared the secrets of her pre-concert preparations, her deliberate distance from politics and controversy, and the sacred rituals that prepare her for showtime — including her signature Srinagar, a shimmering sari, fragrant gajra, jingling. Bangles, and statement bindis. She also shares an aspiration that is still on her wish list – to act in movies.
Usha keeps you engaged with her deep voice and clear demeanor. She begins by discussing her love for all things retro but insists on presenting it in a way that the younger generation will enjoy. She says, “I ask my organizers what kind of crowd is expected at the concert and it’s very important to me because I’m probably the most senior performer in the entire lineup. I look forward to being who I am. So this time also I will sing for generations and generations. I have been singing for 55 years. So I will look for the youth but retro is where it’s at, but you have to put it on a plate and dress it up so that the new generation brings it.”
“For most of the concerts in India, we have audiences from all parts of the country. So I am sure to sing some Hindi songs, some in Bengali, Malayalam and Tamil and this time I have decided to sing some Marathi songs as well. For me, the audience and the song list are paramount.”
Asked how she prepares for a live performance, she says, “I say a little prayer and I talk to God like I’m talking to a friend. Then I make a mental note of what not to do on stage. I make a mental note of how not to say the wrong thing.” When I say I don’t mean to be politically correct, it’s because I believe that politics has nothing to do with music. Singers and musicians are one The only person who has any choice Or something, we know we’re going to win. It sounds crazy but here you don’t look at cast, color or creed, there’s no barrier and I’m pretty.”
Watch the interview here:
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Usha’s love for music started at an early age. Opening up about how she knew she could sing, she said, “I wouldn’t say we were poor, but we weren’t very rich. I come from a middle class family and working together as a family was very important. On one such family picnic in Madras (now Chennai), my aunt, who was in the government tourism department, took us to eat at a place called Nine Ratna. I was always the life of the party, I was very good at mimicking. I was quite the clown. My aunt asked me to sing and I got up and sang with this band, ‘Never Know How Much I Love You…’ It was fun. People didn’t know if I was standing there in a saree or if I was a South Indian, dressed in plain clothes. People only wondered where the sound was coming from. That’s how it started.”
As our conversation with Usha progressed well, a lovely surprise came – a bunch of jasmine gajras! Usha’s eyes sparkled as she eagerly showed us the gajras, and shared with us a fascinating ritual. She flaunted her best Srinagar accessories with love, each carefully matching her outfit of the day – her glittering bangles and custom-made bindis adding a touch of magic to her performance. “Without flowers in my hair and my sari, my bindi and bangles, I am not Usha Uthup to many people,” she declared.
With her flowers now resting on her desk and her thoughts refreshed, Usha returned to our conversation, her passion for singing brighter than ever. And yet, amidst all the joy that music brought her, Usha harbored a secret desire – the desire to explore the world of acting.
“I always shamelessly ask all the producers and directors, ‘Please give me a role, I’m dying to act,'” she says. It’s an extension of my music. I always mention that please don’t make me Usha Uthup on screen, I want to play different characters. My request has worked, I have done 2-3 films, one with Amitabh Bachchan, one with Mammootty, where I played his mother. I have also done Saat Khoon Maaf and worked with Kamal Haasan. So yes, I’ve had a wonderful time working as someone else and I can’t get enough. I really want to play a meaty role where I can make a difference in the film. I don’t want to be Usha Uthup, I want to be someone else, I can be someone’s grandmother, someone’s servant, a caretaker, a vada-pav wali (vada-pav seller) on the roadside who knows all the gossip or a bootlegger, a shoe-polisher, whatever, what fun. will be