A name like Radha Mangeshkar is a dead giveaway,and the young singer whose debut album Naav Maaza Shami was launched a few weeks ago is only too aware of this. Radha is Pt Hridayanath Mangeshkars daughter and niece to sisters Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhonsle,both doyens of Indian music. I have been learning Indian classical music since I was four and been performing on stage since the age of nine. Though my father has been my guru throughout,I have picked up a lot from my aunts,especially Latajis expressive nuances in her dulcet tones, says the reticent Radha. Naav Maaza Shami,a Marathi folk album,was released by proud aunt Lata. The six tracks are mostly traditional Marathi,with fusion touches that come from two Goan melodies Mazya Govyachya Bhumit and Bai Gele Phirayla that describe the scenic beauty of Goa. There is also a unique song which is based on a Punjabi heer tune. People might not have heard a Marathi song rendered in the stirring heer tune, says Radha. The songs have been set to the lyrics by legendary Marathi poets like N.D. Mahanor,Sudhir Moghe and B.B. Borkar and the music has been composed by Hridaynath Mangeshkar. Radhas first brush with a recording studio was when she was 11,when she recorded a childrens song for a private album. There are no offers from Bollywood as yet,but the 20-something-year-old knows its just a matter of time before music directors notice her. Here,too,Lata is her heroine. My father says that when people copy her,they either sound like caricatures or get only one aspect of her rendition the punch,pitch or classical dexterity. But to be like Lataji,one must try to work on all these facets and still maintain ones own individuality, says Radha. She wants to do justice to her surname. It is easier to ride on a surname than to get up and go ahead but I want to prove everything on the basis of my talent and am sure the industry will accept me, quips Radha. Famous first words!
