The month of June is turning out to be very special for singer Shashika Mooruth. Known for her ability to express a wide range of emotions through her singing, her songs are now scoring huge success in India.
Born and raised in South Africa, she was in Lucknow, India recently for an interview and recording of her songs at the prestigious Uttar Pradesh Sangeet Natak Academy which was established in 1963. Her host in interview was retired All India Radio director Shri Prithviraj Chauhan who was very impressed by her amazing experiences as she shared her music journey from South Africa to India.
!Whether I am composing or performing, I always have a visual in mind. I am drawn into a scene, my music and voice speaks from my soul to the soul of my listener. It is a reflection of my life journey. I cannot describe it any other way, “ she said. I am especially very emotional on this opportunity to perform at the academy in Uttar Pradesh as my ancestors hailed mostly from villages in these parts of India. Girmitiyas were indentured laborers from British India who were transported to work on plantations in South Africa between 1860s and early 1900s. Though I have lost contact with my families in these villages, performing in Uttar Pradesh still makes me feel as if my voice is resounding and reaching out to them.
Her fan base in India has grown widely over the years. “As a descendent of Girimitiyas, the comeback to India plays an important role in my life. I feel fulfilled to contribute and be a part of music that hails from the land of my ancestors.”
Shri Tarun Raj, the director of the Sangeet Natak Academy was very interested in her profile as a South African pursuing Indian music. On hearing her voice in a YouTube video he immediately invited her for an interview and performance at the academy studio. She recorded three devotional songs for the academy and was accompanied by Dr Pawan Tiwari on the tabla and Shri Nantu Das on harmonium with Shri Sunil Yadav as engineer behind the production.
Interestingly Shashika draws inspiration from traditional influences and strongly recommends rigid training in Hindustani classical music. Acknowledging the fact that music keeps evolving with time she is also passionate about creating unique, powerful compositions that fuse with contemporary sounds.
Hence it is not surprising that her song Tamanna from her romantic album Heart to Heart also attracted the ears of Hungama Digital Media in Mumbai. June 21st was World Music Day and Tamanna was shortlisted by Hungama for their Artist Aloud Spotify page World Music Day 2023 playlist.
This song is totally world music fusion stuff and composed by the one and only Neeraj Sridhar of Bombay Vikings fame. Neeraj wrote the lyrics as well but in the remix version Shashika added a few lines in English. The arrangement is by Tutun Roy.
So it is a double success for Shashika this June in which she has shown her talent in India in both classical and contemporary genres of her music.
For more information visit: http://www.shashikamooruth.com/
