Singer Chithra on her new track, and battling depression during the pandemic

Singer Chithra, who is part of AR Rahman’s latest ‘Meri Pukaar Suno’, reflects on the happy and sad times in her career

It is difficult to picture a glum KS Chithra. She is always smiling, when she is chatting with friends or watching a film. She is smiling even when she is singing. In her earlier days in the music industry, the common joke used to be: “You cannot get Narasimha Rao to smile, and you cannot get Chitra to stop smiling.” Mention this to her, and she breaks into peals of laughter, which is pronounced even in a patchy telephone call. “I have always been like this. When I was a child, my mother used to admonish me, saying, ‘Girl children should not always go around smiling and giggling.’ My smile has always been a part of my nature,” she says. She has been spreading smiles through her songs in an illustrious musical career — one that includes 25,000-plus songs in various languages — but with latest track ‘Meri Pukar Suno’, Chitra hopes to spread hope in these trying times. Composed by and written by Gulzar, this anthem, put together by Sony Music India, also features eminent vocalists like Alka Yagnik, , Sadhana Sargam, Shashaa Tirupati and Armaan Malik. “I hope it is a balm. It was an exciting and new experience to see myself as part of a team of other established singers,” says the singer. Also part of the experience was recording for it at her home studio — which she has not done too many times previously. “I am used to going to recording studios, but this was a different experience, especially because I not a tech-savvy person. Thankfully, I had help from my managers, Vinu and Antony, to record my portions. Anytime I work for an AR Rahman track, I ensure that I give him a few options with improvisations so that he can pick and choose which he likes.”