“I would love to compose and sing songs in all languages” – Nihira Joshi-Deshpande

As a singer and composer, Nihira Joshi-Deshpande has worked on innumerable songs over the years. Apart from lending her voice to songs from several popular Hindi and Marathi films, Nihira has also released several songs independently as a singer and composer. ‘Tumi’, however, is a special song. It is the first time she has composed and sung a Bengali song.

Tumi is your first single in Bengali. Since Bengali is not your mother tongue, did you face any difficulties while getting the words right?

‘Tumi’ is my first single in Bengali. My mother tongue is Marathi and it is a very phonetic language. I have had a keen interest in learning languages since childhood. I was familiar with the sound of Bengali language. When I composed this tune, I felt Bengali words would suit it very well. Shantanu Ghatak, the lyricist of the song, guided me very well with the pronunciation of the words and the diction. I would send him voice notes on WhatsApp and constantly seek his guidance. He was also present during the recording of the song and ensured that I pronounced each word correctly. Once I wrote the words in Devnagri, things became much easier for me.

Have you explored Bengali music or poetry in the past?

I have heard Bengali versions of many popular Hindi songs. Whenever an old or new Bengali song pops up on my feed or somebody recommends me to it, I listen to it. I have not consciously explored Bengali music or poetry but I love the sound of Bengali words. I would love to compose and sing songs in all languages.

Apart from singing ‘Tumi’, you have composed it as well. How did you think of coming up with a single in Bengali?

I did not think of composing a Bengali single. It was the other way around. I first composed the tune. The tune spoke to me in Bengali. I felt it was telling me, “I need Bengali words to complete my story”. I got in touch with Shantanu Ghatak who wrote some wonderful lyrics for the song.

The song has been written by Shantanu Ghatak and produced by Ashwin Srinivasan. How was the experience of collaborating with them?

The experience of working with both of them was phenomenal. I have admired Ashwin’s work for years. I always had this wish to collaborate with him on some project. Shantanu is a wonderful composer, singer and lyricist. Both of them are multi-talented artists. They are also wonderful human beings. The promptness with which they agreed to be on board was heart-warming.

Which are the languages you plan to explore in the future?

Music has no language. I would love to compose and sing songs in all languages. I want to make more Marathi music. Some of the languages I hope to explore in the near future are Gujarati, Braj and Awadhi.