Baby Doll, Unplugged

Like opera singers, singer Kanika Kapoor has been through an ordeal by fire that lends depth and soul to her voice.

- Nivedita Jayaram Pawar

Along with strong vocal chords, you need a dynamic personality to be a singer these days. Kanika Kapoor has that in spades, along with an unerring pitch. Her voice is a combination of both vulnerability and strength. The London based singer brought fresh nuances to item numbers, with a limber tone in Chittiyan Kalaiyan in Roy, poignant huskiness to Kamlee from Happy New Year, and the genial roar in a powerhouse rendition of Chhil Gaye Naina from NH10.

Like many a Bollywood singer, Kapoor started as a child artiste. In her case, at 12. “I grew up listening to Alka Yagnik, Lata Mangeshkar, Kavita Krishnamurthy and Ila Arun. A favourite pass time back then would be to imitate the way they sang.” Before making the nation groove to foot tapping tracks such as Baby Doll (Ragini MMS 2, 2014) and Chittiyan Kalaiyan, Kapoor used to sing bhajans and thumris for All India Radio. Later, she joined singer Anup Jalota’s troupe. “I sang with him for almost four years. He was my father’s childhood friend and a mentor to me.”