Anusha Mani: My voice doesn’t sound well for ‘item songs’ and that’s a good thing

Singer Anusha Mani gained abundance of fame with the song Dhokha (Johnny Gaddaar; 2007). She followed it up with chartbusters like Lehrein (Aisha; 2010) and Gulaabo (Shaandaar; 2016). But she hasn’t been singing any Hindi film songs of late. “It’s not like I’m actively choosing not to work but the kind of songs coming my way isn’t exciting enough.We’re living in a world of remixes, remakes and recreations. It’s very disappointing to see original composers not getting their due credit. If I really come to think about it, the general quality of music has suffered quite a bit,” says the singer, who has been occupied in releasing indie music, including singles Saiyan More, Nafarmani and Hua Mera.

Mani adds that she isn’t interested in recording dance numbers as they objectify women: “I think my voice doesn’t sound the best for ‘item songs’. In a way, that’s a good thing. Thankfully, I haven’t been approached for them else I would’ve been in an awkward space where I’d have to turn them down.”

Not the one to associate with socially regressive songs, the singer has also put an end to her decade-long collaboration with a fairness cream brand she used to sing jingles for a couple of years ago: “I decided to take a stand and not be a part of it, because I didn’t resonate with racism and colourism [it stood for]. I knew I wasn’t directly impacting people as they wouldn’t know who is singing the jingle, but my conscience dictated this decision.”