If you've followed up with the upcoming new voices in India’s music arena, then Mansa Pandey is not someone you would have missed. The Nainital-bor n singer who became a crowd favourite with her Sufi and Hindustani covers on Instagram is one of the most promising voices at Coke Studio Bharat Season 1. The first-of-its kind season curated by award-winning musician and songwriter, Ankur Tewari with creative inputs from Kausar Munir, and KJ Singh brings 50 artistes from various regions of India to collaborate and produce more than 10 noteworthy tracks that celebrate the heritage of India with music. And given Gen Z makes up most of the listeners, the programme has roped in young and independent artistes like Mansa, Maithili Thakur, Jasleen Royal, Dhruv Vishwanath, Ashima Mahajan and many others. They embody an uninhibited way of self-expression and are ready to explore unique, diverse, and significant musical genres and forms.
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Speaking about her experience of featuring in Coke Studio Bharat, Mansa tells us, “It is a turning point for me, to be given a chance like this by none other than Ehsaan Noorani. This is a dream come true collaboration which has been on my bucket list for almost a decade. While performing gigs, I was often told that his (Coke Studio) is the right place for me. In fact, some days back, two lovely women came up to me during a gig and said ‘you should be on the platform. I told them with a big fat grin ‘I am’(smiles) and they hugged me as soon as these words left my mouth.” The platform has come with the motto of Apna Sunao to provide a stage for such gifted artistes to express their distinctive voices. Listeners can expect vocal and instrumental music which is both rooted in culture and is also contemporary. Mansa tells us how she resonates with the motto of Apna Sunao. “They are connecting the truly distinct cultural dots of various regions, mainly focusing on emerging artistes from all around the country. It’s a brilliant opportunity for beginners to collaborate with notable singers, sing in so many different languages, tell stories and bring the colours of the country. There is something for everyone in it.”
Mansa hails from the surreal hill station of Nainital where her upbringing in the lap of nature added to her musings. Couple it with education at a school that valued extracurricular activities as much as academics and it nurtured her artistic talent further. Over the years, her music style became popular for its soothing impact that ushers one into a sense of otherworldly calm. Her music is melancholically beautiful and she elaborates why it is so. “I think I’ve set out to heal and communicate, be it through a cover, an original song or a poem. The aim is to reach out to another being so that together we all can feel less lonely. I think love above anything else should be the reason for everything. Sometimes, we all tend to forget that, but I somehow try to remind myself of that often, therefore I like to refer to myself as a lost romantic.” While she’s admired for the Hindustani and Sufi genres, she also loves listening to disco and rock numbers. She adds, “Even though folk and Sufi is what people like to hear me sing, I would love to keep hopping genres and see what more I can explore.”
Coke Studio Bharat season 1 is streaming on all audio OTT platforms.
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