A classical twist: Singer Shreya Jain, who made her Bollywood debut through 'Attack', releases her debut EP

She made her Bollywood debut with three songs from the film Attack, starring John Abraham, Jaqueline Fernendez and Rakul Preet Singh. Now, singer-songwriter Shreya Jain has just released her debut EP titled Bawari. Hailing from Nagpur, Maharashtra, she has been learning music since the age of five. Her father Shyam Jain is a hindustani classical vocalist, so Shreya was always around music. Following the release of the EP, we got chatty with Shreya to uncover everything related to her newest project.

Can you take us through the EP?

I grew up listening and learning hindustani classical music from my guru and my father and I have been releasing my music for almost one and a half years now. I’ve been experimenting with a lot of genres and melodies and I have realised one thing, that hindustani classical melodies come naturally to me. That may be because I used to wake up listening to my father’s riyas. That used to be the alarm for me. When I was thinking of doing my first EP, I thought of doing something that comes very naturally to me. So, I wanted to do something related to hindustani classical music and a lot of international producers and DJs are very intrigued by this form of music and they do want to collaborate. I have gone a bit crazy with this EP, that’s why the name Bawari. We have a Tamil Hindi song, there is a rapper in one of the songs, which is unexpected in classical music. That’s how the title of the EP came about.

You made your Bollywood debut with the movie Attack. How did that opportunity arise?

During lockdown, I started producing music and the composer of Attack, Shashwat Sachdev, started following my work. He reached out to me asking if I was interested in working on this project. I thought of it as the perfect opportunity to understand how the Bollywood business works and how music for films is made. Then I came to Mumbai but unfortunately during the lockdown, I had to shift back to my hometown. After some time, I came back to Mumbai, assisted Shashwat for almost a year and a half. That’s when we worked on the songs and the scores for the film.

Which was the most interesting track to work on in the EP?

I would say it was the Tamil Hindi song. It’s titled Ghanan. I love Tamil and I listen to a lot of South Indian music. I listen to Rahman (AR Rahman) sir’s music. I also love Anirudh’s (Anirudh Ravichander) work. So, I’ve been listening to a lot of South Indian songs, and I wanted to make a South Indian song. While working on the track, I decided that I wanted Sanah Moidutty to be featured in it. I have been following her work for more than 10 years now. So, I texted her on Instagram and she was very excited about the song. Since the song is about rain and this was the first time I wrote a song about rain, it’s the truest emotion for me.

What were some of your learnings growing up as a musician?

My singing has gotten better and songwriting is definitely a journey. I have worked with so many people and been in the industry for more than five years. Another learning, which I would say isn’t really related to music but life in general, is that quality is always better than quantity. When I came to Mumbai five years ago, I had five friends and I still have those five friends. It’s important to surround yourself with good people, who believe in you and your art.

Do you plan on venturing out and trying new genres in your music?

I have experimented with a lot of genres. Not primarily in hindustani classical music but I think now I want to. I want to stick to this. I have been pitching for a lot of films and I am writing music for a lot of other people. But this is the sound I want to carry ahead and as I told you before, this is the way forward for international collaborations and that is what I want to do.

Finally, what’s next for you?

Following the EP, the next step is releasing an album, which I am planning to release next year. Apart from that, I will continue putting out my independent releases. Also, I am planning for an India tour in November or December.

Bawari is streaming on all audio platforms.

Email: alwin@newindianexpress.com

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