LANGUAGE NO BAR FOR NIKHITA
Singer Nikhita’s next is an English track, keeping up with her intent to experiment with songs
After giving superhit songs such as Raabta (Raabta; 2017), Ullu Ka Pattha (Jagga Jasoos; 2017), Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe (Stree; 2018) and Poster Lagwa Do (Luka Chuppi), Nikhita is all set to venture into the independent music genre now with a new single. An English single titled For Now, it will be the first song to release from her upcoming album, Closure. Nikhita says that she has always been writing in English, so singing an English song wasn’t difficult for her. “It’s not something I really decided because I’ve always been writing songs in English. There was some apprehension about getting started and seeing these songs to completion because I never really had the confidence before, or felt that my songs were worth completing and putting out for people to hear,” she says.
Having sung a lot of songs for Hindi films, Nikhita says that having a career in Bollywood has helped her in many ways. “It has sort of helped me boost my morale and has given me the courage to push myself and not worry about what people think. The motto is to keep creating,” she says, adding, “It has all been unreal. It is still so new for me to see where I am and the kind of work I’m getting to do.”
Nikhita started her singing career with AR Rahman in a Tamil song from the film called I (2015), and she is very grateful for that opportunity and everything that followed. “I am so happy to have got all these opportunities. Who wouldn’t be if they got to start their career with AR [Rahman] sir. Every composer I’ve worked with has actually opened my eyes a little and widened my perspective. If it wasn’t for Amit [Trivedi], I would not have imagined myself singing a song as delicate as Qaafirana (Kedarnath; 2018). If it wasn’t for Sachin-Jigar, I would have never broken out of my shell and sung a Haveli (Stree) or rapped in Gujarati for Sanedo (Made in China). And of course, Pritam da, who has given me songs such as Raabta and Ghar (Jab Harry Met Sejal; 2017). I love experimenting. It makes me feel alive and motivates me to grow more,” she explains.
Nikhita’s upcoming album will be a collection of all the songs that she had written before she started her career in Bollywood. “It’s exciting because these are compositions I had made before I had a clue that Bollywood is what I’m going to do. It’s exciting to retrace those steps and I hope audiences like the album in its entirety,” she signs off.
A career in Bollywood has sort of helped me boost my morale and given me the courage to push myself and not worry about what people think. The motto is to keep creating.
NIKHITA, SINGER