Before talking about the struggle of Usha Uthup, remember some songs. 'Loved friends, took revenge from enemies... Whatever we did, we did it... with pride', 'Hari Om Hari-Hari Om Hari, 'Ramba ho ho... Samba ho, some here aha dance and dance, some there aha dance dance, Ek do cha cha cha, darling aankhen se aankhe char karne let. These are those selected songs which wherever they are playing, you start humming. All these songs are a big identity of playback singer Usha Uthup. His voice is different. Their payment is different. His style is different. But it was very difficult for him to create this identity.
It so happened that Usha was fond of singing since childhood. One day she went to the school teacher. Little Usha expressed her desire to learn music. When the teacher heard Usha Uthup's song, she refused. The teacher said that Usha did not have the voice for singing. There should be softness in the voice for singing. Whereas Usha Uthup's voice was very close to a masculine voice. Very few children can face this rude style of teacher. Just think about it, if a teacher refuses a small girl like this, most of the children would be disappointed. There will be tears in his eyes. But Usha Uthup did exactly the opposite. He ignored what the teacher said. She continued singing the way she used to sing.
Where did Usha Uthup get the taste of music?
It was just a few months after independence. Usha Uthup was born in Mumbai. Father used to work in crime branch. It would be rare to think that there is music in such a family. But Usha's mother was very fond of music. She also sang as an amateur. The interesting thing is that even in the fifties it was not the case that only a few select artists were heard in this family. In fact, there was amazing variety. Beethoven and Mozart were heard in Western classics. In Indian classical music, the voices of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Begum Akhtar and Kishori Amonkar used to resonate in the house. That means the 'range' of musical interests was also amazing. The musical traditions of Usha Uthup came from here. Usha Uthup would start singing as soon as she got free time in school. The study table was converted into a table. The rest of the children in the class would join the 'chorus'.
This sequence continued for a long time. Usha's sisters at home were also fond of singing. Overall, my passion for listening to music gradually progressed towards learning singing. But when he expressed his desire to learn music, he was rejected. But then something happened that Usha strengthened her resolve. Usha was 22 years old, she sang in a program in Madras. There was a lot of applause. Although it was an English song. Usha Uthup learned a big lesson from the praise she received that day. He understood that if he wants to make a name for himself in singing, then first of all it is very important to be original. After this she set out on the path of singing.
The journey started with singing in night club
Usha Uthup had decided to become a singer, but she was going to try this at a time when there were singers like Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle in the industry. In such a situation, Usha's journey started with singing in night clubs. Usha Uthup's luck changed during one such program in Delhi. Before Delhi, Usha Uthup had also sung in night clubs in cities like Madras and Kolkata. Usha's attire was also different - it is the same even today. Bright colored saree… big bindi. When Usha used to sing film songs in night clubs, another song of hers was Kaali Teri Guth Te Paranda Tera Lalni. Some big people from Navketan Films unit were present in that night club of Delhi.
At that time work was going on for the film 'Hare Rama Hare Krishna'. This was the film of the big star of that era, Dev Anand. Pancham Da was composing the music of this film. People from the film's unit found out about the girl singing in the club. After collecting all the information he contacted Usha Uthup. The offer was simple – will you sing in our next film? Usha had no reason to refuse. He agreed. A song was composed for that film – Hare Krishna Hare Ram… the rest of the story after this is recorded in history. Even today people dance and dance to the songs of Usha Uthup. Usha Uthup has also done acting along with singing. But she says whatever she sang, she sang from the heart. She defines her life with her own songs – Friends Se Pyaar Kiya, Dushman Se Revenge Liye…Jo Bhi Kiya Hume Kiya…Shaan Se
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