Mumbai, May 9 (PTI): Coming from a family that didn’t appreciate women pursuing a career in performing arts, Anuradha Paudwal says her singing career of over 12,000 film and devotional songs seems like a “beautiful coincidence”.
Paudwal was launched in films as a playback singer by legendary composer SD Burman in 1973 classic “Abhimaan” with an iteration of shlok ‘Omkaram Bindu Samyuktam’. She followed it up with a series of other studio recordings in Famous Studio, Film Centre and Bombay Land.
But a chance to sing with Mohammed Rafi; 250 live shows with Kishore Kumar, including one at New York’s Royal Albert Hall; and a memorable album in “Aashiqui”, was not something she “anticipated”.
“I come from a family where my father would say, 羨che ghar ki ladikyan film industry mein gaati nahi hai’ (Women of respected families don’t sing in the film industry)…That was a different time.
“I was extremely lucky to have been launched by SD Burman ji with 羨bhimaan’… Nothing was planned… All of it was just a beautiful coincidence. I had never anticipated anything like this, but due to the blessings of God things kept happening,” Paudwal told PTI in an interview here ahead of an event organised by her Suryodaya Foundation.
Through the foundation, the veteran singer said she is committed to help and support socially and economically challenged segments of the society in fields of education, healthcare and water conservation with focus on rural development and women empowerment.
At the NGO’s event here on Tuesday, the singer, along with Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, distributed hearing aids to under-privileged kids.
