Shrinidhi Ghatate was just another talented girl with big dreams till two years back. Then everything changed; she participated in the singing reality show The Voice India? in 2015 which gave this Nagpur girl quite a lot of popularity. Shes a performer now and apart from pursuing her dreams, she is also currently studying Bachelor of Arts (Psychology) at Mithibai College of Science, Arts and Commerce, Mumbai. In an interview with Nation Next, Shrinidhi Ghatate speaks about her musical journey, her association with the singing sensation Shankar Mahadevan and her future plans.

Excerpts:

How did you get into music and who inspired you?

There is absolutely no one in my family who is into music though my maternal grandmother is a gold medalist in music. When I was in school, music fascinated me more than studies. I used to bunk the classes and would sing or play the harmonium in the music room. When I was in 3^rd grade, I started learning keyboard. After performing and singing in a few functions at school, I realised that I could sing decently. I joined music classes thereafter and started learning classical and light music. It’s my mother who inspired me. She never learnt music but she has always loved listening to music. When I was a kid, my mother would play old songs on audio cassettes and that left a long lasting impression on me.

What is favourite your genre of music?

I want to be a playback singer and for that I should know every genre very well. I sing both classical and light music, but I am more into light-classical. I like rock and pop as well.

You participated in the singing reality show The Voice India? (on &TV) and that gave you a lot of popularity. Did people’s attitude in Nagpur towards you changed after your new found success

People who were always close to me, like my friends didn’t change a bit. But people whom I never knew showered me with lot of love. They took autographs and wanted to take selfies with me when I met them.

You have been performing regularly with singing sensation Shankar Mahadevan and his team. How has your experience been so far?

I was also a part of the reality show Asias singing superstar? after The Voice of India. The show wasn’t telecasted in India and was telecasted just in UAE and Pakistan. Shankar sir was one the judges there. I was in the top five. Shankar sir heard me sing and as promised gave me a place in the Shankar Mahadevan team. I performed with him for the first time on December 31, 2015 at Adlabs Imagica, Mumbai and have been performing with the team ever since. Shankar sir is very sweet and humble. He has always encouraged me and rectified my mistakes. He has been my inspiration since childhood. So performing with him and his team is like a dream come true. He is amazing on stage and I feel really blessed to be a part of his team.

What are your future plans

I want to become a successful playback singer and want to be in music for my entire life. I want to do good shows and grow in the music industry. After some years, I plan to set up my own academy where I can teach music and instruments to students.

Apart from music and singing what are the other things which interest you?

I am pursuing studies just for the sake of a graduation degree! I use to play badminton but now I don’t get much time. There is nothing which attracts me as much as music. I like to sing and listen to different genres of music. I even listen to genres I don’t know much about so as to learn from them. Asha Bhosle and Shankar Mahadevan have always been my idols and I listen to their music a lot. Basically it’s either singing or listening to music which I do the entire day!