House of Experts Ep 38: Vibha Kagzi in conversation with Ronkini Gupta, Indian Classical Vocalist & Playback Singer

House of Experts is a show that ReachIvy kick-started to help those who are unclear about their career choices. We hope through these sessions with some very successful people, we can shed light on a new career path every week. House of Experts plans to make a collection of interactive and informative sessions with experts from various domains.  

Vibha Kagzi, the host, is the Founder and CEO of ReachIvy.com, a premium study abroad and career consultancy organization. Vibha, a Harvard alumna, is a successful entrepreneur and believes in helping others chalk out their future careers.  

In episode 37 of House of Experts, we were fortunate to host, Ronkini Gupta, an Indian Classical Vocals/Fusion, has traveled across the country and around the world for her solo recitals and concerts. She has lent her voice to chartbusters like Rafu and Chaav Laaga and has been nominated twice for Filmfare and Screen Awards.

Ronkini also has her own independent band – called the Kheyaal e Jazz Projekt, which has won two Artist Aloud Awards.

She has been part of Broadway Musical- Bharati (Sahara and Percept prod.) Between 2005-2012 and has performed over 1500 shows of the same across continents.

Some excerpts from the interview:

1.Tell us something about your childhood and early years.

I was born up in Jamshedpur, the Steel City of India. It was a very protected and sheltered childhood. My education was excellent as the schools are very coveted. The culture was really progressive, and I was very fortunate to have been brought up there. My mother was  a teacher, and my father was a civil engineer. Being from a Bengali family, academics was a must. So, I knew that there were a couple of things I had to do- academics, music, painting and dance. I was a really obedient and sincere child.
My parents had an ear for music, and I was initiated into the world of  classical music from a really young age. I feel that music is a gift. If you have inherited it through your genes, it is definitely a plus, but in my case, I feel it was a gift from the Divine.

2. According to you, from a personal as well as a public perspective, how important is winning a reality show for someone who wants to take up music as a career?

I would say that it’s quite important. Stage exposure and confidence is very important. A public approval definitely gives you a great degree of push to anybody wanting to look at it as a career. Having said that, a career in music is much more than just that initiation point. People without that initiation point can also have a completely separate journey and still make it to the pinnacle. It is one of the best ways to get launched but it isn’t the only way. For me, winning a reality show was definitely a personal milestone, but not a career milestone.

3. How important is a Bollywood break in any artist’s journey?

It is important because it makes you reach out to people. However, there’s a dichotomy. I feel that it is a journey. What is important to you and how important something is to you is  a personal choice. For me, music has gone way beyond just being a career move. I’m glad that I could sense that beauty in this discipline. For those who love their careers, a single-minded focus and love for what you do attracts the kind of things you would want to do. Having a sense of security from your career should never be the only agenda, there has to be something more if you want to reach the pinnacle.

4.Tell us about some of the differences between singing classical music live and playback singing.

The first and foremost difference is that in playback you need to know how to sing through a microphone. Singing inside a studio and singing on a live stage are two very different things. It’s like talking to a person in a party versus talking to someone in a closed room. The second thing is that in a studio, a lot more channelizing is required,I feel. There is a relationship to be built with the microphone, which is also a sort of riyaaz.
Also, in a live performance you have about an hour and a half to convey what you want to convey, but in a studio, you have to create that same impact within 3 minutes. You’ve to understand that it’s someone else’s vision which you have to take forward. This is applied art. It has its own limitations, and within those limitations, you’ve to shine.
Live performances have their own set of challenges. You don’t get a second chance in live performances, but flesh and blood has its own charm, and errors are forgiven. The playback space is a very non-forgiving space. You must put your best foot forward.
Your training, prowess, skill and knowledge base will help you tackle these challenges better.

5.What are some of your top learnings from all your years of training?

I have had 4-5 Gurus so far. From my first Guru, I understood the vastness of music and fell in love with it. The fundamental learning was that I understood that music had the richness of becoming a way of life. From my second Guru, I learnt two very powerful techniques of the ‘infinity loop’ and ‘distances’, and that these must be practiced for the rest of my life. From my third Guru, I learnt a very impressive technique of the ‘Merukhand’, and the whole spectrum of it, which greatly enhances your gaayki. My fourth Guru (Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan Sahab) was 100 years old when I started learning from him, and just meeting him and being touched by his presence was a learning in itself. I learnt the single-minded seeking from him. My current Guru (Arshad Ali Khan Sahab) is  a very progressive and open-minded person. I’ve actually been very lucky because all my Gurus were really progressive and always said that every genre is like a flower in the garden of music, and all of them are necessary for growth, flexibility, and to become a complete artist. 

Capitalize on your strengths, and work on your weaknesses.Music is an infinite chapter; there’s only a start point, no end point.

We would like to thank Ronkini for being so candid and for sharing her journey and her learnings with us!

Missed out on the previous house of expert episodes? You can watch them here

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