Blitzkrieg of talent

It is the age of women and success stories, but not many have embraced Bollywood and business with such aplomb. Chinmayi Sripaada is testimony to this, as she effortlessly plays the roles of playback singer, entrepreneur and dubbing artiste. She is a delight to talk to, no wonder she was the translator when Hillary Clinton made her visit to India. Her recent song Zehnaseeb for Hasee Toh Phasee, she says was actually shelved but, is now the face of the movie. We get talking to this energetic multi-faceted personality about riding high on success.

A die-hard Chennaiite, her voice was refreshing when she debuted with, Oru Deivam Thandha Poovae; it still remains the same, when she crooned for Titli, in Chennai Express. She is a third-generation musician in the family and has been singing ever since she remembers. “My mom trained me in Carnatic music when I was a little girl. After that, it was a conscious decision to take up singing and it is something that is both work and passion.” Talking about playback singing, “Destiny took a turn when I sang my first composition, and since then it has been an incredible journey. I feel I am blessed to be given the kind of songs I was offered.” Singing for the tunes of A.R. Rahman to Vishal-Shekhar, she has given hit tracks from Tollywood to Bollywood. Adding to which she says, “In terms of Bollywood, it is different and I am looking forward to singing more.” Being able to effortlessly sing in multiple languages, she explains, “I grew up in Bombay, so the Tamil influence never altered my diction. However, speaking perfect Tamil was an effort to respect and love my mother-tongue.” Her diction, be it Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada music is impeccable and she is known for the kind of versatility she brings to her music. That is one of the reasons why she is a successful dubbing artiste and has dubbed for leading ladies in the South. 

The love for languages took Chinmayi to launch her own company Blue Elephant, which she proudly says, she built from scratch. Recalling her initial fears of being a first generation businesswoman in her family, she says, “I translated and documented thesis work for my cousin and learnt that the field was in demand. I did extensive research and decided on providing interpretation and communication services. It has been tough to network and build something from scratch but, I love the struggle and, therefore, enjoy my success.” Her client base extends to Forbes, Bosch, Hyundai and many more. She was chosen to be a Mentee in the Fortune/US State Department Global Women’s Mentoring Partnership and was one among the three women to represent India. Speaking about the experience she says, “Basically, business was a gamble as I was passionate about entrepreneurship and representing the country. It gave me a feeling of contentment. I  put in lot of effort into everything I did and it paid off.”