Yashita Sharma, who is riding high on the success of her latest single remix Ni Main Yaar Manna Ni, is a new generation singer with good taste in 90’s music as she believes old is gold. She has sung songs in films like 2 States, Dil Dhadakne Do and Qaidi Band, and has become popular after lending her voice to Vani Kapoor in YRF’s music video that crossed more than 5.5 million views on YouTube.

In an exclusive interview to thestatesman.com, Yashita reveals the names of her favourite actresses that she wants to sing for, why she is comfortable with reboots and why she does not get nervous anymore while performing on stage in front of live audience. Excerpt:

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You started your journey with Sa Re Ga Ma Pa.  It’s been a long time ever since. What changes have you observed in your life?

Well it’s been a long time, indeed, and all these years have been full of learning. I’ve evolved as an artiste, a musician. I have learnt to accept mistakes. You can’t go ahead without accepting your mistakes. Before ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa‘, I was in a small world in my shell and after the show I was exposed to amazing musicians around the world. I’m able to accept the fact that I have a lot to learn and since then I have been only learning.

When did you decide that ‘this is it’, singing is what you want to do in life?

I was in school then. But music has been a part of my life since my childhood. I was always into music, but when you grow as a child, there are a lot of other things that requires your attention.

There is academics, family events and you want to play with your friends. There are a lot of things. But I guess I was in seventh or eighth standard when I decided to make this a permanent part of my life.

You sang nine songs in the film Qaidi Bandh. How did you feel after singing for the complete album of the film?

It’s a great feeling as a lot of people don’t get this opportunity. And I know a lot of people wants to be here where I’m right now, even if that’s not much, it means a lot to me because I’m working with some big names like YashRaj and Arijit Singh as these people are all set to go into history as some of the greatest musicians and I feel humbled and honoured to work with them.

Do you think music in Bollywood is getting as much importance as Hollywood?

Times have changed for sure. The evolution of music has been great. I can see a lot of independent musicians now. It’s not limited to just pop music if it would have been the 90s then pop would have been the choice. I’m happy that many others genre like jazz and Dhinchak Pooja’s cringe pop is getting popular among the fans. You can see that people from all genres are coming out and show the fans that this is what they want to deliver, which indicates good times for the music industry in Bollywood.

In recent times, we have seen reboots of many popular 90s songs like Tamma Tamma and Tumein Apna Banane Ki Kasam just to name a few. So in your opinion, do you think rebooting songs would hurt the legacy of the original?

As long as aesthetic value of the song is retained in the song, I honestly don’t have any problem with the reboots. But, of course, my preference is with the originals. I would always go for the original song.

Any particular actress that you feel like you want to lend your voice for in the films?

Can it be more than one? Ok. So I have sung for Priyanka Chopra in the past. So, now I would like to sing for Kareena Kapoor Khan, Kangana Ranaut , Anoushka Sharma and Alia Bhatt. I have sung for Alia in 2 States. So yeah I would love to sing for these actresses.

How difficult is it to perform in front of a live audience on stage and recording in a studio?

Both are difficult in their own way.  You have to be in the recording room for a very long time which is not easy and on stage you feel the pressure of performing in front of a live audience. But honestly I have been performing for so long on stage that now it feels like I’m at home whenever I’m on stage, I feel more comfortable. I’ve technically forgotten to feel nervous while or before performing on the stage. I do feel excitement but there is no nervousness for me now.