“At 22, I was touring the world with Manna Dey,” says singer Kavita Krishnamurthy

Where were you career-wise?

Life had taken a good direction and, at 22, I was performing with Hemant Kumar and Manna Dey across the world, doing jingles in 14 languages, doing Gujarati songs and even bhajans.

And the money situation…?

I was making a lot of money. I had a home of my own, where my aunt, a Bengali, raised me as my parents were in Switzerland.

Kavita recording a jingle at a studio

Any romance in the air…?

None at all. My family, my aunt and dog were my world. I was a confirmed bachelorette till I met my husband (L Subramaniam) in my mid-40s!

Kavita with her dog, Bingo, at home in Mumbai

Was your family supportive?

Always. Even from a distance. My sister would accompany me to concerts. My two brothers in Switzerland and the one in Calcutta also came for the ones they could. The only huge setback was that I had lost my father at 21.

On a tour in the US with Manna Dey and Mac Mohan (beside him)

Tell us about your sense of fashion…

None. I’d wear Bengali cotton saris or salwar-kameez. Only when I was abroad, would I wear jeans and shirts. I was a no make-up person. And it helped as I was never expected to dress up so much even when I was a celebrity!

Attending the platinum disc event of the film Pyar Jhukta Nahin, with Lata Mangeshkar

What did you do for fitness?

I was working like a donkey and would go from one studio to another. There were just walks whenever I had time.

Then and now : Kavita at 22 (inset), and now at 67 (above)

And the biggest life lesson you learnt?

If I can remain honest and surrender myself to God, he takes care of everything.

If you could rewind and change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I could have probably learnt how to read and write Western music. My husband does a lot of orchestral work and I remember I had to sing in 2011 with the Beijing Symphony Orchestra and I had to memorise every part as I could not read.

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From HT Brunch, December 13, 2020

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