Shilpa Rao, who won a National Award for the song “Chaleya” from Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan, appeared at the 13th edition of Expresso by SCREEN. During the session, she spoke at length about her musical influences, early training in music under her father, her views on an industry increasingly driven by numbers and virality, and her experiences working with music maestro AR. Rahman, among several other topics.‘Chaleya wasn’t an easy song’The session was moderated by Suvir Saran and Suanshu Khurana. Reflecting on “Chaleya,” Shilpa shared that performing the song was far from effortless, despite its light and breezy sound. She said, “It’s not an easy song at all. It sounds breezy because a lot of effort was being put in to make it sound like that, because if you want to sound effortless a lot of effort goes into that.”She further recalled the recording process, explaining the challenges she faced in the studio: “The first time I got onto the mic in Bombay it took some 3–4 hours and still I couldn’t crack it, because it has a very shuffle rhythm structure. You have to sing it in pockets, say Michael Jackson style. It has to be quantized but at the same time fluid because the lyrics are like that. So after 3–4 hours of struggle, I gave up.” Shilpa then spoke about how music composer Anirudh Ravichander eventually helped resolve the issue: “I went to Chennai, energy matters and Anirudh was there and we finished the recording in twenty minutes.”‘Siddharth Anand sees music differently’She also reflected on another major hit of hers, “Besharam Rang,” from another Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Pathaan. She praised filmmaker Siddharth Anand, with whom she has worked multiple times, saying, “He sees music very differently. Like for ‘Besharam Rang’ I asked him if it’s a duet, how many lines do I have? And he said, ‘Shilpa, it’s a solo, go for it.’ So he has that kind of vision and it’s great to work with such people.”Speaking about artistic individuality, she stressed the importance of developing one’s own voice: “You have one life, please sound like yourself. In our house, we listened to all these women, we didn’t listen to just one, we listened to everyone, and then there was no single reference left. Because when you listen to just one person, you start feeling that this is the only way, and this is who you have to follow. But when you listen to so many amazing voices, you get confused… then you start finding your own.”Also Read | ‘Assi has the least cheese’: Anubhav Sinha defends his ‘uncompromising’ film, says 1.2 mn viewers braved its ‘disturbing’ reality Shilpa Rao at Expresso by SCREEN‘I’m not confident at all’Despite nearly two decades in the film industry, Shilpa admitted she still experiences nervousness before recording sessions. “I’m not confident at all. I’m still very scared, and I want to retain that feeling, it just makes you more alert. I always have the fear that I won’t be able to sing the song. It’s a good fear because I’m still bothered about doing a bad job.”Story continues below this adShilpa further emphasized the importance of artistic integrity, even at the cost of missed opportunities: “You might lose a project or two, and you might let go of a song or two. Yes, it happens all the time. So you might lose it for that moment, but in the bigger picture, you have to project yourself as yourself. For example, if I have to choose between doing say a run-of-the-mill song and play it safe or choose an in-your-face kind of song where I’m being crazy, I’ll choose the second option because even if I fail at least I did what is me instead of doing something which is boring.”About ExpressoThe 13th edition of Expresso by SCREEN featuring Shilpa Rao will be streamed live on the Indian Express YouTube channel today at 8 pm. The event is presented by AU Small Finance Bank, in association with the Taj Lands End, Mumbai.Over the years, Expresso has established itself as a platform for in-depth conversations with leading voices in Indian entertainment. Previous editions have featured personalities such as Anil Kapoor, Huma Qureshi and Shefali Shah, Anupam Kher, Richa Chadha and Kabir Khan, Randeep Hooda and Hansal Mehta, Pankaj Tripathi, Kajol and Kriti Sanon, Javed Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar, Imtiaz Ali and Taapsee Pannu, as well as Vidya Balan and Pratik Gandhi.