Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; June 6, 2016)

Thanks to Tanmay Bhat’s video mocking Lata Mangeshkar and Sachin Tendulkar that has created a furore, another video that had Sugandha Mishra impersonating the singing legend a year ago, is back in the news. Sugandha had mimicked the songstress at an awards function, which initially landed her in a controversy, but later Lata herself sent her a message appreciating her and expressed a wish to meet her.

Ask Sugandha what she thinks about Tanmay’s video and she says, “It is in bad taste, there’s nothing funny or humorous in it. It is offending. In fact, the reason I am talking about it is to tell people not to put what he has done and what I did isn’t in the same category. Mimicry is a fine art and a creative expression. What Tanmay has done doesn’t fall in any category. He and the AIB often claim that their humour is of American standard, but they are entertaining the Indian audience, right? Lataji is internationally known and I don’t think even the audience in US will find this funny. Swapping faces and making personal comments is not humour. I have always tried to raise laughter in a creative way.”

She adds that when she mimicked Lata, it was about how music has changed and how the songs should be. “Ninety per cent of the people loved it, and 10 per cent of them felt bad that I mimicked her. They felt Didi ka nahi karna chahiye tha,” recalls Sugandha.

So, does she feel they should stay away from legends or renowned personalities when it comes to mimicry? “Aisa koi rule nahi hai that you can’t mimic this person, aur hona bhi nahi chahiye. That way you are killing the art. But yes, there should be a limit. The challenge of a true artiste is to keep within the limitations and make people laugh. Otherwise even kids can do that,” she states.

Yet, when Sugandha did the impersonation, she had to face the backlash from some singers and composers. “I was shocked. The same people who had laughed at the event, next day gave quotes about how I had insulted Didi. When I read it, I got goosebumps. But the good thing that came out of the controversy was Lataji herself saw the video and appreciated me. In fact, I have heard from several singers that Didi herself is a good mimic and loves comedy. But about Tanmay, she has said that she doesn’t know who he is neither is she interested in knowing him,” she signs off.